Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-12-15
CHRISTMAS CAKES
Cooks From Many Points
Contribute Receipts.
FROM NORTH TO SOUTH
ALL COUNTRIES HAVE EACH A
TooTHsoME DAINTY.
Bake Them Early and Keep Them, if
You Can, in Stone
Crooks.
FROM NORTH TO SOUTH


Crooks.
Every housewife has her favorite receipt
for Christmas cakes, but she Is also open
to conviction when the Christmas spirit IN
baking takes possession Of her. In fact, II
there is time In the year when she Is
willing to experiment it is just before the
holidays when the household purse strings
are loosened.
Every country where the Christmas mol
iday is recognized and every state in the
Union has some particular cake for which
1t has more than local fame. For instance,
there are the Italian pastes. the gay
French and German cakes and the English
loaf cakes, each in its turn worthy OF
housewifely attention. The following re-
ceipts have been tried out by many gener-
ations Of home cooks:
Virginia Walnut Cakes.-To one pint Of
the nuts, measured after they are shelled,
allow one cupful of sugar, half cupful or
butter, three eggs and pinch of salt,
quarter cupful of sweet milk with flour
enough to make a dough. Beat the butter
to a cream, and mix thoroughly with the
sugar. Next add the well-beaten eggs, the
milk and the salt with a little of the flour.
Then the nuts. which have been shelleu
and passed through the meat chopper, and
last the remaining flour. Roll out lightly,
cut into shapes sprinkle with granulated
sugar and bake in a moderately hot oven.
Christmas Cookies.-Cookies that have a
genuine holiday flavor are made by combin-
ing chocolate and fruit fiavors. They can
be trusted to find favor with the young
people at least. The proportions given will
make fair quantity, but they can be dOu-
bled If much entertaining Is done during
the Christmas season. Allow eggs. " cup
of butter. cupful of sugar, cupfuls OF
flour and 1 teaspoonful of baking powder,
" cup of raisins measured after they have
been stoned and chopped. and tablespoon
fuls Of grated chocolate. Dissolve the choc-
Clate in a bowl over a kettle of hot water
and let 1t stand until needed. Rub the but
ter and sugar to cream. add the eggs,
which have been well beaten, then the flour;
which has been sifted with the baking pow
der. and lastly the melted chocolate. Beat
hard and mix very thoroughly, then work
in the raisins and roll the dough out to q
thin sheet. Cut into shapes with fancy
cutters. press one, two or three whole
Iaisins into the top of each cookie accord
ing to size and bake in a moderately quick
oven Keep fresh by packing them in a
stone crock or earthenware dish with
cover.
German Christmas Cakes.-The father
land cook boasts of many receipts, but this
one is a prime favorite with all classes.
These delicious little sweets can be cut into
as many shapes as the housewife has tin
patterns and can also be made to take
variety of colors by dividing the icing in
parts. tinting it green, rose or yellow with
vegetable dyes and using chocolate for
fourth.
To eggs allow 1 pound Of pastry flour,
q pound of sugar, u pound Of almonds
we'll blanched and Il pound of candled
orange peel or citron. as preferred; lemon,
1 large and juicy orange, " ounce OF
ground cinnamon and "a teaspoon of good
cloves; ~ teaspoon of allspice. 1 teaspoon
full of baking powder and u cup Of honey.
Beat the eggs and sugar to a cream.
Blanch. dry and pass the almonds through
a meat chopper. Beat the eggs without
ceasing for twenty minutes. then add eggs
and sugar. and little by little the flour and
the almonds Crate the rinds of lemon ard
orange into the mixture, add the strained
juice and the honey, then the baking pow
der. Mix well, and If not stiff enough to
roll out add more flour. Roll into thin
cakes cut into fancy shapes, bake in mod
crate oven. When cold spread with boiled
icing colored as directed above.
English Mistletoe Cake-This cake is both
ornamental and toothsome, for it shows the
genuine Christmas colors. For the layers
allow 8 ounces each of butter and sugar,
eggs, " pound of -four. 1 teaspoonful of
baking powder and 1 wineglassful of
orangefower water. Separate the eggs
and beat the whites to a stiff froth, the
yolks to a cream. Beat the sugar and but
ter together, add the yolks of the eggs, the
flour sifted with the baking powder, the
orangeflower water and lastly the whites
of the eggs. Bake in three layers. For
the filling, whip " pint Of cream until stiff,
sweeten slightly and divide in two portions.
Color one with spinach green, and add
grated cocoanut to the other. Spread the
green cream over the first layer of the
cake. cover with the second spread over
on top. Ice thickly with plain boiled icing
and decorate while fresh with bits of can
died citron cut to represent mlStletoe leaves,
using silver comfits for the berries.
French Chocolate Cakes-For the founda-
ton allow 3 eggs, ounces of powdered
sugar, 11a ounces of flour, ounce of corn
starch and "A teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Separate the eggssand beat the yolks to
cream, then add the powdered sugar, the
flour and corn starch little by little and
finally the vanilla. Beat all thoroughly,
then add the whites of the eggs which have
been whipped to a stiff froth, and whip
lightly into the mixture. Butter lightly
sheet of white paper and spread over an or
binary baking pan. Press the cake mixture
/ through a pastry tube to form rounds about
the size of a silver half dollar Bake In
moderate oven until firm and allow the
cakes to become cold. linen cut all OF one
size with small round cutter, spread the
fiat side of half the number of cakes with
peach marmalade and cover with the other
half Put ] cupful of graduated sugar in
a saucepan with u cup of water and cook
until 1t will spin thread. Melt an ounce
of chocolate over hot water, then whip
in the syrup little by little until thorough
ly mixed. Add the chocolate and beat all
until thick. Take many wooden tooth
picks as you have cakes and stick one
into each, and, holding the toothpick in
the hand dip one cake into the icing, cover
ing it entirely. Turn -four sieve upside
down on a table and place the ends OF the
sticks in the holes, supporting the cakes
thus until quite dry.
English Christmas Cake.-Allow one and
one-half pounds each of butter and sugar,
four eggs. one Fill of rich cream, five
pounds Of flour, three pounds of currants,
one-ouarter pound of sliced citron, one
grated nutmeg, one tablespoonful of salt
and five teaspoonfuls of baking powder.
Rub the butter and sugar to a cream, whip
the eggs thoroughly, then mix all together.
Sift the flour and mix thoroughly with the
fruit and spice. Then add 1t and the salt
to the mixture little by little. stirring
gently until mixed. add the baking powder
and beat until smooth Bake in moderate
oven for two hours.
Southern Pound Cake.-Beat one pound of
butter and one pound of powdered sugar
together until they form cream. Separate
the whites from the yolks of one dozen
eggs Whisk the whites to a stiff broth
| and beat the yolks until thick. Beat the
whites into the creamed butter and sugar,
| then add the yolks and stir all thoroughly
| together. Sift the flour and stir in lightly
| bxyl or OpIy enough M