May your children all be acrobats

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     Sali drove me to the service for Fred Cassidy today.  Donald Lance
recited Tennyson's "Crossing the Bar."  The Algeos were also there--which
reminds me, I owe Glowka some new words.

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MEXICAN CHOCOLATE

    I might have earlier citations at home.
    From FRYINGPANS WEST (1969) by Sam Arnold, pg. 36:

    Early visitors to the Southwest found the Mexicans enjoying a thick type
of hot chocolate.  It had both a different consistency and flavor than they
had encountered elsewhere.
    Mexican chocolate _is_ different in that it has both cinnamon and a bit
of nutmeg in it; plus clove and egg for festival occasions such as Christmas
eve.  You can make it very easily (Pg. 37--ed.) yourself and will find the
spices add tremendously to the flavor.
MEXICAN CHOCOLATE
2 squares grated chocolate
1/2 cup boiling water
2 cups milk
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg
pinch of salt
pinch of nutmeg
    Cook 2 squares grated chocolate with 1/2 cup boiling water, 2 cups milk,
3 tablespoons sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 cup cream, a pinch of salt,
nutmeg, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and an egg.
    Boil the chocolate in water for 5 minutes to bring out its full body and
flavor.  Then add milk, cream, sugar, salt, egg and spices.  Cook in a double
boiler for an hour, beating vigorously at 5-10 minute intervals.
    That's the old-fashioned way.  If you have a blender, simply add hot milk
or cream to sweet chocolate (about two cups of chocolate buds), and egg,
nutmeg and cinnamon and blend for 2 minutes.  I like to add just a pinch of
ground orange peel.  Be sure, however you make it, to beat or blend until
frothy.

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BERLINER DOUGHNUTS (continued)

    From LUCHOWS (there's an umlaut here, just like FRESHENS yogurt, to add
to that HAAGEN DAZS discussion) GERMAN COOKBOOK (1952) by Leonard Jan
Mitchell, pg. 190:

FILLED BERLINER PANCAKES OR DOUGHNUTS
PASTNACHT KRAPFEN
1 pink milk
1 cake compressed yeast
4 1/2 to 5 cups flour
1/4 pound butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 lemon peel, grated
3 eggs, beaten
Flour
Currant jelly or thick cooked apples
Lard or shortening for deep frying
Extra sugar
    Heat milk to lukewarm.  Soften yeast in 1/4 cup warm milk.  Stir 2 1/2
cups flour smoothly into rest of warm milk.  Mix yeast quickly into this
batter.  Cover lightly with folded towel and let stand 1 hour or longer.
    After sponge has risen well, mix in melted butter, sugar, lemon peel,
eggs, and remaining flour.  Stir well.
    Turn dough out on lightly floured board.  Fold over, then roll lightly to
1/2-inch thickness.  Cut with 3-inch round cooky cutter.  Spread half of the
rounds with 1 heaping teaspoon jelly or cooked apples.  Cover these with
remaining rounds.  Crimp edges firmly together with fingers.  Leave on
floured board.  Cover lightly with folded towel and let rise in warm toom 1/2
hour, or until light and puffy.
    Fry a few Berliners at a time in deep hot fat (360 degrees F.) until
golden brown.  Remove from fat, drain on thick paper toweling.  WHile hot,
roll in sugar.  Makes 1 1/2 to 2 dozen.

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MAY YOUR CHILDREN ALL BE ACROBATS

    I just went through my Barry Buchanan papers for VAUDEVILLE looking at
"M."

_May your children all be acrobats_  A colloquialism used by performers when
they are irritated and still retain their sense of humor.  The traditional
vaudeville curse.

_Material reaches too far back_  A phrase which indicates that the patter,
crossfire, or gags used by an act is too antiquated to be good.

_Monday Afternoon Audience_  Formerly the Monday afternoon patrons of
vaudeville houses in New York City were professional people who came to see
the acts for business reasons.  The patrons at these performances were
particularly difficult to please.

_Michael Feeney_  Any theatrical manager who is unrelenting and
unsympathetic; also a stage manager with the same characteristics.