Rice at Every Meal (1919)

I thought that a post on uses for rice itself would be a nice segue from yesterday’s story on recipes using rice polish, and I immediately thought of the “Three Meals a Day” series published in the USA a couple of decades into the twentieth century.

So, without further ado, may I introduce you to Rice for Breakfast, Dinner, Supper (Chicago and New York, c1919) by Bessie R.  Murphy? I will start with the final section of the book, as it seems, rather perversely, to set the tone for the beginning.

HOW TO USE LEFT-OVER RICE

1. Use left-over rice in place of bread crumbs for thickening soup or in making quick breads and scalloped dishes.

2. Add rice to boiled custard for dessert.

3. Stuff the centers of whole cold baked apples with rice and raisins.

4. Reheat rice, arrange it on platter, and surround it with cooked carrots seasoned with pepper, salt, and a little butter.

5 . Mix rice with seasonings and a little minced left-over meat or grated cheese to make a good stuffing for tomatoes or green peppers.

6. Serve rice with prunes to make a dainty dish.

LEFT-OVER MEAT IN RICE TIMBALES

1 cup left-over meat

½ cup gravy

1 cup cooked rice

Line cups or molds with rice (reheated). Make layer ¼ inch thick, let stand 15 minutes, remove from cups, and fill with meat and gravy mixture.

USES FOR RICE WATER

The water left from boiled rice contains too much starch to be wasted. When cooked down until thick it makes a good thickening for soups in place of flour.

As a starch for sheer materials it is excellent.

RICE WATER FOR INVALIDS

2 tablespoons rice                            Milk

3 cups cold water                             Salt

Wash rice, add cold water, and soak for 30 minutes. Bring it gradually to boiling point and cook for 1 hour. Strain, reheat, and dilute with hot milk. Season with salt.

Now to my recipe choices for the day. I have previously given the instructions for RiceSpoon Bread and Soft Rice Bread from the Breakfast section of this book, but the following idea also sounds like a very fine, and very quick recipe to start the day.

Rice Gems.

1 cup cooked rice                              1 egg

1 cup flour                                         1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup milk                                          ¼ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon melted butter

Mix and bake in well-greased gem pans in hot oven.

For dinner, my choice is:

Baked Rice with Cheese

Steam or boil 1 cup rice, allowing 1 tablespoon salt. Cover bottom of buttered baking dish with rice, dot over with 1 tablespoon butter, and sprinkle with grated mild cheese and a few grains of cayenne. Repeat layers until rice and ¼ cup cheese are used. Add milk equal to one half contents of dish, cover with buttered bread or cracker crumbs, and bake until cheese melts.

And if you are in need of a hearty supper, may I suggest the following recipe?

Beef and Rice Croquettes

 1 pint cold chopped beef                ½ cup chopped celery

1 pint, boiled rice                             1 egg

1 teaspoon celery salt                       Cream sauce

Mix the chopped beef, rice, celery salt, and celery together, and add the beaten egg and enough cream sauce to moisten the mixture. When it is cold, form it into croquettes and fry in deep hot fat.

The title of the book does not mention the sweet side of rice cookery, but there is indeed a goodly section on desserts, from which I have chosen two ideas

Meringue of Rice

1 cup uncooked rice                         4 eggs

1 pint milk                                         ½ cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter                        Grated rind of 1 lemon

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Have a pint of water boiling and cook the rice in it. When the water has boiled away, add milk, butter, the yolks of eggs, and grated rind of lemon. Butter a pudding dish, pour in the mixture, and bake until it sets. Beat whites of eggs until they are dry and add sugar and lemon juice. When pudding is done, spread the frosting over it and brown lightly on the top.

Japanese Rice Candy.

Press cold boiled rice into balls, and add nuts. Toss into boiling candy sirup, then allow them to cool and harden.