If the above seasoning is not allowed, boil the sago in milk only, or water only, till the liquid becomes thick and like a jelly.
Sago Pudding for an invalid.—Boil three table-spoonfuls of soaked sago in a pint of milk till quite soft. Add gradually three ounces of white sugar, and set it away to cool. Beat three eggs till thick and smooth, and stir them by degrees into the sago and milk. Grate in some nutmeg, and bake the pudding in a deep dish. Tapioca pudding is made in the same manner.
SWEETBREADS FOR INVALIDS.—
Cut open two fine fresh sweetbreads, and lay them in warm water till all the blood is discharged. Then transfer them to a pan of cold water to blanch or whiten. Stew them in the strained liquid of fresh oysters, till quite tender. When done, take out the sweetbreads, remove the gristle or pipe, and serve them up warm, having laid in the bottom of the dish a slice of nice toast that has been dipped for a minute in hot water. If permitted, the oysters may be cooked with the sweetbread, first removing the hard part.
STEWED SMELTS.—
Smelts are considered a delicate and nutritious fish for invalids. They are in season in winter, and early in the spring. Choose them as large as you can find them. Having drawn and cleaned them, cut off their heads and tails. Put sufficient water to cover them in a small stew-pan, adding a very little powdered white sugar, and a few small sprigs of parsley, or sweet marjoram. When the water boils lay in the fish, and simmer them five minutes. Then stir in a very little arrow root, mixed with a few drops of cold water, and let it stew ten minutes longer. Serve up the stew in a small deep dish with a cover, and eat with it some very light bread-roll. It will be a pleasant change from the usual broths and infusions prepared for the sick.
A Molasses Supper.—Make a thick slice of very nice toast, evenly browned on both sides, but not the least burnt. Lay it in a pint bowl, and pour over it a small half pint of the best West India molasses, having stirred into the molasses a heaped table-spoonful of ground ginger. Mix the molasses with half a pint of hot water, and pour the whole over the toast. Cover it with a plate for a few minutes, and eat it while warm, previous to going to bed. This is a wholesome strengthening palatable supper for an invalid, (as we know by experience) and may be continued as long as the patient continues to like it. It is always a good winter supper for children. The ginger must on no account be omitted. If the molasses has turned a little sour, stir in a salt-spoonful of soda.
To prevent a jug of molasses from running over when kept in a warm place, pour out a little into another vessel, and leave the molasses jug uncorked for two days. Then cork it tightly.