BREAD.
Considerable difficulty seems to be experienced in many quarters in getting really good bread free from chemicals and other deleterious matters. In some households the problem is solved by subsisting solely on certain approved kinds of biscuits, one I heard of keeping exclusively to Shredded Wheat Biscuits and Triscuits, while another stood by the "Artox" Biscuits. Besides these there are several other specially good whole-wheat biscuits, among which may be mentioned Chapman's Nut Wheat Biscuits; Winter's "Mainstay" series of Diet Biscuits, including some dozen varieties, all excellent, ranging in price from 4d. to 8d. per lb.; and the "P.R.," a Wallaceite specialty. Among the latter the "Barley Malt," "Crispits," "P.R. Wheatmeal," "New P.R. Crackers," &c., are to be specially recommended. Most people, however, prefer to have something more in the way of a loaf, and those who can make
Home-Made Bread
should have no difficulty in providing a toothsome and, at the same time, perfectly wholesome article. Directions for Wallace Egg Bread are given on page 74, and for Wheatmeal Gems, made with meal and water only, page 73. The following is a still simpler method:—Get a reliable whole-wheat flour; Hovis, Manhu, and Artox are each excellent, and will commend themselves severally to different tastes and requirements. The latter, it is useful to know, is used exclusively in the Wallace P.R. Bakery—a guarantee for its purity and wholesomeness. To prepare, take amount of flour required, and allow 1 or 2 ozs. vegetable butter or nut oil to the lb. Salt or not to taste. Rub in the butter and make into a stiff dough with cold water. Run two or three times through an ordinary mincer to aerate, and form into a long roll, but without pressure of any kind. Divide into suitable pieces or put in loaf pans, and bake in well-heated oven for 30 minutes to 1-1/2 hours, according to size. Most people will prefer small crusty loaves or rolls which get baked right through. For ordinary
Home-Made "Hovis" Bread
take 3-1/2 lbs. Hovis flour, 4-1/2 gills warm water, 1 oz. German yeast, 1 oz. salt, teaspoonful sugar. Mix salt with dry flour, dissolve yeast with sugar; make a hollow in centre of flour, put in yeast and pour on the warm water; mix well, folding in the flour from the outside to the centre, and let stand about 30 minutes in a warm place. Knead a very little, divide into small loaf pans, and allow to rise for another 15 minutes. Bake in very hot oven about 30 minutes, reduce heat, and bake 15 minutes longer. The above quantity will make five 1-lb. loaves.
CAKES AND SCONES.
The following are a few additional recipes for cakes and scones, most of which include one or other of the numerous Health Food specialties and dainties now upon the market, but which are not nearly so well known as they deserve to be.
Bruce Cake.
(Miss MACDONALD, Diplomee, Teacher of Cookery.)
1 lb. wheaten flour, 5 ozs. soft sugar, 2 ozs. butter or "Nutter," 4 ozs. sultanas, 4 ozs. currants or candied peel, 2 teaspoonfuls baking powder, 1/2 teaspoonful mixed spice. Cream sugar and butter. Add flour, fruit, spice, and baking powder. Mix with just enough water to moisten. Bake in good steady oven for about an hour.
Tweedmont Sultana Cake.
1/2 lb. butter or "Nutter," 3/4 lb. flour, 1/2 lb. soft sugar, 6 eggs, 1 lb. sultanas. Beat butter or "Nutter" to a cream, add the sugar, and beat for twenty minutes longer. Add two eggs, and beat again till thoroughly mixed, adding a little flour to prevent curdling, and repeat till all the eggs are in. Then sift in the flour, and add the sultanas cleaned and rubbed with flour. Mix lightly and pour into well greased cake tin. Bake in slow oven 1-1/2 hours.
Murlaggan Cake (Steamed).
1 cup whole-wheat meal, 1 cup flour, 1 teaspoonful ground ginger, 1 teaspoonful mixed spice, 1 cup Sultanas or stoned raisins, 2 tablespoons "Nutter," 1/2 teaspoonful baking soda, 2 tablespoonfuls syrup or treacle, or 1 of each; 1 egg, a very little sour milk. Rub "Nutter" or butter into flour, mix all dry things. Beat up egg, and add, with just enough sour or butter-milk to mix. Turn into greased pudding-bowl, and steam for about 2 hours. This should be a very light, wholesome cake, and is especially useful when one has not an oven. It may be varied to advantage, as by using Banana flour in place of the other, chopped dates or fruitarian cake in place of raisins, &c. A handy holiday cake.
Swiss Roll.
4 ozs. sifted sugar, 2 eggs, 4 ozs. Pattinson's banana cake flour, some jam, 1/2 teaspoonful Pattinson's baking powder or small teaspoonful home-made baking powder, 2 tablespoonfuls milk or orange juice. Put sugar and eggs in a basin, and switch up with "Gourmet" pudding spoon or a couple of forks for fifteen minutes. Add the milk and beat again, then the flour, previously mixed with the baking powder and sifted in. Beat all very thoroughly. Grease well a flat baking-tin, cover with greased paper, and pour in the mixture. Bake for not more than 5 minutes in very hot oven. Turn out on a paper sprinkled with sifted sugar, remove the greased paper, spread with jam or marmalade, and roll up very quickly.
Sponge Sandwich.
Prepare mixture exactly as above. Put half in well-greased sandwich tin, colour the other half pink with a few drops of carmine, and put into a second tin. Bake as before, turn out on a cloth or sieve. Spread the under side of one with either jam, marmalade, chocolate mixture, &c., and put the other one on top. Dust over with sugar, or coat with a thin icing. For this Mapleton's Cocoanut Cream is very good.
Banana Buns.
1/2 lb. Pattinson's banana flour, 1-1/2 ozs. "Nutter," 1/2 teaspoonful baking powder, 2 ozs. sugar, 1 egg, a little milk. Mix dry ingredients, rub in the "Nutter." Beat up egg, and add with a very little milk to make a rather firm dough. Divide into small pieces, flour the hands, and roll into balls. Have a teaspoonful sugar dissolved in a few drops of hot milk on a saucer. Dip in each bun, and place with sugared side uppermost on greased tin or oven plate. Bake for about 10 minutes in rather hot oven.
Banana Flour Scones.
1 lb. banana flour, 2 ozs. butter or "Nutter," 2 ozs. sugar, 1 teaspoonful baking powder, milk. Mix flour—the banana flour sold by the lb. is best—sugar, and baking powder. Rub in butter, make into a light dough with milk. Cut into small scones, and bake in good oven about 15 minutes.
These scones are exceedingly good, and quite different from those made with ordinary flour. They may be varied by adding a few Sultanas or a beaten egg.
Manhu Crisps.
1 lb. Manhu whole-wheat flour, 1 oz. cocoanut butter, pinch salt. Rub butter into flour, and make into a dough with as little water as possible; then run twice or three times through an ordinary mincer. Form into twelve or more rolls or twists with as little handling as possible, and bake in hot oven for ten to fifteen minutes.
Manhu Scones.
1 lb. Manhu Flour, 1/2 teaspoonful carb. soda (not heaped), sour milk or butter milk to make a soft dough. Bake on a girdle if possible.
Hovis Scones.
1 lb. Hovis Flour, 1 oz. nut butter, pinch salt, 1 tablespoonful treacle, 1/2 teaspoonful carb. soda, butter milk or sour milk. Mix dry things, rub in butter, add treacle and enough sour milk to make a fairly soft dough. Mix thoroughly and quickly. Roll out not too thin, and bake in good oven about 15 minutes. The treacle may be omitted.
Hovis Gingerbread.
8 ozs. Hovis Whole-Wheat Flour, 8 ozs. ordinary flour, 4 ozs. Nuttene, 8 ozs. stoned raisins, 8 ozs. treacle, 6 ozs. sugar, 1 egg, 1 teaspoonful ground ginger, 1-1/2 do. mixed spice. Melt together the sugar, butter, and treacle. Mix dry things together. Beat egg and pour hot treacle among it, then add to dry things. Mix and beat well. Pour into greased tin lined with buttered paper, and bake in very moderate oven 1-1/2 hours, or, if divided in two smaller tins, 3/4 of an hour will do. Golden syrup may be used instead of treacle, in which case use little or no sugar.
Strawberry Shortcake.
Make a good short crust (p. 75) with 1/2 lb. flour—plain, wheaten, or Banana flour, as preferred—1 oz. almond meal, and 4 ozs. "Nuttene." Roll out 1/2 inch thick, cut sharply round, flute edges, and bake in hot oven till a nice brown and crisp right through. Split open, inserting a sharp-pointed knife right round and pulling apart. When cool, cover under-half thickly with strawberries, well crushed and mixed with plenty of sifted sugar. Put on top half, dust with sugar, serve cold with cream or nut cream. Another very good shortcake is made as for "Jumbles," page 79. Add a little milk or fruit juice to mixture to make less crumbly. Bake in two sections and put strawberries between.
Scotch Oatcakes.
Scotch oatmeal, 2 ozs. nut butter to lb., pinch salt, hot water. Pat oatmeal in basin, melt fat in fairly hot water, and mix in quickly to make a stiff dough. Knead to thickness required. Bake on hot girdle, and toast in front of fire.
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"REFORM" RESTAURANT AND TEA ROOMS,
73 North Hanover Street, EDINBURGH.
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