Using potatoes in bread dough didn’t start as a World War I food conservation measure. There are recipes for potato bread starting in the late 18th century and countries throughout Europe and the Americas have traditional potato breads. But during the war there was an urgent need to transport food products, such as wheat to Europe to feed soldiers and civilian populations. Because potatoes were bulky, they were not a good candidate for shipping overseas.
Adding either cooked potatoes or potato flour helps create a moister final product. They generally do not take the place of all flour in baking, but can supplement wheat, barley, corn and other flours.
This month’s experimentation focused on bread, both yeast bread and quick breads. Instead of cooking potatoes for each test bake, I cooked a large amount, pushed them through the potato rice and froze the bulk of it in one cup batches to use later.
Both of the yeast bread recipes below are from the April 1918 issue of American Cookery.
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| from page 648 “War Bread from Small Potatoes” |
From page 660 “Seasonable and Tested Recipes”
Potato Bread (1 loaf)
(Liberty Bread Shop)
1 cup mashed potato
1 tablespoon shortening
1 tablespoonful sugar
1 teaspoonful salt
1/2 cup milk, scalded
1/4 cake compressed yeast
2 tablespoonfuls lukewarm water
2 cups wheat flour (about)
To the potato add the shortening, sugar, salt and milk. When lukewarm add the yeast mixed with the water and the flour. Mix very stiff with flour, as the dough softens on rising. Let rise until it doubles in bulk. Shape for the pan and when again light bake about 50 minutes.
I tried the recipe from the “War Bread from Small Potatoes” article with a few alterations. Even though the recipe doesn’t mention it, you should knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic before the first rise. I used 1 teaspoon yeast and bread flour instead of all purpose. In order to assure a nicely browned finish, I brushed the loaf with an egg wash just before putting it in the oven. And I added raisins simply because I love raisin bread. Because the potatoes are very moist, I did bake for the entire 50 minutes. The bread was delicious, but when I try it again I think I’ll punch the dough down after the the first rise and it double again before shaping. That should help develop the gluten a but more.
There are so many different quick breads using baking powder and/or baking soda as a rising agent. My two favorites are cornbread and biscuits.
Because biscuits are a very popular quick bread in the U.S., there were many variations in women’s magazines and U.S. Food Administration publications. The example above if from the “War Bread from Small Potatoes” article I used for yeast bread. Most of these recipes are very, very similar. Here is my version that draws from several examples.
Potato Biscuits
1 cup boiled potatoes, riced
2 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces.
about 3/4-1 cup milk
Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter. Mix in the riced potatoes. Gradually add the milk to make a soft dough. Place the dough on a floured surface, pat it out about 3/4 of an inch thick and cut into biscuits. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and bake 25-30 minutes at 425° until browned.
In the U.S you’ll find cornbread has many regional variations. In Northern states there’s a tendency to include a bit of sugar while in many areas of the South this is just not down. The example below if from the U.S. Food Administration pamphlet
Plenty of Potatoes
My version was baked as cornbread and not individual muffins. I found the batter to be very, very wet, so added a little flour to the corn meal. If you want to exclude flour, try using only 3/4 cup of milk.
Potato Cornbread
2 tablespoons melted butter, cooled slightly
1 tablespoon sugar
1 egg, well-beaten
1 cup milk
1 cup cooked, riced potatoes
1 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 425° F. Generously grease a small cast iron skillet and put it in the oven while it is heating. Whisk sugar into melted butter, then add the egg and milk. When mixed add the riced potatoes. Sift together cornmeal, flour, salt and baking powder and stir into batter. Pour into heated skillet and bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes.
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