The following recipes and remarks will be found valuable assistants to those so situated, and will offer many practical suggestions intended to develop ingenuity and skilfulness in this much-neglected branch of cookery. Avoid asking that innocent but often annoying question, "What shall we have for breakfast?" Rely upon your own resources and inventiveness, and you will soon master the situation. The average business man generally knows but little of what is or is not in market, and he dislikes to have his gastronomic knowledge constantly analyzed.
Should your domestic duties prevent you from occasionally visiting the public markets, it will be found expedient to subscribe for a reliable newspaper that makes a specialty of reporting the latest gastronomic news. This cannot be accomplished by cook-books, owing to the fluctuations in prices and the constant arrival of "good cheer" at seasons when least expected.
Steaks and chops are looked upon as the substantials of the breakfast-table, but when served continually they do not give satisfaction, be they ever so good, and are not duly appreciated unless interspersed occasionally with lighter dishes.
FRUITS.
Apples, Baked.—Peel and core six large sour apples; mix together a cup of sugar, half a teaspoonful of mixed ground spice, a saltspoonful of salt, two tablespoonfuls of grated cracker crumbs, and two tablespoonfuls of milk or water. Fill the core with the mixture; put the apples in a pan, and bake; serve them hot or cold with sweetened cream. A border of whipped cream around the apples may be substituted for the plain cream.
Apples may be served sliced, covered with sugar and a mild liquor poured over them, and topped off with whipped cream.
Bananas.—Select short, thick, red or yellow bananas; peel and cut them in quarters lengthwise; serve on a napkin.
Blackberries, Raspberries, Whortleberries, etc., are too well known to require instructions as to how they should be served; but a word of caution is necessary. They should be very thoroughly examined before they are served; all stems, bruised berries, and unripe fruit should be removed, and a thorough search made for minute particles of grit and for insects.