The "Queen" cookery books: Breakfast and Lunch Dishes

and be very careful the moment it is done with too %/ pour into it half a jhnt or so of cold water, as oatmeal gets very hot and cooks after it leaves the fire ; so, if neglected, the pan would inevitably catch and burn, and the same fate would certainly befall the next batch of porridge cooked in it. Use “ medium ” meal, and be very particular as to its quality and freshness. Polenta, or Indian cornmeal porridge (known also in America as “ cornmeal mush ”), is made in precisely the same way as porridge, only perhaps a trifle thicker, and is excellent as a breakfast dish; it is even better still if allowed to get cold and set, then sliced, cut into cubes, diamonds, &c., and fried in plenty of hot fat, drained, and served with any good sauce, such as tomato, &c., or as a garnish ; or, lastly, as a sweet with sugar, jam, or golden syritp. Semolina also is excellent used in the same way. A little butter and, if liked, grated cheese added to all of these (with the exception of the oatmeal porridge) is a great addition. Toast, Pry.— This is seldom well made, simply from want of care. Cut the slices from a stale loaf, a quarter of an inch thick, and warm them gently some way from the fire, or put them on a rack in the oven for a minute or two to get them cjuite dry ; then place them near enough to the fire to colour each side a clear golden brown, never allowing it to brown anywhere. Bread toasted like this should be crisp outside, but soft, though quite dry, inside. For invalids and persons obliged to study their health, the best toast is made by slicing down a stale tin loaf in one-eighth of an inch thick slices, and placing these on a reversed sieve or pastry rack in the oven till they dry perfectly crisp and are of a pale golden brown. This toast can then be kept in airtight tins and used as wanted. Always put toast upright in the rack directly it is done, or it will toughen. Toast, Buttered. — Dry and toast the bread carefully by the first recipe given above, placing each piece as done in a rack in a hot corner. Have ready some fresh butter cut up into dice and warmed (but not oiled) by the fire. When all the slices are done, place one on a hot plate, sjjread lightly but generously with the warmed butter, and place another slice on this, buttering this also, and repeat this, piling one slice on the other, till all the toast is used, then cut it into quarters and serve very hot. The butter should penetrate the bread readily. It is best to place the dish of toast on a bowl of boiling water to keep it hot. Muffins. — These are usually bought, and are then cooked thus : Pull the muffins exactly in haK with two forks (never touch them at this stage with a knife) and toast each side carefully but lightly. Now lay a slice of warmed butter on one side, close the other closely over it and set it on a hot dish, treating the rest in the same way. Cut in four and serve very hot in a proper muffin dish with a cover. It is better to send only one or two muffins in at a