Practical West African cookery

To Roast and Grind Coffee. — Coffee is much better freshly roasted, so only a little should be done at a time. It can be done in a frying pan over a good, but not too quick fire, and the berries must be moved about the whole time with a wooden spoon. They are ready when they have turned a good deep brown ; any burnt berries should be picked out and thrown away, and the good ones should be kept in a tin with tight-fitting lid. Grind only very little at a time in a small coffee mill. Cocoa. — The proportions vary according to the brand. An excellent and inexpensive cocoa is sold by the Civil Service Stores. As boys are always wasteful with it, it should be only given out in small quantities. Put about a teaspoonful in a breakfastcup with one or two lumps of sugar, pour on a little boiling water, mix to a smooth paste, then fill up with more water and add a dessertspoon or more of Ideal milk. It is even better to mix the Ideal with cold water, boil up together, then pour on the cocoa and then return the cocoa to the saucepan for one more boil. Porridge, with Quaker Oats.— This must be made in the Welbank boilerette or in a small saucepan standing in another filled with boiling water. Count four-and-ahalf tablespoons of water or milk (if Ideal, mix one dessertspoon to four tablespoons water), to two tablespoons oats add a pinch of salt and cook for twenty minutes, stirring often. Porridge, with Maize (Massara). — The massara can be either crushed into small pieces or ground till it looks just like semolina. Make exactly like Quaker Oats porridge, counting one breakfastcup water to two-and-ahalf tablespoons massara. Add a pinch of salt and two lumps or one teaspoonful sugar and cook till all the water has been absorbed. The time and proportion of water vary according to the freshness of the maize. This porridge is very good eaten with native honey. Breakfast Cakes with Quaker Oats.— To make four small cakes, put two tablespoons oats and four-and-a-balf tablespoons water or milk (if Ideal, one dessertspoon to four tablespoons water), in the double boiler or in a small saucepan standing in another filled with boiling water. Cook for twenty or twenty-five minutes till the water is absorbed, turn on to a plate, flatten out to about threequarters of an inch thick, allow to cool and then cut into rounds with the lid of a small tobacco or cocoa tin. Melt just enough butter, lard or ground nut oil to grease the small frying pan. Lift the cakes with a knife into the pan set on a medium fire. Turn them over with a knife when they are yellow ; they must not be actually fried but just dried. Serve hot with native honey. Note. — The only way to have good porridge is to keep to the proportions of one part of oats to two parts and a quarter of milk or water, and to have it always cooked in a double boiler or in a saucepan standing inside another one. The massara makes even better cakes than the oats. The proportions must be two-and-a-half tablespoons massara to a breakfastcup of milk or water. If the massara is rather old, a little less liquid will be required.