So much has been said and written about the dietetic
evils of pastries that the very name has become almost
synonymous with indigestion and dyspepsia. That
they are prolific causes of this dire malady cannot be
denied, and it is doubtless due to two reasons : first,
because they are generally compounded of ingredients
which are in themselves unwholesome and rendered
doubly so by their combination; and second, because
tastes have become so perverted that an excess of these
articles is consumed in preference to more simple and
nutritious food. Foods containing an excess of fat,
as do most pastries and many varieties of cake, are ex-
ceedingly difficult of digestion, the fat undergoing in
the stomach no changes corresponding to those which
occur in the digestion of other elements of food, and its
presence interfering with the action of the gastric juice
upon the other elements. In consequence, digestion
proceeds very slowly, if at all, and the delay often
occasions fermentative and putrefactive changes in the
entire contents of the stomach. It is the indigesti-
bility of fat, and this property of delaying the diges-
tion of other foods, chiefly, that render pastry and
cakes so deleterious to health.
The writer does not wish to be understood as in
sympathy with that class of people who maintain that
dyspepsia is a disciplinary means of grace, when, after
the previous statement, the following recipes are pre-
[123]
1^4 EVERY-DAY DISHES.
sented for preparing the very articles condemned. Pie
and cake are not necessarily utterly unwholesome; and
if prepared in a simple manner, may be partaken of in
moderation by persons with good digestion, though
they lack the healthfulness of more simple foods.
Would women supply their tables with perfectly light,
sweet, nutritious bread and plenty of fruit, the con-
tinual demand for cakes and pies would no doubt
largely cease. However, if pies and cakes must needs
be, let them be made as simple as possible.
General Suggestions for Making Pies. —
Always prepare the filling for pies before making the
crust, if the filling is to be cooked in the crust. Have
all the material for the crust on the table, measured
and in readiness, before beginning to put together.
Follow some of the simple recipes given in these pages.
Have all the material cold, handle the least possible
to make it into a mass, and do not knead at all.
In preparing material for custard or pumpkin pies,
if the milk used be hot, the jDies will be improved, and
the time of baking be considerably shortened.
Tin or granite-ware plates are preferable to earthen
ones for pies, as they bake better on the bottom. The
perforated pans are superior in some respects. No
greasing is needed ; simply rubbing them well with flour
is sufiicient. The time required for baking pies varies
from one half to three fourths of an hour. The
dampers should be so adjusted as to bake the bottom
crust first.
After baking, remove at once to heated earthen
plates, or set the tins upon small supports, so that
the air can circulate underneath them.
PASTRY. 125
Page 78
Presented as published in 1897. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
So much has been said and written about the dietetic evils of pastries that the very name has become almost synonymous with indigestion and dyspepsia. That they are prolific causes of this dire malady cannot be denied, and it is doubtless due to two reasons : first, because they are generally compounded of ingredients which are in themselves unwholesome and rendered doubly so by their combination; and second, because tastes have become so perverted that an excess of these articles is consumed in preference to more simple and nutritious food. Foods containing an excess of fat, as do most pastries and many varieties of cake, are exceedingly difficult of digestion, the fat undergoing in the stomach no changes corresponding to those which occur in the digestion of other elements of food, and its presence interfering with the action of the gastric juice upon the other elements. In consequence, digestion proceeds very slowly, if at all, and the delay often occasions fermentative and putrefactive changes in the entire contents of the stomach. It is the indigestibility of fat, and this property of delaying the digestion of other foods, chiefly, that render pastry and cakes so deleterious to health.
The writer does not wish to be understood as in sympathy with that class of people who maintain that dyspepsia is a disciplinary means of grace, when, after the previous statement, the following recipes are pre-
[illustration: 123]
sented for preparing the very articles condemned. Pie and cake are not necessarily utterly unwholesome; and if prepared in a simple manner, may be partaken of in moderation by persons with good digestion, though they lack the healthfulness of more simple foods. Would women supply their tables with perfectly light, sweet, nutritious bread and plenty of fruit, the continual demand for cakes and pies would no doubt largely cease. However, if pies and cakes must needs be, let them be made as simple as possible.
General Suggestions for Making Pies. — Always prepare the filling for pies before making the crust, if the filling is to be cooked in the crust. Have all the material for the crust on the table, measured and in readiness, before beginning to put together. Follow some of the simple recipes given in these pages. Have all the material cold, handle the least possible to make it into a mass, and do not knead at all.
In preparing material for custard or pumpkin pies, if the milk used be hot, the jDies will be improved, and the time of baking be considerably shortened.
Tin or granite-ware plates are preferable to earthen ones for pies, as they bake better on the bottom. The perforated pans are superior in some respects. No greasing is needed ; simply rubbing them well with flour is sufiicient. The time required for baking pies varies from one half to three fourths of an hour. The dampers should be so adjusted as to bake the bottom crust first.
After baking, remove at once to heated earthen plates, or set the tins upon small supports, so that the air can circulate underneath them.
PASTRY. 125