unt Sarah" one week
before Christmas. It may be kept two weeks, and at the end of that
time still be good. It is rather expensive as regards fruit and nuts,
but as no eggs are used, and a very small quantity of butter; and as
bread containing fruit is so much more wholesome than rich fruit cake.
I think American housewives would do well to bake this German bread
occasionally. Mary took one-fourth the quantity of everything called
for in the recipe, except yeast. She used 3/4 of a cake of
Fleischman's yeast and 1/4 of each of the other ingredients, and from
these baked three loaves of bread. The prunes and pears should be
covered with cold water at night and allowed to stand until the
following morning, when, after stewing until tender, the juice should
be drained from the fruit and water added to the fruit-juice to
measure two quarts. Remove pits from prunes, cut pears and prunes in
small pieces; stand aside. Clean currants and raisins, blanch and
shred almonds, chop walnut meats, citron, orange peel and figs; add
cinnamon, cloves and anise seed. Mix together flour and one quart of
the fruit juice; add the compressed yeast cakes (dissolved in a little
warm water), knead well, set a sponge as for ordinary bread; when
raised, add the remaining quart of fruit juice, sugar, butter and
salt. A small quantity of brandy or sherry may be added, but if not
liked, fruit juice may be substituted.

Add the remaining ingredients, and knead thoroughly. Allow dough to
raise from two to three hours and when light form into loaves and
allow to stand an hour, when bake. This quantity of dough should be
made into twelve small loaves. Should the flour and liquid used be
warmed before mixing, the dough will raise more quickly. It simplifies
the work if the fruits and nuts be prepared the day before the bread
is baked.

AUNT SARAH'S WHITE BREAD AND ROLLS

1 quart potato water.
1 mashed potato.
1 tablespoonful butter or lard.
1 tablespoonful sugar.
1 Fleischman yeast cake, or 1 cup good yeast.
1/2 tablespoonful salt.
Flour to stiffen (about three quarts).

At 9 o'clock in the evening put in a large bowl the mashed potato, the
quart of luke-warm potato water (water in which potatoes were boiled
for dinner), butter or sweet lard, sugar, salt, and mix with flour
into a batter, to which add the Fleischman's or any good yeast cake,
dissolved in a little luke-warm water. Beat well and stir in flour
until quite stiff, turn out on a well-f