RICE BREAD.
in the afternoon, and place it by the fire, or on the
top of the oven, where it remains until nine in the
evening, when three quarters of a stone (a gallon
and a half) more of flour is kneaded into it, and it
is left to rise until the morning, when the remain-
ing half gallon of flour will fit it for the oven. It
should be put into large tins and allowed to rise to
their tops before it is set into the oven. We
divide it into ten loaves, which are baked for two
hours. We consider that the rice renders the
bread lighter, and prevents the crust of it from
becoming hard, and it materially increases its
weight. The four gallons of flour, two pounds of
rice, and sixteen pints of water, produce forty-two
pounds of excellent bread.
“To improve the yeast, and insure its being good,
I would recommend that three or four well boiled
potatoes should be smoothly mashed and mixed
with as much hot water as will bring them to the
consistence of batter, and that a small plateful of
warm flour and the yeast should be gradually added
and well beaten to them. This done, the mixture
must be placed before the fire, and in two hours,
or less, the whole bowl will be in a state of fer-
mentation. Then is the time to lay the bread
with it. It is a little additional trouble, but is a
certain improvement also. Servants, however, will
not often take all this trouble; and mistresses
cannot always attend to such matters themselves.”
Two pounds of rice soaked in three quarts of
water, and afterwards swollen in it for two
hours in a moderately hot oven; to be
cooled down a little, then worked into a
stone (two gallons) of flour; two small hand-
fuls of salt; a quarter of a pint of yeast
of home-brewed beer (or three quarters of
a pint of baker’s yeast), and five quarts of
warm water to be added to them, and well
mixed into a lithe dough. To stand near the
fire, or on the top of the stove oven, from
four o’clock in the afternoon until nine in the
evening; a gallon and a half more of flour
worked into it, left until the morning; the
remaining half gallon of flour used in knead-
ing and making it ready for the oven. This
dough is divided into ten loaves, put into
large square tins, left until it has risen to their
tops, put immediately into a well heated oven,
and baked for two hours. The product of
this receipt,—forty-two pounds of bread.
Note.—“With the addition of about twelve
pounds of brown bread, this,” says our corre-
spondent, “is our average weekly consumption for
a family of ten or eleven persons.”