The yeast plant grows best at 75° to 90° F. It changes
sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxid gas. Flour contains
a small proportion of sugar and during bread making some
of the starch is changed into sugar, but the yeast begins to
act more quickly if a little sugar or glucose is added at first.
Salt and fats hinder the growth of the yeast. Low temper-
atures stop the growth almost completely ; high temperatures
kill the plant.
When eggs are used as leavening agents, the whites are
beaten separately, as they will hold much more air than the
yolks, and folded into the mixture the last thing, breaking
as few air cells as possible.
When air is depended on for leavening agent, all mate-
rials are kept as cold as possible. Cold air expands more
on heating than warm air. In pastry making, heat also
melts the fat, so that the dough cannot be handled.
SHORTENING.
Fats are added to doughs to make the product brittle —
friable — "short," and to enrich the mixture. The fat coun-
teracts the adhesive properties of the gluten and starch
in flour.
Pastry flours contain less gluten than bread flours and
so require less shortening.
Butter and oleomargarine contain about one-eighth water
and salt, and thus have less shortening powers than lard,
drippings, cottolene, and the like, which contain no water.
Two cups of flour (eight ounces) made into puff paste
requires eight ounces (one cup) of shortening.
10
Two cups of flour in ordinary pie crust requires four
ounces (one-half cup) of shortening.
Two cups of flour in cookies requires four ounces (one-
half cup) of shortening, or less.
Two cups of flour in cake requires about three ounces of
shortening.
Two cups of flour in short cake requires two ounces (one-
fourth cup) of shortening, or more.
Two cups of flour in tea biscuits requires one-half to one
ounce (one to two tablespoons) or more of shortening.
In yeast doughs less shortening is used — from one-half
to an ounce to two cups of flour. The tenacity of the gluten
is required to hold the carbon dioxid gas slowly formed by
the yeast, hence too much shortening prevents proper rising.
Shortening for batters may be melted and mixed in, but in
doughs which are to be rolled — pastry, cookies, short-cake,
biscuit, etc. — the fat should be cold and hard and cut into
the flour with a knife, or rubbed in with the tips of the
fingers.
FLAVORING.
The flavoring materials most commonly used are salt,
sugar, spices and extracts. The fine art of cookery consists
of developing the full natural flavor of the foods themselves
and in combining them in pleasing ways.
The amount of salt to be used -depends, in general, on the
total volume of the food. When food tastes salty, too much
has been used. A safe proportion is one teaspoon salt to
one quart of liquid in soups, cereals, sauces, or to one quart
of flour in doughs. When the flavors are delicate, some-
what less salt is used, and with strong flavors, somewhat
more. Cakes in which much salt butter is used do not need
more salt.
The quantity of sugar to be used depends on the taste
desired. Foods served frozen need more sweetening than
when at ordinary temperatures. On the other hand, foods
that are served warm taste somewhat sweeter than when at
ordinary temperature.
11
RECIPES
Page 80
Presented as published in 1910. 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
The yeast plant grows best at 75° to 90° F. It changes sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxid gas. Flour contains a small proportion of sugar and during bread making some of the starch is changed into sugar, but the yeast begins to act more quickly if a little sugar or glucose is added at first. Salt and fats hinder the growth of the yeast. Low temperatures stop the growth almost completely ; high temperatures kill the plant.
When eggs are used as leavening agents, the whites are beaten separately, as they will hold much more air than the yolks, and folded into the mixture the last thing, breaking as few air cells as possible.
When air is depended on for leavening agent, all materials are kept as cold as possible. Cold air expands more on heating than warm air. In pastry making, heat also melts the fat, so that the dough cannot be handled.
SHORTENING.
Fats are added to doughs to make the product brittle — friable — "short," and to enrich the mixture. The fat counteracts the adhesive properties of the gluten and starch in flour.
Pastry flours contain less gluten than bread flours and so require less shortening.
Butter and oleomargarine contain about one-eighth water and salt, and thus have less shortening powers than lard, drippings, cottolene, and the like, which contain no water.
Two cups of flour (eight ounces) made into puff paste requires eight ounces (one cup) of shortening.
Two cups of flour in ordinary pie crust requires four ounces (one-half cup) of shortening.
Two cups of flour in cookies requires four ounces (onehalf cup) of shortening, or less.
Two cups of flour in cake requires about three ounces of shortening.
Two cups of flour in short cake requires two ounces (onefourth cup) of shortening, or more.
Two cups of flour in tea biscuits requires one-half to one ounce (one to two tablespoons) or more of shortening.
In yeast doughs less shortening is used — from one-half to an ounce to two cups of flour. The tenacity of the gluten is required to hold the carbon dioxid gas slowly formed by the yeast, hence too much shortening prevents proper rising.
Shortening for batters may be melted and mixed in, but in doughs which are to be rolled — pastry, cookies, short-cake, biscuit, etc. — the fat should be cold and hard and cut into the flour with a knife, or rubbed in with the tips of the fingers.
FLAVORING.
The flavoring materials most commonly used are salt, sugar, spices and extracts. The fine art of cookery consists of developing the full natural flavor of the foods themselves and in combining them in pleasing ways.
The amount of salt to be used -depends, in general, on the total volume of the food. When food tastes salty, too much has been used. A safe proportion is one teaspoon salt to one quart of liquid in soups, cereals, sauces, or to one quart of flour in doughs. When the flavors are delicate, somewhat less salt is used, and with strong flavors, somewhat more. Cakes in which much salt butter is used do not need more salt.
The quantity of sugar to be used depends on the taste desired. Foods served frozen need more sweetening than when at ordinary temperatures. On the other hand, foods that are served warm taste somewhat sweeter than when at ordinary temperature.
RECIPES