Patent ID: 6884451

Claim:
A method for maintaining previously cooked food portions in a ready to use condition in a food warming apparatus comprising a cabinet having a heated compartment which has an upper compartment surface and a lower compartment surface, said method comprising the steps of: placing said previously cooked food portions in a tray, said tray having a tray lip defining a tray opening; inserting a freestanding cover into said heated compartment to define a receiving space for receiving said tray, said cover having a flange section and a support section extending downwardly from said flange section, said support section having a height substantially corresponding to the height of said tray so as to define substantially all of said receiving space, at least a portion of said flange section being positioned above said receiving space; and after inserting said freestanding cover into said heated compartment to define said receiving space, inserting said tray into said receiving space.