GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON BREAD, BISCUITS, AND CAKES.
BREAD AND BREAD-MAKING.
1668. AMONG the numerous vegetable products yielding articles of food
for man, the Cereals hold the first place. By means of skilful
cultivation, mankind have transformed the original forms of these
growths, poor and ill-flavoured as they perhaps were, into various
fruitful and agreeable species, which yield an abundant and pleasant
supply. Classified according to their respective richness in alimentary
elements, the Cereals stand thus:--Wheat, and its varieties, Rye,
Barley, Oats, Rice, Indian Corn. Everybody knows it is wheat flour which
yields the best bread. Rye-bread is viscous, hard, less easily soluble
by the gastric juice, and not so rich in nutritive power. Flour produced
from barley, Indian corn, or rice, is not so readily made into bread;
and the article, when made, is heavy and indigestible.
1669. On examining a grain of corn from any of the numerous cereals
[Footnote: _Cereal,_ a corn-producing plant; from Ceres, the goddess of
agriculture.] used in the preparation of flour, such as wheat, maize,
rye, barley, &c., it will be found to consist of two parts,--the husk,
or exterior covering, which is generally of a dark colour, and the
inner, or albuminous part, which is more or less white. In grinding,
these two portions are separated, and the husk being blown away in the
process of winnowing, the flour remains in the form of a light brown
powder, consisting principally of starch and gluten. In order to render
it white, it undergoes a process called "bolting." It is passed through
a series of fine sieves, which separate the coarser parts, leaving
behind fine white flour,--the "fine firsts" of the corn-dealer. The
process of bolting, as just described, tends to deprive flour of its
gluten, the coarser and darker portion containing much of that
substance; while the lighter part is peculiarly rich in starch. Bran
contains a large proportion of gluten; hence it will be seen why brown
broad is so much more nutritious than white; in fact, we may lay it down
as a general rule, that the whiter the bread the less nourishment it
contains. Majendie proved this by feeding a dog for forty days with
white wheaten bread, at the end of which time he died; while another
dog, fed on brown bread made with flour mixed with bran, lived without
any disturbance of his health. The "bolting" process, then, is rather
injurious than beneficial in its result; and is one of the numerous
instances where fashion has chosen a wrong standard to go by. In ancient
times, down to the Emperors, no bolted flour was known. In many parts of
Germany the entire meal is used; and in no part of the world are the
digestive organs of the people in a better condition. In years of
famine, when corn is scarce, the use of bolted flour is most culpable,
for from 18 to 20 per cent, is lost in bran. Brown bread has, of late
years, become very popular; and many physicians have recommended it to
invalids with weak digestions with great success. This rage for white
bread has introduced adulterations of a very serious character,
affecting the health of the whole community. Potatoes are added for this
purpose; but this is a comparatively harmless cheat, only reducing the
nutritive property of the bread; but bone-dust and alum are also put in,
which are far from harmless.
1670. Bread-making is a very ancient art indeed. The Assyrians,
Egyptians, and Greeks, used to make bread, in which oil, with aniseed
and other spices, was an element; but this was unleavened. Every family
used to prepare the bread for its own consumption, the _trade_ of baking
not having yet taken shape. It is said, that somewhere about the
beginning of the thirtieth Olympiad, the slave of an archon, at Athens,
made leavened bread by accident. He had left some wheaten dough in an
earthen pan, and forgotten it; some days afterwards, he lighted upon it
again, and found it turning sour. His first thought was to throw it
away; but, his master coming up, he mixed this now acescent dough with
some fresh dough, which he was working at. The bread thus produced, by
the introduction of dough in which alcoholic fermentation had begun, was
found delicious by the archon and his friends; and the slave, being
summoned and catechised, told the secret. It spread all over Athens; and
everybody wanting leavened bread at once, certain persons set up as
bread-makers, or bakers. In a short time bread-baking became quite an
art, and "Athenian bread" was quoted all over Greece as the best bread,
just as the honey of Hyamettus was celebrated as the best honey.
1671. In our own times, and among civilized peoples, bread has become an
article of food of the first necessity; and properly so, for it
constitutes of itself a complete life-sustainer, the gluten, starch, and
sugar, which it contains, representing azotized and hydro-carbonated
nutrients, and combining the sustaining powers of the animal and
vegetable kingdoms in one product.
1672. WHEATEN BREAD.--The finest, wholesomest, and most savoury bread is
made from wheaten flour. There are, of wheat, three leading qualities,--
the soft, the medium, and the hard wheat; the last of which yields a
kind of bread that is not so white as that made from soft wheat, but is
richer in gluten, and, consequently, more nutritive.
1673. RYE BREAD.--This comes next to wheaten bread: it is not so rich in
gluten, but is said to keep fresh longer, and to have some laxative
qualities.
1674. BARLEY BREAD, INDIAN-CORN BREAD, &c.--Bread made from barley,
maize, oats, rice, potatoes, &c. "rises" badly, because the grains in
question contain but little gluten, which makes the bread heavy, close
in texture, and difficult of digestion; in fact, corn-flour has to be
added before panification can take place. In countries where wheat is
scarce and maize abundant, the people make the latter a chief article of
sustenance, when prepared in different forms.
BREAD-MAKING.
1675. PANIFICATION, or bread-making, consists of the following
processes, in the case of Wheaten Flour. Fifty or sixty per cent. of
water is added to the flour, with the addition of some leavening matter,
and, preferably, of yeast from malt and hops. All kinds of leavening
matter have, however, been, and are still used in different parts of the
world: in the East Indies, "toddy," which is a liquor that flows from
the wounded cocoa-nut tree; and, in the West Indies, "dunder," or the
refuse of the distillation of rum. The dough then undergoes the
well-known process called _kneading_. The yeast produces fermentation, a
process which may be thus described:--The dough reacting upon the
leavening matter introduced, the starch of the flour is transformed into
saccharine matter, the saccharine matter being afterwards changed into
alcohol and carbonic acid. The dough must be well "bound," and yet allow
the escape of the little bubbles of carbonic acid which accompany the
fermentation, and which, in their passage, cause the numerous little
holes which are seen in light bread.
1676. The yeast must be good and fresh, if the bread is to be digestible
and nice. Stale yeast produces, instead of vinous fermentation, an
acetous fermentation, which flavours the bread and makes it
disagreeable. A poor thin yeast produces an imperfect fermentation, the
result being a heavy unwholesome loaf.
1677. When the dough is well kneaded, it is left to stand for some time,
and then, as soon as it begins to swell, it is divided into loaves;
after which it is again left to stand, when it once more swells up, and
manifests, for the last time, the symptoms of fermentation. It is then
put into the oven, where the water contained in the dough is partly
evaporated, and the loaves swell up again, while a yellow crust begins
to form upon the surface. When the bread is sufficiently baked, the
bottom crust is hard and resonant if struck with the finger, while the
crumb is elastic, and rises again after being pressed down with the
finger. The bread is, in all probability, baked sufficiently if, on
opening the door of the oven, you are met by a cloud of steam which
quickly passes away.
1678. One word as to the unwholesomeness of new bread and hot rolls.
When bread is taken out of the oven, it is full of moisture; the starch
is held together in masses, and the bread, instead of being crusted so
as to expose each grain of starch to the saliva, actually prevents their
digestion by being formed by the teeth into leathery poreless masses,
which lie on the stomach like so many bullets. Bread should always be at
least a day old before it is eaten; and, if properly made, and kept in a
_cool dry_ place, ought to be perfectly soft and palatable at the end of
three or four days. Hot rolls, swimming in melted butter, and new bread,
ought to be carefully shunned by everybody who has the slightest respect
for that much-injured individual--the Stomach.
1679. AERATED BREAD.--It is not unknown to some of our readers that Dr.
Dauglish, of Malvern, has recently patented a process for making bread
"light" without the use of leaven. The ordinary process of bread-making
by fermentation is tedious, and much labour of human hands is requisite
in the kneading, in order that the dough may be thoroughly
interpenetrated with the leaven. The new process impregnates the bread,
by the application of machinery, with carbonic acid gas, or fixed air.
Different opinions are expressed about the bread; but it is curious to
note, that, as corn is now reaped by machinery, and dough is baked by
machinery, the whole process of bread-making is probably in course of
undergoing changes which will emancipate both the housewife and the
professional baker from a large amount of labour.
1680. In the production of Aërated Bread, wheaten flour, water, salt,
and carbonic acid gas (generated by proper machinery), are the only
materials employed. We need not inform our readers that carbonic acid
gas is the source of the effervescence, whether in common water coming
from a depth, or in lemonade, or any aërated drink. Its action, in the
new bread, takes the place of fermentation in the old.
1681. In the patent process, the dough is mixed in a great iron ball,
inside which is a system of paddles, perpetually turning, and doing the
kneading part of the business. Into this globe the flour is dropped till
it is full, and then the common atmospheric air is pumped out, and the
pure gas turned on. The gas is followed by the water, which has been
aërated for the purpose, and then begins the churning or kneading part
of the business.
1682. Of course, it is not long before we have the dough, and very
"light" and nice it looks. This is caught in tins, and passed on to the
floor of the oven, which is an endless floor, moving slowly through the
fire. Done to a turn, the loaves emerge at the other end of the
apartment,--and the Aërated Bread is made.
1683. It may be added, that it is a good plan to change one's baker from
time to time, and so secure a change in the quality of the bread that is
eaten.
1684. MIXED BREADS.--Rye bread is hard of digestion, and requires longer
and slower baking than wheaten bread. It is better when made with leaven
of wheaten flour rather than yeast, and turns out lighter. It should not
be eaten till two days old. It will keep a long time.
1685. A good bread may be made by mixing rye-flour, wheat-flour, and
rice-paste in equal proportions; also by mixing rye, wheat, and barley.
In Norway, it is said that they only bake their barley broad once a
year, such is its "keeping" quality.
1686. Indian-corn flour mixed with wheat-flour (half with half) makes a
nice bread; but it is not considered very digestible, though it keeps
well.
1687. Rice cannot be made into bread, nor can potatoes; but one-third
potato flour to three-fourths wheaten flour makes a tolerably good loaf.
1688. A very good bread, better than the ordinary sort, and of a
delicious flavour, is said to be produced by adopting the following
recipe:--Take ten parts of wheat-flour, five parts of potato-flour, one
part of rice-paste; knead together, add the yeast, and bake as usual.
This is, of course, cheaper than wheaten bread.
1689. Flour, when freshly ground, is too glutinous to make good bread,
and should therefore not be used immediately, but should be kept dry for
a few weeks, and stirred occasionally, until it becomes dry, and
crumbles easily between the fingers.
1690. Flour should be perfectly dry before being used for bread or
cakes; if at all damp, the preparation is sure to be heavy. Before
mixing it with the other ingredients, it is a good plan to place it for
an hour or two before the fire, until it feels warm and dry.
1691. Yeast from home-brewed beer is generally preferred to any other:
it is very bitter, and, on that account, should be well washed, and put
away until the thick mass settles. If it still continues bitter, the
process should be repeated; and, before being used, all the water
floating at the top must be poured off. German yeast is now very much
used, and should be moistened, and thoroughly mixed with the milk or
water with which the bread is to be made.
1692. The following observations are extracted from a valuable work on
Bread-making, [Footnote: "The English Bread-Book." By Eliza Acton.
London: Longman.] and will be found very useful to our readers:--
1693. The first thing required for making wholesome bread is the utmost
cleanliness; the next is the soundness and sweetness of all the
ingredients used for it; and, in addition to these, there must be
attention and care through the whole process.
1694. An almost certain way of spoiling dough is to leave it half-made,
and to allow it to become cold before it is finished. The other most
common causes of failure are using yeast which is no longer sweet, or
which has been frozen, or has had hot liquid poured over it.
1695. Too small a proportion of yeast, or insufficient time allowed for
the dough to rise, will cause the bread to be heavy.
1696. Heavy bread will also most likely be the result of making the
dough very hard, and letting it become quite, cold, particularly in
winter.
1697. If either the sponge or the dough be permitted to overwork itself,
that is to say, if the mixing and kneading be neglected when it has
reached the proper point for either, sour bread will probably be the
consequence in warm weather, and bad bread in any. The goodness will
also be endangered by placing it so near a fire as to make any part of
it hot, instead of maintaining the gentle and equal degree of heat
required for its due fermentation.
1698. MILK OR BUTTER.--Milk which is not perfectly sweet will not only
injure the flavour of the bread, but, in sultry weather, will often
cause it to be quite uneatable; yet either of them, if fresh and good,
will materially improve its quality.
1699. To keep bread sweet and fresh, as soon as it is cold it should be
put into a clean earthen pan, with a cover to it: this pan should be
placed at a little distance from the ground, to allow a current of air
to pass underneath. Some persons prefer keeping bread on clean wooden
shelves, without being covered, that the crust may not soften. Stale
bread may be freshened by warming it through in a gentle oven. Stale
pastry, cakes, &c., may also be improved by this method.
1700. The utensils required for making bread, on a moderate scale, are a
kneading-trough or pan, sufficiently large that the dough may be kneaded
freely without throwing the flour over the edges, and also to allow for
its rising; a hair sieve for straining yeast, and one or two strong
spoons.
1701. Yeast must always be good of its kind, and in a fitting state to
produce ready and proper fermentation. Yeast of strong beer or ale
produces more effect than that of milder kinds; and the fresher the
yeast, the smaller the quantity will be required to raise the dough.
1702. As a general rule, the oven for baking bread should be rather
quick, and the heat so regulated as to penetrate the dough without
hardening the outside. The oven door should not be opened after the
bread is put in until the dough is set, or has become firm, as the cool
air admitted will have an unfavourable effect on it.
1703. Brick ovens are generally considered the best adapted for baking
bread: these should be heated with wood faggots, and then swept and
mopped out, to cleanse them for the reception of the bread. Iron ovens
are more difficult to manage, being apt to burn the surface of the bread
before the middle is baked. To remedy this, a few clean bricks should be
set at the bottom of the oven, close together, to receive the tins of
bread. In many modern stoves the ovens are so much improved that they
bake admirably; and they can always be brought to the required
temperature, when it is higher than is needed, by leaving the door open
for a time.
A FEW HINTS respecting the Making and Baking of CAKES.
1704. _Eggs_ should always be broken into a cup, the whites and yolks
separated, and they should always be strained. Breaking the eggs thus,
the bad ones may be easily rejected without spoiling the others, and so
cause no waste. As eggs are used instead of yeast, they should be very
thoroughly whisked; they are generally sufficiently beaten when thick
enough to carry the drop that falls from the whisk.
1705. _Loaf Sugar_ should be well pounded, and then sifted through a
fine sieve.
1706. _Currants_ should be nicely washed, picked, dried in a cloth, and
then carefully examined, that no pieces of grit or stone may be left
amongst them. They should then be laid on a dish before the fire, to
become thoroughly dry; as, if added damp to the other ingredients, cakes
will be liable to be heavy.
1707. _Good Butter_ should always be used in the manufacture of cakes;
and if beaten to a cream, it saves much time and labour to warm, but not
melt, it before beating.
1708. Less butter and eggs are required for cakes when yeast is mixed
with the other ingredients.
1709. The heat of the oven is of great importance, especially for large
cakes. If the heat be not tolerably fierce, the batter will not rise. If
the oven is too quick, and there is any danger of the cake burning or
catching, put a sheet of clean paper over the top. Newspaper, or paper
that has been printed on, should never be used for this purpose.
1710. To know when a cake is sufficiently baked, plunge a clean knife
into the middle of it; draw it quickly out, and if it looks in the least
sticky, put the cake back, and close the oven door until the cake is
done.
1711. Cakes should be kept in closed tin canisters or jars, and in a dry
place. Those made with yeast do not keep so long as those made without
it.
BISCUITS.
1712. Since the establishment of the large modern biscuit manufactories,
biscuits have been produced both cheap and wholesome, in, comparatively
speaking, endless variety. Their actual component parts are, perhaps,
known only to the various makers; but there are several kinds of
biscuits which have long been in use, that may here be advantageously
described.
1713. Biscuits belong to the class of unfermented bread, and are,
perhaps, the most wholesome of that class. In cases where fermented
bread does not agree with the human stomach, they may be recommended: in
many instances they are considered lighter, and less liable to create
acidity and flatulence. The name is derived from the French _bis cuit_,
"twice-baked," because, originally, that was the mode of entirely
depriving them of all moisture, to insure their keeping; but, although
that process is no longer employed, the name is retained. The use of
this kind of bread on land is pretty general, and some varieties are
luxuries; but, at sea, biscuits are articles of the first necessity.
1714. SEA, or SHIP BISCUITS, are made of wheat-flour from which only the
coarsest bran has been separated. The dough is made up as stiff as it
can be worked, and is then formed into shapes, and baked in an oven;
after which, the biscuits are exposed in lofts over the oven until
perfectly dry, to prevent them from becoming mouldy when stored.
1715. CAPTAINS' BISCUITS are made in a similar manner, only of fine
flour.
RECIPES.