Household science and arts

Raising Flour Mixtures. — Flour mixtures may be raised by beating air into them, or by the gas which escapes from fermenting yeast, or by the gas made by using cream of tartar or some acid substance with soda. Baking soda is used with cream of tartar or some other acid substances, such as sour milk or molasses. But baking powder is the most commonly used means of getting gas into flour mixtures, other than bread, for the purpose of raising them. Baking Powder Composition. — Baking powder is made up of one part of bicarbonate of soda, about two parts of cream of tartar, and a little starch. Digitized by Google Baking powder must contain at least two ingredients, bicarbonate of soda and some acid substance, usually cream of tartar. When moistened together, these two substances set carbon dioxide free. This gas, if in a dough or batter, fills it with what we call little air holes. But they are really little bubbles of the dough containing gas. Bicarbonate of soda is an alkaline substance made from common salt. Cream of tartar is an acid substance obtained from the argols found on the inside of wine casks. Your teacher will show you some of these argols. Whenever alkaline and acid substances are brought together and moistened, they set a gas free. If you mix J ts. of soda and J ts. cream of tartar, and moisten the mixture in the bowl of a spoon, you will see bubbles containing the freed gas. Baking powder doughs and batters should be rapidly prepared and baked as soon after they are mixed as possible before the bubbles break. Experiments. — Perform these experiments and observe as directed. 1. Mix J ts. baking soda and 1 ts. cream of tartar. No change is seen. When baking soda and cream of tartar are mixed together dry, no gas is set free. 2. Mix 1 ts. soda with 2 tbs. cold water and stir. No bubbles are to be seen. 3. Mix 2 ts. cream of tartar with J c. cold water. No bubbles appear. 4. Pour mixture No. 3 into No. 2 — small bubbles, slight disturbance. When these are mixed with cold liquid, most of the gas set free is dissolved by the liquid. 5. Heat the mixture. There is rapid bubbling and great disturbance. When these substances are mixed with cold liquid and then heated, the gas is driven out of the liquid. Digitized by Google Proportions. 1 cup of flour requires 1 to 2 ts. baking powder. 1 cup of molasses requires 1 ts. bicarbonate of soda. 1 cup thick sour milk requires ^ ts. bicarbonate of soda. When eggs are used in a mixture, less baking powder is required. 4 oz. bicarbonate of soda 9 oz. cream of tartar 2 oz. cornstarch. Mix and sift the soda and cornstarch thoroughly together; add the cream of tartar, and sift the mixture through a fine strainer about eight times. Put the mixture into tightly covered tin cans or glass jars. 1 egg 1 c. milk (scant) 1 c. flour \ ts. salt POP-OVERS Mix and sift the flour and salt. Beat the egg, add to it the milk, and add it gradually to the dry mixture, making a smooth batter. Beat it with an egg beater until the mixture is full of air bubbles. Have gem pans well greased and heated ; pour the mixture into the pans until they are two thirds full. Bake them on the bottom shelf of a hot oven for about thirty minutes, until they are well puffed up and browned. 1 c. flour 2 ts. baking powder \ ts. salt 1 scant c. milk 1 ts. melted butter 1 egg (if desired) SWEET-MILK GRIDDLE CAKES