Download - Boston Cookbook 1884

MKN LINCOLN'S

BOSTON COOK BOOK.

WHAT TO DO AND WHAT KOT TO DO

/X COOKING.

MRS. D. A. LINCOLN,THE- BOSTON COOKIKG SCHOOU

BOSTON:ROBLKTS BROTHERS.

1884.

Br Mat O. A. t-tmco

5Tf)ig Book is

MRS. S A M U E L T. HOOPER,

THE PUPILS, PAST AND PRESENT,

BOSTON COOKING SCHOOL,

to know Qt lar^p of things remote

m use., obscure and subtle, but to know

t which before us lies in daily life,

1 6 P n n ' e W ' ° m < MILTO:

5 true knowledge."— CONS

PREFACE.

To compile a book which shall be not only a collectionof receipt?, given briefly for tlie experienced housekeeper,and with sufficient clearness for the beginner, but whichshall also embody enough of physiology, and of the chem-istry and philosophy of food, to make every principle in-telligible to a child and interesting to the mature mind;which shall serve equally well for the cook in the kitchen,tile pupil in tlie school-room, and the teacher in the normalclass. — is a difficult task. Yet the need of a hook ofmoderate cost, containing in a reasonably small eompass allthis and much more, has been seriously felt by all who areengaged in teaching cookery. Moreover, there is a specialreason for the publication of this work. It is undertakenat the urgent request of the pupils of the Boston CookingSchool, who have desired that the receipts and lessonsgiven during the last four years in that institution shouldbe arranged in a permanent form.

To one who from childhood has been trained in all de-tails of housework, learning bv observation or by actualexperience much that it is impossible to receive frombooks, the amount of ignorauee shown by many women issurprising. That a person of ordinary intelligence pre-siding over her household can be satisfied with only avague conception of the common domestic methods, orthat any true woman can see anything degrading in anyIa1>or necessary for tiie highest physical condition of her

vi Preface.

family, would be incredible if the truth of it were notdaily manifest.

Happily, popular opinion now decides that no younglady's education is complete without a course of trainingin one or more branches of domestic work. And thosewho are not so fortunate as to have the best of all train-ing—that of actual work under a wise and competentmother —• gladly resort to the cooking-Schools for in-struction.

In compiling these receipts for use in a school and inthe family, several things were demanded. In a schoolof pupils from every class and station in life, a greatvariety of receipts is desirable They must be clear,but concise, for those who are already well grounded infirst principles. They must be explained, illustrated, andreiterated for the inexperienced and the careless. Theymust have a word of caution for those who stem alwaysto have the knack of doing the wrong thing. They mustinclude the most healthful foods for those who have beenmade ill by improper food ; the cheapest as well as themost nutritious, for the laboring class; the richest andmost elaborately prepared, for those who can afford themphysically as well as pecuniarily.

These receipts are not a mere compilation. A largeportion have accumulated during a long period of house-keeping; and many have been received from friends whoare practical housekeepers. Others have been taken fromstandard authorities ori cooking; and all have been fre-quently and thoroughly tested by pupils under the eye ofthe author. As far as possible, acknowledgment has beenmade for the receipts received, Where changes and im-provements have been made, or where there were manyauthorities for the same formula, no credit has been given.

Some cook-books presuppose the presence of an as-sistant ; but as three fourths of the women in this country

vii

do their own work, these receipts are arranged so as torequire tho attention of bat one person.

It is proverbial tbat young housekeepers are oftengreatly perplexed in attempting to provide little enoughfor only two. For their benefit many of our receipts areprepared ou a scale of smaller measurements.

Tiie materials to be used are given in the order in whichthey are to be put together. They are arranged in col-umns, where the eye may catch them readily, or in italicswhere economy of space seemed desirable.

Even- caution or suggestion has been given at the re-qtiest of some pupil who failed to find in other books justwhat she needed ; or because, in the experience of teach-ing, it has been shown that, unless forewarned, pupilsinevitably make certain mistakes. Many subjects whichin other books are omitted or given briefly, will be foundto have received here an extensive treatment, becausethey have seemed of paramount importance.

All the chemical and physiological knowledge that isuecessarv for a clear understanding of the laws of health,BO far as they are involved in the science of cookery, isgiven in this book. Nine tenths of the women who gothrough a scientific course in seminaries never put anyof tho knowledge gained into practical use. By the timeihev have occasion to use auch knowledge in their ownhomes, the Chemistry and Physiology have been relegatedto the attic, whore they help mice to material for theirnests, but help no woman to appty the principles ofscience upon which the health and welfare of her house-hold largely depend.

The statement will appear incredible to most people,and yet it is true, that many women do not know whatthe simplest things in our daily food arc ; cannot toll whenwater boile, or the difference between lamb and vual, lardand drippings. They cannot give the names of kitchen

viii Preface.

utensils; do not koow anything; aboat a stove, or bow topare a potato. This will explain what might otherwiseseem an unnecessary minuteness of detail. The expe-rience of such ignorance also euggvsttii the mib-title ofthe " Boston Cook Book," — " What to do and what no*to do in Cooking,"—just how to bold your bowl and spoon,to use your hands, to regulate your stove, to wa#ti yourdishes; and just how not to fait into the error* into wbichso many have stumbled l**fore you. But, more Ibaa all,it is attempted to give & reason for even' step takes, anda clear answer to any questions that are likely 10 UJM Inthe experience of either housekeeper or cook.

A PREFACE NOT FOR THE PUBLIC.

A WORD of grateful acknowledgment is due the manyfriends who have aided in this work.

First, to my mother I owe much for her excellent judg-ment in training me as a child to a love for all house-hold work. Although it was often hard to t f help mother "when other children were at play, the knowledge thusgained has proved invaluable. Ever}- year's experienceiu teaching lias made me prize more and more this earlytraining.

Also, I am deeply indebted to Miss II . S. DEVEREUXfor the illustrations of this book. In ail my work I havebeen greatly aided by her suggestions and generoussympathy.

And, lastly, I would not forget my obligations to a largecircle of personal friends. Especially would I rememberthe one who, twenty years ago, aided me in making myfirst loaf of bread, and the many among my pupils who,out of their varied experience, have contributed much thathas proved helpful.

MAltY J. LINCOLN.

WoLnsTos, MASS., 1884.

• 'n. ' )

CONTENTS.

INTRODUCTION 1

BUEAD AND BREAD MAKING 36

RECEIPTS FOR YEAST AND BREAB 62

RAISED BISCUIT, ROLLS, ETC 68

STALE BREAD, TOAST, ETC 75

SODA BISCUIT, MUFFINS, GEMS, ETC 80

WAFFLES AND GRIDDLE-CAKES 97

TRIED MUFFINS, FRITTERS, DOUGHNUTS, ETC 102

OATMEAL AND OTHER GIIAINS 108

BEVERAGES I l l

SOUP AKD STOCK . 119

SoUF WITHOUT STOCK 116FISH 159

SHELL FISH . 175

MEAT AND FISH SAUCES 187

EGGS 197

MEAT . 3 1 0

BEEF 214

MUTTON AND LAMB 232

VEAL 239

PORK 245

POULTRY ANT> GAME 251

ENTREES AND MEAT RECHAUFFE 265

SUNDRIF.5 282

Contents.

VEGETABLES 289

RICE AND MACARONI . $QQ

SALADS • . . . 309

PASTRY AKD PIES 316

PUDDING SAUCES -J28

HOT PUDDINGS . 332

CUSTARDS, JELLIES, AND CREAMS • • - . 341

ICE-CEEAM AND SHERBET .

CAKE

PRUIT

COOKING FOR INVALIDS . .

MISCELLANEOUS HINTS . .

EXPLANATION OF TEEMS

361

369

391

407

435THE D I N I M - R O O M

THE CARE OF KITCHEN UTENSILS 443

A N OUTLINE O F STUDY FOR TEACIIEKS . . . . . . 449

SUGGESTIONS TO TEACHERS 4S3

A COURSE OF STUDY FOR NORMAL PUPILS 485

MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS FOK EXAMINATION 486

TOPICS AND ILLUSTRATIONS FOR LECTURES ON COOKERY , 490

COURSE OF INSTRUCTION AT THE BOSTON COOKING-SCHOOL . 495

USED O COOKERY 503

LIST OF UTENSILS NEEDED IN A COOKING-SCHOOL . . . 508

GENERAL INDEX . . 513

ALPHABETICAL INDEX 529

>'*•>••«$ V •

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

F I G . 1 . G r a i n o f W h e a t 3 7" 2 . G r a i n o f W h e a t w i t h B r a n r e m o v e d . . . . 3 8" S . G r a i n o f W h e a t m a g n i f i e d . . . . . . . 3 8" 4 . Y e a s t P l a n t 46" 5. C r u l l e r 105" 6 . C r u l l e r a f t e r F o l d i n g 105" 1. Baked Fish 164» 8. Small Fish served whole 166" 9. Scalloped Lobster 183" 10. Omelet 201" 11. Orange Omelet 202" 12. Eggs and Minced Meat 205" 13. Stuffed Eggs 206" 14. Eggs a la Crcme 208" 15. Diagram of Ox 212" 16. Hind Quarter of Beef 212•' 17. Aitch Bone 214" 18. Round 215" 19. Back of Rump 216'< 20. First Cut of Sirtom 216" 21. Sirloin Roast 217" 22. Tip of Sirloin 218" 2 3 . First Cut of Rib 219" 24. Chuck Rib 219" 2 5 . Fillet of Beef 222" 26. Mutton Puck 235" 27. Paper Ruffle 236<• 28. Chop 237" 29. Chop in Paper 237

List of Illustrations.

Fro. 30. Calf s Heart 241" 31. Sweetbreads and Bacon 243" 32. Sweetbreads on Macaroni 244" 33. Pigeons and Spinach on Toast 264" 34. Boned Turkey, browned 265" 35. Boned Chicken, larded and baked 266•• 3(3. Chicken in Jelly 267" 37. Meat Porcupine 272" 38. Croquettes 279•• 30. Staffed Potatoes 296" 40. Chicken Salad 314" 41. Lobster Salad 315" 42. Bow-Knots 321" 43. Cheese Straws 322" 44. Apple Snowballs 335" 45. Orange Charlotte 348" 46. Orange Baskets 351" 47. Mould of Bavarian Cream 357" 48. Kojal Diplomatic Pudding 358" 49. Strawberry Charlotte 360" 50. Cookies 386

THE BOSTON" COOK BOOK.

COOKERY

COOKERY is the art of preparing food for the nourish-ment of the human body- When given its proper impor-tance in the consideration of health and comfort, it mustbe based upon scientific principles of hygiene and whatthe French call the minor moralities of the household.All civilized nations cook their food, to improve its tasteand digestibility. The degree of civilization is oftenmeasured by the cuisine-

Cooking (from the Latin coqua, to boil, bake, heat, dry,scorch, or ripen) is usually done by the direct applicationof heat. Fruit3 and some vegetables which are eaten in anatural state have really been cooked or ripened by theheat of the sun. Milk and eggs, which are types of per-fect food, would be useless as food unless they came fromthe warm living animal. Fish, ilesh, and fruits whichhave been dried in the sun or smoked, and are often eatenwithout any further preparation, have undergone a certainprocess of natural cooking.

Beat seems to create new flavors, and to change theodor, taste, and digestibility of nearly all articles of food.It swells and bursts the starch cell's in flour, rice, andpotatoes; hardens the albumen in eggs, fish, and meat;softens the fibrous substances in tough meats, hard vege-tables and fruits. It develops new flavors in tea, coffee,roasted meat, crusts of bread, baked beans, etc.

1

The Boston Cook Book.

Cold is also an important matter to be regarded in thepreparation of food. Sweet dishes and certain flavors,like honey, ices, and custards; the water, wine, or milk wedrink ; our butter, fruits, and salads, — are all more pala-table when cold.

Water, or some other liquid, in connection with heat isnecessary in many forms of cookery. Grains, peas, beans,dried fruits which have parted with nearly all their moisturein the ripening or drying process necessary for their preser-vation, need a large portion of water in cooking, to softenand swell the cellulose, gluten, and starch before they canbe masticated and digested. In some vegetables and fruitswater draws out certain undesirable flavors; it softensand dissolves the gelatinous portions of meat, and makespalatable and nourishing many substances which would berendered unwholesome b}' a dry heat.

Air, or the free action of oxygen, upon our food whilecooking develops certain flavors not otherwise to be ob-tained. Meat roasted or broiled has a much finer flavorthan when boiled, baked, or fried. Toasted bread, thincorn cake baked before the fire, roasted apples, and manyarticles cooked' in the open air, show the benefit of thisfree combined action of heat and air.

Drying in the sun was one of the earliest modes ofcookery. Then came roasting before an open fire, orbroiling over the coals, and baking in the hot ashes.This last was the primitive oven. As the art of makingeooking-ntensils developed, stewing, boiling, and fryingwere adopted. Then, to economize heat, portable ovenswere invented; these were originally a covered dish setover or near the fire, having sometimes a double coverfilled with coals. Afterwards, stoves which kept the tireand heat in a limited space were introduced; and im-provements have been made in them so extensively thatwe now have them with conveniences for doing every formof cooking with wood, coal, oil, or gas.

Some one gives this distinction between man and otheranimals : "Man is an animal that builds a fire and uses it


to cook his food" It is quite important then, as a step-ping-stone to cooking, to learn the properties and manage-.merit of a fire.

Fire.

Fire is boat and light produced by the combustion ofinflammable substances. Combustion is a chemical opera-tion carried on in the air, or the chemical union of theoxygen, of the air with some combustible body, like hy-drogen gas or the solid carbon, and is attended with theevolution of heat and light. The heat and the light comefrom the sun. With every particle of vegetable matterthat is formed by the combined action of the sun and thecarbonic acid gaa in the air, a portion of the sun's heatand light is absorbed and held fast in it. And wheneverthis vegetable matter is decomposed, —as in burning wood,coal, or oil, which are only definite forms of vegetable mat-ter, — this heat and light are given out. The amount ofeach depends upon the mode of burning.

Air is composed mainly of two elementary gases, oxygenand nitrogen (one part oxygen and four parts nitrogen),with a small amount of watery vapor and carbonic acid gas.

Pure oxygen is a gas which has a wonderful attractionfor, and power of combination with, every other element.If it ivere everywhere present in a perfectly pore state, itwould consume or burn up everything; but it is dilutedor mixed (not combined) with nitrogen, another gas whichis incombustible, and which lessens the combustibility ofeverything with which it comes in contact. Owing to thisdilution, the oxygen will not unite with the carbon andhydrogen with which it is everywhere surrounded, andproduce rapid combustion, except at a high temperature.The temperature at which this union takes place is calledthe burning-point, and this varies in different substances.Thus combustion is within the power and control of man ;and some extra means are usually employed to increasethe temperature to the burning-point,— friction, or per-cussion, or the use of some more highly inflammable


substances, like sulphur and phosphorus. This produces, beat sufficient to eoropk-te the chemical tuik>D, or, in com-mon phrase, •* kindles Uie fire."

The heat generated for all household purposes is producedby the chemical action of the oxygen of the air upon the hy-drogen ami carbon which are found w U» varkm* kinds otwood and coal. The oxygen first combines* with the car-bon anil decomposes it. producing carbonic acid gas, whichescai>es into the air, from which it is absorbed by plants, orby human lungs when there is no proper ventilation. Theoxygen also combines with the hydrogen gas iu the fuel,anil this produces the flame; the larger the amount ofhydrogen in the fuel, the greater the amount of flame.Some of the products of combustion are not entirely con-sumed, and pass otf as smoke ; some are incombustible, andremain as ashes. The intensity of a fire and the amountof heat which it produces arc always in proportion to thoamount of oxygen with which it is supplied. TheTe shouldbe just air enough for perfect combustion. An excess ofair projected upon a Sre convojs away the beat, cools thefuel, and checks the combustion. The supply of air shouldbe controlled by confining it in a limited space.

Fires are usually kindled at the bottom of a fine or chim-nej-. The heated air, being lighter, rises ; the colder, den-ser air rushes in to take its place, becomes heated, andascends. Tims a continuous current u established, and aconstant supply of fresh air secured. The chimney servesto carry on* the smoke and poisonous products of combus-tion ; the heavier, incombustible products settle in the formof ashes. The force of this current of air drawing throughthe chimney (a matter of great importance) is called thedraught. It varies with the temperature and amount ofair in the room, and the length aud width of the chimney.

Fuel.

The materials generally used as fuel arc wood, charcoal,coal, kerosene oil, and gas.

The Boston Cook Book. 5

Soft woods, such as pine or birch, kiudle quickly, produceintense heat, and are best for a quick, blaziug fire.

Hard woods, like oak, ash, aod hickory, burn more slowly,bat produce harder coak, which retain the heat longer, andare better where long-continued heat is required.

Charcoal, which is coal made by charring or burning•wood with only a limited supply of air, burns easily andproduces greater heat in proportion to its weight than auyother fuel. It should never be burned iu a close room.

Anthracite coal is a kind of mineral charcoal derived fromaucieut vegetation buried in the earth, and so thoroughlypressed that nothing is left bat pure carbon, a tittle sul-phur, and the incombustible ash. It kindles slowly, yieldsan intense, steady heat, and burns for a longer time with-out replenishing than the hardest wood.

Cfeifce, often used in cities, is the residue of coal fromwhich illuminating gas has been manufactured. The heatis intense, but transient.

Stores for burning kerosene oil and gas have recentlybeen introduced, and are now so nearly perfect that thecare of a fire for cooking purposes is trilling. Gas caaonly be used in certain localities.

The cheapest fuel is the best kerosene oil. There needbe no waste, no superfluous heat, no vitiated air, if the firebe extinguished immediately after the work is done, and ifthe stove be kept perfectly clean, so as to secure a freeburning and perfect combustion. With two good stoveshaving all the latest and best improvements, a large amountof work can be easily and satisfactorily accomplished.

The Making and Care of a Coal "ire.If you intend to buy a new stove or ranee, got one sim-

ple in construction, that you may quickly lnirn all it* partsand tbeir uses ; plain in finish, that you m;iy easily ktvp itclean ; and perfectly fitted part to part, wis.li ilwrs ;uuldampers shutting absolutely close, so that you may cuu-trol the fire and heat This latter point is of essential


importance in regulating the oven and in preventing awaste of fuel.

Become thoroughly acquainted with whatever stove youmay have. If necessary, take it apart; learn how toclean it in the inside, to regulate the dampers for all thevariations of wind, temperature, and fuel; and then learnhow to make and keep a fire.

All stoves have a fire-bos, with more or less space under-neath for ashes ; a slide damper under the fire, letting inthe air ; an outlet for the smoke ; and a damper which reg-ulates the suppVy of hot air, sending it around and under-neath the oven, or letting it escape into the chimney.Remove the covers and brash the soot from the top of theoven into the fire-box; then clean out the grate; and ifthe stove have conveniences for so doing, sift the ashes inthe stove and save all the old coal and cinders. Put inshavings or loose rolls of paper, then fine pine kindlings,arranged crosswise, and a layer of hard wood, leavingplenty of air space between the pieces. Be sure the woodcomes out to each end of the fire-box. Put on the covers ;and. if the stove need cleaning, moisten some pulverizedstove polish with water, and rub the stove with a paintbrush dipped in the polish. When all blackened, rub witha dry polishing-brush until nearly dry. Open the directdraught and oven damper, and light the paper, as a slightheat facilitates the process of polishing. When the woodis thoroughly kindled, till the fire-box with coal even withthe top of the oven. Brush up the hearth and floor, emptythe teakettle, and fill it with fresh water. Watch the fire,and push the coal down as the wood burns away, andadd enough more coal to keep it even with the top of thefire bricks. When the bine flame becomes white, close theoven damper; and when the coal is burning freely, but notred, shut the direct draught. It seems impossible for somepersona to understand that a coal fire is at its height assoon as well kindled. :ind needs only air enough to keep itburning. When it becomes bright red all through, it hasparted with most of its beat, and begins to die out. Tons

The Boston Cook Booh.

of coal are wasted in many kitchens, and ranges are need-lessly burned out, by filling the fire-box till the eoul touchesthe covers, and leaving the draughts open tilt the coal isred.

Nearly atl stores and portable ranges have the oven atone side of and a little below the fire. In brick-set rangesthe ovens are sometimes over the fire. A stove has a dooron each side of tbe oven, with the fire-box in front. Aportable range has only one oven-door, ami the fire-box atthe end. In ranges where tbe oven is over the fire. Hiearticles to be baked are placed on a grate near the middle,as the bottom of the oven is usually very- hot. In stovesor portable ranges anything which has to rise in the ovep,like bread, pastry, cake, etc., is placed on the bottom ofthe oven, and, if the heat be too great, a small rack orgrate may be placed under it. Large pieces of meat areplaced on a rack in a pan : while small outs of meat, birds,etc., which are to be baked quickly, and any dishes whichare to be merely browned, like Hcallo|>ed dishes, mnst beplaced on the grate near the top. Cultivate the habit ofopening and shutting the oven-door quickly but gently.Learn the hottest and coolest places in the oven. Look attilings as they are baking, anil turn and watch till you aresure they can be left alone. If anything bake unevenly ortoo fast, put a screen between it and the heat. — a pan onthe grate above or underneath, or a frame of stiff papermade larger than the pan, that it may not touch the dough.When the regulating dampers are closed and the oven isstill too hot. lift a cover on the top partly ofl", although ina. stove in which the parts are perfectly adjusted this willnever be necessary. When the oven is not hot enough,open the direct draught, and rake out the ashes from thegrate. Keep the grate cleaned out and the fire burningfreely, when a very hot oven is needed. At other timeskeep the draughts shut and do not waste the coal.

To keep a brisk fire for several hours or all day. it isbetter to add a sprinkling of coal often, rather than to letit burn rir>arlv out. and. then, by adding a larger quantity,

Tile Boston Cook Rook.

check the fire and retard the work. In using the top ofthe stove remember the hottest place is over Ike fire andtoward Uie middle, not on tlic front of the stove. Whenyou have once watched the flame in its passage over thetop, down the back, and under the oven, then across, outand up on the opposite side and out into tile i-uiniuey, youwill understand where the greatest heat must be.

Boiling.

The term u boiling" is often used erroneously in cook-ery. The expressions " the teakettle boils," " the rice idboiling," "boiled beef," etc., are nil goou illustrations ofthe rhetorical figure metonymy, but they are practicallyincorrect. In all cases it is only the water or liquid whichboils. No solid can boil until first changed tu a liquid.Solids become liquid at the meltiug-noiut. Liquids takethe form of steam or vapor at the boiling-point. Boilingis the conversion of a liquid into steam by the applicationof heat sufficient to cause ebullition, or agitation of its sur-face. Boiling, therefore, as applied to tlic- cooking ofsolids, is heating or cooking in a boiling liquid. It U* oneof the most generally used, and abused, forms of cooking.Boiling water, which is really cooked water, is tlic liquidusually employed. Water, as it is heated from In-low, ex-pands into vapor. The air of tin- ivater and the steamshoot up in the form of bubbles ; as they come in contactwith the cold water near the surface, the bubbles collapse,the steam is condensed and descends with the cold water,making a double set of currents, which causes quit* a coin-mOtlOn .imnnff +1*~ ^ : . i .

g


timtnen when the bubbles all collapse beneath the surface,and the steam is condensed to water again, or at 1 « J ° .Water boilt when the bubbles rise to the surface, and the

steam is thrown off, as at 212s. When Uiia boiling-pointis reached, the heat escapes with tlie steam ; a n d all the firein the world can Dot make the water any hotter, so long asthe steam escapes. If Uie fire lie very fierce, so tliat thesebubbles are formed ami expelled rapidly, a n d the waterboils over, the water is DO hotter; it only evaporates orboils away faster, and can only be made hot ter by confin-ing the steam, wfaiuh in ordinary kettles is impossible,owing to the enormous expansive force of the steam.With a few exceptions it is a waste of fuel, t ime , anil ma-terial to keep tlit- water boiling at such a galloping ratethat the cover has to be lifted to prevent boiling over.

A kettle should never be quite full, as t i ie water es-pands in heatiug, and, in boiling over, makes needlesswork and injures the stove. Water will U>it tuoie quicklyin a kettle with a rough surface than iu one wi th a smoothsurface, as the water adheres to a smooth surface withgreater force, and tui£ force or attraction m u s t be over-come before boiling takes place. Small, c lean gravel issometimes kept in a smooth kettle to facilitate the boiling.

Water boila at a higher temperature when the re is sugar,or salt, or anything in it to increase its density- It takeslonger for it to boiJ; but it is hotter, wbeu that point isreached. No one who has been burned by boiling syrupever doubted this fact. Fresh water boils at 212° ; saltwater, at 224°. If we put salt with the water in the lowerpart of a double boiler, a greater degree of l ies t is obtainedby which to cook the articles in the top.

Water boils at a lower temperature, that is, more quickly,when the pressure of the air «i>on the water is diminished.Before a rain the pressure of the air is lessened, becausethe air when filled with vapor is lighter. Observing house-keepers have often noticed how quickly things burn at sucha time, and foretell a rain by tile rapidity with which waterevaporates.


The pressure of the air is less the higher we asrendabove the level of the sea, since we leave much of the airbelow us. Cooking in boiling water requires a inuthlonger time in mountainous regions; for the water boiU soquickly that it holds less heat than in lower al t i tude,where it is subject to greater pressure. Water, in bulling,loses the air or gases which give it a fresh taste and spark-ling appearance. It becomes flat and tasteless. It* then;be any impurity in water, boiling or cooking will destroyit. Then, by cooling, and exposing to pure air again, itbecomes aerated and palatable. But water for cooking,unless there are impurities to be removed, should be usedwhen freshly boiled. This is especially important iu mak-ing tea and coffee.

Soft water should be used in boiling where the object isto soften the texture, and extract the soluble parts, ad insoups, broths, tea, and coffee. Hard water, or soft watersalted, is better where we wish to preserve the articleswhole, and retain the soluble and flavoring principles, as inmoat green vegetables. Beans or dried peas, which containcasein or vegetable albumen in larg| proportion, should In-cooked in soft water, as the lime in hard water hardens thecasein, and prevents the vegetables from becoming soil.

In cooking meat, fish, and vegetables in water, we shouldremember these two facts : -

Boiling water hardens and toughens albumen and fihi-inebursts the starch grains, and is absorbed by the swellingstarch. ^

Meat is cooked in water for three distinct purposes • —First. To keep the nutriment within the meal as in

what is usually called boiled meat. To do this we leave themeat whole, that only a little surface niav be exposedPlunge it into boiling salted water, and keen it there' forfive or ten minutes; this hardens the albumen over thoentire surface, and makes a coating through which the '•<••.-


cannot escape. Then move tho kettle whore the waterwill simmer slowly. See that the cover fits tightly, to keepin the steam. The water should be salted to raise theboiling-point, and increase the density of the water, andthus prevent the escape of the juices. A small amount ofthe albumen in the outer surface will be dissolved and riseas scum. This should he removed, or it will settle on themeat and render it uninviting in appearance. If the meatbe put in the kettle with the bones uppermost, then the scumwill not settle on the meat. In turning the meat do notpierce into it to let the juices escape. It will take a longertime to cook in this way, but the 6brine will be softened,and the meat made more tenjjer and of better flavor, thanwhen kept boiling furiously.

Second. Meats are cooked in water to hare the nutri-ment wholly in the h'fptid, as in toupt and tntat tea*. Cutthe meat in small pieces; soak in cold water, the longerthe better; heat gradually, and keep hot, but not boiling,until all the goodness is extracted.

Third. Meats are cooked iu water to have the nutri-ment partly in the liquid and partiy in the meat, as in stetcs,fricassees, etc. Put the meat iu cold water, U-t the waterboil quickly, then skim, and keep at the siuiine ring-point.The cold water will draw out enough of the juiws to enrichthe liquid; then, as it reaches the boiliug-l>oiut, the meathardens, and retains the remainder.

Fish is usually cooked in boiling water for the purposeof keeping the juices in the fish. As the flesh of fishbreaks easily, the water should never be allowed to boilrapidly. Salmon, mackerel, or any very oily fish, shouldbe put into cold water, and brought almost to the boiling-point quickly, as they have a very strong, rich flavor. Alittle of this flavor can be lost without injury to the fish.

Vegetables, which are mostly starch and water, shouldbe put into boiling water and boiled rapidly, that the smallportions of albumen which they contain may be hardenedon the surface ; then, if the starch grains are burst quickly,they will absorb the albuminous juices within.

The Boston Cook Book,

Milk boils at 196s. Being thicker than water, less ofthe steam escapes, and the whole liquid becomes hot soonerthan water. The bubbles rise rapidly, and, owing to theirtenacity, do not burst at the surface, but climb over oneanother till they run over the edge of the pan-

Milk, grains, custards, and any substances which, fromtheir glutinous nature, would be liable to adhere to thekettle, are much more easily and safely cooked in a tlouMeboiler, or in a pail within a kettle of wator. This is uueform of steaming, or cooking over boiling water. In s team-ing, the water should not stop boiling until the articles arecooked. This is a convenient form of cooking many arti-cles which it is troublesome Jo cook with a dry heat , andyet do not need the solvent powers of water. W a t e r yvegetables are rendered drier by steaming; and ttwighpieces of meat which cannot' be roasted, are first madetender by steaming, and then browned in the oven. Some-times meat is steamed in its own juices alone ; t h i s iscalled smothering., or pot-roasting.

Stewing is another form of boiling or cooking in a siuallquantity of water, at a moderate heat, and for a long t ime.The word means a slow, moist, gentle heat. It is an eco-nomical mode of cooking, except where a fire has to bekept for this purpose alone. The long-continued aet iou o-fa gentle heat softens the fibres; aud the coarsest andcheapest kinds of meat, cooked in this way, with vege ta -bles, may be made tender and nutritious. By judicious useof seasoning material, remnants can be made into savoryand nourishing dishes. Whether we call it simply a steie,or ragout, haricot, or salad, the principle is the s a m e ,that of slow, steady simmering, rather than fierce boi l ing.

Fricasseemg (meaning " to fry") is a form of stewing-.The term is usually applied to chicken, veal, or some Mniallgame, which is cut into pieces, and I'riud cilhor boftirv . >rafter stewing, and served with :i rich white or b r o w neauce, and without vegetables. Any incut thtit is qui tejuicy and not very tough may be first browned on the ou t -side to keep in the jukes, and improve the flavor. C o a r s e


tough pieces shoulil not be browned, but dipped in vinegarto soften the fibre; and pieces containing much gristleshould be put into cold water.

Braising is a form of stewing done usually in a braising-pan or kettle which has coals in the cover. Any graniteor iron pan with a close cover to keep in the steam willanswer the purpose. When placed in the oven, where itis surrounded by a slow, uniform heat, it needs very littleattention. It 13 one of the most economical and satisfac-tory wavs of cooking large pieces of tough, lean meat,pig-eons, liver, fowls, heart, etc. Stock, vegetables, andbacon may be used, if a rich liquor be required ; bnt water,herbs, and simple seasoning make it very palatable.

Baking is hardening or cooking in a dry heat, ss in aclose oven. Nearly ail flour mixtures — bread, pastry* andsome forms of pudding—are more wholesome baked thanwhen cooked in any other way. Many forms of bakingare really stewing; but the closely confined heat of theOven gives an entirely different flavor from that obtainedby stewing over the fire. This is seeu in the differencebetween stewed and baked apple-sauce, beans, etc

Meat and fish, if baked in the right way, lose less inweight than when boiled or roasted. To bake them prop-erly, the juices must be kept within the meat. Au intenseheat at first is necessary to harden the albumen ; then re-duce the heat, that the outside may not become too hard.and baste frequently to prevent drying. No water shouldbe put in the pan at first, as it will then be impossible tohave a greater heat than that of boiling water (212°), whilefor baking meat 280% or more, is required. Put one ortwo tablespoonfuU of beef drippings, or some of the fatfrom the meat, in the pan, to use in basting, as the fat canbe made much hotter than water. If the joint be verylarge, or the meat need thorough cooking, like poultry,veal, or pork, water can be added to check the heat aasoon as the outside is cooked sufficiently to keep in thejuices. This will keep the meat moist. Small cuts, andmeats to In: eaten rare, are better baked without water.

i4 The Boston Cook Book.

•JNIiinv persons accustomed to meat roasted before theopon fiiv ol'jvc-t to the flavor of baked meat. If the ovenlie very hot at first, and opened every five minutes jus tlong enough for the basting, which is an essential par t ofthe cooking process, the smoky odor escapes. If therebe no damper to check the heat underneath the oven, putthe grate or another pan under the dripping-pan, as noheat is required under the meat. This will prevent the fatia the pan from burning and smoking the meat. P lacethe meat with the skin side down at first; then, if thejuices begin to flow, the skin keeps them in; and, whenturned, it brings the side which is to be up in servingnext the hottest part of the oven, for the final browning.All baked meat or fish should be salted and floured allover. Salt draws out the juiceB ; but the flour unites "withthem, making a paste which soon hardens, and keeps themwithin.- Baste often, and dredge with salt and flour afterbasting. If there be no shelf attached to the stove nearthe oven, keep a box or frame of wood just the height ofthe oven, near by, and pushed up close to it; it will befound very convenient to pull the pan out upon it whenbanting or turning the meat.

Frying.

Frying is cooking- in hot fat, —not boiling fat, as it is sooften called, for fat can be made much hotter than thetemperature required for cooking, which ia 3S53; the tem-perature for boiling fat is from o6i>° to 600". Frying,when properly done, is immersion in smoking-hot fat. T h efat should be deep enough to entirely cover the artieles tobe cooked ; and as it maybe used manv times, it is not soextravagant as some suppose to use such a quantity. Theprime secret of nice frying is to have the fat hot enoughto harden instantly the albumen on the outer surface, andtlius prevent the fat from soaking into the inside of what-ever is to be fried. As a much higher temperature tsrequired tban that for boiling or baking, the articles are


very quickly cooked; and they have a flavor quite unlikethat given by any other form of cooking.

AU articles to be fried should be thoroughly dried andslightly wanned. If very moist, or very cold, or too manyArticles'to fried at a time, the fat becomes chilled, andthe grease soaks into them. Then, as the moisture heatsand bolls, it causes such a commotion that the fat andwater boil over, and there is great danger from the fattaking fire and spreading to your clothing, to say nothingof the trouble of cleaning the stove and floor. For thisreason be careful not to let a drop of water, or of con-densed steam from another kettle, fall iuto the bot fat.

Meat, fish, oysters, croquettes, etc., should be dried,and rolled in fine bread-crumbs, to absorb any moisture ;then roiled in beaten egg, and in fine crumbs again. Thehot fat hardens the albumen of the egg instantly ; and that,with the crumbs, makes a fat-proof crust.

Fish balls, fritters, and fried muffiu mixtures containegg and albumen sufficient to keep them from soaking fat,if the fat be only hot enough. A Scotch bowl, or deepiron or granite kettle, and a wire basket small enough tofit dowu into the kettle, are best to use in frying.

The Tett for Hot Fat. — When the fat begins to smokepat in a bit of bread; if it brown quickly, or while youcan count sixty as the clock ticks, it n hot enough forfried potatoes, doughnuts, etc- When hot enough tobrown the bread while you count forty, it wili do for fishballs, croquettes, etc.

When ready to fry. plunge the basket into the hot fatto grease it. and then place in it the croquettes, or whatrever you may be frying, so that they will not touch eachother. Hold the handle of the basket with a long fork,and plunge it quicklv into the fat, but do not drop thehandle, because if the fat begin to boil up, you can thenraise the basket quickly, and wait till the ebullition hassubsided before plunging it iu agaiu ; and thus avoidthe danger of burning from the overflowing fat. The fatcools rapidly, when many articles are fried at once, and

16 The Boston Cook Book.

should be reheated to the test point before frying anymore.

Time. — Any cooked mixture, such as fish balls and cro-quettes, or very small fish, oysters, scallops, etc., will befried brown in one minute. Thicker fish, chops, and frit-ters require longer cooking ; and, after plunging them intothe hot fat, the kettle should be set back from the fire toprevent them from becoming too brown before they aresufficiently cooked. While frying, be careful not to spillany fat on the stove. Keep a tin plate in your left band,and hold it under the basket, or ladle, as you take thingsfrom the fat.

Braining. — Thorough draining is another secret of nicefrying, and you cannot find a much hotter place than rightover the hot fat; so hold your basket of fried food over thehot fat, and shake slightly, till all dripping has stopped.Then place the fried articles on soft or unglazed paper, toabsorb the fat, and keep them hot till ready to serve.Never pile fried articles one on another.

Fat for Frying.

Lard, a mixture of half suet and half laul, drippings, oroil, may be used for frying. Suet and drippings are cheap-est, and are preferred by many. Suet used alone coolsvery quickly and leaves a tallowy taste. Drippings shouldbe carefully clarified (see page IS) and freed from water,or the articles cooked will soak fat. Lard, with a smallproportion of suet or drippings, is more generally satisfac-tory. There is often a very disagreeable odor to new lard,and more or less water in it, as la shown by the froth andebullition as soon as it becomes hot. Before it is used forany purpose it should be clarified with slices of raw potatoand heated until it becomes still. Olive oil is the purest fatfor frying, but it is too expensive for general use. Cotton-seed oil has been recently introduced for cooking purposes,and is an excellent fat for frying, though many dislike itspeculiar odor. It may be heated much hotter than lard,


without burning, and, when properly used, imparts noflavor to the food. When the fat becomes too brown forpotatoes or doughnuts, nse it for croquettes, etc., aod thenuse it for nothing except fish balls and Ssh. When it be-comes very brown, put it with the soap-grease.

If you wish to fry several kinds at the same time, beginwith potatoes, following with doughnuts or flour mixtures,and crumbed articles last; otherwise the crumbs will falloff, and adhere to whatever is put in subsequently. Afterevery frying, strain the fat through a fine wire strainer orfine strainer cloth into a tin pail, not pouring it, but dip-ping it from the kettle witli a small long-handled dipper.Let it cool slightiy before straining, as, if very hot, it willmult the strainer. Sprinkle coffee on the store, while fry-ing, to disguise the odor.

Sauteing.

The ordinary way of frying in a shallow pan with only alittle fat, first on one side and then on the other, which theFrench call sauteing, answers very well for some purposes,— omelets, fried cakes, and many things browned in butter;but nearly everything that requires any more fat than justenough to keep it from sticking, is much better immersediii hot fat. Fish balls, chops, and oysters are more quicklycooked, and absorb less fat, when fried by immersion thanwhen srutied. Some people are extremely unwilling tomake the change, aud persist in going on in the old wayof cooking in a little, half-hot fat which spatters overstove and floor, soaks into the fish or meat, and is oftenserved as the only gravy. Upon such, dyspepsia is a fellavenger.

These directions for frying are given thus minutely notfrom any desire to recommend this method of eookiug;but, if people will fry their food, they should do it in theonly correct way. With the exception of sait-fish ballsand small, dry, white Ssh, there is nothing fried, even in

The Boston Cook Book

the right way, that would not be equally good, and muchmore conducive to health, were it cooked otherwise. Sar-atoga potatoes, or chips as they are called, are really chips,for persons with weak digestion. Oysters, chops, fritters,and the materials in croquettes, muffins, and doughnutsmay be cooked in many better ways.

Frying answers very well for open-air cooking, on theseashore or in camp, where appetite and digestion arestrengthened- But in most modern houses, where theodors from the kitchen penetrate the remotest nook andcorner, there are many serious objections, apart from theindigestibility of the food thus prepared. The acrid odorsgiven off during the heating of fat are very irritating tothe mucous membrane of the nose and throat, and they areequally so to a sensitive stomach. Some persons who canusually digest fried food cannot do so when the stomachhas been irritated by the odor in frying. If all those whonre so fond of croquettes, fritters, etc., were obliged toinhale the smoking fat, these dishes would seldom appearon the table.

To clarify Fat.

Any uncooked fat, such as suet, the fat from chickens,and all superfluous beef fat, should be saved and clarified,or made pure and clear. Cut the fat into small pieces,cover with cold water, and cook over a slow fire until thefill has melted, and the water nearly all evaporated. Th«nstrain and press all the fat from the scraps. When cool,remove the cake of hard fat, or, if soft, draw it to one sideand U't the water underneath run off. You may put withthe new fat any fat from sonp stock, corned beef, drippingsfrom roast beef, veal, fresh pork, or chicken ; in fact, any-thing except the fat from mutton, turkey, and smokedmeat. If there be any sediment adhering to the fat, add •a little very cold water, and. after stirring well, pour tbe ;

water off, or skim the fat from tbe water. Place tbe fai *in a i>;m over the fire, and, when molted, add one sraw potato, cut into thin slices. Let it stand on the


of the stove or in the oven till the fat has stopped bub-bling, is still, and the scraps are brown and crisp andrise to the top. Strain ttirough a floe strainer, and keepin a cool place. Fat thus cleared will keep sweet forweeks, if melted occasionally, which should always bedone when any new fat is added.

Boiling the fat causes the water in it to evaporate, andthe organic matters or imi>uritie3 to be decomposed, anddeposited as Bediment; the potato, owing to its (wosityand power of absorption (being mostly starch and carbon),absorbs any odors or gases, nuites with the sediment, andthus cleanses the fat, very much as charcoal purifies water.Clarified fat (or dripping, as it is usually termed) an-swers for many purposes in cooking,—frying, sauU-'ing,basting roast meat, greasing pans ; and as shortening forbread, plain pastry, and gingerbread.

Egg and Bread Crumbing.

Hints on saving bread crusts and stale pieces, for eggand bread crumbing, are given on page 75. The crumbsshould be sifted through a fine sieve. For fish or meatmix a little salt, pepper, and chopped parsley with them.Beat the eggs slFgbtiy with a fork in a shallow dish. Addone tablespooBful of water or two tablespoonfu Is of milkfor each egg. Add H little sugar if they are to be used forsweet dishes, and salt and pepper for all others. Sprinklethe crumbs on a bo«rd, and roll the chop, fish, or cro-quettes first in the crumbs; shake off all that <\o nol adhere.Cover all the articles with the crumbs and let them standtill dry. then dip into the beaten egg, and be careful toliavr every part covered. Drain from the cgg\ and roUagain in the crumbs. Croquettes or any soft mixtureshould be held on a broad knife while being placed in theegg. Then dip the egg over them, and slip the knife againlengthwise under the croquette, drain, and put it carefullyinto the crumbs. Scallops and very small oysters can bemore easily CILIIU'KHI 1>V [ilucing them with the crumbs in a

2O Tk* ItoMton Cook Book.

sheet of paper, and touring or turning Mil all are crumbedRemember Uiu order: eruiuba flnrt, tbro «gg, tben cnmiUsagain.

Routing.

Roasting (meaning " to beat violently " ) U r»"" ' ' !-1-fore an open fire ; it implies Uie •clioo i>f a urndegree of beat than that employed in any of ibe jspecified method* of cooking. Tbc W'*t of ao oj«n i.rv s-about l,000J.

In the days of open flrepkcea U*i» wu the graera! wa)of cooking large piet-es of uueal; but DOW il i- •>" ;^'lonly in large establbbnienu, or by tbow who f-n- ' ! 'the additional expeo«ti of s tin kitchen, awl a rn>. it-Btnictc<;l especially for roantitig. Bntiuj;. or rmt-i, ... avery hot oven, being a cbeaper ami u*?rv ti>o*cin'-. •' ••;>,is more generally usotl. Ov4-o» in »Ww an>l r:r.now well ventilated; «nd meat when |>rop«-rty <•••• > • • 'very hot oven, ami basted often, i» nearly e»jual ; - r > rto that roasted befont an open lire. Tbe fir* for r • --:.;.,*ehotild lie dear and brij fat, and of willk-H-iit Uxly l*> \a»l.with only a slight sprinkling of coal, iferuugh the time forroasting.

The meat is placed on a ipit, am) bung In Uie jack '« atin kitchen, and made to revolve slowly before the nre bvwinding a spring in the jack, or bf mrnin« the spit uiregtilar intervals. The nwat should bts r«bl>ed wiih sal!and flour, and placed oa the spit, ven' iw»r the t*re ntfirst, to harden the albumen; then removal a Iir;l, •)'-,-tance to prevent Uie meat fn>m burning, before (IK •-• '••is cooked, liaee two or three Rpoouftila of tini-rsi-ii "'the pan to use in basting the meat ; baste often, sod jdredge two or three times with flour. When the joint it jvery large, place a buttered paper over it.

As the juices of meat are composed largvly of wattthe water will be cvaporate-d as SHKMI as it reaches Iboiling-point, or 212°. When meat w plami in aate oven, tht beat is uot sullicit-nl to lianltu the a

The Bos/on Cook Book.

on tbe outer surface ; the watery juices evaporate, thesteam esca|>es, and the meat becomes dry ami tasteless.But when meat is exposed to the intense beat of an opentire, or a very hot oven, tlie albumen hardens; and ifbasted frequently with hot fat. the meat is completely en-veloped in a varnish of hot melted fat, which assists incommunicating the heat to the insti.it1. and checks theevaporation of the juices; this prevents the escape of thesteam, so that tbe inside of properly roasted meat isreally cooked in the eteam of its own juices. The evnporation of juices is proportionate to tbe amount of surfaceexposed. A small joint has a larger surface in proportionto its weight than a large joint weighing double or treblethe amount; therefore the smaller the joint to be roasted,the higher the temperature to which its surface should be ex-posed, that the evaporation may be more quickly arrested.

For very thin pieces of meat, which have a still largersurface in proportion to the weight, such as stcsks andchops, a greater heat is required. This ia accomplishedby broiling, which should be done near Uie burning-poiiit, the highest degree of heat employed in any form ofCooking.

Broiling.

Broiling (meaning " to bnrn " ) is cooking directly overthe hot coals. The degree of heat is eo intense that thearticles to be cooked would be very quickly burned, werethey allowed to remain for any length of time over the fire.The secret of nice broiling ia frequent turning. The fireshould be bright red, and noarly to the top of the fire-box,so that the broiler may almost touch the fire. Thereshould be no flame, as the flame from coal is due to thecom oration of tarry vapors, and will cause a deposit ofcoal tar on the meat, giving it a smoky, nauseating Savor.When the fat from the chop or steak drips on the coalsami blazes, it deposits a film of mutton or beef fat allover the meat, which has a very different flavor from thatof the coal (lame. Wln>n Urn steak lias much fat, remove

part of iU A Male fal will u»|*w*» Uw An.the meat, and kf«p it 1W*. b r a i n s U*> rfr:

OTCO damper th«uUl •)*«>• W ^ - . - i «li.U- ithat the smoke of U»e dripping bi ma* >« r»rn»lchimney.

Tbcre is nothing better f«»r twwiltu« than a 'U>tbroiler. Hi* mil U> ba«« acTrrai « • * . «lw»*with a bit of Ui# fal from U* «* »»• ** p l t t l •»h-»"Place the thickest part of »b»l©»er U U* Ue bn»iithe mi.idle of tbe bn>iW. 1X> ttu« «*U ib. Eweuidi»w» oat the Juice. lUvc Um pbiur heating, mthing elae ready, that >ou may a--rt fc»*« Uw- U^an iosbutt. Hold tbe broiler fifrol^, «***> * " » r

wrapped arouud your ba»tl U> pr»4«?tt i'riace it m near the firs a* powMhie, t>>iuaUinUy ; cotiut teu, tlivn m*r IW "t-•"hanlens the oaUklu, aud *t*rt4 *They cannot escape through Uw tibut if the meat went cooked *!*.>;., „.. -turuiiig, they would soon cuuw tu UM? kfs awltarniog the meat, Uw juktw wautf Jrip into tbw tiJif tlio meat bo turned brj'.n tin- )uk«* rr**h tinother sorface i-t baf.iem^l, anil ttn-y nmuut *•»*•*(• .to the centre, and arw there retain.-*). A* tfa« jconverteil into »tt»am by the h*at, U»v »welJ aiwJmeat a pufly appt-arance. If the bruiting betoo long, these juR-ca gratluallv o o u brtwto the surface, and are evaporated ;dry, leathery, ami inUigmUble.

Meat should be broiled only IOOK e&ootfk to l.v-.-r- n?lthe fibres, and start the Sow of ib* jnu-*». The t.- -tspring up inatanUy when prosed »ito the knifr :*•'•• "it ceases to do this, the juic*» have fa***'and the meat shrinks. A littl* vsprrirw.'.-to deeiiie jtwt when to remove UM- m,.^ ! 'it, as this lets out the jui«.-», it tfxmUi be ^ i . * ait.1 juu.*>.cot raw and purple, nor brown a»tf dry. Tura o « r »*often as you uau euunt Uju, ttuj ^^ f^uf a»iuuU--o. if


one inch thick; six, if one inch aud a half thick. Thesmaller and thinner the article, tiic hotter should be thefire ; the larger the article, the more temperate the fire, orthe greater the distances from the fire.

Fish should be floured to ket-p the slciu from sticking.A large baking-pan to keep in tbc heat should be heldover anything which is very thick and requires to be cookeda long time.

Chickens, which Deed to be thoroughly broiled Iiut notburned or dried, require about twenty minutes. A safeway is to wrap them in buttered glazed paper; cook theinner side first, and after the first searing k«ep tLem at alittle distance from the fire.

Chops, bacon, birds, and dry fish aro also improved bybroiling in the buttered paper. Take a large sheet ofwhite letter paper, or two small sheets. Rub them wellwith softened butter. This keeps out the uir. Season thechop or fish with salt and pepi>er, place it near the centreof tile paper, and fold the edges of the paper over severaltimes and pinch them together close to the meat. Thepaper will char a long time before blazing, if care be takennot to break through the paper and thus let in the air andlet out all the fat. The meat will be basted wilh its ownfat and juices. A longer time will be required for thebroiling; but when the paper is well browsed, the chop willbe done. It will be found juicy and delicious, — freefrom any smoky flavor.

Pan-hroiling is broiling in a hissing hot spider or frying-pan. Heat the pan to a blue heat. Rub it with a bit ofthe beef fat just enough to keep the meat from sticking,but do not leave any fat in the pan. Sear the meat quicklyon one side, then turn without cutting into the meat, andbrown the other side before any juice escapes into thepan. Cook about four minutes, turning twice, and servevery hot with salt mid butter. If the pan be hot enoughand no fat used, this is not frying, it is broiling on hotiron; and tlie flavor is almost equal to broiling over thecoals.


Baking Bread, CaL

Loaf bread . .Rolls, biscuit .Graham gems .Gingerbread . .Sponge cake . -Plainfruit " - .Cookies . . . .Bread pudding .Rice aad TapiocaIndian pudding .

bustards . . . .

Time Tables

e, aad Puddings.

. 40 to COm.

. 10tu20 "30 "

. 20 to 80 ". 45 to 60 •'. 30 io 40 ". 2 to 3hrs.. 10 to 15 m.

l h r .1 "

. 2 to 3 "

. 15 to 20 m.

Itcamcd puddings .Pie-crust . . . .Potatoes . . .Baked beansBraised meat . .Scalloped dishes .

Eiders, coffee, clam^

. 1 to 3 "

. about 30 m.. 30 to 45 "

li to 8hrs., 3 to 4 ". 15 to 20 m.

Sotovsters . . .

iice, green corn, peas, tomatoes, aspaPotatoes, macaroni,Young beets, carrots

Winter vegetables,lamb . . . .

Fowl?, turkey, veal7orned beef, smokei

Ham . . . .Halibut and salmonBlue-fish, bass, etc..

squash, celery, up'turnips, onions,

>atmeal, hominy a

tongue, beef a !a

n cubical form, |perlb. . . .

for Cooking.

Baking Mec

Beef, sirloin, rare, per 1Beef, sirloin, well dune,

per lhBeef, rolled rib or rump,

per IbBeef, lung or short filletMutlon, rare, per Ib.Mutton, well done,

per IbLamb, well done, perlb.Veal " " "

Pork " " "Turkey, 10 lbs. Trt.

Goose, 8 lbsTame duck . . . .Game " . . . .

PigeonsSmall birda . . . .Venison, pe r l b . . . .1'isb, G lo S lbs. ; long,

thin f i s h . . . .Fish, 4 to 6 lbs.; thick

hahbutFish, small . . . .

'»

agus, hard-boiled eggsiaeh, sweetbreads . .parsnips, cauliflower .

nd wheat, chickens aad

mode

er Ib

it.

I*, a t o

12 »•

is to20 to

40 t o

1 '• "

IS "30 •'IO »

^i> "

3krv14 "

tf» a.30 to <UI '•

15 to

20 t..»

15 U.20 to30 to

i to3 to

30 "

at> "l * **

1 hr.

2t> "•30 *'•*» «tiu ••

2 far*.

4 •*

IS- en.

Muffing fritters, doughnuts -Slices of fish, breudud eliop3 .


Steak, one inch thick .Steak, one and a half in.Small, thin Gab . . .Thick fishChops, broiled [• paperChickeD

Many kinds of meat which arc very lean and dry areimproved by the addition of some kind of fat. The tender-loin or fillet of beef, the thick part of the leg of veaL, grouse,and liver, are often prepared ID this way.

Larding is drawing small strips of fat salt pork or baconthrough the surface of the meat; daubing is forcing stripsof pork through the entire thickness of the meat. Take apiece of fat salt pork two inches wide and four incheslong. Shave off the rind the long way of the pork ; thencut two or three slices about a quarter of an inch thick,the same way as the rind ; cut only to the membrane whichlies about an inch below the rind, as this is the firmestpart of tlie pork; then cut each slice across the width, intostrips one quarter of an inch thick. This will make thelardoons one quarter of au inch wide and thick nud twoinches long. Insert one end of the lardoon into the endof the larding-ncedle, then with the point of the needletake up a stitch half an inch deep and one inch wide inthe surface of the meat. Draw the needle through, andhelp the pork to go through by pushing until portly through,then hold the end of the pork and draw the needle out,leaving the pork iu the meat, with the ends projectingal equal lengths. Take up more stitches one inch apartiu parallel or alternate rows, until the whole surface iscovered.

Daubing is applied to a broad, thick piece of beef orveal. Cut the pork in strips one third of an inch wide andthick, aud as long as the meat is thick. Punch ft holeclear through the meat with a stcd, aud then insert the

The Botton Cook Book

hmlooii with a Urge lanling-nw«ll>Tbo salt ami fat from the lanioun* t~ •;'tbe meat, and by nmiij an* wn*M*r<<i -M\ m^.rThose who object to the pork will flu. I that U-»>f r :.seasonal as well by ismring the »urfiuv with mo- ..fsuet, salted; or the pork may IK laid on tbv meal andremoved after cooking- Tin* |irwt"»* i« nut ditnVult, re-quiring DO more skill than auy OUKT kind of wving.

Any one who can nsc s *har|» kntfr, awl s m p e moat orfish from a bone, wiliumt cutting b**r own flenh, can boneanything, from the mnflHi-st bint, ehop, or 6»ti. to a l*-g orforequartcr of lamb, or a turfcey. A *wa)l knife with asharp, short, points Wmk% is nil that \» reqniml. It bwell to begin on a ftinult fwak- br rv-movit^; tbr b>mt- froma chop or steak, llw aim b* to remove th*> flt"«h from tht*bone without cutting into ihv Jk?sb, or de«troyhi^ it« shapemore thao is nwcaxarv.

To Jione a Chop or Steak. — Begin at the bom- entl, serapethe moat away, leaving the bone cW-an atui the Hitth un-broken. If there bo a |>it»et? of tenttfrloio uivkr the howe,remove it, and put it up clone to tbe nwat, wiit<h WHSabove the bone ID the original form.

Directions for boning fi»h are given on page 161.To Bone a Leg of Mutton. — CUE it off at the first joint,

insert the knife near the joint, au<l hxmrn Uie ftt'sh fromthe bone, leaving all the gristle ami teiwtoiwt on thu Km*.Then l«egin at the tail eti<l. at»t »era|w Ibe fat away fromthe backbone, then follow tbe bone (von ean easily to\\ bythe feeling, if you cannot see it) until you come to thejoint; leave all the gristle ami cants on the bone, and con-tinue scraping off the flesh till the whole bone is out. <>oecould easily cut through from the outside to the bone amiremove it in that way; bat the 8e»h wonM have to besewed together, and much of the juice would escape.Aiter removing the bone, stuff the cavity left by the bone.

The liitston Cook Book, 27

and sew tbe skin together at the smaller end. Then bringthe edges together at the upjjer end, crowding all the (Leahinside, and sew the skin together tightly. This gives arectangular form of solid meat ami stuffing. When saltedand floured and exposed to a hot oven, the juices arc keptinside ; the meat is more conveniently aerved, Bud, whencold, does not become dry and bard.

Any other pieces of meat are boned in a similar manner.To Jioae a Bird, Fowl, or Turkey. —la this ease the

flesh is to be kept in the skin in order to preserve tbeshape. The skin should be firm and unbroken, andthe bird should not be drawn. Remove the hem) and pin-feathers, singe and wipe carefully. lie move tbe tendonsfrom the legs, and loosen the skin rotiud the end of" thedrumstick. Make an incision through the skin from theneck to the middle of the back, or near the junction ofthe side bone. Scrape tbe flesh with the skin away fromthe backbone until you feel the eud of the shoulder-blade;loosen the flesh from thia, and then follow the bone to thewing joint, and down to the middle joint in the wing.The skin lies very near the bone underneath tbe joint,and care must be taken to avoid cutting through the skinat these places. Leave the first bone in the wing to aidin keeping the shape; it may be removed before serving.la small birds there is so little meat on the wings, thatit is just aa well to cut them off at the middle joint. Ke-move the bone from the other wing in the same way, thenfollow the collar hone from the wing down to the breast-bone, loosening the crop from the flesh. In removing theflesh from the breastbone, be careful not to cut throughthe skin on the ridge. The flesh may be pushed awaywith the fingers, and the fillets or pieces that are detachedfrom the other flesh can be laid aside, and. put in placeafterwards. When the breastbone is bare, separate theflesh from the ribs, and be careful not to break throughthe membrane into the inside. Kemove tbe flesh roundthe second joint, then the drumsticks, turning the fleshwrong side out as in pulling a glove from the ilnger.

28 Tiie Boston Cook Ilaok.

Repeat thi8 process on the other side. Then scrape d o w nto the end of Uie backbone, and cut through the l>oi»©,leaving a part of it in the tail. Separate the membraneunder the body without breaking. Thus you have tbeflesh in the skin, and the skeleton left entire with the c o n -tents undisturbed in the inside. Lay the stuffing in, fillingout the legs and wings, then sew the skin along the b a c k ,and skewer or tie into the original shape.

An easier way of boning a fowl where it is U> be ro l l edlike a galantine, is to cut off the wings at the second j o i n t ,break the drumstick half-way from the joint, out the sk indown the entire length of the back, remove the flesh fromthe wing and second joint, turning the skin and tl«»U offlike a glove ; then do the same on the other wing and l^g»leaving the breast till the last. The wings and legs* a r eturned inside, the stuffing is laid in the flesh, and thewhole rolled over and over, and sewed on the edge of t h eskin and at the ends of the roll.

Measuring.

It has been said that " good eooks never measure any-thing." They do. They measure by judgment and ex-perience ; and nntil you have a large share of both t h e s eessential qualities, use your spoon and cup or scales.

Measures, in preference to weights, are used in n e a r l yall these receipts, as they are more convenient for t h e ma-jority of housekeepers. "When measured and estimated bytlie Table of Weights and Measures on page 30, t h e eupand spoon may be used as accurately as the scales.

Flour, meal, sugar, salt, spices, and soda shonlil al-ways be sifted before measuring. Any other ma te r i a l sthat have been packed, like mustard and baking p o w d e rif not sifted, should lie stirred, and broken up l igh t lyOne tablespoon t'ul of solid mustard taken carelessly fVornthe box has been found equal to three tablespoonfulsmeasured after sifting.

Tin1 s:ilt-|>oons, teaspoons, and tablespoons used in t h o s eVi'ci_'i]jU iiiv the silver spoons now in general use. I r o n


mixing-spoons van* much in size, but there is a size whichholds exactly Die same as a silver tablespoon. Be carefulto use this size in measuring. The cap is-the commonkitchen cup holding half a pint. Those with handles aremore convenient.

To measure a UoMpowfut of dry material, dip into thesifted material, ami take up a heaping spoonful, shake itslightly until it is just rounded over, or convex in thfcsame proportion as the apoou is concave. AM eren or tcntuteupoonful means the spoon filled lightly, and levelled offwith a knife. Otu half Uotpocmful is most accuratelymeasured by dividing through the middle lengthwise.When divided across the width the tip is smaller thiui thelower half. .-1 heaping ttutpomtftd is alt the spoon willhold of am- lightly sifted material. A teatpoonfui of liquidis the spoon full to the brim.

TabUspoonftdt are measured in the same way.A cupful of dry material should be tilled and heaped

lightly (not shaken down), then It-veiled off even with thetop. A small scoop should be fcopt in the flour or sugarto use in tilling the cup. A heaping capful is all the cup willhold. A cupful of liquid id not what you can carry withoutspilling, but what the cap will hold without ruuning over;full to the brim. Place your cup in a sancer, while tillingit, or in the bowl in which the. liquid is to be poured.Haifa evpful is n<A half the distance from the bottom tothe rim. Most enpa are smaller at the bottom, for whichallowance must be made. Take two cups of the samesize and shape, fill one with water, then pour the water•without spilling into the other cup until it stands at thesame level in both cups. This gives you the half-cupfulexactly, which in the cups used here is two tliirtls of theheight, or witiiiu au im-li of the top. The quarter andthrte-quartter measures mav t>e found in the same way. Ascant cupful is within a quarter of an inch of the top.

'-Butter the «» of OH egg," is a very common expression.This equals about one quarter of a cupful, or two ounces,or ynu heaping tabUsen>ooufu!. either of which U more eaaity


written than the first expression. Place an egg in onetablespoon, then pack butter in another till it fitl^ thespoon in the same proportion as the egg, and J*-»u willeasily carry it in -mind.

Have your materials measured or at hand, and all uten-sils ready before beginning the mixing, or p u t t i n g th«ingredients together. Keep a bucket or pan full of timir,freshly sifted each day, and ready for use. Measure flourfirst, and put it in a bowl or pau together with sa l t , soda ,cream of tartar, and spice; measure butter and p u t it iathe mixing-bowl; then measure tbe sugar, and. in s c rup ingout the sugar, take the butter which has adhered to tlwcup. Break your eggs on the edge of the cup ; if th*.- whiu>be clear, the egg is good. Put the 3"olks in one b o w l andthe whites in another; measure the milk or liquid, and,after using the beaten yolk, clean out the bowl wi t l i themilk. Or, measure all the dry ingredients, break a m i sep-arate the eggs, measure the milk, add it to the bcatt 'tiyolks, and measure the melted butter last. In e i t h e r wayyou can make one cup do for all without washing. - - Twoeggs beaten separately " means that the yolks ami whi tesare to be beaten separately, not each whole egg lx.>atenseparately.

A tabtespoonful of melted butter is measured after melt-ing, A tablcspoonful of butter melted is measured befuremelting.

To economize space, in many of the receipts the a b b r e -viations are written: one cup for one cupful, table»|>. furtablespoonful, teasp. for teaspoonful, and saitsp. fo r salt-spoonful. All these measures mean a full measure, un lessscant or heaping measures are specified.

Table of Weights and Measures.

i saltspoonfills of liquid4 teaspoon fills of liquid

1 tsblespoonfuls of liquid2 gilli


quart.pound, or 1 qosrt,pound.pnnnd.pound.

ounce*, or | enpounces, or 1 cnp.

•ups, or 4S tible*poonfals.taps, or U liblespmrnfals.

rup uruit, or3 tables pooafnU.3 l U

Ublespooofuk of liquidtablespounfuls of dry mate rial

8 heaping tablespoon fula o( dry material" caps of liquid

cups of flourcups of solid bulletcop of buttercups of granulated sugarcups of powdered sugarcups of mealpiat Of milk or iraterpint of chopped meal packed solelylarge egg*, 10 medium eggaround tahletpoonfttl of butterheaping talikapooofnl ot butler :

Butter the sim of an egg :heaping table*poonful of sugar :round isMwpoonful* of dour :n>und lableapooofqls of coffee :round tablespooDfals of povd. tegtx -tabie»poonful of liquid :bottle S. M. winebottle brandy :small bottle Burnett's extract :small boMle Barnett'a extractflisk of olive oil :

Table of Propor t ions .

K-ant measure nf liqoid to 3 full measnrat of HOST, for bread,scant measure of liquid to 3 fuil measures of flour, for muffins.acanl measure of liquW t« 1 full measure of Soar, for baiters.cnp of yeast, or J of compress) yeastcake. to one pint of liquid.even leai$p. of AMia ana * full tc^sp. of ejeaiD tarUr to 1- ([uart of nonr.heaping, or I even u-aspooiifuts, of baking powder lo I quan of flour,teaspoonful nf MMI* to 1 pint of sour milk.

I teospooDful of NX)« lo 1 cup of molasses.1 ealtspoonful of u i t to t quart of milk for casUrd*.1 teaspuonful of extract to 1 quart of custard.1 Mltapoonful of salt to 1 loaf of sponge ctke.1 testpoonful of extract to I loaf M plain cake.1 lpoonful of xpice to 1 loaf of plain cake.

poanful t>f 8*\t tn 1 quart of g<tup stock or 9 qnarta of floor.1 saltspoonful "f white peppfr to 1 quart of soup stock.1 teaspoetiful nf mixed herbs to 1 quart of soup stock.1 tablespoonfiil of each chnpped r a t a b l e to 1 quart of soap stock.A *prck of cayenne pepper is «li»r you can tike up on the point of a pen-

knife or on a qoartervinch square ^urfnc*?.A pitifh of wilt or ipin is about * Kalupooaful.A pinch of hops La J of a cnp.


The proportions of seasoning given in these mw^ipta annot sufficient for those who like highly seasonal fixxi- i'ia easier to add more, titan to remove any if t oo highlyseasoned.

Mixed Spice for Rich Cakes and Plum Puddings-

i tea.po.WuI each of drives and allspice.1 leospoonful t-si-h of mace and grated nutm*g.

Spice Salt for Soups and Stuffings.

4 ounces of salt.3 ounces of celery salt1 ounce each of while pepper and ground ill vme.1 ounce ca^h or ffl&irjoraoi and summer ii&vorv.i ounce of sage.1 sallspouaful of cajenne pepper.i teaspoon(ul each of clyvw, allspice, and tuaco>

Mis, sift, and keep closely covered.

Mixed Whole Herbs, for Soups and Braised H<

1 bunch each of whole thvinc and marjoram.1 bunch each of summer savory and &i$ c-j- puuud of bay leaves.

Cmsh and break the leaves, blossoms, and s t a l i c s , a m imix thoroughly.

Mixing-Next to care in measuring comes tlie manner of m i x i n g .

The most accurate ineasureineAt of the best m a t e r i a l s isoften rendered useless by a nporiwt u-> i»nf them t o g - e t h e rproperly, ami tin' M:iiiir i- u- , • ' ' ' - > the o v e n or

the iv.vii.l. "I'lit'i-o :IJV t!irt.». , ; . • • • - t,f a i i x i n ^ -f r f r r h / r , . t ' - n h . , , ! , . n n , ] <\,-u'r,;l ( < r / • ; „ „ , „ , , .

S'.irn,,;,. — I.rl 11,,- !K,W| of the [XH)11 rest riiffbtlj ODth^ li:>ttiu:) •)!' (In- in ;\i:i^-i'onl ; tiu>n move rouewl " a w jround in widt.'iiuij> fiivlus, without lifting the spoon o u t of


the mixture, except to scrape the sides of the bowl occa-sionally. Stir slowly at first, to avoid spattering; add theliquid gradually, and be sure the bowl of the spoon (notthe edge nor the tip merely) touches the bottom and sides

>wl. This is mashing as well as stirring, and thesoon becomes a paste. When perfectly smooth

; from lumps, add more liquid till you have the

sired consistency. We stir flour and water together forickening, or butter and flour and milk for a sauce.

We stir when we rub butter to a cream, or when we makea batter or semi-dough. When we make a stiff dough westir at first, and then turn the whole mass over, bringingthe knife or spoon round the bowl and cutting up throughthe dough.

Beating. — Tip the bowl slightly, and hold tbe spoon aothat the edge scrapes the bowl, and bring it up throughthe mixture and over with a loog quick flop to the oppo-site side ; under, and up through again, lifting the Bpoonout of the mass and cutting clear through, scraping fromthe bottom at every stroke. Keep the bowl of the spoonand the aides of the mixing-bowl well scraped out, thatall the material may be equally beaten.

We stir simply to blend two or more materials; webeat to entangle all the air possible in the mixture. Webeat eggs or hatter or soft dough. The albumen of [heeggs and the gluten of the flour, owiug to their viscidity orglutinous properties, catch the air and hold it in the formof ri'Us. something as we make soap bubbles by blowing•ui into soapy water. The faster we beat, and tbe morew lum.; the material up from the bowl into the air, thenvi 1 i lhl.-in. ha\e but one -.tiling rm tion >ull deMi > ' s lit eiT2« shoulii l i t 1 11K is

in 1 I <rtill tlK\ in l!_' 1 1 1 I

thei litupeid* doput to Tethis there is

1 1 1 'htt in l . lwn withuit r aln u-i ks« i\j-,f

n nr I

it '•pil'

, thnL thlC

The Boston Cook Book

the whites. Let the whites stand a minute, then ran apalette knife round the edge close to the bowl; they willslip out easily, and leave the bowl almost clean. Forbeating eggs, for nearly all purposes the Dover egg-beateris the best. There should be two sizes, the larger one forthe whites of eggs. Hold the beater lightly in the lefthand, and move it round through the egg while turningthe handle. For frosting, and snow pudding, and all beat-ing of soft dough, use a perforated wooden spoon. Bowlswith slightly flaring sides, and not too deep to be claspedfrom bottom to rim in the left hand, are most convenient.If tipped slightly toward the right, the beating is donemore effectually.

Cutting, or Folding, or Lifting. — Omelets, sponge cake,whipped cream, etc., should have the beaten white cut orfolded in carefully to avoid breaking the air bubbles. Turnthe mixture over with the spoon, cut through, lift up, andfold the materials together, lifting the part from beiow, upand over, and mixing very gently until just blended. Donot atir round and round, nor beat quickly.

All mixtures which are raised with eggs alone, should ,have the yolks and whites of the eggs thoroughly andseparately beaten; any very thin batter, like pop-overs,pancakes, or gems made without eggs, should be beatenvigorously just before baking. Graham or whole-wheatflour is better than white flour for gems that are made•without eggs, because it contains more gluten.

Shall we stir only one way? No; stir any way youplease, so long as you blend or mix the materials. .Batafter beating in air bubbles, don't break them by stirring,unless you wish to keep tip the game of cross purposesindefinitely. Always let the last motion, before turninginto the pans, be one of quick, vigorous beating; exceptin those receipts where folding instead of beating isindicated.

The Bmkm Cook Book.

Table of Average Cost of Material used in Cooking.

1 cup of flour or m « l1 ' • sugar . . . .1 " buiter . . . .

I CU]> of BJ..U.H* . . .1 " milk1 ublnpoaniul of ome .1 •• " brandy1 bwpwmfnl of vu i lU .1 » » .pi™ . .1 " " tod*. «nd

teaspoon fuU nf envin-tart1 Ubleepnonfal ofbuMcr -But tw-Ixfofamwr . .1 Ublwpoonful of olive oil3 tabl^peonfi.l, of «>S« .3 tcatpmnful* of tea . .1 quart of milkmaa'* o » u r1 >' DewfnotcMMB1 box o f gelatine . . . .

iJTrioIr*™, '. '. '.J |< C | " T "" l B - ' '1 " c ra rk . r . . .1 '• I . p i o o . . .1 " lire . . • •

. fO.Ol.06

.an.OS.

.03

.18

.02

.023

JUT i n.0-1

.02

.OS-01.84.80-Ifi

.oa

.m18

.13

.10

.07

.03

.18

E pound of iipagiietf i1 " tontttarcb .Icanofloroatwa . .1 " ulmon

. . 80.18

. . .10

. . .15

. . J 8

1 " dcviUnl ham and loagw .301 tumbler of jelly . .

1 pound o f m . . .1 - eofft*- . -

i " nutmeg . .

i " ginsrr . .I " mustard . .

Paringe at whole herb*1 pound uf cheen . .

. . .33

. - .23

. . .75

. . .38

. . .40. . -33

. . .00

. . .1!

. . .1

. . -H

1 " Parmeun chaeM • -Mt peck of potMoe* - -

1 turnip . . . .1 IHIWII nfwlerv . .1 handful of par*lcv .1 bunch of watercrtiuu*1 bead of lettuce . . .

. . &. . M. . M

. . .03

. . .«

. . .oa

. . .0

. . l

Those prices are for the l>est materials, and are esti-

mated for the season, from Outober to June, when batter

and eggs arc Ligbcr tlmo duriog the summer.

$6 'The Boston Cook Book.

BKEAD AND BREAD MAKING-.

Importance of Bread. —Bread is one of the ea r l i e s t , ttiemost generally used, and the most important form* <>ffood adopted by mankind. Nothing in the WIIDII1 '-::utof domestic life more affects the health and hap pi < -- >•(the family than the quality of its daily bread. Wi t i i $£.**!bread, the plainest meal is a feast in itself; without i i . tWtnost elaborately prepared and elegantly served mrmt isunsatisfactory.

Bread-making is at once the easiest and the mos t clitfK-uUbranch of culinary science, —easy, if only sufficient inter-est be taken to master a few elementary principles amito follow them always, using the judgment of t h e bestauthorities, until experience furnishes a sufficient guttle:difficult, if there be any neglect to use proper cart- andmaterials. It should be regarded as one of the highestaecorsplisbmenta; and if one tenth part of the interest,time, and thought which are devoted to cake a n d pastrvnnd fancy cooking were spent upon this most importantarticle of foot!, the presence of good bread upon o u r tableswould be invariably secured.

Origina»d Mining of >• Bread." — V,vv:x<\ is made from aTariotyor«ihst.imvs.—njots. fruits, .wltholmrk of t r©«;but wr.r,- -. 11(iai:\ ('mm certain fuviiii-*. The wore]

bi8 d l ' l ' " • • : • • ' ' ' •• r l l W i

old nir;;, • ; i i r i» nunni

made. ol1 -soinoiliiiiij: bra;

corn. But these brayederly bread until they arcThen the Tinned oT;mi |>,ing to wet, or »,,,<\fr)i.meal or dougli wan l>:ik«

o br<,

-X t h

, • « ! .

or <:

ivonIn

1 Ht

(y. or point

,IK bnu-otround msit;cd or moics dotiffh,

primitiveonce in h>

'/.I5i. 1 •

or1stfrcti

ot

ex

wliial

t i n

rmas

prossivoll i.4 i ] u .eat or >>s are n o t'-'(1 wi th '

JS this ' vhes, a m i

of th.'

•1HV -d

t •. •

[ > ' • • * '

V >tt 1uiatle


a firm, conipatfc bread, exoAccidentally some one discovestand till it had fermented, adoiisrh. it. ntiwl. or lifted, th1 ; 2 V •• • ! • Tin

sdingly hnrd of digestion,ed Lliat by letting the doughnl tliou mixing it with new

whole mass, and made itT(l loaf,

• • -.•. or lift up. The old dougti—or leaven,si« i: -. •. i • !, ;- iipthedough. The raised mass is heldin jtliiM' !iy ilu- lu-at in baking, and becomes the loaf of

Hi ami »ft</e from Wheat.—Bread is made principally from•wheat flmr. Bye and corn meal are sometimes used, bntbetter results are obtained when there is a mixture of wheatwith one or more of these grains. Eye used alone makesa close, moist, atidry bread ; while corn meal alone makesto .drvandtrumbh 1 lo-if

~\\ lie at is an iinnuitl grass of unknown origin, cultivatediiiuie e\.ttn«nU^ in the Northern htmisplnre Tbeu aremei une bundled and fiftj % mitv s of nht.it Tht\ tre

01 hmd —fcott wheat being tender \u\ 'md hard wheat bung tough, fiim, m 1 n.gluttu

Ohenural Composition if Wheat —Wh*>at w thf ml\ „( nnwlinh contains gluten in th« proper propoition m'l <-i tin.ilibmd qatliti psisentitl totht_ aiakiue of light spon™bn id It lonttin-. ill th

38 The JSoHom Cook Book,

busk lie the inner bran coats, conUioiiig gimtrm, &stance which i* Ibe uitrugeuou* or

Awral mttiUrt whu I.make up tbi* (»>«>t*M-' buth , Blitj UlV 1:gives Uie character.- iU> wbt-at grain*. 1 . - u-

r » i o*- „ *" ' ^ h r a r t - of lh -^ ult

txitt»UtM uf txtlm tukc i: »,JttfurirA, it One, *biL, ilv-

powder, wbidi lias h u b V«1M a. fc«| e I w p ( „, . . , "ap r o d u c t . Tbcre is alto « aoutil t a m m l uf gi ; : . . ;>r-fused among I he .tarch « I U . Kur cwwowi i™, ti., .-..• •iii-fennt p a r u of the wheal wiU Ui d n i g i u l n l u 4r<«, orthe outer husk; gluten, atthe iiiuer bnw cxwu; audHarc/>t or tue heart of U»wheat. The proportiou andquality of the gluten auilatareh in dilfereut kiutU ofwheat vary according to theclimate autl soil in whichthey are grown. They are ""•* O"1"*"also affected by the method • " " • * - • *••"•of grinding the grain. Wheat gro«n in S.».l!,<-ni or warmclimates, and in the intenw, though abort, summer ol'ourOIVH Northwest, contains more iillrog™ thai, Uiat grown inmid, damp climates. It lost, mon. w a U . t , t, a p o r , t i 0 ! l ,and consequently the seed t> smaller and harder In »mevarieties of wheat the outer l.«d u, tl.in and smooth, audpeels off readily under the stones. In other., il i« thitJtanil rough, and adheres do^ly to ,1,,, k e r n c ) . ,n „ „ , , , itis l.ght-cul,,„..>... i..;-.. (1 others, daikwbred or tough.The husky ; .,t j8 , lK)Ut lalinixn m ^xuxnper cent ot . ,u

The ghtttn 01 »i,vM ls a gray, tough, ckstie sototance,consisting chiefly of vegetable nbrioe. It ram be eMnimcd

TJie Boston Cook Book. 39

easily by making a dough oi" flour and water, and workingit on a sieve under a stream of water. The water willcarry tbe stan-h, sugar, gum, and mineral matters into thepan below, leaving a lump of gluten on tbe sieve. Itclosely resembles a piece of animal skin, and, when dried,has a glue-tike appearance ; hence its name, gluten. Theproportion of g lute 11 varies from eleven to fifteen per oent.This tough, elastic quality of t i e gluten determines thequality of the flour. The more gluten and the tougher orstronger it is, the better the flour. The gluten of goodflour wilt swell to four or five times its original bulk ; whilethat of poor flour does not swell, but becomes watery andstick)', and sometimes gives off a disagreeable odor, owingto the deterioration ot the fatty or oily clement.

Preparing the Flour.

St. Louis Process. — There are several methods of con-verting wheat into flour. One is by grinding between twohorizontal stones, the upper one revolving, and the lowerone stationary- The surface of tbe stones presents aninfinite number of minute cutting edges. The upper stoneis convex, the lower one concave; but instead of fittingperfectly, they approach closer together from the centreoutward, so that, as tbe grain is poured into an opening intbe upper stone, it ia at first rather coarsely crushed, andthen cut finer and finer, as it is carried to the circumfer-ence by the centrifugal force. As the grain leaves thestones, the outer husk has been least affected ; the tough,coherent gluten is divided minutely, while the brittle starch,which forms two thirds ol" tbe grain, is completely crushed.The inilltT then divides these products, by sh'ting or bolt-ing, into fine //our, coarse Jtour, ami l>r,m.

The brnti "should be discarded ;n utterly n s o W s forhuman ln.»I . ••!.: r. N <.fU-n mixv.l with :ui mlVnor quali tyof fine liuM. •• • ! • . i \- Ci'ab'im rlour. It «a< :.l onetime o o i w : . .• I •. . U -m a foot I for tiio-c smlt-riHsr


science Las shown us recently that minute points of glass(and bnin is nothing else) are not Nature's beat ageuts inremoving ctft'te matters from the 83'steiH. All of the 80-called Graham flour made by tiiis process should be siftedbefore using.

The coarse flour will vary in quality, according as it Lasmore or loss of the outer bran mixed with it. In the softwheats the husk peels olf readily under the stones, and iseasily separated by bolting; and as these soft varietiescontain the smallest proportion of gluten, they yield a coarseflour, containing only an average amount of gluteu, andthe whitest fine-flour. But in the hard, flinty wheats, thisouter husk clings ao closely that much of it is ground upfinely vitli tlie flour, giving it a dark color. This flour, aait contains a large proportion of gluten, would be morenutritious were it not that much of the gluten adheres tothe hulls, and is lost by sifting them out, and much of thefine, flinty bran is retained in tiie flour, which makes itirritating and indigestible.

The quality of the jine flour depends upon the quality ofthe wheat, in the fust place ; also upon tin- nmtiluT of sitt-ings, liL'Liiii nrhiT in gluten the less it is MTU-II ; :uv\ uponthe way in which it is stored. Tin- pivots of -rimlingwith the stones heats the Hour; ;UH1 a* ii is often ihnistupon the market without being propei-lv i-uuled and drit'il,it spoils very rapidly. Flour made l>v tlii.s prowls ofgrinding is called the St. I^uit, or utd-prorest flour. Whenmade of the very best quality of grain and carefully pre-pared, it makes a sweet, nutritious bread, and is excellentill cake aad pastry. It is often designated pastry four.

HaxaU Process. — Another method of making" flour isby the new, or Haxall process, so called from the name ofthe inventor. By this process the outer husk is first re-moved, or decorticated; then the cleaned grain is eut bv asystem of knives, which reduces it to a fine powder with-out the injurious effects of heating. This flour has aslightly granular consistency, owing to the presence ofminute particles of hard, flinty gluten. It is tisuajlv made

The Bottom Cook Book. 41

from the best quality of wheat, and keeps weQ. It is con-sidered by many as the best Hour for bread, as it uiakvs awinter, nicer-looking loaf. IIaxn] 1 flour swells more thanthat made by the old process, as it contains more of thegluten; the saint) measure making a greater quantity ofbread tbiin the St. Louis flour. It is, therefore, cheaperin the end, though cowling more per barrel. By repeatedsiftings, this flour loses iis ghiteu, aa does lhnl made bythe St. Loub* process, ami consequently in tlii-u inferior asa food. But we can supply by other flours aud other foodwhat this flour lacks in nutritious qualities ; ami until thepopular titfcU? is educated to demand thu amount of nutri-ment contained ia bread ratbur than tue whiteness of it, asa test of its quality, it is well to make our fine, white breadfrom this, which is the best flour, and have it as nearlyperfect as possible.

There have been many variations of the It a sail process,and all arc Luchideil under the term neic-prvcess Jtour,

Minnesota. — The Minnesota, or patent-process, flour isnow considered one of the best grades. TUe Wash burn,Pillsuurv, aud many other mills located io Minneapolis arethe largest di>ui'-iniiU in the world, aud produce au exuel-kjot quality of flour, in which a largu pmportiou of thegluten is retained. This Miuuesota dour is made fromcarefully selected wheat grown in the Red River region,the best wheat-growing section in Aim-rica. The first stepin the process U tltc breaking off of the germinal poiut ofeach grain by what arc called ending stnues. Then it issent through corrugated iron rollers, having shallow groovescut spirally upon them, with rounded ridges between, andthe opposing rollers grooved in an opposite direction. Thegrains are crashed (not ground); the atarchy parts, ormiddlings, being quite finely powdered and easily separa-ted from the brau or tailings. After this separation themiddlings are passed through ten bolting-cloths, andthen through other and finer eomigatcd machines, andmade into the various grades of fint, tvptrjine, d/flours.


Health-Food Flour. — A still better method of •ing wheat into flour, and one which is indorsed byscientists and physicians, has been recently iutrrah;tie Health Food Company of New York. Only tbe <kinds of wheat are used. The outer husk is first v> '•••Iby moistening the grain, and subjecting it to a g e n ; ; •••••• •>•bing by what is termed the '-attrition process." 'l'i.softens tlie woody fibre of tiie outer bran, which i& I-SM.removed by sifting, but does not affect tlie hartl glm-coats. The grains are dried, then pulverized into variu!grades by a compressed eold-air blast, which da&ti*;:* w.grains into atoms with tremendous force. Tbts in callwholt-xoheat flour, the name indicating that the wlioi« of i..gluten, or nutritive part of the flour, is retained. It is nsifted like other flours, but pulverized into all the vark-u •of crashed wheat, coarse granulated a.xn\ fine granulated w-hmeach variety, even the finest flour, containing al l thatvaluable as food. Bread made with this flour b a a b< .found, after repeated trial, to be sweet and agreenl»l*; to t.taste, light and spongy in texture, with none of t b e obj< -tionable features of Graham bread, and answering fully ailthe demands of perfect nutrition.

Cheap inferior Graham flour, made of poor flour tnistdwith bran, is worse than no food at all. Any t tour con-taining much of the indigestible bran causes i r r i ta t ion ofthe digestive organs; all the food is hurried ttirotigfh thealimentary Cimal before digestion is complete or alt tbenutriment can be absorbed, and thus is neither eoonouiiea!nor healthful. Fine flour containing the most glut-c-u is i'most nutritious, because it is all digested, and t h e lo&.salbuminous material can be supplied from other s o u r c e s .

The Arlington, the Fnmkliti, and some other U r a u d s ofwhole-wheat iiour. arr higlily indorsed by those familiarwith them.

The Tests of Good Flour.

The first requisite in making good bread is to u^ t , ^^flour. Good flour should not bo pure white in e-ofor bat

The Boston Cook Book, 43

of a creamy, yellowish-white shade. If it feel damp,clammy, or sticky, ant) gradually form into lumps orcakes, it is not the best. Good flour holds together in amass, when squeezed by the hand, and retains the impres-sion of the fingers, and vvvn the marks of die skin, muchlonger than poor Hour; when made into a dough, it iselastic, easy to be kneaded, will .stay in & round puffyshape, and will take up a large amount of water: whilepoor flour will be sticky, flatten, or spread itself over theboard, and will never seem to be stiff enough to U- handled,DO matter liow much flour is used- Haxsll flour 1ms a linegranular consistency, anil runs easily through the sieve orthe fingers like fine meal; while good St. Louis flour feelsBoft and oily. It is exlrava-fanl to buy poor or evendoubtful flour. But, should it nave every appearance ofbeing good floor, and yet not make good broad, do notcondemn the flour without a fair trial; and be sure thefault is nowbere else.

Every experienced ooofc bas her own tests for flour, andsome oF them are amusing, if not reliable. The best wayis to buy a small quantity at first, and mnkt it into dough ;then. If satisfactory, purchase whatever amount is re-quired, and buy this same brand us long as it proves ofuniform quality. The names given to flour (ire not a surecriterion of the quality. The floor may come from thesame growth of wheat, and Ire ground in the same mannerand at the same mill, and yet the miller or the wholesaledealers will brand it different)?*. And the same brand willvary in quality from year to year. Some of the varietiessold in Boston, and known to he good by personal trial,are Archibald's Extra, Vashbum's, Spaolding, Corrugated,Taylor's Best, Brown's Best, Marguerite, etc.; the sameflour may be known in other cities under different names.There are others equally good, and every year some nowbrand ia announced. It is estimated that one bam-l offlour will last one person one ywir: which gives a VHIO ofproportion by which-to buy. Most good houseki. persRgfee that flour is not improved by long keeping, Uwuyli

The Boston Cook Buok\

flour dealers think differently. Flour should be k e p t ; :icool, dry pla.ce, as the least dampness causes it to ;i! r>moisture; the glutoa loses its tenacity, becomes s-tit-*),and Uie bread made from it is coarser n»<l less light.

For small families it ia better to buy wuolc-whe-at fl««rby the bag or half-barrel; Haxall, for bread, b - th*.- "-ar-tel ; and the best St. Louis flour for cate and past r\ ^tbe bag, as a much smaller proportion is needed (or -n ,Mbe) for these indigestibles, tbau for the " stuff of lit*.-.

Bread, Fermented and TJnfermented.

Now, having discussed the subject of the dour, t b e nextstep in oilier is the different ways of making it into bread-These may all be included under two -divisions, tbo««made by fermentation, anil those without fermentation.

Fermentation, what is it? — Fermentation is that clmn»t>in organic substances by which their sugar, starcb, jî • i,etc., are decomposed or recombined into new compos :-.This change ma}'be spontaneous under favorable condi-tions of air, moisture, and warmth ; or it may be b a s t v tM.ilby the presence of a ferment-, A. ferment is some albu-minous substance in a state of decomposition, a n d , whenintroduced iuto any other albuminous substance, in how-ever minute a quantity, causes a change which porvmJesthe whole mass. These fermenting substances are iu greatvariety, and the germs of some of them am always presen tin the air. There are different kinds of fermentation.

i';n is the change in milt w h e n it- aiMimiuoua part of the m i l k , by

nnl «:Lrnith. begins to decoinpose1 ..,: >• :••- !!.,• sugar of the m i l k into; . ! . :•••. ••-, upon the remainder

M v\-,i. 1. nm, ânseg it to coagula teor hanloii, ami ULMAS il ;i an-in- UiÛ'.

The oh-oholir 'fenn-utatiua is thai whirh is p r o d u ^ d inBubstanc-a ru-h in ^ ^ r or 8i,ireh. as tl.o fruits anti K r a i 1 1 8iroiu which wiues and beer are made, bome of tUtao fer>

The lactic

pOSl

the

Theire to

1 . - : L 1 K '

milk.

/ ;I-

ti


ment germs are present in tbe juice of grapes ; and underthe influence of air, moisture, and warmth, they seizeupon the sugar already present in the natural fruit juices,and any that may be added, and convert it into carbonicacid gas and alcohol. In the grains, a i>oition of thegluten ferments and changes the starch iuto sugar, andthen the sugar into carbonic acid and alcohol. In con-verting the starch into sugar there is no change evident tothe eye; but as soon as the sugar is decomposed into alco-hol and carbonic acid gas, large bubbles of gas appear,which swell the whole mass.

Acetic fermentation is caused by allowing alcoholic fer-mentation to go on beyond a certain limit, or in a tem-perature above 90°. A familiar illustration of this is thechange of wine or cider into vinegar.

Now, bread-dough contains ghitcn, sugar, and starch;and if the dough be kept warm for a certain time, lacticfermentation will he developed spontaneout/ij, and tbe breadmade from such dough will be sour and heavy. Alco-holic fermentation can also be spontaneously produced indough, by making first a batter (as the semi-flatd stateis more favorable to rapid,chemical change), and subject-ing it to a temperature of 110c for five or Bix hours; then,adding more Hour, allowing it to rise again, and thenbaking it. Bread made in this way is called salt or milk-rising's bread. But it does not keep well, and is not gen-erally liked.

It is nut always convenient to wait for dough to beraised in this rummer, so we hasten the process by theaddition of some active ferment. Leaven, or a piece ofold dough, left to sour, and then mixed with the newdough was formcrlr need ; this produced lactic as well asalcoholic fermentation, and though the bread was light andspongy in texture, it had an unpleasant sour taste. Bntsince the chemistry of veast fermentation has bee'n under-stood, yeast has come to be considered the best ferment forproducing alcoholic fermentation in bread rapidly, andwith no objectionable result.


Teast, what is it t—Yeast is a plant or germ of thefungus tribe. Under the microscope it is found to c*m»i*tof numberless minute rounded or oval bodies wli i th aretrue vegetable cells. Veast is therefore one of the simplest

anil smallest of v«j5*.-t*l>k>organisms. Eaci i littlecell consists of &.n va-veloping skin t>r mem-brane, i-oumiiun^ n liquid

or sap. They grow or expand froai tlie luiiiuteat uiii_n>seopic points, and seem to bud off from each o the r andmultiply into many millions to the cubic iueh. Tlwsecells are easily propagated in any medium where the.y fiudcongetiiul food, particularly in the juice of grapes*. Ii'grape-juice be filtered and left to stand in a warm j»l»wtwo or three hours, it becomes first cloudy, then tbtv-k. audgives off bubbles of gaa, showing there lias been sotm-change in its composition. In a short time a £prn\ it»h-yeliovv fi-oth, or layer of 3'east cells, collecte on the &« rfatt." Whether the germs or spores of the yeast p lan t uxistalready in the juices of the living grape, or whether theyarc always floating in the air, and cling to the ex te r io r ofthe fruit, and ouly become mixed with the juiise in t h e wine-press, is not known ;" neither is it known just h o w theydecompose the sugar of the grape. But it is enon«;lt forour purpose to know that they grow in the juice a m i ex-pand there, aud that an active ferment mav he dissolvedout of these yeast cells, sufficient to cause alcoholicfermentation .

The natural developim-nt of yc-tist through the a g e n c y ofplants is too slow and inomneiik>nt a process to rely upon ;therefore we mrimifiu'tniv it from various substances rjfhin starch and sii^ar. iin-wcrV \vn»t is made fronj malt,oj sprouting grain, u?u:illy barU;\ : home-made yeas t , fromflour and" potatoes.

Ymst Braid the Result of Chemical Changes.—. \iridaA

pronerly ninde with yeast undergoes certain chvmicalchanges which render it lighter, more porous, more plea*-

The Boston Cook Book 47

ant to the taste, and more healthful, because more easilydigested, and more convenient for general use. It is gen-erally recommended by scientific and medical men as thebest form of bread.

Wheat contains a larger percentage of starch than of any-thiog else. We learn, in the chapter on Digestion, thatstarch as such is not absorbed into the human system. Itmust first be transformed into sugar. All starch that isnot changed into sugar by the process of cooking or beforeour food is eaten, is so changed by the ptyalin, or ferment ofthe saliva, and the ferment of the pancreatic fluid. Anyprocess which produces this change for as makes our foodmore digestible. " Powdered alum will dissolve in watersooner: than a crystal of alum." Any fluid will penetratemare easily through a sponge than through putty, and thesalivary and gastric fluids are no exception to this rule.Wheat starch in its natural state is close and compact; andbiead made simply witli flour and water, and baked at oace,will be close, dry, and difficult to masticate and digest.Good bread should lie sufficiently soft to be easily crushedin the month, and of such a light, spongy texture that allthe starch cells may be ruptured, and the greatest possibleamount of surface be presented to the action of the diges-tive fluids. To obtain these qualities in bread, we try toexpand the doogh as much as possible without destroyingits natural sweetness. Owiug to the peculiar elasticityand tenacity of the wheat gluten, this is very easily accom-plished by alcoholic fermentation. The flour is moistenedwith some warm liquid, yeast and salt are added, and it istluin exposed for some hours to a temperature of about70°. The yeast changes some of the starch of the flourinto sugar, and the sii^ir into alcohol and carbonic acidgas. Thi-; .'- • -••. '•• ::: !v ilcr than the dough, rises, and, inits efforts -.-..- , \:. ;i(h the elastic, glutinous rJongh

into a ma,-- u\«i <.r i.uvo times its original bulk. The

escaping ; and when this expansion has reached the desiredlimit,—that ia, before the alcoholic fermentation has changed

The Boston Cook Bool:

to the acetic and soured the dough, or the tough, glutinouswalls of the air cells are broken,—we check the forma-tion of gas, and kill the ferment by baking the dough in ahot oven. The alcohol escapes into the oven ; some of thestarch is changed into gam, and forms the crust; and therapid decomposition, produced by tbe intense heat, causesthe crust to assume a brown color.

Unfermented Bread. — This is made without yeast; hutthe principle is the same as in fermented bread, namely, theliljfi'fition of gas within the dough. The gas escapes quickly,and all such bread must be baked a? soon aa possible aftermixing. There are no chemical changes in the starch orsugar; the elastic, glutinous dough is simply expanded bythe gas. The etarch cells are ruptured by the intense heatin baking; but if the gas bubbles burst before the heat hasfixed the gluten wall, the bread will be heavy. This gasis produced in the bread dough in various ways: 1st. Bythe gas in very cold water, and the air obtained by vig-orous beating; 2d. By the introduction of water underpressure, highly charged with gas. The first method isonly suitable for mixtures which are to be baked quicklyin a very hot oven, and eaten i named lately, like gems,puffs, etc. The latter method produces what is known asaerated bread, making a light, aweet, spongy loaf; bat i*is not practicable for home use. 3d. The usual methodis by sonic Lr;is-generating compound, as the union of anacid anj :m ;dk:ili; usually soda, with either sour milk,cream of taitar, or muriatic acid. This is a convenientform adopted by many people who think it hard work tomake yeast bread. When the chemicals used arc pure,and in such a proportion that they neutralize each other,and leave only Rochelle salt as a residue, this bread, ifused only occasionally, is harmless. But Rochelle salt isa medicine, not a nutritive food ; and "those who are welldo not need the disturbing influence of a medicine in theirdaily bread," and those who are ill (\o not often need thisparticular form of medicine. Throua;!) ignorance or care-lessness this broad is often made so that there is an excess


c>f alkali or a residue of alum; and then, if used habitually,it is injurious, and to some extent poisonous. It is con-venient to know how to make it well iu an emergency, andit helps make variety. It is best, when freshly baked, inthe form of small biscuit rather than in loaves, and is notas indigestible, when eaten hot, as hot yeast bread. Butfor a bread for general use, for bread that will keep well,for bread that will leave a sweet, clean taste in the mouth,for bread that will yield the most in bulk from a givenamount of flour, for bread for promoting health, there isnothing equal to perfect, home-made yeast bread. Ii isnot so difficult a task to make perfect bread as most younghousekeepers imagine, or old housekeepers assert. It isnot impossible for a young girl to succeed as well in herfirst attempt in this art as the mature housekeeper whocounts her loaves by the thousand, provided she learns thebest way of making it, and uses a reasonable amount ofcomruon-seust:.

The Best Kinds of Yeast.Who made the first yeast? and how docs a young house-

keeper start her own, when away from stores or friends,where she can aeither buy nor borrow r are questions oftenasked. Simply make a thin batter with flour and water,and let it stand in a warm place till it ferments, and is fullof bubbles. A pint of this ferment ia equal to one uup ofold yeast in starting the new.

There are three kinds of yeast in general use,— thedry, the compressed, and the liquid, — oaeu of which hasits peculiar merits,

•Dry yeast caixs, auoh aa the "National" or "TwinBrothers," are inexpensive, always ready to use, and gen-erally liked by those who care more for economy of timeand trouble than for the quality of their bread.

Compressed yeast cukes, like the " Vienna" or " Fleisch-mann's," are excellent, when perfectly fresh ; the best formof yeast where bread ia made in large quantities. But fora small family, where only a quarter of a cake ia used per-


• haps twice a week, or for those living at a distance fromthe stores, they are inconvenient, expensive, and waste-ful. They have almost entirely taken the place of baker'syeast.

As to which is best of the many varieties of home-madeyeast, who shall decide when housekeepers disagree?Every good cook thinks her way the best. They are all goodthat make good bread; the only special advantage of oneover another being the greater ease in making or thelength of time it will keep good. People who are inclinedto shirk think it a deal of trouble to make yeast of anykind ; but there are none so independent as those who maketheir own yeast.

The simplest form of liquid yeast is made with flour, salt,and boiling hop water. To this many add potatoes and alittle sugar, aud some add ginger. Chemists say that thepotato is the best form of starch for the growth of yeast-Potato yeast rises more rapidly, and keeps longer withoutsouring, than flour yeast; bread made from it is sweet,light, and does not dry quickly. As to the comparativemerits of grated raw potato or boiled potato, those whohave used them both ways with equally good results thinkthe grated potato has the advantage of being made in mnchless time.

The really essential points are that the water shall behailing, so that all the cells of the flour or potato may beruptured. The salt and sugar assist in the fermentation,and the hops and ginger serve to prevent the yeast fromsouring by checking the fermentation before all the sugaris converted into alcohol; they also give it an agreeablypungent taste, if not used in too large quantities. Old.potatoes are better than new for yeast, because the3r con-tain more sugar. Porcelain or granite kettles for boilingthe hops and potatoes,, and earthen bowls and woodenspoons for mixing, are best, as iron and tin cause the yeastto turn dark-colored.

The yeast for starting must be fresh and lively, andDever added till the boiling mixture has become lukewarm,

Download - Boston Cookbook 1884

Top Related