Hush Puppies Hush puppies are small balls of corn bread batter (about 2 tablespoons) that are deep-fat fried. Finely chopped onions and black or white pepper are added to the corn bread batter. The sugar is eliminated. Corn bread mix, a complete mix except for water, is available for  preparing  corn  bread,  muffins,  and  hush  puppies. Check the AFRS for directions. Dumplings There are two basic types of dumplings included in the AFRS. The first type is the meat dumpling that accompanies meat stew or poultry and is made from a dough that contains eggs and has no fat. This dumpling is light in texture and bland in flavor to accompany any meat or poultry entrée without overpowering it. This type  is  cooked  by  steam  or  in  boiling  stock.  These dumplings are dropped by scoop or 1/4-cup measure on top of simmering stew. The kettle should be covered during the entire cooking period to assure fast and even doneness. A  finished  dumpling  should  not  be  gummy. Dumpling  quality  should  be  the  same  when  cooked  in stock in kettles, stockpots, insert pans, or steamers. The outside of the dumpling is characteristically moist, and the inside is light and fluffy. Dumplings absorb the flavor of the accompanying meat dish. The other type of dumpling is a filled baked dessert and is explained later in this chapter. Fritters A fritter is a food, such as fruit, meat, poultry, or vegetables, that has been dipped in a milk-egg-flour batter and fried in deep fat. The food maybe uncooked, cooked, or a leftover. Fritters are made by combining a vegetable, such as corn, into the basic batter. The AFRS contains recipes for apple fritters and corn fritters. The muffin method is used for mixing fritters; that is, dry ingredients are sifted together, liquid ingredients are  combined  and  added  with  melted  shortening.  The amount of mixing is not as critical in the production of fritter or batter mixtures as it is with other quick breads because  of  the  high  ratio  of  liquid  to  flour  and  the volubility  of  the  other  ingredients. There  is  less tendency to overdevelop the flour gluten because the ingredients mix easily. Fritters are usually very tender products because they are cooked in deep fat. Fritters should be thoroughly drained after drying. Place the fritters on absorbent paper for a short period. Fry in small batches because fritters lose crispness if allowed to stand on a steam table. Commercial breading and batter fry mix is a product made  of  ingredients  similar  to  those  used  in  fritter  batter. Fry mix may be used for deep-fat frying, panfrying, or for grilling. Pancake mix batter may also be used for making fritters. Tempura Batter Tempura  batter  is  prepared  from  flour,  baking powder, salt, ice-cold water, and beaten eggs. The batter is unsweetened and lighter than fritter batter. It is used for dipping raw shrimp, onion rings, or a variety of other vegetables   before   frying.   Check   the   AFRS   for directions. Pancakes The muffin method is used in mixing pancakes. Mixing should be kept to a minimum to prevent the overdevelopment of the flour gluten, which causes a tough texture. Cooking should begin as soon as the ingredients have  been  mixed.  A  hot,  lightly  greased  griddle  is essential  in  producing  high-quality  pancakes.  The griddle should be maintained at 375°F. Too high or low a  temperature  causes  uneven  browning  and  heavy textured  pancakes. Muffins Ingredients  for  muffins  cover  a  wide  range  of products including fruits, nuts, bacon, and cereals in addition  to  the  plain  muffin  ingredients. Muffins are mixed using the muffin method. The mixing time is more limited for muffins than for other products mixed by this method because of the high ratio of  flour  to  liquid.  After  the  addition  of  eggs,  shortening, and water, the muffin mixture should be stirred until dry ingredients  are  slightly  moistened.  It  is  essential  that dry flour lumps be dampened. After mixing, the batter should appear quite lumpy. If overmixed, tunnels and peaks form, the product texture is tough, and the volume is low. Drained blueberries, chopped nuts, dates, or raisins are folded into the batter just before panning. The panning procedure is an extremely important aspect in muffin be well greased. preparation.  The  muffin  pans  should Gas that causes the muffin to rise can 8-13