Page:Art of Cookery 1774 edition.djvu/336

298 pretty stiff, in summer more slack; so that you may use a little more or less of flour, according to the stiffness of your dough; mix it well, but the less you work the better. Make it into rolls, and have a very quick oven, but not to burn. When they have lain about a quarter of an hour turn them on the other side, let them lie about a quarter longer, take them out and chip all your French bread with a knife, which is better than rasping it, and makes it look spungy and of a fine yellow, whereas the rasping takes off all the fine colour, and makes it look too smooth. You must stir your liquor into the flour as you do for pye-crust. After your dough is made cover it with a cloth, and let it rise while the oven is heating. To a bushel of Hertfordshire white flour, take a pint and a half of good ale yeast, from pale malt, if you can get it, because it is whitest; let the yeast lie in water all night, the next day pour off the water clear, make two gallons of water just milk-warm, not to scald your yeast, and two ounces of salt; mix your water, yeast, and salt well together for about a quarter of an hour; then strain it and mix up your dough as light as possible, and let it lie in your trough an hour to rise, then with your hand roll it and pull it into little pieces about as big as a large walnut, roll them with your hand like a ball, lay them on your table, and as fast as you do them lay a piece of flannel over them, and be sure to keep your dough covered with flannel; when you have rolled out all your dough begin to bake the first, and by that time they will be spread out in the right form; lay them on your iron; as one side begins to change colour turn the other, and take great care they don't burn, or be too much discoloured, but that you will be a judge of in two or three makings. Take care the middle of the iron is not too hot, as it will be, but then you may put a brick-bat or two in the middle of the fire to slacken the heat. The thing you bake on must be made thus:

Build a place just as if you was going to set a copper, and in the stead of a copper, a piece of iron all over the top fixed in form just the same as the bottom of an iron pot, and make your fire underneath with coal as in a copper. Observe, muffins are made the same way; only this, when you pull them to pieces roll them in a good deal of flour, and with a rolling-pin roll them thin, cover them with a piece of flannel, and they will rise a proper thickness; and if you find them too big or too little, you must roll dough accordingly. These must not be the least discoloured.