Q. I buy sesame seeds in 1- or 2-pound packages at an Orien tal food store. Though the pack age says they are toasted, they don’t taste toasted to me. Can I re-toast them? Can that be done in the microwave? M.W., Black foot, ID A. You can retoast them, but not in the microwave. Toast se same seeds in an ungreased skillet over medium heat, stirring occa sionally, until golden, about two minutes. Or bake them on an un greased baking sheet in a 350 de gree F. oven until golden, about 10 minutes. Q. What’s the procedure for roasting a beef round roast or rump roast* P.H., Waco, TX A. A beef round can be one of three cuts; an eye of round, a top round or bottom round, also known as the rump roast. The ten derness decreases from top to bot tom. Roast any of them to medium or medium well. Roast a four to six pound roast for 25 to 28 min utes per pound to cook to medium. Q. I made a yeast beer bread recently and the yeast didn’t rise. My grandmother said it was because I added salt and sugar with the yeast. What do you think? R.A.M., Nappanee, IN A. More likely the yeast was old or mishandled. Purchase and use yeast before the date on the back of the package or jar. Yeast action is speeded up in warm, hu mid, conditions, ?n4 slowed in cold conditions. And overheated liquid will kill the yeast. Sugar and salt are essential to yeast bread. Sugar is food for the yeast and adds height and flavor to the bread. Salt controls yeast ac /SlfJflWjpte DTKIC , ATOT\ ATTrUmd \3SjjgfmlSm jflyNJLr %j3fJELf Take ’em Down! We Will Assemble & Deliver Bins To Your Farm Daw 3ettl( Qhock&i lion, strengthens the gluten struc ture of the dough and adds flavor. TIP OF THE WEEK: Personal ize your pancakes by adding / cup fresh or frozen (thawed and well-drained) berries or chopped bananas, apples, peaches or purs. Tty trail mix, granola or chopped nuts for crunch. Serve syrup, hon ey, jelly or jam with the finished, steaming pancakes. Q. I bought a bread machine and bread flour to go with it. I returned the machine. Can I use the bread flour for other bak ings? Mrs. 8.G., Whittier, CA A. Bread flour is distinct for its special blend of wheats that are higher in protein than those in all purpose flour. This boosts the structure-building properties for baking producing bread with a fin er, more even texture. Feel free to use bread flour in any yearst bread baking and other yeast-based pro ducts. It is also suitable for cook ies and quick breads. Q. My apricot quick bread al ways sags in the middle. What do you suggest? Frustrated, but determined, Midwest City, OK A. The heaviness you describe could be from'not measuring in gredients exactly. Use a liquid measuring cup for liquids and nested dry measuring cups for flour and sugar, leveling with a straight edge. You may be underbaking the bread. Use oven thermometer to make sure the oven is holding its temperature. Q. Lately, when I cook pork, no matter if I fry or roast it, it’s tough. What do you suggest? D.H., Philadelphia, PA A. In the past 10 years, pork is rm NORTHEAST AGRI SYSTEMS, INC. m - Ryway Business Park STORE HOURS: Mon.-Fri. CZ3 139 A West Airport Road £3O to 4:30 RQ9 Utltz, PA 17543 Sat. 8:00 to Noon 24 Hr.-7 Day Repair Servlc^^__ Ph: (717) 569-2702 1-800-673-2580 ♦ * * porate during baking. If your re . cipe indicates to cream sugar and butter, they need to be blended un til the texture resembles whipped Master Distributor much leaner. That means that pork needs to be cooked just until done. Overcooking will leave meat tough. For chops or tenderloin slices, add a tablespoon of oil to the frying pan. For a roast, have a meat thermometer handy and cook meat to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F. and let meat stand a few minutes until it reaches 170 degrees F. Pork also can be marin ated, cut in strips for marinades and cubed for soups and slews. TIP OF THE WEEK: Cake lends itself to innovation. Pipe fla vored whipped cream (found in pressurized cans in the dairy case) onto the top of an unfrosted angel food or pound cake. Then, drizzle with pureed, thawed frozen fruit and top with shaved chocolate. Fruit chutney with whipped cream tastes good, too. * * * Q. What does it mean when flour is bromated? C.V., St. John’s, MI A. Bromate is added to flour, especially high protein wheat, rye and whole-wheat flour, to im prove volume and crumb struc ture. Bromate is considered a ma turing agent with no bleaching ac tion. Q. What can I do so that cara mel doesn’t stick to the pan when I make caramel rolls? M.E.G., Newfoundland, PA . A. You may need to use more margarine or butter in the topping. Also, too high an oven tempera ture causes caramel to brown too fast and adhere to the pan. Finally, invert rolls immediately onto a tray after they are baked and keep the pan on top for a minute so the caramel runs down over them. Q. My daughter recently used my jelly roll recipe, but her cake was rubbery. This sometimes happens in sponge cakes too. What causes this? N.S., Mal lard, IA A. A rubbery layer is du£ to a thin batter with too little flour or too much liquid that won’t eva- Custom Applications FOR FRM ESTIMATES W Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 7. 1993-815 cream. If using a one-step cake re cipe,'beat for the full length of time, scraping bowl sides and bot tom so batter is well blended. For a sponge-type cake, avoid a rubbery layer by gradually adding sugar to egg yolks and beating thoroughly until they are thhick and lemon-colored. TIP OF THE WEEK: Make a simple cake spring-fancy: arrange edible flowers such as pansies or rose petals and fresh herbs on cake top with a few cascading down the side. * * • Q. I received almond butter as a gift How can I use it? S.M., Bellevue, MI A. Almond butter is made from ground almonds, similarly to pea nut butter. It’s delicious as a spread for bread or toast. Or, use it interchangeably with peanut but ter in recipes. Q. I usually make yeast buns that are light and fluffy, but lately they haven’t been good. Could the flour be different? 8.E., Marietta, MN A. Moisture levels in flour vary with humidity in the air. That’s why most yeast bread recipes call for a range in the amount of flour. Instead of varying the liquid amount, always start with the low er amount of flour and add more as needed. If it’s humid outside, you’ll need more and on drier Gelsinger (Continued from Page B 14) ing the day and put to pasture at 7 p.m. An adamant supporter of the Simmental breed, Tammy said the breed is tame, trusting, and easy to catch in the pasture after they are' halter broke. Last year her Simmental bull was the supreme champion at Allentown Fair and the senior bull champion at the Pennsylvania ' Farm Show. She prefers to sell her stock lo cally so that she can watch and help out the owner if they have any days, you’ll need less to make light, fluffy buns. Q. What can I do so that my nut breads or zucchini bread don’t curl around the edge? I want them to rise evenly. G.E.M., Elkhart, IN A. Sounds like you are over mixing the batter. That can over develop gluten and cause uneven rising during baking. Stir just until the dry ingredients are mixed. Baking at too high a temperature will cause quick breads to rise un evenly as well. TIP OF THE WEEK: Make layers from an angel food cake by splitting horizontally with an elec tric knife or a long, serrated knife, cutting in a light, sawing motion. Use a sharp, thin knife to layer a shortening-type cake and cut with short, sawing motions. Dairy Tidbit When your mouth is “on fire" from hot pepper, the best way to cool it off is to drink milk. A recent finding in the Journal of the American Medical Associa tkm found that hot pepper’s burn ing component is capsaicin, which binds to the taste tads and other receptors in the mouth. Casein, the principal protein in milk, literally wipes away the fiery compound. Promotes questions. Since the Gelsingers also raise pigs on the farm, they are known also to compete in the swine show. But, Tammy said, “We only show pigs if dad makes us. It’s not enough of a challenge to show a P«g” This 19-year-old graduate of Conrad Weiser High School received the academic agricultural award for academics and most involved student in FFA. As for mer FFA president, she has raised and shown sheep, pigs, and swine, but she said that nothing is better than working with beef. Because this is the last year that Tammy is eligible to show in 4-H, she said that she is going through withdrawal. “It’s heart breaking to stop showing,” she said. When summer ends, her job as a beef representative also ends. The flexibility of working as a beef rep resentative, showing at fairs, and working part time at a restaurant, has pleased her. “I’m not a behind-the-desk type of person ” she said. “I hope to get a full-time job working with animals.”
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers