The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1899-10-03
AND BATTING.

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DEAR AUNT JENNIE:-Oatmesl is a
time. honored breakfast dish on Ameri
can tables, but the old style Of prepare
ton, requiring several hours OF cook
ing, is fast becoming a thing OF the
past, and probably to the detriment
of the people. Partially prepared or
so-calied breakfast foods are now
taking the place Of boiled cats or the
original oatmeal" They consist OF
the partially baked or softened cereals
prepared in different ways, or some
times eaten practically whole, as in the
case of cracked wheat. Nearly all the
cereals are represented in these par
TALLY prepared or breakfast foods.
Oats probably occupies the first rank,
and oatmeal in some form Of prepare
ton is almost a constant article Of diet
! on the breakfast table. Wheat and
maize are not far behind, and these
products are also used to very large
extent as breakfast diets. Many of
them have been suhjocaed TO a high
temperature, by which the starch
grains are aoftened and formed into a
kind of paste. The bulls and skins are
removed from other cereals, 50 that
the product does not represent the
whole grain, but only a portion thereof.
In soma cases, as in the manufacture
of cerealine, the germ is also re mOved,
as we'll as q portion or all Of the outer
envelopes of the grain. One object IN
this manufacture appears to be the
preparation of a f)od which can be
made ready for the table in a few mo
ments. There is no question, however,
that too little time is cor slmed in the
final cooking of these breakfast foods,
and instead of using only a few mo
ments in their preparation, their
wholesomeness, paLatability, ana di
gestibiIitY would be greatly improved
by %subjecting them for a longer time
to the temperature of boiling water in
the process Of final preparation.
SUBSTITUTION OF POTATOES o
CEREALS
The use of potatoes ia bread making is
very extensively pracUic8d in Europe,
and is not, according to the che mists
of the Department of Agriculture, un
known in this country. Toe result Of
mixing potatoes with -four in bread
making is an increase of the c8ro0hy-
drates and a decrease of the proteid
matter in the loaf. There is no ooiec
ton to the use of potatoes in bread
making from a hygienic point of view,
provided the amount Of admix:ur is
not suh 3ient to make too wide q nutri
tive ratio. The natural proportions of
proteid matter and carbohydrates in
cereals are evidently best adapted to
the nourishment Of man, and any wide
departure from thai ratio, either in
the n case in increasing the amount
OF gluten, as in gluten breads, OF in the
other by diminishing the amount
thereof, as in the use of potatoes
should be avoided. In this country
the use of potatoes in bread making is
largely practiced in private families,
where the bread is prepared for home
use. In many parts of the country it
is quite a COZ slant custom Co mix q
portion of potatoes with the -four, as it
is thereby supposed that a better
bread can be secured. This idea is
probably erroneous. The chief object
of mixing the potatoes with the bread
is to prevent a too rapid drying of the
loaf. The drying of the loaf, however,
can be very effectively prevented by
proper baking, inclosing the moist in
terror with a practically impervious
crust. From q financial point of view,
the admixture Of poEa 10 wish wheat
Fl )ur in bread making is remuuerativa
only when the price OF the potato
starch, as compared with that of the
same amount Of material in cereals. ia
less. While this character of adulter
alton, as has been SAID, is not Drejudi
cial to health, it should not be prac,
tIced by bakers and others who sell
loaves without informing the purchas
ers Of the character and extent of the
admixture. II would probably be very
diff ,uIt to detect the presence of added