379. How To Renew Old Bread And Cake

Fill a bread steamer about half full of water, and lay the dry bread on it, and set it on the fire, where it will steam the bread from halt to three-quarters of an hour; then wrap the bread in a towel, and let it remain till dry. In this way, bread that is old and dry may be made moist and good. Where a steamer cannot be procured, soak the bread in cold water till it has absorbed sufficient water to be moist inside - then put it in a bake pan, without any cover, and heat it very hot. If broken pieces of bread are put in the oven, rive or six hours utter baking, and rusked, they will keep good a long time. Sour heavy bread, treated in this manner, will make very decent cakes and puddings, provided there is enough saleratus used in making them to correct the acidity of the bread. Rich cake, that has wine or brandy in it, will remain good in cold weather several mouths, if it is kept in a cool, dry place. The day in which it is to be eaten, put it in a cake pan, and set it in a bake pan that has half a pint of water in it - set on the bake-pan cover, and let the cake bake till it is heated very hot. Let it get cold before cutting it.

380. How To Preserve Cheese From Insects

Cover the cheese, while whole, with a paste made of wheat flour; then wrap a cloth round it, and cover it with the paste. Keep the cheese in a cool, dry place. Cheese that has skippers in it, if kept till cold weather, will be freed from them

381. How To Pot Cheese

Cheese that has begun to mould, can be kept from becoming any more so, by being treated in the following manner; Cut off the mouldy part, and if the cheese is dry, grate it - if not, pound it fine in a mortar, together with the crust. To each pound of it, when fine, put a table-spoonful of brandy - mix it in well with the cheese, then press it down tight, in a clean stone pot, and lay a paper wet in brandy on the top of it. Cover the pot up tight, and keep it in a cool, dry place. This is also a good way to treat dry pieces of cheese. best when a year old. It will keep several years, without any danger of its breeding insects.

382. How To Pot Butter For Winter Use

Mix a large spoonful of salt, a table-spoonful of powdered white sugar, and one of saltpetre. Work this quantity into six pounds of fresh-made butter. Put the butter into a stone pot, that is thoroughly cleansed. When you have finished putting down your butter, cover it with a layer of salt, and let it remain covered until cold weather.

383. How To Make Salt Butter Fresh

When butter has too much salt in it, put to each pound of it a quart of fresh milk, and churn it an hour ; then treat it like fresh butter, working in the usual quantity of salt. A little white sugar worked in, improves it. This is said to be equal to fresh butter. Salt may be taken out of a small quantity of fresh butter, by working it over, in clear fresh water, changing the water a number of times.

384. How To Extract Rancidity From Butter

Take a small quantity, that is wanted for immediate use. For a pound of the butter, dissolve a couple of tea-spoonsful of saleratus in a quart of boiling water, put in the butter, mix it well with the saleratus water, and let it remain till cold, then take it off carefully, and work a tea-spoonful of salt into it. Butter treated in this manner answers very well to use in cooking.

385. How To Preserve Cream For Sea Voyages

Take rich, fresh cream, and mix it with half of its weight of white powdered sugar. When well mixed in, put it in bottles, and cork them tight. When used for tea or coffee, it will make them sufficiently sweet without any additional sugar.

386. Substitute For Cream In Coffee

Beat the white of an egg to a froth - put to it a small lump of butter, and turn the coffee to it gradually, so that it may not curdle. It is difficult to distinguish the taste from fresh cream.