A text-book of cooking

FRUIT PUDDING Place sliced fruit — fresh, canned, or dried — in an oiled baking dish. Cover the fruit with a biscuit mixture, made by using the ingredients in the same proportion as for Drop Biscuits. Two or three times as much butter as the given quantity may be used. Bake until the fruit is tender and the batter is firm and brown, usually from 15 to 30 minutes. Serve with cream or fruit sauce. Plain cream may be used, or the cream may be whipped, or sweetened and flavored with a little nutmeg or vanilla. Explain why the fat in Drop Biscuit is not added in the same manner as in pour batters. If the fat is to be mixed with the dry ingredients, why rub the ingredients together between the fingers rather than between the palms of the hands ? Compare as to taste and appearance the biscuits made with lard or vegetable fat with those made with butter. Why should not a tin pan be used for the fruit pudding ? Mention at least four kinds of fruit that could be used for the pudding and tell how the use of some kinds of fruit would modify the time of baking. Why does the quantity of liquid given in Drop Biscuits vary ? (See Pour Batter, p. 194, and Gluten, p. 232.) LESSON LXXV Quantity of Fat in Quick Breads ; Short Cake " Shortening. " — The tenderness of a quick bread is an important consideration. It is dependent upon the quantity of fat in the bread. Oil and water do not mix. (See Experiment 31, p. 80.) Hence when much fat is used in a quick bread, particles of dough or batter, which contain both fat and moisture, do not adhere firmly. Quick bread containing much fat becomes tender, that is, it crumbles readily. In preparing modified biscuit mixtures, — short cakes, fruit dumplings, etc., — in which the quantity of fat is increased, make very careful comparisons between the " rich " or " short " breads and those containing the standard quantity of fat. In making observations, note the following: (a) ease or difficulty in removing from the pan without breaking; (b) tenderness or toughness, and (c) difference in flavor. FRUIT SHORT CAKE Make a biscuit mixture, using butter for the fat, and with two or three times the quantity of fat used in biscuit mixture. Place one half of the mixture in an oiled cake pan, then spread it with a scant quantity of melted butter. Add the remainder of the mixture and bake from 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the pan, and place on a cake cooler for a few minutes. Split the cake open and fill with crushed and sweetened fruits. Place uncrushed fruits on the top, and serve [illustration: cut biscuit] 225 with plain cream or Whipped Cream or Fruit Sauce; or cover the cake with a meringue, garnish with whole fruit, and serve with a Soft Custard Sauce. What general statement can you make with regard to the effect of increasing the fat in quick breads ? Knowing the change that takes place in a quick bread, when the quantity of fat is increased, state the effect of adding too much fat. What is the purpose of using melted butter in the Short Cake mixture ? Mention some fruits, or fruit combinations, that would be palatable in a Short Cake. How many persons can be served with a Short Cake made with 2 cupfuls of flour ? REVIEW XVH.-MEAL COOKING Mtnu Rolled Beef Steak Stuffed Baked Potato Drop Biscuits See Review I (p. 41) for suggestions regarding the preparation of the lesson. LESSON LXXVI "Cut" Biscuit Use of the Rolling Pin. — When dough is to be rolled and cut into biscuits, it needs to be a little stiffer than for Drop Biscuits. It should, however, be a soft dough. Biscuit dough should not be pressed down with a rolling motion, but should be deftly and gently " patted " out with several successive " touches " with the rolling pin.