The household (of the Detroit free press)

Waffle irons should be heated, then buttered or greased with lard, and one side filled with the batter, closed and laid on the fire, or placed on the stove, and after a few minutes turned and browned on the under side. Muffins are baked in muffin rings. Both muffins and waffles take about twice as long to bake as griddle cakes. In eating them, do not cut but break open. Bread, biscuit and cake that is a little stale, can be made almost as nice as when fresh, by plunging them for an instant in cold water, and then placing in an oven ten or fifteen minutes ; when this is done they should be eaten immediately. Crackers, if put in the oven (dry not dipped) a moment, will taste as if fresh baked. Always use the purest soda, cream tartar and baking powder. Baking powder is often made at home, in this way : Eight ounces of flour, eight of English bi-carbonate of soda, and five of tartaric acid ; mix together by passing several times through a sieve. BISCUIT. To one quart of rich buttermilk add two small teaspoonfuls of soda, one of salt, flour to make a stiff dough ; mix quickly and as little as possible; roll out and cut; bake quickly. If they are yellow, use less soda ; if heavy, more, as it varies in strength. BAKING POWDER BISCUIT. One pint of water, one-half cup of shortening (half lard and half butter), one teaspoonful of salt, heaping tablespoonful of baking powder. Sift your flour into the mixing pan ; mix the baking powder and salt into the center part of flour the same as if for pie crust ; mix as little flour as possible, just enough to be able to roll them nicely ; scarcely knead them at all; bake twenty minutes in a hot oven; this recipe makes eighteen biscuits. ( TEA BISCUIT. One-half cup of butter, two cups sugar, two pints flour, two teaspoonfuls of baking powder, one teaspoonful extract nutmeg. Sift the flour, BISCUITS. 389 sugar and powder together ; rub in the butter cold and add enough sweet milk to make a soft dough — add the extract last ; roll out half an inch thick and cut out with a biscuit cutter; wash over with milk and bake twenty minutes. CREAM BISCUIT. One pint thick sour cream, one teaspoonful soda, one teaspoonful cream tartar. Flour sufficient to roll out, and bake in a quick oven. SODA BISCUIT. One quart of flour, one tablespoonful of lard, one teaspoonful of soda, two teaspoonfuls of cream tartar. Put both in the flour and wet with sweet milk. DIXIE BISCUIT. Three pints of flour, two eggs, two tablespoonfuls of lard, one small cup of yeast, one cup of milk ; mix at eleven o'clock, roll out at four o'clock and cut with two sizes of cutters, putting the smaller one on top ; let rise until supper. Bake twenty minutes. GRAHAM BISCUIT. Three cups Graham flour, one cup white flour, three cups of milk, two tablespoonfuls of lard or butter, one heaping large spoonful of white sugar, one saltspoonful of salt, one teaspoonful of soda, two teaspoonfuls cream tartar ; mix and bake as ordinary soda biscuit. They are good cold. FRUIT BISCUIT. One coffee cup sugar, one cup butter, one cup raisins (seedless are best), one egg, three teaspoonfuls baking powder ; flavor with vanilla and lemon extract to taste ; the raisins to be chopped fine. Roll out and cut thin with a biscuit cutter. Bake in a dripping pan with a greased paper in the bottom of tin. BUTTERMILK BISCUIT.