Chapter 27

Loaves of bread should bake at least 1 hour at a temperature varying from 375 degrees F. to 400 degrees F. During the first 20 minutes they should rise but slightly and just begin to brown; during the second 20 minutes they should continue to brown; during the last 20 minutes they should shrink from the sides of the pan, while still continuing to brown.

_To soften the crust_, rub it with a bit of butter or substitute a few minutes before taking from the oven and again after removing from the oven. After baking, place the loaves of bread on a bread cooler, or arrange them in such a way that the air may reach them on all sides. When cool, place in a covered tin box.

BREAD (2 loaves)

2 cupfuls hot water _or_ milk and water 2 teaspoonfuls salt 2 teaspoonfuls sugar 1/2 tablespoonful fat 1/2 to 1 cake compressed yeast 1/2 cupful lukewarm water Bread flour (7 to 8 cupfuls)

Boil the water or milk and water. Pour it into a bowl and add the salt, sugar, and fat. Stir until the salt and sugar are dissolved, and the fat is melted. Mix the yeast with lukewarm water. When the first mixture is cooled to lukewarm temperature, add the yeast mixture to it. Then add flour enough to make it of the proper consistency (see _Stiff Dough_), using a knife for mixing. Turn out on a floured board, and knead until soft and elastic. Return the dough to the bowl, moisten, cover, and let rise until doubled in bulk. Then divide it into loaves, or shape into biscuits. Cover and allow the loaves or biscuit to rise in the pan in which they are to be baked until they are doubled in bulk. Bake the biscuits 30 minutes in a hot oven and the bread about 60 minutes in a moderate oven (see _Oven Thermometers and Temperatures_).

QUESTIONS

Why should the flour for bread be warmed before using?

What should be the temperature of all materials mixed with yeast? Why?

What should be the difference in the temperature of the oven for loaf bread and for biscuits? Explain.

Why should bread be stored in a covered tin box?

At what temperatures should biscuits and loaf bread bake? Why are these foods baked at different temperatures?

For how long a time should biscuits and bread bake? Explain the difference in the length of time of baking each.

LESSON CXXXVI

WHEAT FLOUR--BREAD SPONGE

EXPERIMENT 78: PROTEIN IN FLOUR.--Make a stiff dough, using 2 tablespoonfuls of bread flour and about 1/2 tablespoonful of water. Knead well, and allow to stand for 20 minutes. Then tie the dough in cheese- cloth, place it in a bowl of water, and knead for a few minutes.

Pour a little of the water in a test tube; drain the remainder of the water from the dough. Add more water to the bowl. Again knead the dough under the clean water.

Examine the material in the cloth. What is its color? Feel and pull it. Put a little on a plate to dry, and bake some in the oven. Examine after drying and baking. How has it changed in size by heating?

Test the water in the test tube for starch.

GLUTEN.--The material left in the cloth consists largely of protein. If flour is mixed with water, _gluten_ is formed from the two kinds of protein that are to be found in all wheat flours. Gluten is yellowish gray in color, is extremely elastic and sticky, and, if moistened and heated, expands to many times its original bulk. These qualities of gluten are most desirable for good yeast bread; hence, the more protein that flour contains, the better it is for bread making. As has been stated, some flours contain more protein than others. The protein of wheat as well as of other grains is incomplete, hence grains need to be supplemented with other kinds of protein food.

WHEAT FLOUR.--The quantity of protein in flour is not only dependent upon the portion of the wheat kernel used in making the flour (see _Difference in Wheat Flours_), but also upon the kind of wheat from which the flour is made. Spring wheat, the seeds of which are sown in the springtime, usually contains more protein than winter wheat, the seeds of which are sown in the fall. The flour made from spring wheat is called _hard wheat flour_ or _bread flour_. This flour is creamy in color, rather gritty in feeling, and when pressed in the hand does not retain the impression of the fingers. Flour made from winter wheat is called _soft wheat flour_ or _pastry flour_. This is white, very fine and velvety in feeling, and easily retains the impression of the fingers.

On account of the greater quantity of protein in bread flour, this flour absorbs more moisture than pastry flour. Less bread flour than pastry flour, therefore, is required for the bread mixture. If bread flour is substituted for pastry flour, its quantity should be decreased,--2 tablespoonfuls for each cupful.

DRY YEAST SPONGE.--It is generally agreed that compressed yeast is more satisfactory for bread making than dry yeast. By the use of the former, the method is shorter, and the "rising" can take place during the daytime and be checked at the proper time. The use of dry yeast, however, is necessary under some conditions. For this kind of yeast cake, the yeast is made into a stiff dough by mixing it with starch or meal, and is then dried. In the dry state, yeast plants do not grow, but remain inactive until they are subjected to conditions favorable for growth. In order that dry yeast may begin to grow, it is necessary to make a _sponge_ of the materials used in bread making. A sponge is a batter containing half as much flour as is required for the stiff dough. A thin mixture rises more quickly than does a stiff dough; hence the advantage of "starting" dry yeast in a sponge.

The growth of yeast is somewhat retarded by salt and spices. Sugar in small quantity aids rapid growth; much sugar delays the rising of bread. Much fat and many eggs also make the process slower. In the preparation of buns, when much fat and sugar and many eggs are to be used, it is advisable to make a sponge. These materials are not to be added, however, until the sponge is stiffened. The yeast thus gets a good "start" before the eggs, etc., are added.

BREAD (made with dry yeast) (2 loaves)

2 cupfuls water 1/2 cake dry yeast 2 teaspoonfuls salt 2 teaspoonfuls sugar 1 tablespoonful fat 6 cupfuls (or more) bread flour

Soak the yeast in the water (lukewarm) until softened. Then add the salt, sugar, and fat. Stir until the salt and sugar are dissolved, and the fat is melted. Add one half the given quantity of flour. Beat until the mixture is smooth; cover. Let rise until very porous and foamy. Add enough flour to make a stiff dough; knead; and allow to rise until doubled in bulk. Proceed as for bread made with compressed yeast.

SCORE CARD FOR BREAD [Footnote 109: "Selection and Preparation of Food," by Bevier and Van Meter, p. 82.]--DETERMINING ITS QUALITY

Flavor 35 Lightness 15 Grain and texture 20 Crust (color, depth, texture) 10 Crumb (color, moisture) 10 Shape and size 10 --- Total 100

QUESTIONS

Under what conditions would dry yeast be used in bread making?

For what reason is bread dough kneaded?

What is the test for sufficient kneading of bread dough?

In what part of the country is spring wheat grown? Winter wheat?

How are the flours distinguished that are made from these different kinds of wheat?

From _U. S. Department of Agriculture_, Bulletin No. 28, tabulate the percentage composition of winter and of spring wheat flour.

Which contains the more protein; which, the more carbohydrates? Compare the quantity of ash in each.

Knowing the method of leavening, the time required for raising, and the properties of gluten, explain why spring wheat flour is better adapted to yeast breads than to quick breads.

What is the price per sack of pastry and of bread flour?

What is the price per cake of compressed yeast? What is the price per package of dry yeast? How many cakes in a package?

LESSON CXXXVII

MODIFICATIONS OF PLAIN WHITE BREAD

BREADS OTHER THAN WHEAT.--As mentioned previously, wheat is the most popular grain in this country, largely because we are most used to it, not because it is a better food than other cereals. The use of different starchy materials and grains, especially the whole cereals, is advised to give variation not only in flavor, but in nutritive content. Yeast breads containing cereals other than wheat are more satisfactory in texture and in size of loaf when they are made by combining some wheat with the other grains.

The housekeeper of olden days considered the potato most essential for bread making. It is possible to make good bread by using 1/3 as much mashed potato as wheat flour. Potato bread is moist; it keeps better than bread made entirely with wheat. It has been observed that bread containing potatoes or potato water rises quickly. It is possible that the growth of the yeast is stimulated by potato. Although bread containing potatoes is light, it is not as delicate or "fluffy" as plain wheat bread.

Since potatoes contain much moisture, the quantity of liquid used in making potato bread should be lessened. Because bread dough containing potatoes softens as it rises, sufficient flour should be added to make it very stiff or more flour added while kneading.

Much experimenting with bread during the World War showed that bread containing cereals other than wheat is more satisfactory when potatoes are used in making it. It was found that less of wheat and more of the other grains could be used when potatoes were added to the dough.

Bread made of grains other than wheat requires a greater quantity of yeast than wheat bread. The following explanation may account for this fact: Some recent scientific investigations point out the fact that the activity of yeast is increased when vinegar or other weak acid material is added to bread dough. Since the proteins of cereals other than wheat absorb more of the free acid of the dough than do the proteins of wheat, the acidity of the dough is lessened. Hence more yeast is required to leaven dough containing grains other than wheat.

GRAHAM BREAD

Use one half white bread flour and one half graham flour in the recipe given for Bread in order to make Graham Bread. One fourth cupful of molasses may be substituted for the sugar. Mix and bake as white bread.

Some consider that it is much more satisfactory to make a sponge when using graham flour. If this is done, first make a sponge using only one half the given quantity of flour. Let the mixture rise, then add the remainder of the flour, and proceed as in making white wheat bread.

WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

Follow the recipe for Bread, substituting whole wheat for the fine wheat bread flour, but make a soft, not stiff dough.

_Raisin Bread_ may be made by adding 2 cupfuls of seeded raisins to whole wheat bread mixture and increasing the sugar to 1/4 cupful or substituting 1/3 cupful molasses for the sugar. Use the greater quantity of yeast. Add the raisins to the mixture before adding the flour.

POTATO BREAD (2 loaves)

2 cupfuls dry mashed potatoes 1 cupful water in which potatoes were cooked 1 tablespoonful salt 1/2 cupful lukewarm water 2 tablespoonfuls sugar 1 tablespoonful fat 1/2 to 1 cake compressed yeast 5 1/2 to 6 cupfuls wheat bread flour

Pare 6 medium-sized potatoes. Cut into pieces and cook in boiling water until tender. Drain the water from the potatoes, but save the potato water to use as moisture for the dough, and for mixing with the yeast. Mash the potatoes; add the potato water, salt, sugar, and fat. Then proceed as directed for Bread.

OATMEAL-POTATO BREAD (2 loaves)

1 1/2 cupfuls potato water 2 cupfuls rolled oats 1 tablespoonful salt 2 teaspoonfuls sugar Wheat bread flour, about 6 cupfuls 1 tablespoonful fat 2 cupfuls dry mashed potatoes 1 cake compressed yeast 1 tablespoonful lukewarm water

Heat the liquid to boiling point. Pour it over the rolled oats. Add the salt, sugar, and fat. Stir and let stand until the mixture is lukewarm. Add the potatoes, then proceed as for plain bread. Let the dough rise in the pans until it is from 2 1/4 to 2 1/2 times its original bulk.

QUESTIONS

From _U.S. Department of Agriculture_, Bulletin No. 28, tabulate the percentage composition of white, of graham, and of whole wheat bread.

Under what conditions should a sponge be made when compressed yeast is used?

What kind of bread is most satisfactory in high altitudes, _i.e._ where the climate is dry? Explain.

Why is potato water a more valuable liquid for bread making than water?

What is the purpose of adding boiling water to rolled oats in making Oatmeal-Potato Bread (see _Substituting Other Cereals for Wheat Flour_)?

Compare the quantity of yeast used in Oatmeal-Potato Bread with that used in plain wheat bread. Account for the difference.

LESSON CXXXVIII

ROLLS AND BUNS

PLAIN ROLLS OR BISCUITS

For rolls or biscuits use the recipe for Bread, adding twice the quantity of fat, and using milk for part of the liquid. Or they may be made by kneading more fat into any bread dough. Knead well after the first rising; then cut into pieces half the size of an egg, and shape into balls. Place the balls some distance apart in a pan or place the balls so that one touches another. The latter plan of placing in the pan produces biscuits having a small amount of crust. Allow the biscuits to rise to double their bulk; then bake in a hot oven.

PARKER HOUSE ROLLS

2 cupfuls hot milk and water 3 tablespoonfuls fat 2 tablespoonfuls sugar 1 teaspoonful salt 1 yeast cake 1/4 cupful lukewarm water Bread flour

Make a sponge of the ingredients, using 3 cupfuls of flour. Beat thoroughly, cover, and let rise until light. Then add enough flour to knead. Knead, cover, and allow to rise until doubled in bulk. Knead again slightly, and roll out on a floured board until 1/3 of an inch in thickness. Cut into rounds with a biscuit cutter; put a bit of butter or substitute near the edge of the biscuit; fold; and press the edges together. Place in an oiled pan; cover. Let rise until double in bulk, and bake at 425 degrees F. from 20 to 30 minutes.

The crust may be _glazed_ with a mixture of milk and sugar a few minutes before removing the biscuits from the oven. Use 1 part sugar to 2 parts milk. Diluted egg white also may be used for glazing.

A corn-starch paste is sometimes used for _glazing_. It is made as follows: Mix 2 teaspoonfuls of corn-starch with the same quantity of cold water. Add 3/4 cupful of boiling water; stir and cook for 5 minutes. Brush this over the top of the rolls, sprinkle with sugar. Return the rolls to the oven and continue baking until the crust is browned.

POTATO YEAST ROLLS

Use the recipe for Parker House Rolls as a basic rule. In preparing the sponge, use 2 cupfuls of dry mashed potatoes instead of flour. Decrease the liquid to 1 cupful. Increase the quantity of salt to 1 tablespoonful. When the sponge is light, add sufficient wheat flour to make the dough of the proper consistency. Proceed as for plain wheat rolls.

_Rye flour_ may be used instead of wheat in preparing these rolls.

CINNAMON BUNS

Use one half of the recipe for Parker House Rolls. After the dough has risen, roll until 1/4 inch thick, and spread with the following:

1/2 cupful butter or butter and other fat softened 2 tablespoonfuls cinnamon 1 cupful currants or raisins 1 cupful brown sugar

Roll the dough as for Jelly Roll or for Fruit Rolls and cut into slices 1 inch thick. Place in well-oiled pans or muffin tins, with a cut surface resting on the pan. When very light, bake in a moderate oven about 30 minutes. The buns may be basted with molasses or sugar, or with a milk and sugar mixture (see _Parker House Rolls_). Add 1 teaspoonful of the basting material to each bun 15 minutes before removing from the oven.

BISCUITS WITH PRUNE OR RAISIN FILLING

1 cupful milk 1 cupful water 2 tablespoonfuls sugar 1 teaspoonful salt 3 tablespoonfuls fat 1 to 3 eggs 2 cakes compressed yeast 1/4 cupful lukewarm water Bread flour (about 7 cupfuls)

Heat the milk and water. Turn into a bowl and add the sugar, salt, and fat. Let the mixture stand until it is lukewarm in temperature. Mix the yeast with the lukewarm water and add it to the lukewarm milk mixture. Break the egg; beat the white and yolk separately. Add the egg to the other ingredients.

Through a sifter, add enough flour to knead. Knead and roll out on a floured board until about 1 inch in thickness. Cut into rounds with a biscuit cutter. Make a depression in the center of each biscuit, fill with prunes or raisins prepared as directed below.

Place the biscuits on greased pans, let them rise (in a warm place) until doubled in bulk; bake in a hot oven.

PRUNE OR RAISIN FILLING

1 pound dried prunes _or_ 1 1/2 cupfuls seeded raisins 1 teaspoonful cinnamon 1/8 teaspoonful cloves 2 tablespoonfuls lemon juice 1/4 teaspoonful salt Sugar

Soak the fruit in enough water to cover overnight or for several hours. Cook as directed on until the fruit is tender and the water is almost evaporated. If prunes are used, remove the stones. Add the spices, lemon juice, and salt. Also add sugar "to taste."

QUESTIONS

Why should a sponge be made when eggs are to be added to the yeast mixture?

What would be the disadvantage in adding them to a dough, after the dough had stiffened?

What must be done to produce biscuits having much crust rather than little crust?

What care should be taken in regulating the temperature of the oven when baking Cinnamon Buns, especially if they are to be basted during baking?

How many times are Biscuits with Prune or Raisin Filling allowed to rise? How does yeast bread made with one rising differ from that made with several risings?

Why is it necessary to cook the fruit used for filling for biscuits until the water is almost evaporated? What would be the effect on the biscuits of much moisture in the filling?

RELATED WORK

LESSON CXXXIX

FOOD FOR GIRLS AND BOYS

THE YOUNG GIRL.--Adolescence is a period of great activity and growth. Much physical development characterizes the years of youth.

During the time of rapid growth, it is very easy to acquire craving not only for sweets, but for condiments and highly seasoned and spiced foods and for foods of decided and contrasting flavor. As previously explained, such foods used excessively are harmful. It is especially necessary that a girl growing into womanhood use foods which furnish building and energy- giving nutrients in sufficient quantity as well as materials to promote growth.

Going without breakfast may be the cause of headaches, poorly prepared lessons, and in some cases irritability or bad dispositions. When the morning meal is omitted, an undue quantity of food is apt to be eaten at noon. In many schools, work is resumed immediately or shortly after luncheon. The digestion of a large quantity of hearty food interferes with mental effort.

THE HUNGRY BOY belongs to the period of adolescence. It is perfectly natural for the growing boy to be hungry. Indeed during the time from twelve to seventeen years, more food is consumed by the average youth than by an adult. If three meals a day are to satisfy the hungry boy, a nourishing diet must be eaten. Concentrated, but easily digested foods, such as eggs, cereals, meat, starchy and nitrogenous vegetables for building and energy as well as foods which supply mineral matter such as fruits and succulent vegetables, are needed.

The use of milk and cocoa rather than tea and coffee should be encouraged. It is especially necessary that milk with its growth-promoting materials and valuable proteins be included in the diet of a growing youth. If coffee must be used, let it be cereal coffee.

For the boy who would "make the team" and excel in athletics the matter of a proper food selection is most important. The athlete must give serious consideration to his diet.

FOOD PLANS FOR GIRLS AND BOYS.--According to the table given on previously, the diet of a girl from fourteen to seventeen should supply Calories averaging 2400, while that of a boy of the same age should supply Calories averaging 3400. [Footnote 110: The reason why the energy requirements of a boy exceeds that of a girl of the adolescent period is stated on previously.]

The following plans for a day's diet for the girl and boy of fourteen to seventeen years are offered as suggestions for wholesome food combinations:

FOODS APPROXIMATE CALORIES

Breakfast. Fruits, fresh or cooked 75-100 Cereal with Whole Milk and Sugar 200-250 Toast and Butter (2 to 3 slices) 300-450 Cocoa or Whole Milk 120-150

Luncheon. Cream Soup 150-175 Meat Substitute 200-300 Bread and Butter (1 to 2 slices) 150-300 Rice or Tapioca Pudding or Blanc Mange 150-200 Cocoa or Whole Milk 120-150

Dinner. Egg-dish or Meat 200-300 Starchy Vegetable or Cereal 100-125 Succulent Vegetable or Salad 50-150 Bread and Butter (1 to 2 slices) 150-300 Baked Custard or Ice Cream with Chocolate Sauce 250-300 Cereal Coffee (with Sugar, and Top Milk) or Whole Milk 125-150 --------- 2340-3400

THE SCHOOL LUNCHEON.--Girls and boys of high school age invariably lunch at school, or a luncheon is brought from home and eaten at school. If a pupil buys his luncheon at school, hot, wholesome, nourishing foods such as cream-soup vegetables, eggs, cereal puddings, cocoa, and milk should be purchased. It is unfortunate if pastry and sweets are chosen to the exclusion of the foods just mentioned.

In case the plainer foods are selected, it is a mistake for the pupil to narrow his purchase to a very few foods such as meat, potatoes, and pastry. Too often pupils get in the habit of choosing foods which furnish too little variety in composition. Learning to like many different foods is a characteristic one should strive to develop. When one abolishes food prejudices and "eats everything" that is wholesome, the possibility of securing a well-balanced meal to meet the needs of the body is increased.

LUNCHEON MENUS.--The quantity and kind of food that should be eaten at luncheon depends largely upon the kind and quantity of foods eaten at breakfast and dinner or supper. Some eat more breakfast than luncheon while others follow the reverse plan. It has been found, however, that a luncheon yielding from 750 to 1000 Calories furnishes adequate nutriment for the average youth, provided of course the foods are well balanced in composition. Suggestive luncheon menus for school girls and boys follow. (The luncheon which is carried from home is discussed in Lesson CXLIX.)

FOOD CALORIES DERIVED TOTAL FROM PROTEIN CALORIES

1 serving macaroni and cheese (1 cupful) 34.0 200.00 1 slice bread and butter 14.2 150.00 1 portion gingerbread (2 ounces) 14.0 200.00 1 medium baked apple with whole milk 6.8 128.00 1 serving cocoa (3/4 cupful) 16.1 118.40 ---- ------ 85.1 796.40

1 serving vegetable soup (1 cupful) 21.28 148.22 1 cheese and peanut sandwich 43.47 270.00 1 large orange 6.20 100.00 1 portion cake (2 ounces) 14.00 200.00 1 glass milk (7/8 cupful) 26.60 140.00 ------ ------ 111.55 858.22