Paul Richards' book of breads, cakes, pastries, ices and sweetmeats

Keep all the utensils used perfectly clean, scour. ing and scalding them as often as possible. BRINE FREEZING. The ice machine is coming more and more into use in the modern hotel and restaurant. They are used for refrigerating, cold storage and ice making; and some hotels have applied this system also for freezing and storing Ice Creams and Ices. My experience of brine freezing has been con- fined to two Southern hotels, and I cannot say that the system always worked satisfactory, or as good, or better, than the ice-and-salt-freezing process. We had much trouble to keep the brine at an even low temperature; and a rising temperature would cause the frozen creams to become too soft in the storage box; and sometimes it was very difificult to freeze the creams hard enough to be served. Mechanical refrigerating is practically a new industry, and I think the engineers were not quite familiar with the new machine, as they were both newly installed in the hotels. A part of our trouble may have been due to this fact. Or it may have been because Ice Cream freezing and storing require a lower temperature than the ordinary cold storage and ice making, and the machine did not have the capacity to cool the ice boxes and freeze the creams at the same time. The most trouble we had was caused by the freezing or choking up of the valves or coils. This is due to small particles of moisture which enter with the gas from the compressor, which gradually accumulates at the bottom of the re- frigerating coil, or at the expansion or regulator valve. If the choking occurs on the valve, it can be cleared away quickly by throwing the valve open to its fullest extent. To clear the refrigerating coil is more trouble- some, and requires thR shutting down of the ma- chine for some hours. It is also necessary about every three or four weeks to clean the separator, to keep the machine in good working order. Other times, the machine being short of gas, caused a rising temperature of the brine, and made us trouble. BRINE. Sodium chloride (common chloride is used for brine chloride is a by-product of chemical works, and is obtained in large quantities in the making of salt and ammonia. Both salts are very much alike in character; the common salt is mostly used. One objection to the sodium chloride brine is that it rusts the ice tanks and coils immersed in it, and causes considerable wear. This is avoided by using a calcium chloride brine. A suitable brine for all freezing purposes can be made in proportions of four pounds of salt to one gallon of water. It is best to mix the brine in a separate vessel, and then put it in the freezing tub or storage tank. Calcium chloride is used in the same proportions, and dissolves best in warm water. As brine is absorbing water from the atmo- sphere, it is necessary, in order to keep it at its salt) and calcium making. Calcium PAUL RICHARDS' BOOK OF BREADS, CAKES, PASTRIES, ICES AND SWEETMEATS. 8x proper strength, to add more salt or calcium be tilted backward, which feature permits the chloride from time to time. setting in and lifting of the freezing can without For measuring the density of the brine a salino- moving the tub. This style of freezer is very meter is used; also the Beaum^ scale. Salino- much inferior to the others mentioned. The con- meters are correct at a temperature of 60" F., struction is faulty; the dasher works badly, leaves and to weigh the brine, it must be either warmed a thick crust on sides and bottom; and this makes up or cooled down to this degree before a proper it very hard on the engine, and takes longer to test of its density can be made. The density of freeze, causing loss of cream and many other in- the brine should be about go" by the salinometer, conveniences. But with all the faults, we had to and 23'' Beaum^ at 60" F. use this kind, because it permitted the use of a