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RECIPES FOR ROLLS, BUNS, AND BISCUITS

83. While the preceding recipes call for bread in the form of loaves, it should be understood that bread may be made up in other forms, such as rolls, buns, and biscuits. These forms of bread may be made from any of the bread recipes by adding to the mixture shortening, sugar, eggs, fruit, nuts, spices, flavoring, or anything else desirable. Since these things in any quantity retard the rising of the sponge or dough, they should be added after it has risen at least once. Rolls, buns, and biscuits may be made in various shapes, as is shown in Fig. 18. To shape them, the dough may be rolled thin and then cut with cutters, or the pieces used for them may be pinched or cut from the dough and shaped with the hands. After they are shaped, they should be allowed to rise until they double in bulk. To give them a glazed appearance, the surface of each may be brushed before baking with milk, with white of egg and water, or with sugar and water. Butter is also desirable for this purpose, as it produces a crust that is more tender and less likely to be tough. Rolls, buns, or biscuits may be baked in an oven that has a higher temperature than that required for bread in the form of loaves, as is indicated in Fig. 4, and only 15 to 20 minutes is needed for baking them. If such forms of bread are desired with a crust covering the entire surface, they must be placed far enough apart so that the edges will not touch when they are baking.

[Illustration: Fig. 18]

So that experience may be had in the preparation of rolls, buns, and biscuits there are given here several recipes that can be worked out to advantage, especially after proficiency in bread making has been attained.

84. PARKER HOUSE ROLLS.--Of the various kinds of rolls, perhaps none meets with greater favor than the so-called Parker House rolls, one of which is shown at a, Fig. 19. Such rolls may be used in almost any kind of meal, and since they are brushed with butter before they are baked, they may be served without butter, if desired, in a meal that includes gravy or fat meat.

[Illustration: Fig. 19]

PARKER HOUSE ROLLS
(Sufficient for 3 Dozen Rolls)

  • 1 cake compressed yeast
  • 1 pt. lukewarm milk
  • 4 Tb. fat
  • 2 Tb. sugar
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 3 pt. white flour
  • 1 c. white flour additional for kneading

Dissolve the yeast in some of the lukewarm milk. Pour the remainder of the warm milk over the fat, sugar, salt, and dissolved yeast, all of which should first be put in a mixing bowl. Stir into these ingredients half of the flour, and beat until smooth. Cover this sponge and let it rise until it is light. Add the remainder of the flour, and knead until the dough is smooth and does not stick to the board. Place the dough in a greased bowl, and let it rise again until it doubles in bulk. Roll the dough on a molding board until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Then cut the rolled dough with a round cutter; brush each piece with soft butter; mark it through the center, as at b, Fig. 19, with the dull edge of a kitchen knife; and fold it over, as at c. Place the pieces of dough thus prepared in shallow pans, about 1 inch apart, and let them rise until they are light, when each roll will appear like that shown at d. Then bake them in a hot oven for about 15 minutes.

85. DINNER ROLLS.--As their name implies, dinner rolls are an especially desirable kind of roll to serve with a dinner. They should be made small enough to be dainty, and as an even, brown crust all over the rolls is desirable they should be placed far enough apart in the pans to prevent them from touching one another, as shown in Fig. 20 (a). If they are placed as in (b), that is, close together, only part of the crust will be brown. When made according to the accompanying recipe, dinner rolls are very palatable.

DINNER ROLLS
(Sufficient for 1-1/2 Dozen Rolls)

  • 1 cake compressed yeast
  • 1 c. lukewarm milk
  • 2 Tb. sugar
  • 2 Tb. fat
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 3 c. white flour
  • 1 egg white
  • 1/2 c. white flour additional for kneading

[Illustration: Fig. 20]

Dissolve the yeast in some of the lukewarm milk. Put the sugar, fat, salt, and dissolved yeast in the mixing bowl, and pour the remainder of the milk over these ingredients. Stir half of the flour into this mixture and allow the sponge to rise. When it is light, add the egg white, which should first be beaten, and the remainder of the flour, and then knead the dough. Let the dough rise until it doubles in bulk. Roll out the dough until it is 1/2 inch thick, and then cut out the rolls with a small round cutter. Place these in a shallow pan and let them rise until they are light. Then glaze each one with the white of egg to which is added a little water and bake them in a hot oven for about 15 minutes.

86. LUNCHEON ROLLS.--If rolls smaller than dinner rolls are desired, luncheon rolls will undoubtedly be just what is wanted. Since these are very small, they become thoroughly baked and are therefore likely to be even more digestible than bread or biscuit dough baked in a loaf. For rolls of this kind, the following recipe will prove satisfactory:

LUNCHEON ROLLS
(Sufficient for 2 Dozen Rolls)

  • 1 cake compressed yeast
  • 1-1/4 c. lukewarm milk
  • 2 Tb. sugar
  • 2 Tb. fat
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 4 c. white flour
  • 1 egg white
  • 1/2 c. white flour additional for kneading

Combine the ingredients in the manner directed for making dinner rolls. Shape the dough into biscuits the size of a small walnut, place them in a shallow pan, spacing them a short distance apart, and let them rise until they are light. Next, brush the tops of them with melted butter, and then bake them in a hot oven for about 15 minutes.

87. WHOLE-WHEAT ROLLS.--Rolls made of whole-wheat flour are not so common as those made of white flour, and for this reason they appeal to the appetite more than ordinary rolls. Whole-wheat rolls have the same advantage as bread made of whole-wheat flour, and if they are well baked they have a crust that adds to their palatableness.

WHOLE-WHEAT ROLLS
(Sufficient for 3 Dozen Rolls)

  • 1 pt. lukewarm milk
  • 1 cake compressed yeast
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 3 Tb. sugar
  • 4 Tb. fat
  • 2 c. white flour
  • 4 c. whole-wheat flour
  • 1/2 c. white flour additional for kneading

Set a sponge with the lukewarm milk, in which are put the yeast cake, salt, sugar, fat, and white flour. Allow this to become very light, and then add the whole-wheat flour. Knead this dough and allow it to double in bulk. Then shape it into rolls, allow them to rise, and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

88. GRAHAM NUT BUNS.--Buns made of graham flour and containing nuts are not only especially delightful in flavour, but highly nutritious. Because they are high in food value, they may be served with a light meal, such as lunch or supper, to add nutrition to it. The recipe here given will result in excellent buns if it is followed closely.

GRAHAM NUT BUNS
(Sufficient for 3 Dozen Buns)

  • 1 cake compressed yeast
  • 2 c. lukewarm milk
  • 4 Tb. brown sugar
  • 2 tsp. salt
  • 2 Tb. fat
  • 2-1/2 c. white flour
  • 1 egg
  • 1 c. chopped nuts
  • 3-1/2 c. graham flour
  • 1 c. white flour additional for kneading

Dissolve the yeast in a little of the lukewarm milk. Place the sugar, salt, fat, and dissolved yeast in the mixing bowl and add the remainder of the warm milk. Stir in the white flour and let the sponge thus formed rise. Then add the egg, which should first be beaten, the nuts, and the graham flour. Knead the dough and shape it into buns. Let these rise and then bake them in a hot oven for about 15 minutes.

89. NUT OR FRUIT BUNS.--Nuts or fruit added to buns made of white flour provide more mineral salts and bulk, substances in which white flour is lacking. Buns containing either of these ingredients, therefore, are especially valuable in the diet. Besides increasing the food value of the buns, nuts and fruit improve the flavour and make a very palatable form of bun. Buns of this kind are made as follows:

NUT OR FRUIT BUNS
(Sufficient for 2 Dozen Buns)

  • 4 Tb. sugar
  • 1 Tb. fat
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 cake compressed yeast
  • 1 c. lukewarm milk
  • 3 c. white flour
  • 3/4 c. chopped nuts or raisins
  • 1 c. white flour additional for kneading

Add the sugar, fat, and salt to the yeast dissolved in a little of the milk. Then stir in the remainder of the milk and half of the flour. Allow this sponge to rise until it is very light, and then add the remainder of the flour and the nuts or the raisins. Knead at once and form into buns. Let these rise until they are light. Then moisten them with milk and sprinkle sugar over them before placing them in the oven. Bake for about 15 minutes.

90. SWEET BUNS.--Persons who prefer a sweet bun will find buns like those shown in Fig. 21 and made according to the following recipe very much to their taste. The sweetening, eggs, and lemon extract used in this recipe give to the white buns a delightful flavour and help to lend variety to the usual kind of bun.

SWEET BUNS
(Sufficient for 1-1/3 Dozen Buns)

  • 1 cake compressed yeast
  • 1 c. lukewarm scalded milk
  • 1/4 c. sugar
  • 2 Tb. fat 1 tsp.
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 3-1/2 c. white flour
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp. lemon extract
  • 1 c. white flour additional for kneading

Dissolve the yeast in a small amount of the lukewarm milk and add it to the sugar, fat, salt, and remaining milk in the mixing bowl. Stir into this mixture half of the flour, beat well, and let the sponge rise until it is light. Add the eggs, which should first be beaten, the lemon extract, and the remaining flour. Knead until the dough is smooth. Let the dough rise again and then shape it into rolls. Allow these to rise, and then bake them in a hot oven for about 15 minutes.

[Illustration: Fig. 21]

91. COFFEE CAKE.--When an especially good kind of biscuit that can be served for breakfast and eaten with coffee is desired, coffee cake made according to the following recipe should be used. Cinnamon sprinkled over the top of such cake imparts a very pleasing flavour, but if more of this flavour is preferred 1 teaspoonful of cinnamon may be mixed with the dough.

COFFEE CAKE
(Sufficient for One Cake)

  • 1 cake compressed yeast
  • 1/2 c. lukewarm milk
  • 1 Tb. sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 2 c. white flour
  • 1 egg
  • 2 Tb. fat
  • 1/4 c. brown sugar
  • 1/2 c. white flour additional for kneading

Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm milk and add the sugar and the salt. Stir in 1 cupful of flour and let the mixture rise. When the sponge is light, add the beaten egg, the fat and the brown sugar creamed, and the remaining flour. Knead until the dough is smooth and allow it to rise until it is double in bulk. Then roll the dough until it is 1/2 inch thick, place it in a shallow pan, and let it rise until it is light. Brush the top with 1 tablespoonful of melted butter and sprinkle it with 3 teaspoonfuls of cinnamon and 3 tablespoonfuls of sugar. Bake 10 to 15 minutes in a moderately hot oven.

[Illustration: Fig. 22]

[Illustration: Fig. 23]

92. CINNAMON ROLLS.--To make cinnamon rolls, which are preferred by some persons to coffee cake, use may be made of the preceding coffee-cake recipe. However, instead of rolling the dough 1/2 inch thick, roll it 1/4 inch thick and brush it with melted butter. Then sprinkle it with 1 tablespoonful of cinnamon, 1/2 cupful of light-brown sugar, and 1/2 cupful of chopped raisins. Next, roll this as a jelly roll and cut the roll into 1/2-inch slices, as shown in Fig. 22. Place these slices close together in a shallow pan and let them rise until they are light, as in Fig. 23. Then bake them in a hot oven for about 15 minutes.

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BREAD MAKING INSTRUCTIONS

Importance of Bread as Food | Ingredients for Bread Making | Utensils for Bread Making | Bread-Making Processes | Making the Dough | Care of the Rising Dough | Kneading the Dough | Shaping the Dough Into Loaves | Baking the Bread | Scoring Bread | Use of the Bread Mixer | Serving Bread | Bread Recipes | Recipes for Rolls, Buns, and Biscuits | Toast | Left-Over Bread