Harper's cook book encyclopædia

Yeast. — Take i oz. of dried hops and two quarts of water. Boil them fifteen minutes ; add one quart of cold water, and let it boil for a few minutes ; strain, and add Yz lb. of flour — putting the latter into a basin, and pouring on the water slowly to prevent its getting lumpy — % lb. of brown sugar, a handful of fine salt. Let it stand three days, stirring it occasionally. When it ferments well, add six potatoes, which have been boiled, mashed, and run through a colander, making them as smooth as possible. This yeast will keep a long while, and has the advantage of not taking any yeast to start it with. It rises so quickly that a less quantity of it must be put in than of ordinary yeast. Another recipe : — Into a saucepan put three quarts of water, a very large handful of hops tied into a bag ; and when it boils, add four pared potatoes. When the potatoes are done, take out and mash in a basin ; add a cupful of sugar, one of salt, and three spoonfuls of flour ; pour the hop-water over; mash all well and smoothly together. If it seems lumpy, strain through a colander ; put back into the saucepan to boil ; and, as soon as it boils up once, remove from the fire. When cold, add about half a pint of lively yeast, and let it rise. If the yeast is not very lively, it will take more. When risen, put a little ginger and a small piece of alum dissolved in water to it. Put into bottles and cork. Buttermilk Yeast Powders. — One quart of fresh buttermilk made up with corn meal to a stiff batter, with a teacupful of yeast. Let it rise ; then add enough flour to make it a stiff dough. Let it rise a second time. Put it on dishes or boards to dry in the shade. Rub it up, and keep it in a bag. To one quart of flour put one table-spoonful of yeast powder. General Rules : 1. Use the best flour, and sift all white flour twice. 2. Let the dough be made quite soft with lukewarm water or milk. 3. Put the dough to rise slowly in a place where the temperature is warm and even. 4. Knead the dough thoroughly Batter Bread Corn Bread until it is elastic. Twenty or thirty minutes kneading is usually sufficient. 5. Let the oven be moderately hot only and keep the heat at an even temperature. 6. Grease or butter the pans just before putting in the dough. 7. Let the baked bread cool under a cloth. Batter Bread (plain) Beat up light two eggs; stir them into one pint of sifted corn meal, and add enough sweet milk to make the batter very thin. If you have not enough milk, water will answer. Bake about half an hour. Many persons save a little rice from dinner the day before, or, better still, a large spoonful of boiled small hominy, to mix in their batter bread, either of which many esteem an improvement. This is the bread so universally found on the breakfast-table in the South, and familiarly styled "corn bread,” sometimes "pudding bread.” Batter Bread (richer). — Prepare enough boiled mush to half fill a china baking-dish, quart size. While hot, add a table-spoonful of butter, stirring it in until melted. While the mush is cooling, beat up, very light, three eggs, the whites and yolks separately. Add these to the mush, with sufficient milk to make the batter thin, and the dish just full enough to allow room for the bread to rise in baking. Use small patty - pans to bake in if you prefer.