Ralston Breakfast Food

Fish Cakes Buttered Toast

Coffee

Fish Cakes

Mix remnants of the Finnan-Haddie with Mashed Potatoes left from the evening before; add 1 egg well beaten, shape into cakes, and saute in 2 T butter.

For Ralston Breakfast Food follow directions for Cream of Wheat given in Lesson 4.

Preparing The Meal

Start the cereal to cooking. Prepare the fish cakes and while sauteing make the coffee and toast the bread. Serve the cereal and then the rest of the breakfast.

Saturday Morning Baking

The following dishes for Saturday and Sunday meals should be prepared in the order given.

Coffee Cake

To I c scalded milk add 1/3 c butter, or butter and lard, 1/4 c sugar, and 1/2 t salt. When lukewarm, add 1/3 yeast cake dissolved in 1/4 c lukewarm water, 1 egg well beaten, flour enough to make a stiff batter and 1/2 c raisins, scalded and cut into small pieces. Cover, let rise over night; in the morning work down well by stirring with a wooden spoon. Turn out onto a floured board, pat or roll into a sheet about 1/2 inch thick, put into a shallow pan, brush over with beaten egg and spread with a mixture made of 3 T melted butter, 1/3 c sugar, and 1 t cinnamon. When the sugar is partially melted, sift on 3 T flour.

Place the Coffee Cake in a warm place until double in bulk, then bake 1/2 h or longer, until done.

If desired, this process may be started in the morning, but in this case 1 whole yeast cake must be used. Then proceed as above.

Cheese Crumpets

Scald 2 c milk in a double boiler; to 1/4 c melted butter add 1/4 c cornstarch, 1/4 c flour and 1/2 t salt; mix well and add to scalded milk. Cook 5 m, stirring constantly. Add the yolks of 2 eggs slightly beaten and 1/2 c cheese, cut into small pieces. When the cheese is melted, pour into a buttered shallow pan and cool. Turn onto a board, cut into squares, place on a pan, sprinkle with 1/4 c grated cheese and brown in the oven. Serve on crackers.

Drop Cakes

Cream 1/3 c butter, add 1 c sugar; mix well, add the yolks of 2 eggs and when well beaten into the sugar, add 1 1/2 c flour, sifted with 3 t baking powder, alternately with 1/2 c milk. Lastly cut and fold in the stiffly beaten whites of the 2 eggs and 1 t vanilla.

Drop from a spoon into greased muffin rings and bake about 15 m in a moderate oven. Frost if desired.

Caramel Custard

Heat 1 quart of milk in a double boiler; while this is heating, caramelize 3/4 c sugar by boiling with 1/4 c water until golden brown in color. Then pour slowly into the hot milk, stir and cook until thoroughly dissolved. The high temperature of the syrup will raise that of the heated milk, causing violent boiling. Hence, care is necessary in combining the two. Now proceed according to directions given in Lesson 12 for Baked Custard, using 4 eggs, 1/4 t salt, but no sugar.

Nut Blanc Mange

See Lesson 15, adding 1 c finely chopped nut meats just before molding. English walnuts, pecans, almonds, etc., are all good.

Apple Sauce

Pare, quarter and core 6 tart, juicy apples; add 1/2 c water and cook until tender, having a hot fire so that the apples may be cooked quickly. Add a few grains of salt, sweeten to taste and cook enough longer to dissolve the sugar.

Chocolate Sauce, see Lesson 6. Salad Dressing, see Lesson 15.

Method Of Work

Immediately after breakfast, work down the Coffee Cake if started the preceding evening, arrange in the pans with the sugar mixture and stand in a warm place to rise. If not already started, make the sponge with a whole yeast cake and set away in a warm place for the first rising. It should be kept especially warm, between 80° and 900 F, if started in the morning.

While the Coffee Cake is rising, which will take between 1 and 2 h, according to the time of starting the dough, make the Cheese Crumpets and set aside to cool.

Start the sugar to caramelizing and the milk to heating for the Custard and Blanc Mange, and then make the Drop Cakes. Place in the oven and finish the Custard, reserving some of the milk for the Blanc Mange. By this time the Coffee Cake, if started by the long process, is ready to be baked. Also the Custard, set in a pan of water, may be put into the oven if there is room. If not, let it wait until the cakes are done.

Now finish the Blanc Mange and while it is cooking make the Apple Sauce. When finished, make the Chocolate Sauce and, if necessary, a supply of Salad Dressing.

The Coffee Cake, if started by the short process, should now be baked. It should be worked down and put in the pans after making the Drop Cakes and before making the Custard.