Potatoes in Cakes and Desserts

New Zealand Listener, Volume 31, Issue 790, 10 September 1954, Page 32

Potatoes in Cakes and Desserts

ran a competition, some years ago, for old-fashioned as well as original recipes using potatoes, Some very ingenious ideas came to light, often from the descendants of pioneer settlers, whose resourcefulness in devising interesting meals from unpromising material is proverbial. "Make the best of just whatever you have" was their motto. So we collected recipes for cakes and puddings and biscuits, and here are some for you. Otane Apple Pudding Two cups mashed potatoes, 1 cup flour, pinch salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 5 large apples, sugar to taste, a few cloves, 142 oz. butter. Make a paste with flour, potatoes, salt and baking powder. Add a little milk if necessary. Line a buttered bow! with the paste, reserving a little for the top. Fill with sliced apples, sugar, cloves and butter. Cover the top with the paste. Steam or boil 242 hours or~ more. Serve with cream or milk, Welsh Potato and Cheese Cake Quarter pound butter, 2 eggs, 3 oz. sugar, 1 cup mashed potato, 4% cup flour, 4% cup grated cheese, pinch of salt, 2 teaspoons baking powder, juice and grated rind of 142 lemon. A few sultanas can be added if liked. Cream butter and sugar, add beaten eggs, lemon juice, and mashed potato mixed with grated cheese. Sift in flour and baking powder. Turn into greased tin lined with paper, and sprinkle with nutmeg and sugar. Bake 40 to 50 minutes in moderate oven. Ice with lemon icing, made with 1 cup icing sugar, a squeeze of lemon juice, a little grated rind of the lemon, 1 tablespoon melted butter, and a little grated cheese if liked. Potato Doughnuts Four tablespoons shortening, 114 cups sugar, 1 cup hot mashed potatoes, 2 eggs, 4 cups flour, 4 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt (all sifted together), 42 cup milk. Cream shortening and sugar, add hot mashed potato. Beat well. Now add eggs, well-beaten. Have flour, salt and baking powder sifted well, and add this alternately with the milk. Mix very well. A _ little

cinnamon may be added if liked. Roll out flat and cut into doughnut-rounds, using the mouth of a lemonade bottle to cut out middle hole. Cook in deep boiling fat, till light brown, turning once. Drain on crumpled tissue paper and roll in powdered sugar. Potato Caramel Cake One cup cold mashed potatoes, 1 small cup of milk, 1 large cup butter, 1144 cups brown sugar, 2 cups flour, 142 teaspoons baking powder, 1 cup walnuts, 4 eggs, 1 tablespoon cocoa, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, a little nutmeg, 1 cup raisins. Beat butter and sugar to a cream, add mashed potatoes, then whipped eggs, milk, flour and other in-

gredients sifted together, and lastly the walnuts. Bake 1 hour, and ice with chocolate icing, and decorate with walnuts.

Potato Cocktail Savouries One cup mashed potato, 1 oz. butter, dash of cayenne, 1 teaspoon chopped parsley, 1 oz. grated cheese, 1 eg¢ to bind. Roll this mixture into balls and cook in oven. Place a blanched almond on each, Potato and Salmon Scones Half a pound boiled potatoes, 2 tablespoons flour with a small teaspoon baking powder, a little milk. For the filling: one small tin salmon, 2 oz. breadcrumbs, a little chopped parsley, and thyme, and’ 2 oz. butter. Mash potatoes and make them into a dough with the flour, milk if necessary, and a pinch of salt. Roll out to an inch in thickness, cut into triangles, and bake 15 minutes. until scones are golden brown both sides. While scones are cooking make this filling: Remove bones from the fish and add the breadcrumbs, parsley, sage and thyme, with salt and pepper to taste. Mix well, add melted butter, and work into a smooth paste. Split open the scones, spread on the filling, and serve hot. Delicious for tea or luncheon. Pahiatua Potato Biscuits Two cups flour, 14% cups mashed potatoes, 12 cup treacle, 3% cup butter, % cyp dates, % teaspoon salt, %2 cup raisins, 34 teaspoon cinnamon, ¥% cup syrup, 4% teaspoon ground nutmeg, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 2 teaspoon baking soda, ¥2 teaspoon ground cloves. Melt treacle, syrup and butter. Add hot mashed potatoes, then sifted dry ingredients, with chopped fruit added last. Drop in teaspoons on greased oven tray. Bake in a moderate oven till golden brown. Potatoes in Bread or Rolls In a letter from Canada a housewife says: "On the Canadian prairie I learned to add either mashed potatoes, or water in which potatoes were boiled, to flour for making bread-dough. For mashed potatoes, or potato water, not only shortens the time required for raising the dough, but helps to keep bread moist. If you have a good recipe for bread, you can get the results I mention by

using tepid potato water in place of plain water. Always remember to raise dough in temperature of 71 to 82 degrees F., and to put potatoes through a sieve or potato masher before using." White Bread One pound plain flour, 1 Ib. cooked sieved potato, %4 oz. yeast, 44 pint warm water, 1 oz. butter, 14% teaspoons salt, 4 teaspoon sugar. Sift flour and salt together, and rub in butter. Add potato and break up finely with flour. Make a well in centre of flour mixture, and pour in yeast creamed with sugar and with 2 pint warm water, Sprinkle some of flour mixture over the liquid, and put basin in a warm place until yeast has sponged through. Add sufficient warm water to make a light dough. Knead well with floured hands, put in a warm place to rise double original size. Again knead well, turning dough on to a pastry board as soon as it leaves sides of basin. Divide into two, place into 1 Ib. bread tins, and allow to prove in a warm place for 30 minutes. Bake in hot oven (450 degrees or regulo &), 1 to 114 hours.