Rules For Bread Making

Do not mix the dough too stiff. Remember it should be as soft as can be handled.

Keep it warm enough while rising. Remember a chill is fatal to your sponge.

Allow it long enough time to rise. Re?nember the old couplet, "Half-raised bread, Putty and lead."

Twice its bulk is a good rule for a second rising.

Family Bread

I use, and can conscientiously recommend, Horace Davis and Co's Best Roller Mill Flour. It is what it professes to be - the cream of wheat. To one quart of sweet milk, take one-third of a compressed yeast cake, and three teaspoonfuls of white sugar; stir in flour until you have a dough so stiff that it will not run or drop from a spoon; set it in a moderately warm room and let it rise until morning; then put flour on your kneading-board, mold your loaves about two inches thick, and put in pans (handling as little as possible) and let it rise again. When ready for the oven prick the loaves through to the bottom with a fork; bake half an hour. When taken from the oven, roll lightly in a bread-cloth until cool. I use a piece of flannel or old tablecloth.

In the morning if you wish delicious gems, dip with a spoon some of this same dough and fill your gem pans two-thirds full and bake for breakfast. Ten or fifteen minutes will bake them a beautiful . brown. Thus from this same dough you have both bread and gems that are delicious, without shortening of any kind. If you wish hot biscuits for lunch, you have only to save a small portion of this dough, roll it thin, and spread with butter or shortening, fold it a few times, using all the time just flour enough to handle, roll to about half an inch thick, and put in your pans and let rise again, which takes two or three hours. Your biscuit will bake in from seven to ten minutes, and unless you wish the crust very crisp, fold in a nap. kin and send to the table.

Potato Yeast

Six Irish potatoes, peeled and grated, one cup sugar, one-half cup salt; pour over these about one quart of boiling water, enough to cover them; when cool, add one pint yeast, and set away to rise. This recipe will make about six bottles of yeast.

Parker House Rolls

Scald one pint of milk, stir in one heaping tablespoonful of shortening, one teaspoonful of salt; when lukewarm pour into one quart of sifted flour, mixed with one teacupful of white sugar; dissolve one-third of a cake of compressed yeast in a little milk and stir in with flour sufficient to make a stiff batter; when light knead for fifteen minutes; when raised again, knead for five minutes; make into small rolls and when very light, bake.

Light Rolls

Scald one quart of milk, melt in it a piece of butter the size of an egg; when cool add one egg well beaten, one-half or two-thirds cake of German Compressed Yeast dissolved in milk (the sponge will rise quicker if two-thirds of the cake is used); a little salt, tablespoonful sugar. Thicken with flour to a batter as thick as muffin batter. Let it rise, and when light add flour to mold lightly. Let it rise again, then roll out and spread melted butter over the top; cut out and fold together; let it rise the third time, and bake in a quick oven ten minutes. The oven must be hot; much depends on baking.

If one-half the milk is used, and when scalded, cold water is added to make the quart, the rolls will be lighter and more delicate for the first day, but are dry and stale the next day.