ills the life of the flour to scald it, but it is a mistaken
idea--it is sweeter for it, and will keep good much longer. Bread made
in this way is nearly as good as that which is wet with milk. Care must
be taken not to put the yeast in when the dough is hot, as it will scald
it, and prevents its rising. Most ovens require heating an hour and a
half for bread. A brisk fire should be kept up, and the doors of the
room should be kept shut, if the weather is cold. Pine and ash, mixed
together, or birch-wood, is the best for heating an oven. To ascertain
if your oven is of the right temperature, when cleaned, throw in a
little flour; if it browns in the course of a minute, it is sufficiently
hot; if it turns black directly, wait several minutes, before putting in
the things that are to be baked. If the oven does not bake well, set in
a furnace of live coals.

136. _Sponge Bread._

For four loaves of bread, take three quarts of wheat flour, and the same
quantity of boiling water--mix them well together. Let it remain till
lukewarm, then add a tea-cup full of family, or half a tea-cup of
distillery yeast. Set it in a warm place to rise. When light, knead in
flour till stiff enough to mould up, then let it stand till risen again,
before moulding it up.

137. _Rye Bread._

Wet up rye flour with lukewarm milk, (water will do to wet it with, but
it will not make the bread so good.) Put in the same proportion of yeast
as for wheat bread. For four or five loaves of bread, put in a couple of
tea-spoonsful of salt. A couple of table-spoonsful of melted butter
makes the crust more tender. It should not be kneaded as stiff as wheat
bread, or it will be hard when baked. When light, take it out into pans,
without moulding it up--let it remain in them about twenty minutes,
before baking.

138. _Brown Bread._

Brown bread is made by scalding Indian meal, and stirring into it, when
lukewarm, about the same quantity of rye flour as Indian meal--add yeast
and salt in the same proportion as for other kinds of bread. Bake it
between two and three hours.

139. _Indian Bread._

Mix Indian meal with cold water, stir it into boiling water, let it boil
half an hour--stir in a little salt, take it from the fire, let it
remain till lukewarm, then stir in yeast and Indian meal, to render it
of the consistency of unbaked rye dough. When light, take it out into
buttered pans, let it remain a few minutes, then bake it two hours and a
ha