Part 8

Stir to a cream a pound of powdered white sugar, seven ounces of butter--then add the whites of sixteen eggs, beaten to a stiff froth, half a nutmeg, or a tea-spoonful of rosewater. Stir in gradually a pound of sifted flour, and bake the cake immediately. The yelks of the eggs can be used for custards.

209. _Jelly Cake._

Rub together, till white, half a pound of sugar, six ounces of butter. Beat eight eggs to a froth, and stir into the butter and sugar, together with a pound of sifted flour. Add the juice and grated rind of a fresh lemon, and turn this mixture on to scolloped tin plates, that have been well buttered. The cake should not be more than a quarter of an inch thick on each of the plates. Bake them directly, in a quick oven, till a light brown. Pile them on a plate with a layer of jelly or marmalade between each of the cakes, and a layer on the top.

210. _Strawberry Cake._

Mix a quart of flour with a tea-spoonful of salt, four beaten eggs, and a tea-cup of thick cream, or melted butter. Add sufficient milk to enable you to roll it out--roll it out thin, line a shallow cake pan with part of it, then put in a thick layer of nice ripe strawberries, strew on sufficient white sugar to sweeten the strawberries, cover them with a thin layer of the crust, then add another layer of strawberries and sugar--cover the whole with another layer of crust, and bake it in a quick oven about twenty-five minutes.

211. _Superior Sponge Cake._

Take the weight of ten eggs in powdered loaf sugar, beat it to a froth with the yelks of twelve eggs, put in the grated rind of a fresh lemon, leaving out the white part--add half the juice. Beat the whites of twelve eggs to a stiff froth, and mix them with the sugar and butter. Stir the whole without any cessation for fifteen minutes, then stir in gradually the weight of six eggs in sifted flour. As soon as the flour is well mixed in, turn the cake into pans lined with buttered paper--bake it immediately in a quick, but not a furiously hot oven. It will bake in the course of twenty minutes. If it bakes too fast, cover it with thick paper.

212. _Good Sponge Cake._

Beat together the yelks of ten eggs, with a pound of powdered white sugar--beat to a stiff froth the whites of the eggs, and stir them into the yelks and sugar. Beat the whole ten or fifteen minutes, then stir in gradually three-quarters of a pound of sifted flour. Flavor it with a nutmeg, or the grated rind of a lemon. Bake it as soon as the flour and spices are well mixed in.

213. _Almond Cake._

Beat the yelks of twelve eggs to a froth, with a pound of powdered white sugar. Beat the whites of nine eggs to a stiff froth, and stir them into the yelks and sugar. When the whole has been stirred together for ten minutes, add gradually a pound of sifted flour, and half a pound of almonds, blanched and pounded fine, then stir in three table-spoonsful of thick cream. As soon as the ingredients are well mixed in, turn the cake into buttered pans, and bake it immediately. Frost the cake with the reserved whites of the eggs as soon as it is baked.

214. _Fruit Cake._

One pound of flour, one of sugar, three-quarters of a pound of butter, two pounds of seeded raisins, two of currants, one of citron, a quarter of a pound of almonds, half an ounce of mace, a tea-spoonful of rosewater, a wine glass of brandy, one of wine, and ten eggs. Stir the sugar and butter to a cream, then add the whites and yelks of the eggs, beaten separately to a froth--stir in the flour gradually, then the wine, brandy, and spice. Add the fruit just before it is put into the pans. It takes over two hours to bake it if the loaves are thick--if the loaves are thin, it will bake in less time. This kind of cake is the best after it has been made three or four weeks, and it will keep good five or six months.

215. _Black Cake._

One pound of flour, one of sugar, fourteen ounces of butter, ten eggs, three pounds of seeded raisins, three pounds of Zante currants, and one pound of citron, a wine glass of wine, one of brandy, and one of milk, a tea-spoonful of saleratus, a table-spoonful of molasses, a table-spoonful of cinnamon, a tea-spoonful of cloves, a quarter of an ounce of mace, or one nutmeg. The sugar should be the brown kind, and stirred a few minutes with the butter, then the eggs beaten to a froth, and stirred in. Brown the flour in a pan, over a few coals--stir it constantly to prevent its burning. It should be done before you commence making the cake, so as to have it get cold. Stir it into the butter and sugar gradually, then add the molasses and spice. Dissolve the saleratus in the milk, then strain it, and mix it with the brandy and wine, to curdle them--stir the whole into the cake. Just before you put it into the cake pans, stir in the fruit gradually, a handful of each alternately. When well mixed in, put it into cake pans, and bake it immediately. If baked in thick loaves, it takes from two hours and a half to three hours to bake it sufficiently. The oven should not be of a furious heat. Black cake cuts the best when three or four weeks old.

216. _Maccaroons._

Soak half a pound of sweet almonds in boiling hot water, till the skins will rub off easily--wipe them dry. When you have rubbed off the skins, pound them fine with rosewater. Beat the whites of three eggs to a stiff froth, then stir in gradually half a pound of powdered white sugar, then add the almonds. When the almonds are well mixed in, drop the mixture in small parcels on buttered baking plates, several inches apart, sift sugar over them, and bake them in a slow oven.

217. _Cocoanut Cakes._

Take equal weights of grated cocoanut and powdered white sugar, (the brown part of the cocoanut should be cut off before grating it)--add the whites of eggs beaten to a stiff froth, in the proportion of half a dozen to a pound each of cocoanut and sugar. There should be just eggs enough to wet up the whole stiff. Drop the mixture on to buttered plates, in parcels of the size of a cent, several inches apart. Bake them immediately in a moderately warm oven.

218. _Tory Wafers._

Melt a tea-cup of butter, half a one of lard, and mix them with a quart of flour, a couple of beaten eggs, a tea-spoonful of salt, a wine glass of wine. Add milk till of the right consistency to roll out--roll it out about the third of an inch in thickness, cut it into cakes with a wine glass, lay them on buttered baking plates, and bake them a few minutes. Frost them as soon as baked, and sprinkle comfits or sugar sand on the top.

219. _Sugar Drops._

Stir to a cream three ounces of butter, six of powdered white sugar--then add three beaten eggs, half a pound of sifted flour, half of a nutmeg. Drop this mixture by the large spoonful on to buttered plates, several inches apart, sprinkle small sugar plums on the top, and bake them directly.

220. _Savoy Cakes._

Beat eight eggs to a froth--the whites and yelks should be beaten separately, then mixed together, and a pound of powdered white sugar stirred in gradually. Beat the whole well together, for eight or ten minutes, then add the grated rind of a fresh lemon, and half the juice, a pound of sifted flour, a couple of table-spoonsful of coriander seed. Drop this mixture by the large spoonful on to buttered baking plates, several inches apart, sift white sugar over them, and bake them immediately in a quick, but not a furiously hot oven.

221. _Almond Cheese Cakes._

Boil a pint of new milk--beat three eggs, and stir into the milk while boiling. When it boils up, take it from the fire, put in half a wine glass of wine, separate the curd from the whey, and put to the curd three eggs, six ounces of powdered white sugar, previously beaten together. Add a tea-spoonful of rosewater, half a pound of sweet almonds that have been blanched and pounded fine, a quarter of a pound of melted butter. Mix the whole well together, then pour it into small pans that are lined with pastry. Ornament the top with Zante currants, and almonds cut in thin slips--bake them directly.

222. _Flummery._

Lay sponge or Savoy cakes in a deep dish--pour on white wine sufficient to make them quite moist. Make a rich boiled custard, using only the yelks of the eggs--turn it over the cakes when cool--beat the whites of the eggs to a froth, and turn them over the whole.

223. _Floating Island._

Mix a pint and a half of sweet thick cream with a gill of wine, the juice of half a lemon, and a tea-spoonful of essence of lemon, or rosewater. Sweeten the whole with powdered loaf sugar--turn it into a deep dish. Beat the whites of four eggs to a froth, and stir in half a pound of any dark-colored preserved small fruit you may happen to have. Beat the whole to a strong froth, then turn it into the centre of the cream.

224. _Whip Syllabub._

Take good sweet cream--to each pint put six ounces of double refined, powdered white sugar, half a tumbler of white wine, the juice and grated rind of a lemon. Beat the whole well together--put jelly in glasses, and cover them with the froth as fast as it rises.

225. _Ornamental Froth for Blanc Mange or Creams._

Beat the whites of four eggs to a froth, then stir in half a pound of preserved raspberries, cranberries, or strawberries--beat the whole well together, then turn it over the top of your creams or blanc mange.

226. _Ice Currants._

Take large bunches of ripe currants, wash and drain them dry, then dip them into the whites of eggs, previously beaten to a stiff froth. Lay them on a sieve, at such a distance from each other as not to touch--sift double refined sugar over them thick, and set them in a warm place to dry.

227. _Apple Snow._

Put a dozen good tart apples into cold water, set them over a slow fire. When soft, drain off the water, pull the skins from the apples, take out the cores, and lay the apples in a deep dish. Beat the whites of twelve eggs to a strong froth--put half a pound of powdered white sugar on the apples, beat them to a strong froth, then add the beaten eggs. Beat the whole to a stiff snow, then turn it into a dessert dish, and ornament it with myrtle or box.

228. _Comfits._

Mix a pound of white sugar with just sufficient water to make a thick syrup. When the sugar has dissolved, drop in a pound of coriander seed, then drain off the syrup, and put the seeds in a sieve, with two or three ounces of flour--shake them well in it, then set them where they will dry. When dry, put them in the syrup again, repeat the above process till they are of the size you wish.

229. _Isinglass Blanc Mange._

Pull an ounce of mild white isinglass into small pieces--rinse them, and put to them a quart of milk if the weather is hot, and three pints if it is cold weather. Set it on a few coals, stir it constantly till the isinglass dissolves, then sweeten it to the taste with double refined loaf sugar, put in a small stick of cinnamon, a vanilla bean, or blade of mace. Set it where it will boil five or six minutes, stirring it constantly. Strain it, and fill the moulds with it--let it remain in them till cold. The same bean will do to use several times.

230. _Calf's Feet Blanc Mange._

Boil four feet in five quarts of water, without any salt. When the liquor is reduced to one quart, strain and mix it with one quart of milk, several sticks of cinnamon, or a vanilla bean. Boil the whole ten minutes, sweeten it to the taste with white sugar, strain it, and fill your moulds with it.

231. _Rice Flour Blanc Mange._

Mix four table-spoonsful of ground rice, smoothly, with half a pint of cold milk, then stir it into a quart of boiling milk. Put in the grated rind of a lemon, and half the juice, a blade of mace--sweeten to the taste with white sugar. Boil the whole seven or eight minutes, stirring it frequently. Take it from the fire--when cool, put in the beaten whites of three eggs, put it back on the fire, stir it constantly till nearly boiling hot, then turn it into moulds, or deep cups, and let it remain till cold. This is nice food for invalids.

232. _Rice Blanc Mange._

Boil a tea-cup of rice in a pint of water, with a blade of mace, and a tea-spoonful of salt. When it swells out and becomes dry, add sufficient milk to prevent its burning. Let it boil till quite soft, stirring it constantly to keep it from burning--sweeten it with white sugar. Dip your moulds in cold water, then turn in the rice, without drying the moulds. Let the rice remain in the moulds till it becomes quite cold. Turn it into dessert dishes, ornament it with marmalade cut in slices, and box and serve it up with cream or preserved strawberries. It should be made the day before it is to be eaten, in order to have it become firm.

233. _Snow Cream._

Beat the whites of four eggs to a stiff froth--then stir in two table-spoonsful of powdered white sugar, a table-spoonful of sweet wine, a tea-spoonful of rosewater. Beat the whole together, then add a pint of thick cream. This is a nice accompaniment to a dessert of sweetmeats.

234. _Orange Cream._

Beat the yelks of eight eggs, and the whites of two, to a froth, then stir in half a pound of powdered white sugar--add half a pint of wine, and the juice of six fresh oranges, and the juice of one lemon. Flavor it with orange-flower water--strain it, and set it on a few coals--stir it till it thickens, then add a piece of butter, of the size of a nutmeg. When the butter has melted, take it from the fire, continue to stir it till cool, then fill your glasses with it. Beat up the whites of the eggs to a froth, and lay the froth on top of the glasses of cream.

235. _Lemon Cream._

Pare four fresh lemons very thin, so as to get none of the white part. Soak the rinds twelve hours in half a pint of cold water, then add the juice of the lemons, and half a pint more of cold water. Beat to a froth the whites of eight eggs, and the yelks of three--strain the lemon-juice and water, mix it with the eggs--set the whole on a few coals, sweeten it with double refined sugar, stir it till it grows thick, then take it from the fire, stir it till cold--serve it up in glasses.

236. _Ice Creams._

Sweeten thick rich cream with powdered white sugar--it should be made very sweet, as the process of freezing extracts a great deal of the saccharine matter. Essence of lemon, the juice of strawberries or pine-apples, are nice to flavor the cream with--the juice should be sweetened before being mixed with the cream. Where cream cannot be procured, a custard, made in the following manner, may be substituted: To a quart of milk put the beaten yelks of four eggs, the rind of a lemon, or a vanilla bean--set it on a few coals, make it extremely sweet, with white sugar--stir it constantly till scalding hot--care must be taken that it does not boil. Take it from the fire, take out the bean, or lemon peel--when perfectly cold, put it in an ice cream form--if one cannot be procured, a milk kettle, with a tight cover, may be substituted. Set the form into the centre of a tub that is large enough to leave a space of five inches from the form to the outside of the tub. Fill the space round the form with alternate layers of finely cracked ice and rock salt, having a layer of ice last, and the whole should be just as high as the form. Care should be taken to keep the salt from the cream. The tub should be covered with a woollen cloth while the cream is freezing, and the form should be constantly shaken. If you wish to shape the cream, turn it into moulds as soon as it freezes, set them in the tub, let them remain till just before they are to be eaten, then dip them in warm water, and take them out instantly, and turn them into dessert dishes.

237. _Pastry._

For a good common pie-crust allow half a pound of shortening to a pound of flour. If liked quite short, allow three-quarters of a pound of shortening to a pound of the flour. Pie crust looks the nicest made entirely of lard, but it does not taste so good as it does to have some butter used in making it. In winter, beef shortening, mixed with butter, makes good plain pie crust. Rub half of the shortening with two-thirds of the flour--to each pound of flour put a tea-spoonful of salt. When the shortening is thoroughly mixed with the flour, add just sufficient cold water to render it moist enough to roll out easily. Divide the crust into two equal portions--lay one of them one side for the upper crust, take the other, roll it out quite thin, flouring your rolling-board and pin, so that the crust will not stick to them, and line your pie plates, which should be previously buttered--fill your plates with your fruit, then roll out the upper crust as thin as possible, spread on the reserved shortening, sprinkle over the flour, roll it up, and cut it into as many pieces as you have pies to cover. Roll each one out about half an inch thick, and cover the pies--trim the edges off neatly with a knife, and press the crust down, round the edge of the plate, with a jagging iron, so that the juices of the fruit may not run out while baking. Pastry, to be nice, should be baked in a quick oven. In cold weather it is necessary to warm the shortening before using it for pie crust, but it must not be melted, or the crust will not be flaky.

238. _Puff Paste, or Confectioner's Pastry._

Weigh out a pound and a quarter of sifted flour, and a pound of butter. Rub about one-third of the butter with two-thirds of the flour, a tea-spoonful of salt. When the butter is thoroughly mixed with the flour, add one beaten egg, and cold water to moisten it sufficiently to roll out. Sprinkle part of the reserved flour on a board, cut the butter into small pieces, and roll them out as thin as possible. In order to do so, it will be necessary to rub a great deal of the flour on the moulding-board and rolling-pin. Lay the butter, as fast as rolled out, on to a floured plate, each piece by itself--roll out the pastry as thin as it can be rolled, cover it with the rolled butter, sprinkle on part of the reserved flour, and roll the crust up. Continue to roll out the crust, and put on the reserved butter and flour, till the whole is used. Roll it out lightly, about half an inch thick, for the upper crust, or rim to your pies--plain pie crust should be used for the under crust to the pies. Puff pastry, to be nice, should be baked in a quick oven till of a light brown color. If it browns before the fruit in the pie is sufficiently baked, cover it with thick paper.

239. _Apple Pie._

When apples are very small and green, they are nice stewed whole, with the skins on, and strained when soft, and sweetened. Pare, quarter, and take out the cores of the apples, when of a large size. If they are not ripe, stew them with just water enough to prevent their burning. When soft, sweeten and season them to the taste. When apples are ripe, they make better pies not to be stewed before baking. Fill your pie plates, cover them with a thick crust, and bake them from half to three-quarters of an hour. When baked sufficiently, cut the upper crust through the centre, remove it carefully with a broad knife, put a piece of butter, of the size of a walnut, into a pie, sweeten it to your taste, and if the apples are not tart enough, squeeze in the juice of part of a lemon--flavor the pie with either nutmeg, rosewater, or grated lemon peel. Apples cut into quarters, without paring, and stewed soft in new cider and molasses, make good plain pies. The apples should be strained after stewing, and seasoned with cinnamon or nutmeg. If made quite sweet, it will keep good several months. Dried apples should have boiling water turned on to cover them, and stewed till very soft. If they are not tart enough, turn in sour cider, when they are partly stewed. A little orange peel stewed with the apples, gives them a fine flavor. Season them, when soft, with sugar and nutmeg, and strain them if you like.

240. _Mince Pie._

The best kind of meat for mince pies is neat's tongue and feet--the shank of beef makes very good pies. Boil the meat till perfectly tender--then take it up, clear it from the bones and gristle, chop it fine enough to strain through a sieve, mix it with an equal weight of tart apples, chopped very fine. If the meat is not fat, put in a little suet, or melted butter. Moisten the whole with cider--sweeten it to the taste with sugar, and very little molasses--add mace, cinnamon, cloves, and salt, to the taste. If you wish to make your pies rich, put in wine or brandy to the taste, and raisins, citron, and Zante currants. The grated rind and juice of lemons improve the pie. Make the pies on shallow plates, with apertures in the upper crust, and bake them from half to three-quarters of an hour, according to the heat of the oven. Meat prepared for pies in the following manner, will keep good several months, if kept in a cool dry place: To a pound of finely chopped meat, a quarter of a pound of suet, put half an ounce of mace, one ounce of cinnamon, a quarter of an ounce of cloves, two tea-spoonsful of salt. Add if you like the following fruits: half a pound of seeded raisins, half a pound of Zante currants, a quarter of a pound of citron. Put in half a pint of French brandy or wine, three table-spoonsful of molasses, and sugar sufficient to make it quite sweet. Put the whole in a stone pot--cover it with a paper wet in brandy. When you wish to use any of it for pies, put to what meat you use an equal weight of apples, pared and chopped fine. If not seasoned high enough, add more spice and sugar. If the apples are not tart, put in lemon-juice or sour cider.

241. _Rice Pie._

To a quart of boiling water, put a small tea-cup of rice. Boil it till very soft, then take it from the fire, and add a quart of cold milk. Put in a tea-spoonful of salt, a grated nutmeg, five eggs beaten to a froth--add sugar to the taste, and strain it through a sieve. Bake it in deep pie plates, with an under crust and rim of pastry--add if you like a few raisins.

242. _Peach Pie._

Take mellow, juicy peaches--wash and put them in a deep pie plate, lined with pie crust. Sprinkle a thick layer of sugar on each layer of peaches, put in about a table-spoonful of water, and sprinkle a little flour over the top--cover it with a thick crust, and bake the pie from fifty to sixty minutes. Pies made in this manner are much better than with the stones taken out, as the prussic acid of the stone gives the pie a fine flavor. If the peaches are not mellow, they will require stewing before being made into a pie. Dried peaches should be stewed soft, and sweetened, before they are made into a pie--they do not require any spice.

243. _Tart Pie._

Sour apples, cranberries, and peaches, all make nice tarts. Stew, and strain them when soft. Peach tarts require a little lemon-juice, without they are sour. Grate in lemon peel, add brown sugar to the taste. Put in each pie one beaten egg, to make it cut smooth. Bake the pies on shallow plates, with an under crust and rim of pastry--ornament the pie with very small strips of pastry. When the crust is done, remove the pies from the oven.

244. _Rhubarb Pies._

Take the tender stalks of the rhubarb, strip off the skin, and cut the stalks into thin slices. Line deep plates with pie crust, then put in the rhubarb, with a thick layer of sugar to each layer of rhubarb--a little grated lemon peel improves the pie. Cover the pies with a thick crust--press it down tight round the edge of the plate, and prick the crust with a fork, so that the crust will not burst while baking, and let out the juices of the pie. Rhubarb pies should be baked about an hour, in a slow oven--it will not do to bake them quick. Some cooks stew the rhubarb before making it into pies, but it is not so good as when used without stewing.

245. _Tomato Pie._