Some recipes have too much information; some, too little.
This one switches between the two. It’s full of adverbs where you need them — you must clean the head “thoroughly,” simmer it “gently,” stir it “constantly,” cool it “slowly” and watch it “carefully” — and rubbish when you really need them.
How should you “separate” the head into halves? With a saw? A cleaver? A machete? Vigorously? Responsibly? Angrily? And how does one take out the eyes and brains? With your fingers? A spoon? A pick? Tongs? Greedily? Delicately? Matter-of-factly?
In a related matter, Scrabble is the most perfect board game yet devised by man. It requires something of beauty to be made from the scraps of alphabet. It should be played mercilessly, competitively, joyously, and often.
Berks County Cook Book, (date unknown)
