One pint of milk
2 eggs
1 cup of farina
Butter and cheese

"Put the milk on, and when it boils add salt. Take a wooden spoon and, stirring constantly, add the farina little by little. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring constantly.



Take off the fire and break into the farina 2 eggs; mix very quickly, so that the egg will not have time to set. Spread the farina about on a marble slab about three quarter of an inch thick. Allow it to cool, then cut it into squares or diamonds about 2 or 3 inches across.



Butter well a baking-dish and put in the bottom a layer of the squares of farina; sprinkle over a little grated cheese, and here and there a small lump of butter. Then put in another layer of the squares of farina; add cheese and butter as before. Continue in this way until your baking-dish is full, having on the top layer butter and cheese. Bake in a hot oven until a brown crust forms.



Serve int he baking-dish."

This recipe was taken from "Allied Cookery, British, French, Italian, Beligian, Rusian" arranged by Mrs. Grace Clergue Harrison and Gertrude Clergue to aid the war sufferers in the devastated districts of France with an introduction by Hon. Raoul Dandurand Commandeur de la Legion d'Honneur, with a preface by Stephen Leacock and Ella Wheeler Wilcox; it was published in G. P. Putnam's Sons (New York and London) in 1916. For the entire cookbook see www.archive.org.... P.S. I tried this recipe using semolina as a base, and found the end result quite awful. I suspect the recipe would have turned out much better tasting if I would have used "farina" -- white flour???...... Photo and notes: Mary Melfi.

Back to main list