The royal baker and pastry cook — A Closer Reading

Then yeast was discovered, and yeast-risen bread came into use throughout the civilized world. Finally baking powder was devised, the most healthful, economical, and convenient of all leavening or lightening agents.

Yeast is a living plant. Mixed with the dough it causes fermentation and destruction of a part of the flour, and this produces carbonic-acid gas. The bubbles of this gas become entangled in the dough, swelling it up and making it spongy. In this process, however, a part of the most nutritious elements of the flour (estimated at ten per cent.) is destroyed in producing the leavening gas; there is always danger of sour dough, and there is a delay of many hours for the sponge to rise.

Perfect bread is that in which wheat is transposed into an available food without loss of any of its valuable properties.

Royal Baking Powder is now largely used in place of yeast to leaven bread. It does precisely the same work—that is, swells up the dough and makes it porous and spongy. But the process is not destructive: the baking powder by itself produces the leavening gas. No part of the flour is decomposed or destroyed. Moreover, there is no mixing or kneading with the hands, no setting of sponge overnight, as the loaf is mixed and ready for the oven at once. Bread thus made cannot sour, but will retain its moisture and freshness, and may be eaten while hot or fresh without distress even by persons of delicate digestion.

The ease with which Royal Baking Powder bread is made, its cleanliness and healthfulness, have caused it to supersede yeast bread with many of the best pastry cooks.

In making this bread the materials and utensils should be brought together before the mixing of the dough is begun. The fire must be looked to so as to secure a steady, moderate heat. Remember to mix the flour and Royal Baking Powder together before sifting, and sift thoroughly before wetting.

=Royal Baking Powder Bread.=—1 quart flour, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon sugar, 2 heaping teaspoons Royal Baking Powder,* ½ medium-sized cold boiled potato, and water. Sift together thoroughly flour, salt, sugar, and baking powder; rub in the potato; add sufficient water to mix smoothly and rapidly into a stiff dough, about the consistency of cake batter: about a pint of water to a quart of flour will be required—more or less according to the brand and quality of the flour used. Do not make a stiff dough as in yeast bread. Put the dough into a greased pan 4½ by 8 inches, and 4 inches deep, filling about half full. The loaf will rise to fill the pan when baked. Bake in very hot oven about 45 minutes, placing paper over first 15 minutes’ baking, to prevent crusting too soon on top. Bake immediately after mixing.

* Perfect success can be had only with the Royal Baking Powder.

=Household Bread.=—Sift twice together 1 quart of flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 heaping teaspoons Royal Baking Powder. Make a well in the center; add gradually sufficient cold liquid—water, milk, or equal quantities of each—to mix to a stiff batter or soft dough; this will require about 1 pint of liquid. Turn at once into a greased loaf-pan (fig. XII), smooth the top with a knife dipped in melted butter, and bake immediately in a moderate oven about 1 hour. When done take from the pan, moisten with the hand dipped in cold water, wrap in bread-cloth till cold.

=Graham Unfermented Bread.=—1½ pints Graham flour, ½ pint flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons Royal Baking Powder, 1¼ pints milk, or equal parts milk and water. Sift together Graham flour, flour, sugar, salt, and powder; add the milk, or milk and water; mix rapidly into soft dough, which put into greased tin (fig. XII). Bake in rather hot oven about 40 minutes. Protect loaf with paper first 15 minutes.

=Brown Bread.=—1 pint Indian corn meal, 1 pint rye flour, 1 teaspoon brown sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons Royal Baking Powder, 1 tablespoon butter or lard, ¾ pint milk. Sift together corn meal, rye flour, sugar, salt, and powder. Rub in the shortening; add the milk, and mix the whole into a batter. Put into greased tin (fig. XII), and bake about 40 minutes in rather hot oven. Protect at first with paper.

=Brown Bread, 2.=—Mix together 3 cups Graham flour, 1 cup wheat flour, 2 teaspoons Royal Baking Powder, 1 teaspoon salt; rub in 1 tablespoon butter or other shortening. Beat 3 eggs; add 1 cup milk and 1 tablespoon molasses; stir into dry mixture. Add more milk if needed to make a drop batter. Put into a greased loaf-pan (fig. XII), smooth with knife dipped in cold water. Bake about 1 hour in moderate oven.