# Seventy-Five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats/Part 2

CAKES.
GENERAL DIRECTIONS.
In making cakes, it is particularly necessary that the eggs should be well beaten. They are not sufficiently light till the surface looks smooth and level, and till they get so thick as to be of the consistence of boiled custard.
White of egg should always be beaten till it become a heap of stiff froth, without any liquid at the bottom; and till it hangs from the rods or fork without dropping.
Eggs become light soonest when new-laid, and when beaten near the fire, or in warm dry weather.
Butter and sugar should be stirred till it looks like thick cream and till it stands up in the pan.
It should be kept cool. If too warm, it will make the cakes heavy.
Large cakes should be baked in tin or earthen pans, with straight sides, that are as nearly perpendicular as possible. They cut into handsomer slices, and if they are to be iced, it will be found very inconvenient to put on the icing, if the cake slopes in much towards the bottom.
Before you ice a cake, dredge it all over with flour, and then wipe the flour off. This will enable you to spread on the icing more evenly. ​Before you cut an ice cake, cut the icing by itself with a small sharp penknife. The large knife with which you divide the cake, will crack and break the icing.
Large Gingerbread, as it burns very easily, may be baked in an earthen pan. So also may Black Cake or Pound Cake. Earthen pans or moulds, with a hollow tube in the middle, are best for cakes.
If large cakes are baked in tin pans, the bottom and sides should be covered with sheets of paper, before the mixture is put in. The paper must be well buttered. Sponge cakes, and Almond cakes should be baked in pans that are as thin as possible.
If the cakes should get burnt, scrape them with a knife or grater, as soon as they are cool.
Always be careful to butter your pans well. Should the cakes stick, they cannot be got out without breaking.
For queen-cakes, &c. the small tins of a round or oval shape are most convenient. Fill them but little more than half.
After the mixture is completed, set it in a cool place till all the cakes are baked.
In rolling oat cakes made of dough, use as little flour as possible. When you lay them in the pans, do not place them too close together, lest they run into each other.
QUEEN CAKE.
Pound the spice to a fine powder, in a marble mortar, and sift it well.
Put the sugar into a deep earthen pan, and cut the butter into it. Stir them together, till very light.
Beat the eggs in a broad shallow pan, till they are perfectly smooth and thick. Stir into the butter and sugar, a little of the beaten egg, and then a little flour, and so on alternately, a little egg and a little flour, till the whole is in; continuing all the time to beat the eggs, and stirring the mixture very hard. Add by degrees, the spice, and then the liquor, a little at a time. Finally, put in the rose-water, or essence of lemon. Stir the whole very hard at the last.
Take about two dozen little tins, or more, if you have room for them in the oven. Rub them very well with fresh butter. With a spoon, put some of the mixture in each tin, but do not fill them to the top as the cakes will rise high in baking. Bake them in a quick oven, about a quarter plan hour. When they are done they will shrink a little from the sides of the tins.
Before you fill the tins again, scrape them well with a knife, and wash or wipe them clean.
If the cakes are scorched by too hot a fire, do not scrape off the burnt parts till they have grown cold. ​Make an icing with the whites of three eggs, beaten till it stands alone, and twenty-four teaspoonfuls of the best loaf-sugar, powdered, and beaten gradually into the white of egg. Flavour it with a tea-spoonful of rose-water or eight drops of essence of lemon, stirred in at the last. Spread it evenly with a broad knife, over the top of each queen-cake, ornamenting them, (while the icing is quite wet) with red and queen nonpareils, or fine sugar-sand, dropped on carefully, with the thumb and finger.
When the cakes are iced, set them in a warm place to dry; but not too near the fire, as that will cause the icing to crack.
POUND CAKE.
One pound of flour, sifted. :
| One pound of white sugar, powdered and sifted. |||
| One pound of fresh butter. |||
| Ten eggs. |||
| Half a glass of wine. | Half a glass of wine. | |
| Half a glass of brandy. | | mixed, |
| Half a glass of rose-water. | Half a glass of rose-water. | |
| Twelve drops of essence of lemon. |||
| A table-spoonful of mixed mace and cinnamon. |||
| A nutmeg, powdered. |||
Pound the spice and sift it. There should be twice as much cinnamon as mace. Mix the cinnamon, mace, and nutmeg together.
Sift the flour in a broad pan, or wooden bowl. Sift the powdered sugar into a large deep pan, and cut the butter into it, in small pieces. If the ​weather is very cold, and the butter hard, set the pan near the fire for a few minutes; but if the butter is too warm, the cake will be heavy, Stir the butter and sugar together with a wooden stick, till they are very light, and white, and look like cream.
Beat the eggs in a broad shallow pan' with a wooden egg-beater or whisk. They must be beaten till they are thick and smooth, and of the consistence of boiled custard.
Pour the liquor and rose-water, gradually, into the butter and sugar, stiring all the time. Add by degrees, the essence of lemon and spice.
Stir the egg and flour alternately into the butter and sugar, a handful of flour, and about two spoonfuls of the egg (which you must continue to beat all the time,) and when all is in, stir the whole mixture very hard, for near ten minutes.
Butter a large tin pan, or a cake mould with an open tube rising from the middle. Put the mixture into it as evenly as possible. Bake it in a moderate oven, for two, or three, or four hours, in proportion to its thickness, and to the heat of the fire.
When you think it is nearly done, thrust a twig or wooden skewer into it down to the bottom. If the stick comes out clean and dry, the cake is almost baked. When quite done, it will shrink from the sides of the pan, and cease making a noise. Then withdraw the coals (if baked in a dutch oven;p) take off the lid, and let the cake remain in the oven to cool gradually.
You may ice it either warm or cold. Before you put the icing on a large cake, dredge the cake all over with flour, and then wipe the flour off; this will make the icing stick on better—If you have ​sufficient time, the appearance of the cake will be much improved by icing it twice. Put on the first icing soon after the cake is taken out of the oven, and the second the next day, when the first is perfectly dry. While the last icing is wet, ornament it with coloured sugar-sand or nonpareils.
BLACK CAKE, OR PLUM CAKE.
One pound of flour sifted. :
| One pound of fresh butter. |||
| One pound of powdered white sugar. |||
| Twelve eggs. |||
| Two pounds of the best raisins. |||
| Two pounds of currants. |||
| Two table-spoonfuls of mixed spice, mace and cinnamon. |||
| Two nutmegs powdered. |
| A large glass of wine |
| A large of brandy | mixed together. |
| Half a glass of rose-water |
| A pound of citron. |||
Pick the currants very clean, and wash them,draining them through a cullender. Wipe them in a towel. Spread them out on a large dish, and set them near the fire, or in the hot sun to dry, placing the dish in a slanting position. Having stoned the raisins, cut them in half, and when all are done, sprinkle them well with sifted flour, to prevent their sinking to the bottom of the cake. When the currants are dry, sprinkle them also with flour.
Pound the spice, allowing twice as much cinnamon as mace. Sift it, and mix the mace, nutmeg, and cinnamon together. Mix also the liquor and rose-water in a tumbler or cup. Cut the citron in slips. Sift the flour into a broad dish. Sift the sugar into a deep earthen pan, and cut the butter ​into it. Warm. it near the fire, if the weather is too cold for it to mix easily. Stir the butter and sugar to a cream.
Beat the eggs as light as possible. Stir them into the butter and sugar, alternately with the flour. Stir very hard. Add gradually the spice and liquor. Slit the raisins and currants alternately into the mixture, taking care that they are well flouted. Stir the whole as hard as possible, for ten minutes after the ingredients are in.
Cover the bottom and sides of a large tin or earthen pan, with sheets of white paper well buttered and put into it some of the mixture. Then spread on it some of the citron, which must not be cut too small. Next put a layer of the mixture, and then a layer of citron, and so on till it is all in, having a layer of the mixture at the top.
This cake is always best baked in a baker's oven, and will require four or five hours, in proportion to its thickness.
Ice it, next day.
SPONGE CAKE.
Twelve eggs.
Ten ounces of sired flour, dried near the fire.
A pound of loaf sugar, powdered and s
Twelve drops of essence of lemon.
A grated nutmeg.
A tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon and mace, mixed.
Beat the eggs as light as possible. Eggs for sponge or almond cakes require more beating than for any other purpose. Beat the sugar, by degrees, ​into the eggs. Beat very hard, and continue to beat some time after the sugar is all in.
No sort of sugar but loaf, will make light sponge-cake. Stir in, gradually, the spice and essence of lemon. Then, by degrees put in the flour, a little at a time, stirring round the mixture very slowly with a knife. If the flour is stirred in too hard, the cake will be tough. It must be done lightly and gently, so that the top of the mixture will be covered with bubbles. As soon as the flour is all in, begin to bake it, as setting will injure it.
Put it in small tins, well buttered, on in one large tin pan. The thinner the pans, the better for spunge-cake. Fill the small tins about half full. Grate loaf-sugar over the top of each, before you set them in the oven.
Sponge-cake requires a very quick oven, particularly at the bottom. It should be baked as fast as possible, or it will be tough and heavy, however light it may have been before it went into the oven. It is of all cakes the most liable to be spoiled in baking. When taken out of the tins, the cakes should be spread on a sieve to cool. If baked in one large cake, it should be iced.
A large cake of twelve eggs, should be baked at least an hour in a quick oven.
For small cakes, ten minutes is generally sufficient. If they get very much out of shape in baking, it is a sign that the oven is too slow.
Some think that spunge-cakes and almond cakes are lighter when the yolks and whites of the eggs are beaten in separate pans, and mixed gently together before the sugar is beaten into them.
ALMOND CAKE.
Two ounces of blanched bitter almonds, pounded very inc.
Seven ounces of flour, sifted and dried.
Ten eggs.
One pound of loaf-sugar, pounded and sired.
Two table-spoonfuls of rose-water.
Take two ounces of shelled bitter almonds, or peach-kernels. Scald them in hot water, and as you peel them, throw them into a bowl of cold water, then wipe them dry, and pound them one by one in a mortar, till they are quite fine and smooth.
Break ten eggs, putting the yolks in one pan and the whites in another. Beat them separately as light as possible, the whites first, and then the yolks.
Add the sugar, gradually, to the yolks, beating it in very hard, then by degrees beat in the almonds, and then add the rose-water.
Stir half the whites of the eggs into the yolks and sugar, divide the flour into two equal parts, and stir in one half slowly and lightly, till it bubbles on the top, then the other half of the white of egg, and then the remainder of the flour very lightly.
Butter a large square tin pan, or one made of paste-board which will be better. Put in the mixture, and set immediately in a quick oven which must be rather hotter at the bottom than at the top. Bake it according to the thickness. If you allow the oven to get slack, the cake will be spoiled.
Make an icing with the whites of three eggs, twenty-four tea-spoonfuls of loaf sugar, and eight drops of essence of lemon.
When the cake is cool, mark it in small squares with a knife. Cover it with icing and ornament it while wet, with nonpareils dropped on in borders, round each square of the cake. When the icing is dry, cut the cake in squares, cutting through ​icing very carefully with a penknife. Or you may cut it in squares first, and then ice and ornament each square separately.
FRENCH ALMOND CAKE
Six ounces of shelled sweet almonds. Three ounces of shelled bitter almonds, or peach kernels. Three ounces of sifted flour, dried near the fire. One pound of powdered loaf-sugar. Twelve drops of essence of lemon.
Blanch the almonds, by scalding them in hot water. Put them in a bowl of cold water, and wipe them dry, when you take them out. Pound them, one at a time, in a mortar, till they are perfectly smooth. Mix the sweet and bitter almonds together. Prepare them, if possible, the day before the cake is made.
Put the whites and yolks of the eggs, into separate pans. Beat the whites till they stand alone, and then the yolks till they are very thick.
Put the sugar gradually to the yolks, beating it very hard. Add, by degrees, the almonds, still beating very hard. Then put in it the essence of lemon. Next, beat in, gradually, the whites of the eggs, continuing to eat for some time after they are all in. Lastly, stir in the flour, as slowly and lightly, as possible.
Butter a large tin mould or pan. Put the cake in and bake it in a very quick oven, an hour or more according to its thickness.
The oven must on no account be hotter at the top, then at the bottom.
When done, set it on a sieve to cool. ​Ice it, and ornament it with nonpareils.
These almond cakes are generally baked in a turban shaped mould, and the nonpareils put on, in spots or sprigs.
A pound of almonds in the shells (if the shells are soft and thin,) will generally yield half a pound when shelled. Hard, thick-shelled almonds, seldom yield much more than a quarter of a pound, and should therefore never be bought for cakes or puddings.
Bitter almonds and peach-kernels can always be purchased with the shells off.
Families should always save their peach-kernels as they can be used in cakes, puddings and custards.
MACAROONS.
Half a pound of shelled sweet almonds. A quarter of a pound of shelled bitter almonds. The whites of three eggs. Twenty-four large tea-spoonfuls of powdered loaf-sugar. A tea-spoonful of rose-water. A large tea-spoonful of mixed spice, nutmeg, mace and cinnamon.
Blanch and pound your almonds, beat them very smooth, and mix the bitter and sweet together; do them, if you can, the day before you make the macaroons. Pound and sift your spice. Beat the whites of three eggs till they stand alone; add to them, very gradually, the powdered sugar, a spoonful at a time, bet it in very hard, and put in, by degrees, the rose-water and spice. Then stir in, gradually, the almonds. The mixture must be like a soft dough; if too thick, it will be heavy; if too thin, it will run out of shape. If you find your almonds not sufficient, prepare a few more, and stir them in. When it is all well mixed and stirred, put some flour in the palm of your hand, and taking ​up a lump of the mixture with a knife, roll it on your hand with the flour into a small round ball; have ready an iron or tin pan, buttered, and lay the macaroons in it, as you make them up. Place them about two inches apart, in case of their spreading. Bake them about eight or ten minutes in a moderate oven; they should be baked of a pale brown colour. If too much baked, they will lose their flavour; if too little, they will be heavy. They should rise high in the middle, and crack on the surface. You may, if you choose, put a larger proportion of spice.
APEES.
A pound of flour, sifted. Half a pound of butter. A glass of wine, and a table-spoonful of rose-water, mixed. Half a pound of powdered white sugar. A nutmeg, grated. A teaspoonful of beaten cinnamon and mace. Three table-spoonfuls of carraway seeds.
Sift the flour into a broad pan, and cut up the butter in it. Add the carraways, sugar, and spice, and pour in the liquor by degrees, mixing it well with a knife. If the liquor is not sufficient to wet it thoroughly, add enough of cold water to make it a stiff dough. Spread some flour on your paste-board, take out the dough, and knead it very well with your hands. Cut it into small pieces, and knead each separately, then put them all together, and knead the whole in one lump. Roll it out in a sheet about a quarter of an inch thick. Cut it out in round cakes, with the edge of a tumbler, or a tin of that size. Butter an iron pan, and lay the cakes ​in it, not too close together. Bake them a few minutes in a moderate oven, till they are very slightly coloured, but not brown. If too much baked, they will entirely lose their flavour. Do not roll them out too thin.
JUMBLES.
* Three eggs.
* Half a pound of flour, sifted.
* Half a pound of butter.
* Half a pound of powdered loaf-sugar.
* A table-spoonful of rose-water.
* A nutmeg grated.
* A tea-spoonful of mixed mace and cinnamon
Stir the sugar and butter to a cream. Beat the eggs very light. Throw them, all at once, into the pan of flour. Put in, at once, the butter and sugar, and then add the spice and rose-water. If you have no rose-water, substitute six or seven drops of strong essence of lemon, or more if the essence is weak. Stir the whole very hard, with a knife.
Spread some flour on your paste-board, and flour your hands well. Take up with your knife, a portion of the dough, and lay it on the board. Roll it lightly with your hands, into long thin rolls, which must be cut into equal lengths, curled up into rings, and laid gently into an iron or tin pan, buttered, not too close to each other, as they spread in baking. Bake them in a quick oven about five minutes, and grate loaf-sugar over them when cool.
KISSES.
One pound of the best loaf sugar, powdered and sifted. The whites of four eggs. Twelve drops of essence of lemon. A tea-cup of currant jelly.
Beat the whites of four eggs till they stand alone. Then beat in, gradually, the sugar, a tea-spoonful at a time. Add the essence of lemon, and beat the whole very hard.
Lay a wet sheet of paper on the bottom of a square tin pan. Drop on it, at equal distances, a small tea-spoonful of stiff currant jelly. With a large spoon, pile some of the beaten white of egg and sugar, on each lump of jelly, so as to cover it entirely. Drop on the mixture as evenly as possibly, so as to make the kisses of a round smooth shape.
Set them in a cool oven, and as soon as they are coloured, they are done. Then take them out and place them two bottoms together. Lay them lightly on a sieve, and dry them in a cool oven, till the two bottoms stick fast together, so as to form one ball or oval.
SPANISH BUNS.
Four eggs. Three quarters of a pound of flour, sifted. Half a pound of powdered white sugar. Two wine-glasses and a half of rich milk. Six ounces of fresh butter. A wine-glass and half of the best yeast. A table-spoonful of rose-water. A grated nutmeg. A large tea-spoonful of powdered mace and cinnamon.
Sift half a pound of flour into a broad pan, and sift a quarter of a pound, separately, into a deep ​plate, and set it aside. Put the milk into a soup-plate, cut up the butter, and set it on the stove or near the fire to warm, but do not let it get too hot. When the butter is very soft, stir it all through the milk with a knife, and set it away to cool. Beat the eggs very light, and mix the milk and butter with them, all at once; then pour all into the pan of flour. Put in the spice, and the rose-water, or if you prefer it, eight drops of essence of lemon: Add the yeast, of which an increased quantity will be necessary, if it is not very strong and fresh. Stir the whole very hard with a knife. Add the sugar gradually. If the sugar is not stirred in slowly, a little at a time, the buns will be heavy. Then, by degrees, sprinkle in the remaining quarter of a pound of flour. Stir all well together; butter a square iron pan, and pour in the mixture. Cover it with a cloth, and set it near the fire to rise. It will probably not be light in less than five hours. When it is risen very high, and is covered with bubbles, bake it in a moderate oven, about a quarter of an hour or more, in proportion to its thickness.
When it is quite cool, cut it in squares, and grate loaf-sugar over them. This quantity will make twelve or fifteen buns.
They are best the day they are baked.
You may, if you choose, bake them separately in small square tins, adding to the batter half a pound of currants or chopped raisins, well floured, and stirred in at the last.
In making buns, stir the yeast well before you put it in, having first poured off the beer or thin part from the top. If your yeast is not good, do ​not attempt to make buns with it, as they will never be light.
Buns may be made in a plainer way, with the following ingredients, mixed in the above manner.
Half a pound of flour, sifted into a pan. A quarter of a pound of flour, sifted in a plate, and set aside to sprinkle in at the last. Three eggs, well beaten. A quarter of a pound of powdered sugar. Three wine-glasses of milk. A wine-glass and a half of the best yeast. A large tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon. A quarter of a pound of butter, cut up, and warmed in the milk.
RUSK.
A quarter of a pound of powdered sugar. A quarter of a pound of fresh butter. One pound of flour, sifted. One egg. Three wine-glasses of milk. A wine-glass and a half of the best yeast. A table-spoonful of rose-water. A tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon.
Sift your flour into a pan. Cut up the butter in the milk, and warm them a little, so as to soften the butter, but not to melt it entirely. Beat your egg; then pour the milk and butter into your pan of flour, then the egg, then the rose-water and spice, and lastly the yeast. Stir all well together with a knife.
INDIAN POUND CAKE.
Eight eggs. The weight of eight eggs in powdered sugar. The weight of six eggs in Indian meal, sifted. Half a pound of butter. One nutmeg, grated—or a tea-spoonful of cinnamon.
Stir the butter and sugar to a cream. Beat the eggs very light. Stir the meal and eggs, alternately, into the butter and sugar. Grate in the nutmeg. Stir all well. Butter a tin pan, put in the mixture, and bake it in a moderate oven.
CUP CAKE.
Five eggs. Two large teacupfulls of molasses. The same of brown sugar, rolled fine. The same of fresh butter. One cup of rich milk. Five cups of flour, sifted. Half a cup of powdered allspice and cloves. Half a cup of ginger.
Cut up the butter in the milk, and warm them slightly. Warm also the molasses, and stir it into the milk and butter: then stir in, gradually, the sugar, and set it away to get cool.
Beat the eggs very light, and stir them into the mixture alternately with the flour. Add the ginger and other spice, and stir the whole very hard.
LOAF CAKE.
Two pounds of sifted flour, setting aside half a pound to sprinkle in at the last. One pound of fresh butter. One pound of powdered sugar. Four eggs. One pound of raisins, stoned and cut in half. One pound of currants, washed and dried. Half a pint of milk. A glass of wine. A glass of brandy. A table-spoonful of mixed spice, mace, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Half a pint of the best brewer's yeast; or more, if the yeast is not very strong.
Cut up the butter in the milk, and warm it till the butte is quite soft; then stir it together, and set it away to cool. It must not be made too warm. After you have beaten the eggs, mix them with the butter and milk, and stir the whole into the pan of flour. Add the spice and liquor, and stir in the sugar gradually. Having poured off the thin part from the top, stir the yeast, and pour it into the mixture. Then sprinkle in the remainder of the flour.
Have ready the fruit, which must be well floured, stir it gradually into the mixture. Butter a large tin pan, and put the cake into it. Cover it, and set it in a warm place for five or six hours to rise. When quite light, bake it in a moderate oven.
SUGAR BISCUITS.
Three pounds of flour, sifted. One pound of butter. A pound and a half of powdered sugar. Half a pint of milk. Two table-spoonful of pearl-ash, dissolved in water. Four table-spoonfuls of carraway seeds.
Cut the butter into the flour. Add the sugar and carraway seeds. Pour in the brandy, and ​then the milk. Lastly, put in the pearl-ash. Stir all well with a knife, and mix it thoroughly, till it becomes a lump of dough.
Flour your paste-board, and lay the dough on it. Knead it very well. Divide it into eight or ten pieces, and knead each piece separately. Then put them all together, and knead them very well in one lump.
Cut the dough in half, and roll it out into sheets, about half an inch thick. Beat the sheets of dough very hard on both sides, with the rolling-pin. Cut them out into round cakes with the edge of a tumbler. Butter iron pans, and lay the cakes in them. Bake them of a very pale brown. If done too much they will lose their taste.
These cakes kept in a stone jar, closely covered from the air, will continue perfectly food for several months.
MILK BISCUITS.
Two pounds of flour, sifted. Half a pound of butter. Two eggs, Six wine-glasses of milk, Two wine-glasses of the best brewer's yeast, or three of good home-made yeast.
Cut the butter into the milk, and warm it slightly on the top of the stove, or near the fire. Sift the flour into a pan, and pour the milk and butter into it. Beat the eggs, and pour them in also. Lastly the yeast. Mix all well together with a knife.
Flour your paste-board, put the lump of dough on it, and knead it very hard. Then cut the dough ​in small pieces, and knead them into round balls.Stick the tops of them with a fork.
Lay them in buttered pans and set them to rise. They will probably be light in an honor. When they are quite light, put them in a moderate oven and bake them.
They are best when quite fresh.
BUTTER BISCUITS.
Half a pound of butter. Two pounds of flour, sifted. Half a pint of milk, or cold water. A salt-spoonful of salt.
Cut up the butter in the flour, and put the salt to it. Wet it to a stiff dough with the milk or water. Mix it well with a knife.
Throw some flour on the paste-board, take the dough out of the pan, and knead it very well.
Roll it out into a large thick sheet, and beat it very hard on both sides with the rolling-pin. Beat it a long time.
GINGERBREAD NUTS.
Two pounds of flour, sifted. :
| One pound of fresh butter. |||
| Half a pound of brown sugar. |||
| One quart of sugar house molasses. |||
| Two ounces of ginger, or more, if it is not very strong. |||
| Twelve dozen grains of allspice, |
| Six dozen cloves. | powdered and sifted. |
| Half an ounce of cinnamon, |
Cut up the butter in the flour. Spread the sugar on your paste-board, and crush it very fine with the rolling-pin. Put to it the flour and butter, and then add the ginger and other spice. Wet the whole with the molasses, and stir all well together with a knife.
Throw some flour on your paste-board, take the dough (a large handful at a time) and knead it in separate cakes. Then put all together, and knead it very hard for a long time, in one large lump. Cut the lump in half, roll it out in two even sheets, about half an inch thick, and cut it out in little cakes, with a very small tin, about the size of a cent. Lay them in buttered pans, and bake them in a moderate oven, taking care they do not scorch, as gingerbread is more liable to burn than any other cake.
COMMON GINGERBREAD.
A pint of molasses. Half a pound of brown sugar. One pound of fresh butter. Two pounds and a half of flour, sifted. A pint of milk. A small tea-spoonful of pearl-ash, or less if it is strong. A tea-cup full of ginger.
Cut the butter into the flour. Crush the sugar with a rolling-pin, and throw it into the flour and butter. Add the ginger.
Having dissolved the pearl-ash in a little vinegar, stir it with the milk and molasses alternately into the other ingredients. Stir it very hard for a long time, till it is quite light.
Put some flour on your paste-board, take out small portions of the dough, and make it with your hand into long rolls. Then curl up the rolls into round cakes, or twist two rolls together, or lay them in straight lengths or sticks side by side, and touching each other. Put them carefully in buttered pans, and bake them in a moderate oven, not hot enough to burn them. If they should get scorched, scrape off with a knife, or grater, all the burnt parts, before you put the cakes away.
You can, if you choose, cut out the dough with tins, in the shape of hearts, circles, ovals, &c. or you may bake it all in once, and cut it in squares when cold.
LAFAYETTE GINGERBREAD.
Five eggs. :
| Half a pound of brown sugar. |||
| Half a pound of fresh butter. |||
| A pint of sugar-house molasses. |||
| A pound and a half of flour. |||
| Four table-spoonfuls of ginger. |||
| Two large sticks of cinnamon, | Two large sticks of cinnamon, | |
| Three dozen grains of allspice., | | powdered and sifted. |
| Three dozen of cloves, | Three dozen of cloves, | |
| The juice and grated peel of two large lemons. |||
Stir the butter and sugar to a cream. Beat the eggs very well. Pour the molasses, at once, into the butter, and sugar. Add the ginger and other spice, and stir all well together.
Put in the egg and flour alternately, stirring all the time. Stir the whole very hard, and put in the lemon at the last. When the whole is mixed, stir it till very light.
Butter an earthen pan, or a thick tin or iron one, and put the gingerbread in it. Bake it in a moderate oven, an hour or more, according to its thickness. Take care that it do not burn.
Or you may bake it in small cakes, or little tins.
Its lightness will be much improved by a small tea-spoonful of pearl-ash dissolved in a tea-spoonful of vinegar, and stirred lightly in at the last Too much pearl-ash will give it an unpleasant taste.
If you use pearl-ash, you must omit the lemon, as its taste will be entirely destroyed by the pearl-ash. You may substitute for the lemon, some raisins and currants, well floured to prevent their sinking. ​This is the finest of all gingerbread, but should not be kept long, as in a few days it becomes very hard and stale.
A DOVER CAKE.
Half a pint of milk. A small tea-spoonful of pearl-ash, dissolved in a little vinegar. One pound of sifted flour. One pound of powdered white sugar. Half a pound of butter. Six eggs. One glass of brandy. Half a glass of rose-water. A tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon.
Dissolve the pearl-ash in vinegar. Stir the sugar and butter to a cream, and add to it, gradually, the spice and liquor. Beat the eggs very light, and stir them into the butter and sugar, alternately, with the flour. Add, gradually, the milk, and stir the whole very hard.
Butter a large tin pan, and put in the mixture. Bake it two hours or more, in a moderate oven. If not thick, an hour or an hour and a half will be sufficient.
Wrap it in a thick cloth, and keep it from the air, and it will continue moist and fresh for two weeks. The pearl-ash will give it a dark colour.
CRULLERS.
Half a pound of butter. Three quarters of a pound of powdered white sugar. Six eggs, or seven, if they are small. Two pounds of flour, sifted. A grated nutmeg. A tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon. A table-spoonful of rose-water.
Cut the butter into the flour, add the sugar and spice, and mix them well together.
Beat the eggs, and pour them into the pan of flour, &c. Add the rose-water, and mix the whole into a dough. If the eggs and rose-water are not found sufficient to wet it, add a very little cold water. Mix the dough very well with a knife.
Spread some flour on your paste-board, take the dough out of the pan, and knead it very well. Cut it into small pieces, and knead each separately. Put all the pieces together, and knead the whole in one lump. Roll it out into a large square sheet, about half an inch thick. Take a jagging-iron, or, if you have not one, a sharp knife; run it along the sheet, and cut the dough into long narrow slips. Twist them up in various forms. Have ready an iron pan with melted lard. Lay the crullers lightly in it, and fry them of a light brown, turning them with a knife and fork, so as not to break them, and taking care that both sides are equally done.
When sufficiently fried, spread them on a large dish to cool, and grate loaf-sugar over them.
Crullers may be made in a plainer way, with the best brown sugar, (rolled very fine,) and without spice or rose-water. ​They can be fried, or rather boiled, in a deep iron pot. They should be done in a large quantity of lard, and taken out with a skimmer that has holes in it, and held on the skimmer till the lard drains from them. If for family use, they can be made an inch thick.
DOUGH NUTS.
Three pounds of sifted flour.
A pound of powdered sugar.
Three quarters of a pound of butter.
Four eggs.
Half a large tea-cup full of best brewer's yeast.
A pint and a half of milk.
A tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon.
A grated nutmeg.
A table-spoonful of r0se-water.
Cut up the butter in the flour. Add the sugar, spice, and rose-water. Beat the eggs very light, and pour them into the mixture. Add the yeast, (half a tea-cup, or two wine-glasses full,) and then stir in the milk by degrees, so as to make it m soft dough. Cover it, and set it to rise.
When quite light, cut it in diamonds with a jagging-iron, or a sharp knife, and fry them in lard. Grate loaf-sugar over them when done.
WAFFLES.
Six eggs.
A pint of milk.
A quarter of a pound of butter.
A quarter of a pound of powdered white sugar.
A pound and a half of flour, silted.
A tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon.
Warm the milk slightly. Cut up the butter in it, and stir it a little. Beat the eggs well, and pour them into the butter and milk. Sprinkle in half the flour, gradually. Stir in the sugar, by degrees, and ​add the spice. Stir in, gradually, the remainder of the flour, so that it becomes a thick batter.
Heat your waffle-iron; then grease it well, and pour in some of the batter. Shut the iron tight, and bake the waffle on both sides, by turning the iron.
As the waffles are baked, spread them out separately on a clean napkin. When enough are done for a plate-full, lay them on a plate in two piles, buttering them, and sprinkling each with beaten cinnamon.
SOFT MUFFINS.
Five eggs. A quart of milk. Two ounces of butter. A tea-spoonful of salt. Two large table spoonfuls of brewer's yeast, or four of home-made yeast. Enough of sifted flour to make a stiff a batter.
Warm the milk and butter together, and add to them the salt. Beat the eggs very light, and stir them into the milk and butter. then stir in the yeast, and lastly, sufficient flour to make a thick batter.
Cover the mixture, and set it to rise, in a warm place, about three hours.
INDIAN BATTER CAKES.
| A quart of sifted indian meal, | A quart of sifted indian meal, | A quart of sifted indian meal, |
| A handful of wheat flour, sifted, | A handful of wheat flour, sifted, | A handful of wheat flour, sifted, |
| Three eggs, well beaten. |||
| Two table-spoonfuls of fresh brewer's yeast, or four of home-made yeast. |||
| A tea-spoonful of salt. |||
| A quart of milk. |||
Make the milk quite warm, and then put into it the yeast and salt, stirring them well. Beat the eggs, and stir them into the mixture. Then, gradually, stir in the flour and indian meal.
Cover tile batter, and set it to rise four or five hours. Or if the weather is cold, and you want the cakes for breakfast, you may mix the batter late the night before.
Should you find it sour in the morning, dissolve a small tea-spoonful of pearl-ash in as much water as will cover it, and stir it into the batter, letting it sit afterwards at least half an hour. This will take the acid.
FLANNEL CAKES OR CRUMPETS.
Mix a tea-spoonful of salt with the flour, and set the pan before the fire. Then warm the milk and stir into it the flour, so as to make a stiff batter. Beat the eggs very light, and stir them into the yeast. Add the eggs and yeast to the batter, and beat all well together. If it is too stiff, add a little more warm milk.
Cover the pan closely, and set it to rise near the fire. Bake it, when quite light.
Have your baking-iron hot. Grease it, and pour on a ladle-full of batter. Let it bake slowly, and when done on one side, turn it on the other.
Butter the cakes, cut them across, and send them to table hot.
ROLLS.
Three pints of flour, sifted. Two tea-spoonful of salt. Four table-spoonfuls of the best brewer's yeast, or six home-made yeast. A pint of luke-warm water. Half a pint more of warm water, and a little more flour to mix in before the kneading.
Mix the salt with the flour, and make a deep hole in the middle. Stir the warm water into the yeast, and pour it into the hole in the flour. Stir it with ​a spoon just enough to make a thin batter, and sprinkle some flour over the top. Cover the pan, and set it in a warm place for several hours.
When it is light, add half a pint more of lukewarm water; and make it, with a little more flour, into a dough. Knead it very well for ten minutes. Then divide it into small pieces, and knead each separately. Make them into round cakes or rolls. Cover them, and set them to rise about an hour and a half.
Bake them, and when done, let them remain in the oven, without the lid, for about ten minutes.
* ↑ In buying essence or oil of lemon endeavour to get that which is white, it being much the strongest and best. When it looks greenish, it is generally very weak, so that when used a double or treble quantity is necessary.
* ↑ You may colour icing of a fine pink, by mixing with it a few drops of liquid cochineal; which is prepared by boiling very slowly in an earthen or china vessel twenty grains of cochineal powder, twenty grains of cream of tartar, and twenty grains of powdered alum, all dissolved in a gill of soft water, and boiled till reduced to one half. Strain it and cork it up in a small phial. Pink icing should be ornamented with white nonpareils.
* ↑ After this cake is done, it will be better for withdrawing the fire (if baked in an iron oven) and letting it stay in the oven all night, or till it gets quite cold.
* ↑ While pounding the almonds pour in occasionally a little rose-water. It makes them much lighter
* ↑ Cocoa-nut cakes may be made in a similar manner, substituting for the pounded almonds half a pound of finely-grated cocoa-nut. They must be made into small round balls with a little flour laid on the palm of the hand, and baked a few minutes. They are very fine.
* ↑ It is better to put a little of the beaten white of egg and sugar at first, under the currant jelly.
* ↑ Gingerbread nuts are much improved by mixing with the dough half a tea-spoonful of pearl-ash, dissolved in a little vinegar.
* ↑ If the pearl-ash is strong, half a tea-spoonful will be sufficient, or less even will do. It is better to stir the pearl-ash in, a little at a time, and you can tell by the taste of the mixture, when there is enough.
* ↑ Indian batter cakes may be made in a plain and expeditious way, by putting three pints of cold water or cold milk into a pan, and gradually sifting into it (stirring all the time) a quart of indian meal mixed with half a pint of wheat-flour, and a small spoonful of salt. Stir it very hard, and it may be baked immediately, as it is not necessary to set it to rise.