FoodNet

Foods, their selection and preparation

1935

Page 144

Presented as published in 1935. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
The dasher accomplishes another purpose. On the other side is a beater which forces air into the mixture as the dasher turns. Rapid turning, especially in mechanical freezers, in¬ creases the amount of air beaten in. The amount of air held in the mixture depends upon the viscosity of the mixture. The vis¬ cosity of any mixture increases as the tem¬ perature is lowered. The rapid turning of the dasher is of maximum advantage when the mixture reaches almost the freezing tem¬ perature. At this point, even in a hand- operated freezer, volume can be materially increased by the air incorporated when the dasher is turned rapidly. In household freez¬ ing, effort is saved if the dasher is turned slowly until the mixture is thoroughly chilled, then rapidly until the mixture is frozen. When it is frozen, the dasher is removed and a cork inserted in the hole left in the top. This prevents the entrance of brine. The freezer is then packed with more ice and salt (8 parts ice to 1 of salt), covered with some nonconductor of heat (newspapers will serve), and put away to harden for about two hours. Desserts Frozen without Stirring. Cer¬ tain frozen desserts, mousses and parfaits, have always been frozen without stirring. These are rich mixtures using fairly high proportions of heavy cream and egg white. In their preparation, air is incorporated by whipping either the cream or the egg white. The cold mixtures are placed in containers sealed with a strip of cloth dipped in paraffin and packed in ice and salt (1 part salt to 4 of ice). Freezing will require about four hours. It may be necessary to drain off any excess brine and add more ice and salt to complete the freezing. For this reason, wooden tubs for packing these desserts are provided with an outlet for draining. Frozen puddings and molded ice creams are usually first frozen with stirring in a freezer and then placed in molds, sealed, and packed in ice and salt to harden. Frozen puddings have candied fruit, nuts, and whipped cream added before they are placed in molds and packed to harden. Mechanical refrigerators are equipped with trays in which desserts can be frozen. These trays have no device for beating the mixture. The most successful desserts for [154] freezing without stirring are the mixtures in which air can be incorporated in advance of freezing, as in mousses and parfaits. When less rich ice creams and ices are frozen in these trays, their consistency is im¬ proved if the partially frozen product is removed from the tray to a chilled bowl and beaten rapidly to break up the crystals and incorporate air. They should be prepared from mixtures with considerable body. Commercial Freezing. Commercial freez¬ ing is completely mechanized. There is a continuous flow of brine at controlled tem¬ peratures about the freezer. These brines are not cooled by melting ice, but by the change of an easily volatilized liquid to a gas. This re¬ quires heat and takes it from the brine, which can be reduced to the temperature desired. The dasher is mechanically operated and can be run at desired speeds. Hardening rooms are available at standard temperatures to com¬ plete the freezing and hold the product.