GRIDDLE-CAKES

Griddle-cakes should be well beaten when first made, and are much lighter when the eggs are separated, whipfMng the yolks to a thick cream, and adding the whites beaten to a stifiT froth just before baking. Some never stir buckwheat cakes after they have risen, but take them out carefully with a large spoon, placing the spoon when emptied in a saucer, and not back again into the batter. In baking griddle-cakes have the griddle clean, and, if the cakes stick, sprinkle on salt and rub with a coarse cloth before greasing. Some prefer griddles made of soap-stone, which need no

62 QBIDDLE-CAKBS.

greasing, lliej need to be very hot, but greasing spoils theot. Thej are more ooetly and more easily broken than iron. Iron griddles, if properly cared for, need washing but seldom. Imme- diately after use they should be carefully wiped and put away out of the dust, never to be used for any other purpose. Never turn griddle-cakes the second time while baking, as it makes then heavy, and serve the same side up as when taken from griddles.

Buckwheat Cakes.

Buckwheat flour, when properly ground, is perfectly free from grits. The grain should be run through the smutter with a strong blast before grinding, and the greatest care taken through the whole process. Adulteration with rye or corn cheapens the flour, but injures the quality. The pure buckwheat is best, and is un- surpassed for griddle-cakes. To make batter, warm one pint sweet milk and one pint water (one may be cold and the other boiling) ; put lialf this mixture in a stone crock, add five tea-cups buckwheat flour, beat well until smooth, add the rest of the milk and water, and last a tearcup of yeast. Or, the same ingredients and propor- tions may be used except adding two table-spoons of molasses or sugar, and using one quart of water instead of one pint each of milk and water. — Miss S. A, Melehing.

HoBSFOBJD Buckwheat Cakes. ilGx " over night," with warm water, a little salt, and a table- spoon molasses, one pint buckwheat flour, to the usual consistency of griddle-cakes. When ready to bake for breakfast, add one mieas* ure each of acid and soda (or two heaping tea-spoons acid and one moderately heaping tea-spoon soda) of Horsford's Bread Prepara- tion— thinning the batter if necessary — and bake immediately on a

hot griddle.

French Pancakes.

Beat together till smooth six eggs and half a pound of flour, melt four ounces butter and add to the batter, with one ounce of sugar and'half a pint of milk, and beat until smooth. Put a table-spoon at a time into a hot frying-pan slightly greased, spreading the batter evenly over the sur&ce of the pan by tipping it about, fiy to a light

ORIPDLE^CAKES, 68

brown, spread with jelly, roll it up^ dust it with powdered sugar, and serve hot. — Mrt. C.» MurfreaborOj TemL

Beaur£Oabd Batter Gaebb. Make a batter of one quart each of flour and sour milk, three eggs beaten separatdj, a table-spoon of butter, and two level tea^ spoons soda. Pulverize the soda very fine before measuring, then thoroughly mix with the flour. Add whites of eggs just before baking on the griddle. Sweet milk may be used (with the other ingredients in same quantity) with Horsford's Bread Preparation, one measure each of soda and acid, which must be thoroughly mixed with the flour. These may also be made without ^gs.

Cabouka Flapjacks.

One quart boiling milk, two cups white Indian meal, one small cup flour, one table-spooii each butter and brown sugar, one tea- spoon soda dissolved in hot milk, one teanspoon salt, two eggs ; scald meal with the hot milk, cool a little, and add butter and sugar, and let stand until morning, covered closely; then add yolks of eggs, salt and flour. If batter is too thick, thin with cold milk before adding soda, and, last, lightly stir in the well-beaten whites. — Jfrs. David Anderwn, OuirlegUm, 8. 0.

Crumb Griddle Cakes.

The night before using put some bread crumbs to soak in one quart of sour milk; in the morning rub through a sieve, and add four well-beaten eggs, two tea-spoons soda dissolved in a little water, one table-spoon melted butter, and enough corn-meal to make them the consistency of ordinary griddle-cakes. It is better to beat yolks and whites separately, stirring the whites lightly in just before baking. — Mrs, H. SeoviUey New Orleans,

Flannel Cakes.

Make hot a pint of sweet milk, and into it put two heaping table- spoons butter, let melt, then add a pint of cold milk, the well- beaten yolks of four eggs — ^placing the whites in a cold place — ^a tea-spoon of salt, four table-spoons potato yeast, and sufiicient flour to make a stiff batter; set in a warm place to rise, let stand three

54 YEAST. ,

hours or over night ; before baking add the beaten whites ; fry like

anj other griddle-cakes. Be sure to make batter just stiff enough,

for flour must not be added in the morning unless it is allowed to

rise again.

Graham Oriddle-Cakes.

One quart Graham flour, one tea-spoon baking powder, three eggs, '^ud milk or water enough to make thin batter.

Indian Pancakes. .

One pint Indian meal, one tea-spoon salt, small tea-spoon soda; pour on boiling water until a little thinner than mush; let stand until cool, add the yolks of four eggs, half a cup of flour in which is mixed two teanspoons cream tartar ; stir in as much sweet milk or water as will make the batter suitable to bake; beat the whites well, and add just before baking. — Mrs, W. W. Woodi.

Rice Gbiddle-Cakes.

Boil half a cup rice ; when cold mix one quart sweet milk, the yolks of four eggs, and flour suflicient to make a stiff batter ; beat the whites to a froth, stir in one tea-spoon soda, and two of cream tartar ; add a little salt, anvi lastly the whites of eggs; bake on a griddle. A nice way to serve is to spread them while hot with but- ter, and almost any kind of preserves or jelly ; roll them up neatly, cut off the ends, sprinkle them with ?ugar, and serve immediately. — JIfrs. WaJtter AStcheU^ OaUipalis. '

The best is potato yeast, because bread made witk it is moister^ and there is no danger of injuring the flavor of the bread by ap excess of yeast. Dry yeast should be made in May or June for summer use, and in October for winter use. In hot and damp weather, dry yeast sometimes loses its vitality ; however, many use it on account of its convenience, since there is no danger of it9 aouring in summer or freezing in winter. Soft hop or potato yeast

YEAST. 56

will keep in a cool place one or two weeks in warm weather, and in cold weather five or six weeks, care being taken that it does not freeise. Never add soda to yeast; if it becomes sour it will do to start fresh yeast, but will never make good bread. Make yeast in a bright tin pan, kept for this purpose alone. When it is risen sufficiently, a thick white scum rises to the top. Keep in a stone jar with a close-fitting cover, or in a jug, on the cellar bottom, or in ice-chest, or in some other cool place. Always shake the jug before taking out yeast for use. Leave cork loose for first twelve hours. Extreme heat or freezing kills the plant; which grows while fermentation goes on. The jar or jug, when emptied, should be washed first in cold water, then in soap and water, and aflerward in hot water, which may be allowed to stand a half hour, when pour out Let jar cool, and it is ready for use. The cork or cover needs the same careful attention. Many times the yeast is spoiled by want of care and neatness in washing the yeast jar. Keep hops in a paper sack in a dry, cool place. One pint of potato yeast, one tea-cup of hop yeast, a piece of compressed yeast size of a walnut, and one yeast cake, or two-thirds of a tea-cup of yeast crumbs, are equal in strength.

Dry Yeast.

Boil two large potafees and a handful of hops (the latter in a bag) in three pints water ; when done, take out potatoes, mash well, add one pint flour, and pour boiling hot water over all; beat well together, adding one table-spoon salt, one of ginger, and one-half cup sugar ; when luke-warm add one cup good yeast and let stand two days (or only one day, if very warm weather), stirring down frequently ; add good white corn meal until thick enough to make into cakes about half an inch in thickness; place to dry in the shade (never expose to the sun or to stove heat) where the air will pass freely, so as to dry them as soon as possible, as the fermentation goes on as long as there is any moisture ; turn the cakes frequently, breaking them up somewhat, or even crumbling, so they will dry out evenly and quickly ; when thoroughly dried put in a paper sack, and keep in a dry place. A small cake will make a sponge suffi- cient to bake five or six ordinary loaves. — Mrs^ E. T. Canon.

56 YEAST.

Farmkrb' Yeabt.

A jeast which is especially good for the use of fiurmers, and others who use a great deal of bread and bake frequently, is made as follows: Take a handful of unpressed or two ounces of pressed hops (those showing the pollen dust are best), put them in one quart of water, with four ordinary potatoes, and boil till the potatoes are well cooked ; mash all together, and strain through a linen strainer, add flour enough to make a thick batter ; a tea-spoon salt, a table- spoon pulverized ginger and half a cup sugar ; set it back on the fire and let it come to a boil, stirring constantly, and set by to cool ; when only milk warm add a cup of old yeast, or two cakes grocers' dry hop yeast, or half a cup bakers'. This will be light in two or three hours. The yeast may be made perpetual, by saving a cup when started, but it must be kept from freezing in winter and in a cool place in summer. This is a good mode, and acceptable to all who prefer yeast bread. — ifr«. H. Young,

Hop Yeast.

Place a handful of hops in two quarts of cold water, boil slowly for a half- hour, strain boiling hot on one pint flour and one table- spoon salt (gradually at first in order to mix smoothly) ; when luke- warm add a half pint of yeast, and set in a warm place to rise. When light, cover and keep in a cool plac^ — Mn. M. J. TFoocfa.

Potato Yeast without Hops.

Four good-sized potatoes peeled, boiled and mashed, four table- spoons white sugar, one of ginger, one of salt, two cups flour; pour over this a pint of boiling water, and beat till all the lumps disap- pear. After it has cooled, add to it one cup good yeast, and set away to rise ; when risen put in glass or stone jar, cover and set away in a cool place. — Mrs, Oeorge H. Rugt,

Potato Yeast. Boil one cup hops in a sack in two quarts water for fifteen minutes; remove sack with hops, add immediately after grating (to prevent their darkening) five good-sized Irish potatoes, peeled and grated raw, one cup white sugar, one table-spoon salt, and one of ginger ; stir occasionally and cook from five to ten minutes, and it will boil

TEaST. 57

op thick like starch ; turn into a jar, and when just tepid in sum- mer, or quite warm in winter, add one-half pint good yeast (always save some to start with) ; set jar in a large tin pan, and as often as it rises stir down until fermentation ceases, when it will be quite thin. Cover closely, and set away in a cool place, and it will keep two weeks. When yeast smells sour but does not taste sour it is still good ; if it has no smell it is dead. One cup will make six good-sized loaves. — Mrs. D. BuxUm.

Potato Yeabt.

Take as many hops as can be grasped in the hand twice, put one- half gallon water over them in a new coffee-pot kept for that pur- pose, boil slowly for one hour. Do not tie them in a cloth to boil, as that keeps the pollen (an important rising property) out of the yeast Pare and grate half a dozen large potatoes into a two gallon stone crock, add a half cup sugar, table-spoon each of salt and ginger, pour over this a half gallon of the boiling hop- water, stir- ring all the time. When milk-warm, add one cup of good lively yeast, set in a warm place until it rises, and remove to the cellar or some other cool place. The boiling hop-water must be added to po- tatoes imTnediately or they will darken, and darken the yeast. A good way to prevent the potatoes from darkening is to grate them into a pan half filled witn cold water. As grated the potatoes sink to the bottom ; when done grating, pour off the water ai^d add 'the boiling hop-water. This is an excellent recipe, and the method given for boiling hops is especially recommended.

Pare and boil four ordinary-sized potatoes, boiling at the same time in a separate vessel a good handful of hops. When the pota- toes are done, mash fine and add, after straining, the water in which the hops were boiled ; put into this one cup white sugar and one- half cup salt, and add sufficient water to make one gallon ; when cold add one cup of good yeast, let stand in a warm place for a few hours until it will '' sing" on being stirred, when it is ready for use. Keep covered in a cellar or cool place. — Mrs. C. M.

58 YEAST.

Yeast without Yeabt.

This requires no yeast to raise it, and has been called the ''best yeast in the world/' Monday morning, boil one pint hops in two gallons water for half an hour, strain into a crock and let the liquid become lukewarm, add two even tea-spoons salt and half a pint best brown sugar ; mix half a pint flour smooth with some of the liquor, and stir all well together. On Wednesday, add three pounds potiitoes boiled and mashed, stir well and let stand till Thursday, then straiu and put in stone-jugs, but for the first day or two leave the corks quite loose. Stir the yeast occasionally while making, and keep near the fire. It should be made two weeks before using, aud will keep any length of time, improving with age. Keep it in a cool place, and shake the jug before pouring from it, but with the cork out, holding the palm of the hand over the mouth to pre- vent the escape of the yeast.

Yahoo Yeast.

Take a table-spoonful and a half of New Orleans molasses, and add to it the same quantity of warm water. Stir in enough flour to make a thin batter; set it in a warm place — ^not hot — ^and it will soon begin to throw up bubbles on the top, and in a short time fer- ment. Meanwhile, have all ready to make the yeast as soon as the batter begins to work. Put a tea-cup of hops into a clean porce- lain kettle, and add two quarts of boiling water. Set over the fire, and boil steadily twenty minutes. Strain it, after boiling, into a clean dish. Stir in a pint of flour and a table-spoonful of salt. Be sure and stir it free from lumps. Set again over the fire, stirring constantly, until it boils up and thickens. If to« thick after it boils up, pour in boiling water till it is about the consistency of good starch. Then pour back into the bowl, cover over till milk- warm, then stir in the '' risings" made of molasses, flour and water. Set where it will be kept warm until it has risen and is quite light* Then put into a jug, cork, and set in a cool place for use. — Mrs. Oarkson, Bath Co., Ky,