Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 66, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 March 1918 — BREAD BOX HELP TO HOUSEKEEPER [ARTICLE]

BREAD BOX HELP TO HOUSEKEEPER

Device Is Easily Constructed and Removes Uncertainty of Baking. . ASBESTOS BEST FOR LINING Thermometer Enables Baker to Obtain Desired Temperature—Specialists Advise Production of More Sugar Crops. War kitchens must be efficient. Comveniences will help make them so. A home-made sponge box or bread raiser will help make the bread better. It enables the housekeeper to keep her sponge or dough at the right temperature so that it will rise in less time. A sponge box or bread-raiser, therefore, takes much of the uncertainty out of bread-baking. It can be made from an ordinary dry goods packing box. \ Placing the Shelves. A box 26 by 20 by 20 Inches is a convenient size. About 10 inches from the bottom of the box a shelf made of slats or strips of wood rests on cleats fastened to the sides of the box. A second shelf is placed four inches above the lower one. The shelves can be removed when cleaning the box. Below the lower shelf a sheet of galvanized iron slightly wider* than the shelf is inserted. It is curved in order to make it slip in and stay in place securely. This prevents scorching of the lower shelf when a lamp is placed below, and also helps to distribute the heat more evenly. The door is hinged and fastened with a thumb-latch or hook and staple. Several small holes are bored in the lower and upper parts of the sides and in the top of- the box to promote circulation of air. A cork which has been bored through the center to admit, a straight thermometer is inserted in one of the holes in the top of the box. A Fahrenheit chemical thermometer that registers as high as 100 degrees can be used; Such a thermometer may be ordered through a hardware dealer or directly from an instrument dealer. Make Safe From Fire. To avoid all danger of fire, the box should be lined with asbestos or tin when a kerosene lamp is used for heating the box. If an electric light is used, the lining is not necessary. A 16-candlepower light will heat the box nicely. A small and inexpensive night lamp is placed in the bottom of the box and a shallow pan of water Is placed on the lower shelf so that the air In the box will be kept moist. The bowl of sponge or pans of dough are placed on the upper shelf. The temperature of the box should be

kept ns near 86 degrees Fahrenheit as possible (80 to 88 degrees Fahrenheit) when bread is being made in the quick way. If a sponge is set overnight 65 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit is the better temperature until the dough Is made in the morning, after which the temperature may be increased to 86 degrees Fahrenheit. The temperature in the box may be varied by raising or lowering the flame of the lamp or by using warm or cold water in the shallow pan.