Making Cake. — Part I 



1449 



called for, should be used. If the cream is used as a substitute for both 

 butter and liquid, the following table will give the approximate equivalents, 

 according to the quality of the cream: 



TABLE 3. Approximate Amounts of Fat and of Milk in One Cupful of Sweet 



Cream of Different Grades 



Thus, one cupful of what is sold as thin cream contains approximately 

 20 per cent of butter-fat, and when used in making cake the restdt will be 

 practically the same as though three foiu-ths of a cupful of sweet skimmed 

 milk and four tablespoonfuls of fat had been used in making the cake. 



How to substitute sour milk for sweet milk, or sweet milk for sour milk, in 

 any cake recipe 



Either sour milk or buttermilk may be substituted for sweet milk. 

 The resulting cake will be more tender than if made with sweet milk, 

 possibly because both the acid of the milk and the alkali of the baking 

 soda dissolve some of the gluten of the flour. If milk is just turned — 

 that is, is neither sweet nor sour — warm it a little above blood heat and 

 let it stand in a warm place, but do not scald it. In a very short time 

 it will be well soured. 



If buttermilk or sour milk is substituted for sweet milk, the following 

 plan is advisable: First neutraUze the acidity of the liquid by stirring 

 into it thoroughly a sufficient quantity of soda. Ordinarily this would 

 be about one fourth of a teaspoonful of soda to one cupful of sour milk 

 or buttermilk. Then add sufficient baking powder to make the cake 

 light. This plan is better in most cases than to use soda alone. Thus: 

 One fourth of a teaspoonful of soda used with sour milk is equivalent to 

 about one teaspoonful of baking powder; so that if a recipe using one cup- 

 ful of sweet milk calls for three teaspoonfuls of baking powder, and sour 

 milk is used in place of the sweet milk, one fourth of a teaspoonful of 

 soda and two teaspoonfuls of baking powder will be required for the cake. 



