Evening star., 1921-05-06
HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS FOR
THE HOME PASTRY MAKER

an even, although not the finest grain.
2. The butter can be melted and added
to the batter the last thing. or Just
before the beaten whites OF the eggs;
that is the quickest method, the only
objection to it is that the grain OF
the cake is likely to be uneven. a mix
ture of coarse and fine. If you adopt
this plan the less you stir your batter
before you add the butter and the
more you stir it afterward the ten
gluten of the -four, when much
worked" in the absence of shorten
ing, is likely to grow tough. 3. !he
butter can be creamed until IT mas
the color and consistency OF whipped
cream: the sugar can be added then,
the eggs next, and finally the dry in
gradients, alternating with milk or
other wetting. until the batter is OF
the right thickness. This is the slow
est method. but it gives the finest
grain.
Finally. there are three ways of
adding fruit, which sometimes has a
tendency to sink in the batter: l. The
fruit can be we'll stirred or crushed
into the .cfeamed butter before the
sugar is added. BY thus mixing it
with the butter its tendency to sink
is reduced. This method produces
darker cake. but that is not always
undesirable 9. The fruit can be -four
ed and added the last thing to the
batter. The flour increases the frtc-
tion and thus tends to prevent the
fruit from sinking, but be careful not
| to use too much -four or you will
| find uncooked patches In the cake.
| g. The fruit can be heated in the
| oven until it is plump. them added
! to the batter. The density of the
/ fruit decreases as it swells: more
over. when the fruit is hot. it coagu.
| lates a certain amount of batter that
| forms coating round it. Thus. in
| two ways, friction is Increased. and
| the tendency of the fruit to sink is
| lessened.
e. Nuts and Chocolate.
| If nuts. or. chocolate. are used ir
making a cake, the amount of butte,
must be proportionately decreased
otherwise. the cake will be SO rich
that it will fall. For instance, II
you use one cup of butter to three
! and wish to add a cup of nutmeats
or of grated chocolate. you must de
duct a fourth of a cup of butter FOL
every cup Of nutmeats' or OF choco
late that you add, for both ingredl'
ents are rich in fat. Nuts also re
/ auire an additional amount OF sai
I to develop the flaver-a fourth OF
! teaspoonfu1 for each cup OF nuts. Tht
added touch Of salt makes all thu
| difference in the world between al
! excellent nut cake and a poor cake
! Scarcely a recipe for any kind Of
| cake calls for salt, yet the lack oi
! it will give a raw taste to cake
I A level teaspoonful OF salt shoulc
be put in an average-sized cake.
| When following directions in
recipe for putting 05redients TO-
gether- it is important to 40 1t cor
rectly. To "stir in" means to thor
| oughIy mix materials by rubbing
land pressing them together. and il
! is not important that they should bt
stirred only one way. Folding In.
| is a lighter sort of mixing. in which
eggs. -four. and SO on are turned II
4 with long. single strokes Of the
spoon, and the whole mass is no
touched after the last. addition il
! mixed lightly. In ,"beatng in tn
object is to get all the air possible
into the ingredients, SO as to make
the mixture lighter. This is bes
done by continuously lifting it VI
| in the same way. getting into 1T al
| the air possible, SO 1t should not be
stirred round and round, but lifted
up with quick strokes from bottom
to top.
! when baking cakes. to prevent
| them from sticking to the tins first
! grease the tins, then -four them
! lightly beating out all loose -four
| leaving only what clings to the
grease. To seed raisins for cake
thine will be saved 1t the raisins are
put tn q dish and boiling water, 1!
peufed over them. Let them stant
for ten. minutes. pour OFF the' water