Baking Hot Bread Mixtures

REGULATING THE OVEN.--When the ingredients have been properly combined, the mixture is ready to be baked. With the exception of waffles and griddle cakes, the baking of which is explained in connection with the recipes, all hot breads are baked in the oven; therefore, while the mixture is being prepared, the oven should be properly regulated in order that the temperature will be just right when it is time to start the baking. Particular thought should be given to this matter, for if no attention is paid to the oven until the mixture is ready to be baked, it will be necessary to allow the mixture to stand until the heat of the oven can be regulated or to put it into the oven and run the risk of spoiling the food. To prevent either of these conditions and to insure success, the fuel, no matter what kind is used, should be lighted before mixing is begun, so that the oven may be heating while the mixture is being prepared, unless, as is sometimes the case, there are steps in the preparation of the mixture that consume considerable time. For instance, looking over raisins and cleaning them or cracking nuts and picking the meats out of the shells should be done before the rest of the ingredients are prepared or the oven is regulated.

CORRECT OVEN TEMPERATURES.--Quick breads that are to be baked in the form of loaves require an oven temperature of from 350 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Muffins, biscuits, and the smaller varieties of these breads need a higher temperature, 425 to 450 degrees Fahrenheit being best. As they are not so large, the heat has less dough through which to penetrate, and consequently the baking can be accomplished more quickly.

DETERMINING AND REGULATING OVEN TEMPERATURE.--Regulating the oven and testing its temperature present very little difficulty to the bread maker of experience, but they are not always easy problems for the person who is learning to cook. However, if the untrained and inexperienced cook will observe their oven closely and determine the results of certain temperatures, they will soon find their self becoming more successful in this matter. To assist the bread maker in this matter, as well as to help in the saving of much loss in fuel and in underdone or overdone food, many stoves are equipped with an oven thermometer, an indicator, or a thermostat. The thermometer is more likely to be reliable than the indicator, as it has a column of mercury like that of any other thermometer and is graduated; also, a certain kind may be secured that can be used with any sort of oven. The indicator is in the form of a dial with a hand attached to a metal spring. This spring contracts and expands with the changes in the temperature of the oven and thus causes the hand to point out the temperature. The thermostat is a device that automatically regulates the heat of the oven. On a stove equipped with a thermostat, it is simply necessary to set the device at the temperature desired. When this temperature is reached, the device keeps it stationary.

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