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MILITARY FIELD BREAD

Manual for Army Cooks
U.S. Government Printing Office (1896)

Take five quarts of flour and one and two-thirds tablespoonfuls of yeast powder; mix thoroughly while dry, adding a little salt to suit the taste; then mix in well one tablespoonful of dripping or lard; then add water, and in small quantities at a time, until a biscuit dough is made; knead slightly. Take a Government mess pan and cut off about one inch and a half of the rim, leaving a rough edge. Into this mess pan put dough enough to fill it two-third full; cover with another mess pan. A hole should previously have been dug in the ground eighteen or twenty inches in diameter and depth, and a fire burned in it five or six hours. Then take out all the cinders except a bed two or three inches deep; upon this place the mess pans and surround and cover them with hot cinders;over all spread a covering of earth, and leave for five or six hours.

The bread will not burn, as in rising it will not reach the bottom of the upper mess pan. The rough-cut edges of the low mess pan afford egress to any gases that may be disengaged.