Every-day dishes and every-day work

Oatmeal Porridge. — Into a quart and a half of water, which should be boiling in the inner dish of a double boiler, sprinkle one cup of rather coarse oatmeal. Boil rapidly, stirring meanwhile until the porridge is thickened ; then place in the outer boiler, and cook continuously for three hours or longer. A half cup of cream added just before serving is a desirable addition. CORN, OR MAIZE. Corn-Meal Mush. — Stir together one pint of corn-meal, one tablespoonful of flour, and one pint of cold milk. Turn this slowly, stirring well meanwhile, into one quart of boiling water, which should not cease to boil during the introduction of the batter. Cook three or four hours. If milk is not at hand, water alone may be used, in which case two tablespoonfuls of flour will be needed. Cook in a double boiler. This is excellent served with grape sauce prepared as directed on page 22. Corn-Meal Mush with Fruit.— Mush prepared in the above manner may have some well-steamed raisins or chopped figs added to it just before serving. Corn-Meal Cubes. — Left-over corn-meal mush may be made into an appetizing dish by first slicing into rather thick slices, then cutting into cubes about one inch square. Put the cubes into a tureen, and turn over them a quantity of hot milk or cream. Cover the dish, let stand until the mush is thoroughly heated through, then serve. Browned Mush. — Slice cold corn-meal mush rather thin, brush each slice with thick, sweet cream, and brown in a moderate oven until well heated through. Samp. — Samp may be prepared by coarsely grinding newly ripened corn to about the fineness of cracked wheat. This may be done at home with a hand-mill. Put the samp in a rather deep dish ; pour some cold water over it, stir it well with a spoon, which will cause the chaff to rise to the top, when it may be turned off with the water. This process should be repeated until the samp is well cleaned. Drain It by turning into a fine colander, and cook in four and one-half parts boiling water. Boil rapidly, stirring continuously until well thickened, then cook slowly from three to eight hours, the time being dependent upon the age of the corn from which the samp is prepared. Cereallne Flakes. — Into one measure of boiling liquid stir an equal measure of cerealine flakes, and cook in a double boiler from one half to three fourths of an hour. Cerealine with a dressing of grape juice makes a most palatable dish. Hulled Corn. — To Hull the Corn : Put enough wood-ashes into a large kettle to half fill it ; then nearly fill with hot water, and boil ten minutes. Drain off the water from the ashes, turn it CEREALS. 29