411 



roughly ready, the bread of potatoe flour, even unaided by 

 any foreign ingredient, will eat very palatably. It might 

 then, from time to time, be soaked for puddings, like the 

 tapioca ; or it might be used like the capada cake, which, 

 in appearance, it so much resembles ; that is, when well 

 buttered and toasted, it will make an excellent breakfast 

 appendage. It is to be observed here, that this potatoe 

 bread is not fermented. 



Potatoes may be prepared to serve the purpose of bread, 

 by simply boiling and cutting them into thin slices, which 

 are dried thoroughly by a gentle and equal heat ; for 

 which purpose steam heat answers best. They may be 

 close packed, and carried to any distance, or preserved 

 for any length of time. 



M. Parmentier observes, that potatoes contain too much 

 mucilage in proportion to their starch, which prevents 

 them from being converted into good bread ; but that if 

 starch be collected from ten pounds of raw potatoes, by 

 grating then in cold water, and agitating them, and the 

 starch thus produced be mixed with other ten pounds of 

 boiled potatoes, and properly subjected to fermentation, 

 like wheat flour, it will make good bread. 

 Potatoe Flour. Sir G. Mackenzie, in the " Transactions 

 of the Highland Society," observes that potatoe flour, boil- 

 ed with milk and a little sugar, forms one of the most 

 palatable, wholesome, and cheap dishes of which a labor- 

 ing man can partake, and cannot be too strongly recom- 

 mended to cottagers, who ought always to convert a portion 

 of their potatoe crop into flour, to be used when fresh 

 potatoes cannot be got. In fact, it is potatoe starch that 

 very nearly resembles arrow-root, though inferior, and 

 at all events would be a very desirable thing to have in 

 a cottager's family, as a light nourishing food in case of 

 sickness. 



