The Rural cook book

Apple Butter Without Cider.— Procure a new 50-pound lard can, eight pounds light brown sugar. Peel and slice the apples. Then commence to fill the can, first a layer of apples, then a layer of sugar, and so on until the can is full. Cover tightly and let it stand 13 hours. Place on ftove and when it begins to boil set it back on the stove until it simmers, or boils gently. Do not take off lid for five hours. Then remove and put in ground cloves and cinnamon to suit your taste. Suet Apple Dumplings. — One cup of chopped suet, two cups of flour, one teaspoonful of salt, mix with cold water into a dough; put the apples in as for pudding; tie in little cloths; drop into boiling water; boil one hour. Use any sauce, or sugar only. CHAPTER VII. BREAD AND MUFFINS, Here is the recipe for making good bread, given by the great milling companies and used by food demonstrators : To one quart of lukewarm liquid — half water and half milk, or water alone — add two half-ounce compressed yeast cakes, or the usual quantity of liquid yeast, and stir until dissolved. Add one teaspoonful of salt and three tablespoonfuls of sugar, and when well dissolved stir in with wooden spoon three quarts of well-sifted flour, or until dough is sufficiently stiff to be turned from the mixing bowl to the molding board in a mass. If shortening is desired add two tablespoonfuls lard. Knead this dough, adding if necessary from time to time, flour until it becomes smooth and elastic and ceases to stick to fingers or board. Do not make dough too stiff. Spring wheat flour needs a little more working than Winter wheat, and should be a little softer to make it rise properly. Put dough into well-greased earthen bowl, brush lightly with melted butter or drippings, cover with towel and set in warm place, about 75 degrees, for two hours, or until light, then knead well and return to bowl, cover as before and set for another hour's rising, or until light. When light, form gently into loaves or rolls, place in greased bread pans, brush with butter or drippings, cover again and let stand for one and one-half hour, then bake. When bread becomes stale it may be made palatable again and as good as new, or even better than new, by wetting the old loaf with cold water, putting in the pan and rebaking it in the oven 20 to 45 minutes. It will, if originally good, come out moist and fresh, Boston Brown Bread. — Two cupfuls Indian meal; one cupful whole wheat flour; one cupful sour milk; one-third cupful molasses; one teaspoonful soda; one-half teaspoonful salt. Mix and steam three hours, then brown in hot oven with the lid removed from the can. There are tin molds made smaller at the bottom than the top, so the loaf slips out nicely — the lid fitting on the outside of the tin to prevent the water getting in the bread, but any small tin pail with tight lid will answer the purpose. It is better to place an iron lid or ring in the bottom of the kettle to prevent the mold from coming too close to the fire. Slice around the loaf, not perpendicularly. Easy Brown Bread. — For one loaf take one cup of sour milk, one cup of sweet milk, one teaspoon of salt, one-half cup of molasses with one teaspoon of soda thoroughly stirred in; add one-half cup of white flour and about three cups of graham flour. Mix so stiff that a little dough dropped from the spoon will not quickly settle. Put in a deep brud pan and bake in a moderately hot oven for one hour. If not stiff enougli, the top crust may separate from the rest of the loaf.