Cracked-Wheat Porridge

Brush over the inside of a flat-bottomed saucepan with a small quantity of melted lard. Pour in four pints of water to boil, stir in one breakfast cupful of cracked wheat and one teaspoonful of salt; stir the wheat and boil it for a few minutes, then push the saucepan to the side of the fire, place the lid on and allow the contents to simmer for four hours. When cooked turn the porridge into a bowl and serve it with a jug of cream. The wheat should be well washed before being cooked to rid it of the flour, which is generally the cause of burning.

Milk Porridge

Take one tablespoonful of flour, mix it quite smooth with one breakfast cupful of water, taking care to see that there are no lumps left; put this into a good thick saucepan and add to it one breakfast cupful of milk, one teaspoonful of salt and a small quantity of grated nutmeg. Place it on the stove and keep stirring until it boils; allow it to boil for ten minutes or so, and it is then ready to serve.

Rice Porridge

Put one-half pound of rice into three quarts of boiling water and let it swell until it is quite a jelly, then add to it one-fourth pound of oatmeal mixed with water and stir it well in; add also one ounce of finely-chopped onion, pepper and salt to taste, and one-half ounce of bacon fat, lard or butter, and boil all together, stirring continually. If desired the quantity of oatmeal may be larger; it may even be the same as the rice.