The CWI Cookbook

2 tbs. farina
1 pint milk
2 eggs
1/4 to 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
Lemon or nutmeg

Two table-spoonfuls of farina, a pint of milk, two eggs, a small cup of sugar, and a half teaspoonful of salt; flavor with lemon or nutmeg. To mix it, set the milk in a pail into a kettle of hot water. When the top of the milk foams up, stir in the farina gradually, and add the salt. Let it remain in the kettle ten of fifteen minutes, and stir it repeatedly. Take the pail from the kettle, beat the eggs and sugar together, and stir them in; add the essence, and pour the mixture into a buttered dish. Bake half an hour or forty minutes. No sauce is necessary.

The Young Housekeeper’s Friend by Mrs. [M. H.] Cornelius, 1863

Comment: Farina is a finely ground flour of great antiquity but of surprisingly vague definition. While it can be made from any grain, most available versions are made of wheat. “Cream of Wheat” cereal, once very popular and still available in most places, is essentially farina.

We should point out that it is not really necessary to go out and buy a pail in order to make this recipe. The technique of indirect heating is what is accomplished by the use of a double boiler. It must be remembered that “pudding” did not mean in the 19th century what it does today.