PEACH KUCHEN
Grease your cake-pans thoroughly with good clarified b.u.t.ter, then line them with a rich coffee cake dough which has been rolled very thin and set in a warm place to rise. Then pare and quarter enough peaches to cover the dough. Lay the peaches in rows and sweeten and set in oven to bake. Make a meringue quickly as possible and pour over the cakes and bake a light brown.
FRESH PRUNE CAKE (KUCHEN)
Line a greased biscuit-pan with some of the coffee cake dough. Roll the dough thin and let it come up on the sides of the pan, then set aside to rise. When risen, cut the prunes in halves (they must be the fresh ones, not dried), lay in rows thickly and close together all over the bottom of the pan, do not leave any s.p.a.ce between the prunes. Sprinkle very thickly with sugar, lightly with cinnamon, and lay bits of fresh b.u.t.ter all over the top. Bake until done in a moderately hot oven.
PRUNE CAKE (KUCHEN)
Line one or two plates with a thin roll of kuchen dough and let it rise again in the pans which have been heavily greased. Have some prunes boiled very soft, take out the kernels, mash them until like mush, sweeten to taste, add cinnamon and grated peel of a lemon or lemon juice, put in the lined pie-plates and bake immediately. Serve with whipped cream, sweetened and flavored.
HUCKLEBERRY KUCHEN
Line your cake-pans, which should be long and narrow, with a rich kuchen dough, having previously greased them well. Make a paste of cornstarch, one cup of milk, one tablespoon of b.u.t.ter and one teaspoon of cornstarch wet with cold milk. Boil until thick, sweeten and flavor with vanilla and spread on top of the cake dough, then sprinkle thickly with huckleberries which have been carefully picked, sugared and sprinkled with ground cinnamon. Bake in a quick oven.
HUCKLEBERRY PIE
Clean, pick and wash two cups of huckleberries, then drain them. Beat yolk of one egg and two tablespoons of sugar until light, add one tablespoon of milk, then the drained berries. Line one pie-plate with rich pastry or cookie dough, pour on it the berry mixture, put in the oven and bake light brown; remove from the oven, spread with a meringue made of the white of the egg beaten stiff, and two tablespoons of sugar added. Brown nicely. The white can be beaten with the yolk and sugar, if preferred.
*m.u.f.fINS AND BISCUITS*
BAKING-POWDER
Put eight ounces of bicarbonate of soda, one ounce of tartaric acid and one package of high-grade cornstarch together and sift them thoroughly five times. Keep closely covered in gla.s.s jars or tin boxes.
BAKING-POWDER BATTERS
Batter is a mixture of flour with sufficient liquid to make it thin enough to be beaten.
Pour-batter requires one measure of liquid to one measure of flour.
Drop-batter requires one measure of liquid to two measures of flour.
To make a batter. Sift flour before measuring. Put flour by spoonfuls into the cup; do not press or shake down. Mix and sift dry ingredients.
Measure dry, then liquid ingredients, shortening may be rubbed or chopped in while cold, or creamed; or it may be melted and then added to dry ingredients, or added after the liquid. Use two teaspoons of baking-powder to one cup of flour. If eggs are used, less baking-powder will be required.
When sour milk is used, take one level teaspoon of soda to a pint of milk; when mola.s.ses is used, take one teaspoon of soda or baking-powder to each cup of mola.s.ses.
Mix dry materials in one bowl and liquids in another, combine them quickly, handle as little as possible and put at once into the oven.
The oven for baking biscuits should be hot enough to brown a teaspoon of flour in one minute.
BROWN BREAD
Mix and sift together one cup each of rye, graham flour, corn-meal and one teaspoon of salt. Dissolve one teaspoon of soda in one cup of mola.s.ses. Add alternately to flour with two cups of sour milk. Grease one-pound baking-powder cans, put in the dough and boil two and one-half hours, keeping the water always three-fourths up around the tins. Turn out on baking-tins and place in the oven fifteen minutes to brown.
To be eaten warm, whatever is left over can be steamed again or toasted.
CORN BREAD
Mix and sift one cup of corn-meal, one cup of flour, two tablespoons of sugar, one-half teaspoon of salt, three teaspoons of baking-powder. Melt one tablespoon of b.u.t.ter and add to one egg; mix milk and egg and beat this into the dry ingredients, pour this mixture into well-greased tins and bake in a hot oven one-half hour. Cut in squares and serve hot. Bake in gem tins if preferred.
BRAN BREAD
Sift four teaspoons of soda, two teaspoons of salt with four cups of white flour, add four cups of bran flour and mix well. Add one cup of mola.s.ses and four cups of sweet milk. Use chopped nuts or raisins or both as desired. This will make three or four flat loaves. Place in greased pans (four and a half by nine inches), and bake one hour in a moderate oven.
JOHNNIE CAKE
Mix one cup flour and two cups corn-meal, one heaping teaspoon of soda, one-half cup sugar, add two eggs beaten with one and one-half cups of b.u.t.termilk, one half cup of mola.s.ses and one-half cup of shortening, melted. Beat all ingredients as fast as possible for a minute. Pour the dough into a warm, well-b.u.t.tered pan and bake quickly and steadily for half an hour. The dough should be as soft as gingerbread dough. Serve hot.
EGGLESS GINGERBREAD WITH CHEESE
Sift two cups of flour, one teaspoon of soda, one-half teaspoon of salt and two teaspoons of ginger. Melt three-fourths cup of grated cheese in one-half cup of hot water, add one-half cup of mola.s.ses and blend perfectly. Add the flour and seasonings very gradually and beat thoroughly. Bake in m.u.f.fin rings for fifteen minutes and serve while warm.
GINGERBREAD
To one cup of mola.s.ses add one cup of milk, sour or sweet, dissolve one teaspoon of soda in the milk, one tablespoon of b.u.t.ter, one or two eggs, one teaspoon of ginger and one of ground cinnamon, add enough sifted flour to make a light batter. Bake in a shallow pan.
WHITE NUT BREAD
Mix two and one-half cups of flour, four teaspoons of baking-powder, one-half teaspoon of salt, one-half cup of sugar and one-half cup of walnut meats, broken; add one egg beaten with one cup of milk and let this mixture stand for about twenty minutes in well-greased breadpan before placing in a moderate oven to bake. Bake about an hour. Better day after it is made.
BAKING-POWDER BISCUITS
Sift two cups of flour with one-half teaspoon of salt, four teaspoons of baking-powder, and four tablespoons of b.u.t.ter; cut b.u.t.ter in with two knives and mix with one-half to two-thirds cup of water or milk, stir this in quickly with a knife, when well mixed place on a well-floured board and roll out about one inch thick, work quickly, cut with a biscuit cutter or the cover of a half-pound baking-powder can; place on a greased pan and bake quickly in a well-heated quick oven tea to fifteen minutes.
b.u.t.ter subst.i.tutes may be used in place of b.u.t.ter.
DROP BISCUIT
Add to ingredients for baking-powder biscuit enough more milk or water to make a thick drop batter, about two tablespoons; mix as directed for biscuit, drop by spoonfuls an inch apart on a greased baking-sheet or into greased gem pans, small size.