The Community Cook Book. Unknown

      The Community Cook Book

      FOREWORD

      The Community Cook Book is a collection of recipes chosen from many hundreds that may well be considered representative of the best to be found in any of the more intelligent and progressive of American Communities in which a part of the population make occasional visits to all parts of the country from which they bring back choice recipes to contribute to the neighborhood fund. Added to this, that constant change and interchange of a part of the population, and if the best recipes of such a section be carefully selected and classified, then in a real American Community's Cook Book, such as this, we have one of the most valuable practical cook books in the world.

      In presenting this cook book, the compilers were guided by the fact that what each housekeeper needs, is not so much a great variety of ways, but a few successful ways of preparing each article of food.

      BREAD, BISCUITS, ROLLS AND PASTRY

      "'Bread,' says he, 'dear brothers, is the staff of life.'"

BAKING POWDER BISCUITS

      Two cups flour, two teaspoonfuls baking powder, one-half teaspoonful salt, two tablespoonfuls lard, a little sugar if desired, one-half cup milk or water, milk preferred. Mix flour, salt, sugar and baking powder well with fork; add milk. When well mixed, drop in small quantities onto buttered pans. Bake eight minutes in moderate oven.

BAKING POWDER BISCUITS

      Two cups flour, two teaspoonfuls baking powder, one-half teaspoonful salt, two tablespoonfuls butter, milk enough to make soft dough. Mix dry ingredients, chop in butter, add milk, mixing all the while with a wooden paddle or knife. Toss on a small floured board, roll lightly to one-half inch in thickness. Shape with cutter. Place on a buttered pan and bake in a hot oven.

BOSTON BROWN BREAD

      One level pint cornmeal scalded, one level tablespoonful salt, one cup New Orleans molasses, two teaspoonfuls soda over which pour a little boiling water, one pint sour milk; put half the soda in the molasses and the remainder in the milk. Stiffen with Graham flour. Steam four hours, and brown in oven for about fifteen minutes.

BUCKWHEAT CAKES

      One cake yeast, one coffee-cup cornmeal, two coffee-cups buckwheat, one teaspoonful salt, one quart tepid water. Before cooking, add four tablespoonfuls milk and two of molasses in which you have stirred a teaspoonful of soda.

CORNBREAD

      Sift three-fourths cup cornmeal, three-fourths cup flour, two and one-half teaspoonfuls baking powder, three-fourths teaspoonful salt, one tablespoonful sugar. Work in tablespoonful butter, then add three-fourths cup sweet milk, into which one or two eggs have been beaten. Pour into greased pans and bake in a moderate oven. If sour milk is used, take one and one-half teaspoonful baking powder and one-fourth teaspoonful soda.

CORN GEMS

      Two eggs, one-half cup white flour, one cup milk, one cup corn flour, one tablespoonful butter, one teaspoonful salt, one heaping teaspoonful baking powder. Pour enough boiling water over corn flour to wet it and burst starch grains. Beat eggs very light. Mix dry ingredients to corn flour, then eggs, milk and last butter. Bake twenty-five minutes in hot oven.

CRUMPETS

      One pint of milk, four ounces butter, one teaspoonful salt, one cake compressed yeast, three cups flour. Scald milk and let stand until lukewarm, then add salt and flour, beat vigorously, then add butter melted and the yeast, beat again, cover and stand in a warm place until very light. Grease muffin rings and place them on a hot griddle. Fill each ring half full of batter. Bake until brown on one side, then turn and brown the other side. Take from the fire and stand aside until wanted. When ready to use, steam and serve with butter, marmalade, syrup, jam, or anything else desired.

DUMPLINGS

      One pint flour, one level teaspoonful salt, one heaping teaspoonful baking powder, one heaping teaspoonful lard, enough milk and water to make a soft dough. Roll one-half inch thick, cut in squares, or with biscuit cutter, and lay in on top of stew. Cook ten minutes.

FRENCH BREAD

      After softening one cake of compressed yeast in one-half cup lukewarm water, stir in enough flour to make a very stiff dough. Knead well, shaping into a ball. Make two cuts on top about one-quarter inch deep. Place in a pan of tepid water until it swells and floats. When very light put into a bowl containing one-half cup salted water, stir in enough flour to make a stiff dough. Let stand in a temperature of 68 or 70 degrees F. until light. Shape into loaf, let lighten again and bake.

GRAHAM BREAD

      Two cups sour milk, two teaspoonfuls soda dissolved in little warm water, one-fourth cup sugar, one-half cup molasses, one egg, salt, three and one-half cups Graham flour. Bake one hour.

GRAHAM BREAD

      With one pint warm milk, one cake of yeast and white flour, make a sponge. One teaspoonful salt not heaped, one-half cup molasses. Let rise, then stir in sifted brown flour till partly stiff, put in baking pan, let rise, then bake.

GRIDDLE CAKES

      One-half pint milk, one-half pint warm water, one-half cake yeast, one teaspoonful salt, one egg, one tablespoonful melted lard, flour enough to make a batter like ordinary batter-cakes. Let rise over night and fry for breakfast.

KENTUCKY CORN BREAD

      One pint thick, sour milk, two teaspoonfuls salt, one egg. Mix with this enough cornmeal to make a batter not stiff. Use meal of medium fineness—not the very fine sold in most groceries. Beat well; add last one level teaspoonful soda dissolved in a little water. Allow a tablespoonful of lard to become very hot in baking pan; pour into the batter, stir, and turn into pan. Bake until cooked through.

MILK BREAD

      Scald one pint of milk, pour while hot over a tablespoonful of butter, one tablespoonful sugar, one teaspoonful salt. When nearly cold, add one-fourth cake of yeast, dissolved in one-half a cup of lukewarm water, add flour stiff enough to knead. Knead until smooth and elastic, cover, and let rise until morning, then shape into loaves, let rise again, bake from forty to fifty minutes; rolls from fifteen to twenty minutes.

MUFFINS

      One egg, one-half cup sugar, two cups flour, two heaping teaspoonfuls baking powder, three-fourths cup milk, salt. Mix egg with sugar. Sift flour, baking powder and salt, add to egg and sugar alternately with the milk and beat well. In season add blueberries. If short of milk, use part water.

NUT BREAD

      Four and one-half cups wheat flour, eight teaspoonfuls baking powder, one teaspoonful salt, one cup sugar, two cups sweet milk, one large cup chopped walnuts, two eggs well beaten. Stir all dry ingredients together thoroughly, add eggs and milk. Stand twenty minutes before baking. Bake in two tins about forty-five minutes in a moderate oven.

PARKER HOUSE ROLLS

      Two cups scalded milk, two tablespoonfuls sugar, one teaspoonful salt, two tablespoonfuls butter, one egg, one yeast cake dissolved in one-fourth cup lukewarm water. Mix dry ingredients and butter in the hot milk; when slightly cool, add flour enough to make a drop batter, beat well, add the yolk of egg, then the white beaten until stiff, and lastly the dissolved yeast cake, beat hard. Then add flour enough for a soft dough that you can handle. Turn on a well-floured board and knead until covered with blisters, turn into a well-buttered bowl. Cover and place in a temperature of 75 degrees until it doubles its bulk. Shape into rolls, butter and cover until they are very light. Bake in a quick oven until a delicate brown.

PARKER HOUSE CORN ROLLS

      One and one-fourth cup white flour (measurements level), three-fourths cup cornmeal, four teaspoonfuls baking powder, one-half teaspoonful salt, one tablespoonful sugar, two tablespoonfuls butter, one egg, one-half cup milk. Method: Mix and sift dry ingredients in a bowl; chop butter in with a knife; beat egg, to which add one-half cup milk; add all slowly to dry ingredients to make a soft dough that can be handled; add more milk, if necessary; toss lightly on floured board and pat to one-half inch thickness; cut with round cutter, patting piece of butter in center; fold in center, so that opposite edges meet; put in buttered baking sheet; wet top with milk and bake in quick oven ten to fifteen minutes.

POP-OVERS

      Two cups milk, one cup flour, two eggs, one-half teaspoonful salt. Beat eggs very light with Dover egg beater, add flour, milk and salt. Warm muffin pans slightly, butter them, and fill half full. Bake in hot oven until brown.