Practical West African cookery

Too much yeast will make the bread over dry. To save trouble the cook will try to keep part of the dough to start the next lot of bread. This can be done when using native yeast but not when using yeast cake. It should be mixed afresh before each baking. Bread made with Native Yeast. To make a lib. loaf : — 2£ level breakfastcups of j i teaspoon salt. flour. 1 small breakfastcup native beer. A native beer, called “ brukutu ” on the Benue, is the best to use as yeast. Its greatest drawback is that its cleanliness is sometimes doubtful. Freshly brewed in the morning it will be ready for use on the following morning. Tell the cook to make only one loaf the first day as it will be very bad, the second day it will be better and will continue improving, as each time the bread is made a piece of dough is put aside to be used for the next baking. After a little time the bread will be found to be really quite good. If palm wine can be found it should be used instead of native beer. 1. Put the flour into a small enamel basin, mix in the salt, make a hole in the centre and slowly pour in the beer stirring in the flour at the same time. 2. When well mixed, begin by kneading with your fists and continue till the dough comes clear away from the sides of the basin, adding a little flour if necessary. 3. Put on the board sprinkled with flour and continue kneading till it can be cut without it sticking to the knife. Put it in the greased and floured tin and stand near the fire to rise. It may take three to four hours, according to the strength of the beer. 4. Bake exactly like bread made with yeast cake. Note. — This bread is only good when a piece of dough kept from the last baking is used as yeast. Before the dough is shaped into a loaf, cut off a piece about the size of a small egg and keep it, deeply buried in flour in an old cup or bowl, covered with a cloth or plate. Next time bread has to be baked take out the piece of dough the evening before, and put it in the pudding basin, pouring a breakfast cup of luke-warm water over it and adding a pinch of sugar. Keep it till the morning and mix it into the flour to make the dough as usual, adding a little water if necessary. Before shaping, again cut out a small piece and keep in the same way till required. Rolls made with Baking Powder. 1| breakfastcups flour. 9 tablespoons milk or water. 2 teaspoons baking powder. 1 saltspoon salt. 1 teaspoon butter or lard. 1. Mix the baking powder and salt with the flour, then rub in the butter, slowly add the milk and make quickly into a dough, adding either a little more flour or milk or water if needed. This bread does not require to be kneaded but must be formed into a dough as quickly as possible and immediately put into the oven. 2. When mixed, put the dough on the board sprinkled with flour, divide into eight equal portions, pat into shape with two spoons, and place them in the oven on a well greased baking sheet. When risen into nice round shapes and slightly browned they are ready to be taken out. Notes. — To make a 1 lb. loaf the quantities given should be doubled. This recipe may be varied by using five tablespoons of English flour to three of alkama or oatmeal ; this makes very good little loaves. Scones.