After fermentation has well begun, it will con- tinue, but much more slowly, if the temperature be gradually lowered to 45° or 50°. If it is neces- sary to hasten the rising, the temperature may be raised to 8o° or 85°, but this will necessitate care- ful watching, as the bread will be liable to over- ferment, and become sour. Cold arrests the process of fermentation, while too great heat carries for- ward the work too rapidly. Too much stress can not be laid upon the importance of an equable tem- perature. Lightness of Bread. — A thin batter is suffi- ciently light when it is effervescent, like yeast, throughout; a thicker batter, when risen to double its first bulk, and cracked over the top. The loaf is sufficiently light when it has doubled its first proportions, and feels light when lifted on the hand. Breads 25 Temperature for Baking. — Without an oven thermometer there is no accurate means of deter- mining the exact temperature of the oven; but housekeepers resort to various means to form a judgment about it. The baker’s old-fashioned way is to throw a handful of flour on the oven bottom. If it blackens without igniting, the heat is deemed sufficient. A common way of ascertaining if the heat in the oven is sufficient, is to hold the bare arm inside for a few seconds. If the arm can not be held within while thirty is counted, it is too hot to begin with. The following test, however, is more accurate : For rolls, the oven should be hot enough to brown a teaspoonful of flour in one min- ute, and for loaves in five minutes. The fire should be of sufficient strength to keep up the heat for an hour. The heat should increase for the first fifteen minutes, and remain steady for the next fifteen minutes, and may then gradually decrease during the remainder of the baking. The common test for well-baked bread is to tap the bottom with the finger; if it is light and well done, it will sound hollow, while heavy bread will have a dull sound. A thoroughly baked loaf will not burn the hand when lifted upon it from the pan. Whole-Wheat Breads. — Essentially the same 26 Healthful Cookery principles are involved in the production of bread from all kinds of wheat flour. Good material and good care are absolutely necessary to good bread. Flours and meals made from the entire grain of wheat ferment more readily than does ordinary white flour, and hence, without careful manage- ment, bread made from the former is more liable to become overfermented and sour. In making whole-wheat breads, use as short a course of fer- mentation as practicable, and let it proceed at a medium temperature. Knead the dough more thor- oughly than for white flour. Such breads require a hotter oven at first and a longer time for baking. From one to one and one- half hours are needed, according to the size of the loaf and the heat of the oven. Whole-wheat breads will be lighter if at least one-third white flour be employed. If the bread is made with a sponge, the white flour is best used for that purpose. The length of time the whole- wheat flour is undergoing fermentation will in this way be somewhat lessened, and thus the liability to become sour decreased. The use of butter or other fats in bread is un- desirable. Used in any considerable proportion, fat retards the action of the yeast, and dough contain- Breads 2 7

AI-modernized reading of the original text

After fermentation has well begun, it will continue, but much more slowly, if the temperature be gradually lowered to 45° or 50°. If it is necessary to hasten the rising, the temperature may be raised to 8o° or 85°, but this will necessitate careful watching, as the bread will be liable to overferment, and become sour. Cold arrests the process of fermentation, while too great heat carries forward the work too rapidly. Too much stress can not be laid upon the importance of an equable temperature. Lightness of Bread. — A thin batter is sufficiently light when it is effervescent, like yeast, throughout; a thicker batter, when risen to double its first bulk, and cracked over the top. The loaf is sufficiently light when it has doubled its first proportions, and feels light when lifted on the hand. Breads Temperature for Baking. — Without an oven thermometer there is no accurate means of determining the exact temperature of the oven; but housekeepers resort to various means to form a judgment about it. The baker’s old-fashioned way is to throw a handful of flour on the oven bottom. If it blackens without igniting, the heat is deemed sufficient. A common way of ascertaining if the heat in the oven is sufficient, is to hold the bare arm inside for a few seconds. If the arm can not be held within while thirty is counted, it is too hot to begin with. The following test, however, is more accurate : For rolls, the oven should be hot enough to brown a teaspoonful of flour in one minute, and for loaves in five minutes. The fire should be of sufficient strength to keep up the heat for an hour. The heat should increase for the first fifteen minutes, and remain steady for the next fifteen minutes, and may then gradually decrease during the remainder of the baking. The common test for well-baked bread is to tap the bottom with the finger; if it is light and well done, it will sound hollow, while heavy bread will have a dull sound. A thoroughly baked loaf will not burn the hand when lifted upon it from the pan. Whole-Wheat Breads. — Essentially the same Healthful Cookery principles are involved in the production of bread from all kinds of wheat flour. Good material and good care are absolutely necessary to good bread. Flours and meals made from the entire grain of wheat ferment more readily than does ordinary white flour, and hence, without careful management, bread made from the former is more liable to become overfermented and sour. In making whole-wheat breads, use as short a course of fermentation as practicable, and let it proceed at a medium temperature. Knead the dough more thoroughly than for white flour. Such breads require a hotter oven at first and a longer time for baking. From one to one and onehalf hours are needed, according to the size of the loaf and the heat of the oven. Whole-wheat breads will be lighter if at least one-third white flour be employed. If the bread is made with a sponge, the white flour is best used for that purpose. The length of time the wholewheat flour is undergoing fermentation will in this way be somewhat lessened, and thus the liability to become sour decreased. The use of butter or other fats in bread is undesirable. Used in any considerable proportion, fat retards the action of the yeast, and dough contain- Breads 2 7

Healthful cookery