The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1915-04-09
WOMEN CAN MIX
THEIR OWN FLOUR
DE PARTM Z
SAYS THEY SHOULD
DO IT, TOO.

Washington, d. c., April THAT
the American housewife is herself
quite caapble of doing all the flour
mixing desirable, is the commentary OF
Assistant Secretary of Agriculture
yrooman on the mooted mixed flour
question He says further that the
American housewife could materially
reduce the cost of living if she were
to get the -four mixing habit.
There are some thirty substitutes
that can be mixed with wheat flour
in making bread" he said in state
ment issued here today Many OF
these are more nutritious than wheat
-four. some of them are cheaper than
wheat -four, and of these, two or three,
at least, are commercially obtainable
almost anywhere.
Potatoes, corn -four, and rice Tin
certain sections) can be used with
profit in mixture with wheat flour in
making yeast bread. With wheat -four
as dear as it is now the careful house
wife stands to effect quite a saving
by using one of these products to exc
out her wheat flour. Experiments
have shown that the substitutes can
be used successfully in the proportion
of one part to three parts of wheat
f1oer. At least three-fourths of the
mixture must be good wheat flour.
Potatoes have certain advantage
in this regard, since potato bread can
be made without going to the trouble
to get the commercial potato meal.
Plain mashed potatoes, four parts of
mashed potatoes to three parts OF
wheat flour, will serve the purpose
quite well. If the dry potato meal or
fake is used the ratio should be one
part of potato to three parts of flour.
Boiled rice can be used in much the
same way as mashed potatoes, care
being taken to allow for the water in
the rice and to use about three times
as much in bulk as would be used OF
the rice flour.
| I'm making potato bread the sponge
F, should be used, and just enough water
! to serve to mix the yeast with the
potato, since the sponge becomes very
soft after partial fermentation. The
remainder of the -four is worked In
afterwards, care being taken to make
an extra stiff dough, which should be
raised till quite light This bread is
much moister than bread made OF
straight wheat -four.
Corn -four, which should cost about
two-thirds the price of wheat flour,
may be mixed with wheat -four direct,
one part of corn -four to three parts of
wheat -four. Use the mixture just as
though it were wheat flour-and mix
it yourself.
at should be remembered that the
addition of starchy materials, such as
potatoes, rice or corn starch (Which
is sometimes used to adulterate wheat
flour in baking) tends to make a LOAF
less rich in protein and hence less nu'
tritious than the straight wheat flour
The addition of corn -four makes lit
tie. if any, change in the nutrltlVe
value of the bread, but makes II
cheaper.
There are other -four substitutes
such as soybean meal and pea flour
which serve to add greatly to the nu
tritiye value of the loaf when mixed
, with wheat -four These products, un
fortunately, cannot be recommended
in the present emergency, since they
are not as yet common articles O
commerce in this country.
| In this connection it should be saif
, that a great saving could be enectet
II the housewife would emulate TIT
professional baker and buy low grad
wheat flours. There are iours on th'
? market quite as good for home baking
, as the fancy patent fours, which cos
in bulk from 20 to 40 per cent les
than the fancy grades. Such are tn
q so-called second clear" and "loV
. tgrade" f1ours, which are graded lowe
. than patents merely because they ar
!, darker. not because they are any les
= nutritious or less palatable. In FAC
the darker color may be evidence ina