Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1868-11-25
USEFUL HINTS BY A PRACTICAL
HOUSEWIFE.

, HOUSEWIFE.
, Holy Writ assures US that bread i
the staff of life, and our daily expe
: rience fully proves the truth Of tn,
: assertion. But it is not enough {,
procure this staff Of life in suffieien
: quantity; the excellence Of its quail
ty is also Of great importance. TIT
strong, healthy man may perhaps ca
poor bread without experiencing any
inconvenience but the delicate
child, or the invalid, whose impaired
digestion requires great carefulnesi
in diet, cannot pay too much attention
to the quality; bread is indeed tC
them the staff of life. The superior
nutritious properties Of bread have
been disputed, but the doubt has been
dispelled by some chemical researches
made in France, testing the compar-
ative nutriment Of various edibles.
Messrs Percy and ,Vanguelin have
discovered that bread contains so nu-
tritiOus parts in 100; meal, "a in 100;
| French beans, 90; common beans, 50;
peas, SO; cabbages and turnips con-
tain only s parts solid matter in 100
pounds; while 100 pounds of potatoes
contains 25 pounds Of solid substance.
And as a general result the scientific
reporters estimate that l pound of
good bread is equal to q or pounds
Of good potatoes. An alarming
statement to many of US, who have
supposed potatoes quite equal to bread
in nutriment. The Irish, whose food
in the old country chiefly consists of
potatoes and milk, might find bread
quite as cheap food If they could raise
the wheat. Potatoes also give fiabbi-
ness to the muscular system.
The word bread is derived from
brayed grain, from the verb to bray
or pound; indicative of the old meth
cd of preparing the -four. Dough
comes from the AnglO-SaxOn word
dedUdin, to wet, to mOisten. Loaf is
| from the AnglO-SaxOn word tif-idn to
raise, to lift up, as raised bread. Leav-
en- is derived from the French word
levee, to raise, as the Saxon word lif-
ian.
The superiority of good homemade
bread has long been acknowledged.
vet how few families re8ly make good
bread. All bakers use alum, which is
injurious to the health, and causes in
digestion in delicate persons. But the
alum benefits the baker in several
ways; il causes his lOaves to separate
evenly and without any trouble, and
increases the weight of the loaf, as it
makes the -four absorb more water; I;
therefore four pound loaf of bakers
bread will contain less nourishment
than q loaf Of homemade bread of
equal weight Economy should make
every woman her own bread-maker
The alum also imparts better color
to the -four and cOnceals any unpleas-
ant OdOr arising from damaged flour.
Bakers bread dries much quicker
than homemade. The reason is, that
alum is what chemists call an efflOres-
cent salt, that is, it dries by exposure
to the air; common salt is deliQues-
cent. that is, it attracts moisture from
the air, therefore, bread which con-
tains salt only will keep moist much
longer than that which cOntainsalum.
These are certainly reasons why every
woman should make her own bread,
or have il made in her kitchen.
We purpose to give few recipes for
bread-making that will not fail. First
we will give a recipe for making
yeast The yeast bought at the door
is not always of the best quality. The
recipe for hop yeast given has been
tested for twenty years and rarely
fails, Dever, if the yeast jug is perfect
ly sweet and the yeast properly made.
Boil in a porcelain or copper timed
kettle, two large handfuls of hops IL
ed in a cloth, six large potatoes sliced
thin, in six quarts Of water. When
the potatoes are very soft skim them
out, and either rub them through a
cOlender or mash fine on plate. Take
out the hops, squeeze dry, and hang
away for another time, as they can be
used twice. Keep the water boiling,
mix one and one-half pints of wheat
-four to q smooth batter with cold wa
ter, and tablespoonful of ginger, two
of brown sugar, and one tea-spOonful
of salt: mix in the mashed potatoes,
stir all into the boiling water, and
boil ten minutes. Turn into a six
Quart tin pan. When milk-Warm 10
the touch add one tea-cup of yeast.
Let it rise over night, then put into
stone jug.
This yeast will keep, in a cellar,
perfectly good for six weeks. A large
teacupful will make two large loaves
of bread. Be suretO reserve a teacup-
full to rise the yeast with the next
time. Always scald the jug thorough
ly and keep water in il over night,
with tablespoonful Of saleratus stir
red into it. This will sweeten the jug.
1t takes a larger quantity of this
yeast TO raise bread, biscuit OF mullins
than of distillery yeast, but the effect
is quite as good. Once used, the yeast
mans bell will pass unheeded.
To make bread of first-rate quality,
the sponge should be laid over night.
Bread that has been raised three times
is much the best. 1t is of firm, even
texture, has no assures or cracks, and
the slice presents an even surface.
Here is q recipe that rarely fails;
Take one quart Of new milk, add boil
ing water sufficient enough to make
it warm to the touch Water can be
substituted for the milk, but bread
made without milk dries more rapid
ly.) Add one teaspOOnful of salt, stir
in three quarts of flour and one tea
cup of homemade yeast, or three tn
ble-spoOnfuls of distilIery yeast. Mix
well together, then sprinkle flour all
round the edges of the batter orspOnge,
leaving a space in the middle uncOv-
cred. Set in warm place 10 rise,
covering with a pan. In summer the
sponge will be ready to mould over
before breakfast. Mix it up so thick
that it can be kneaded well, and knead
it half an hour OF more. ChOpping it
with achopping-knife adds to its light
ness and pOIosIty. When well knedd-
ed, sprinkle flour on the bottom of the
pan thickly, put in the dough, and
set il away for half an hour or more,
but watch ii closely. Bread making
should be most carefully tended, as
any neglect ruins the whole. II al
lowed to rise too much its sweetness il
gone, and though Saleratus will take
away the acidity, its aroma and flavor
are destroyed.) When light enough,
turn out on the moulding board and
knead thoroughly, divide into two
lOaves, reserving a portion for biscuit,
so that the new-made lOaves may not
be cut that day. Mold well, put into
the pans, let it rise in a warm place
fifteen minutes, then bake in a hot Ov-
en-. If the even be hot, the bread
will lose less weight in baking than
when the oven is slack. The batter
can be baked in the morning in muf-
fin rings, and makes delicious break
fast cakes, better than hot biscuit.
Bread made with potatoes is very
nice; if the flour is not of st. Louis
brand it improves its quality: Boil
three large potatoes, well pared, or
six good-sizedO ones; rub them through
a eolender into your bread pan. Rinse
them through the cOlender with pint