CHAPTER XIX.

CAKES, BISCUITS, &c.

ONE very material matter to be attended to in making these articles is, that all your ingredients are ready at the time you are going to make them, and that you do not leave them till your business is done; but be particularly observant with respect to the eggs when beaten up, which, if left at any time, must be again beaten, and by that means your cake will not be so light as it otherwise would and ought to be. If you use butter to your cakes, be careful in beating it to a fine cream before you mix the sugar with it. Cakes made with rice, seeds, or plums, are best baked with wooden girths, as thereby the heat will penetrate into the middle, which will not be the case if baked in pots or tins. The heat of the oven must be proportioned to the size of the cake.

A Good Common Cake.

TAKE six ounces of ground rice, and the same quantity of flour, the yolks and whites of nine eggs, half a pound of lump sugar, pounded and sifted, and half an ounce of carraway seeds. Mix these well together, and bake it an hour in a quick oven.

A Rich Seed Cake.

TAKE a pound and a quarter of flour well dried, a pound of butter, a pound of loaf sugar, beat and sifted, eight eggs, two ounces of carraway seeds, one nutmeg grated, and its weight in cinnamon. First beat your butter to a cream, then put in your sugar; beat the whites of your eggs by themselves, and mix them with your butter and sugar, and then beat up the yolks and mix with the whites. Beat in your flour, spices, and seed, a little before you send it away. Bake it two hours in a quick oven.

A Pound Cake Plain.

BEAT a pound of butter in an earthen pan, till it is like a fine thick cream, then beat in nine whole eggs till quite light. Put in a glass of brandy, a little lemon-peel shred fine; then work in a pound and a quarter of flour. Put it into your hoop or pan, and bake it for one hour.

A pound plum cake is made the same, with putting one pound and a half of clean washed currants, and half a pound of candied lemon or orange-peel.

Cream Cakes.

BEAT the whites of nine eggs to a stiff froth, stir it gently with a spoon, lest the froth should fall, and to every white of an egg grate the rinds of two lemons. Shake in gently a spoonful of double-refined sugar sifted fine, lay a wet sheet of paper on a tin, and with a spoon drop the froth in little lumps on it, at a small distance from each other. Sift a good quantity of sugar over them, set them in the oven after the bread is out, and close up the mouth of it, which will occasion the froth to rise. As soon as they are coloured they will be sufficiently baked; then take them out, and put two bottoms together; lay them on a sieve, and set them to dry in a cool oven.

Wedding or Christening Cake.

TAKE three pounds and three quarters of butter, four pounds and a half of flour, three pounds of sugar, six pounds of currants, one pound and a half of candied lemon-peel, half a pound of almonds, half a pound of citron, thirty eggs, and a pint of brandy and milk. Beat your butter in a pan till it is like thick cream, but be sure not to make it too hot; then add your eggs by degrees, till they are quite light; then beat in half your flour, then put your milk and brandy in; grate the rinds of six lemons, and put in the rest of your flour, currants, candied lemon-peel, almonds, and half an ounce of spices, beat and sifted through a fine sieve, such as cloves, mace, nutmegs, cinnamon, and allspice; only put half an ounce of the whole in. If you bake the whole in one cake it will take three hours, but must not be baked too quick.

Rice Cakes.

BEAT the yolks of fifteen eggs for near half an hour with a whisk; then put to them ten ounces of loaf sugar sifted fine, and mix them well together. Then put in half a pound of ground rice, a little orange-water or brandy, and the rinds of two lemons grated. Then put in the whites of seven eggs well beaten, and stir the whole together for a quarter of an hour. Put them in a hoop, and set them in a quick oven for half an hour, and they will be properly done.

Gingerbread Cakes.

Take three pounds of flour, a pound of sugar, the same quantity of butter rolled in very fine, two ounces of beaten ginger, and a large nutmeg grated. Then take a pound of treacle, a quarter of a pint of cream, and make them warm together. Work up the bread stiff, roll it out, and make it up into thin cakes. Cut them out with a tea-cup or small glass, or roll them round like nuts, and bake it in a slack oven on tin plates.

Bath Cakes or Buns.

TAKE half a pound of butter, and one pound of flour; rub the butter well into the flour; add five eggs, and a tea-cup full of yeast. Set the whole well mixed up before the fire to rise; when sufficiently rose, add a quarter of a pound of fine powder sugar, an ounce of carraways well mixed in, then roll them out in little cakes, and bake them on tins. They may either be eat for breakfast or tea.

Shrewsbury Cakes.

BEAT half a pound of butter to a fine cream, and put in the same weight of flour, one egg, six ounces of beaten and sifted loaf-sugar, and half an ounce of carraway seeds. Mix them with a paste, roll them thin, and cut them round with a small glass, or little tins; prick them, lay them on sheets of tin; and bake them in a slow oven.

Portugal Cakes.

MIX into a pound of fine flour a pound of loaf-sugar beat and sifted, and rub it into a pound of pure sweet butter till it is thick like grated white bread; then put to it two spoonsful of rose-water, two of sack, and ten eggs, and then work them well with a whisk, and put in eight ounces of currants. Butter the tin pans, fill them but half full, and bake them. If made without currants, they will keep half a year.

Saffron Cakes.

TAKE a quartern of fine flour, a pound and a half of butter, three ounces of carraway seeds, six eggs well beaten, a quarter of an ounce of cloves and mace fine beaten together, a little cinnamon pounded, a pound of sugar, a little rose-water and saffron, a pint and a half of yeast, and a quart of milk. Mix all together lightly in the following manner: first boil your milk and butter, then skim off the butter, and mix it with your flour, and a little of the milk. Stir the yeast into the rest, and strain it. Mix it with the flour, put in your seeds and spice, rose-water, tincture of saffron, sugar, and eggs. Beat it all well up, and bake it in a hoop or pan well buttered. Send it to a quick oven, and an hour and a half will do it.

Prussian Cakes.

TAKE half a pound of dried flour, a pound of beaten and sifted sugar, the yolks and whites of seven eggs beaten separately, the juice of a lemon, the peels of two finely grated, and half a pound of almonds beat fine with rose-water. When you have beat the whites of the eggs to a froth, put in the yolks, and every thing else except the flour, and beat them well together. Shake in the flour just before you set it in the oven, and be particularly careful to beat the whites and yolks separately, otherwise your cake will be heavy, and very unpleasant.

Queen Cakes.

TAKE a pound of sugar, and beat and sift it; a pound of well dried flour, a pound of butter, eight eggs, and half a pound of currants washed and picked; grate a nutmeg, and the same quantity of mace and cinnamon. Work your butter to a cream, and put in your sugar; beat the whites of your eggs near half an hour, and mix them with your sugar and butter. Then beat your yolks near half an hour, and put them to your butter. Beat the whole well together, and when it is ready for the oven put in your flour, spices, and currants. Sift a little sugar over them, and bake them in tins.

Almond Cakes.

TAKE two ounces of butter, and one pound of sweet almonds, blanched and beat, with a little rose or orange flower water, and the white of one egg; half a pound of sifted loaf sugar, eight yolks and three whites of eggs, the juice of half a lemon and the rind grated. Mix the whole well together, and either bake it in one large pan or several small ones.

Little Plum Cakes.

TAKE half a pound of sugar finely powdered, two pounds of flour well dried, four yolks and two whites of eggs, half a pound of butter washed with rose-water, six spoonsful of cream warmed, and a pound and a half of currants unwashed, but picked and rubbed very clean in a cloth. Mix all well together, then make them up into cakes, bake them in a hot oven, and let them stand half an hour till they are coloured on both sides. Then take down the oven lid, and let them stand to soak. You must rub the butter well into the flour, then the eggs and cream, and then the currants.

Ratifia Cakes.

FIRST blanch, and then beat half a pound of sweet almonds, and the same quantity of bitter almonds in fine orange, rose, or ratifia water, to keep the almonds from oiling. Take a pound of fine sugar pounded and sifted, and mix it with your almonds. Have ready the whites of four eggs well beaten, and mix them lightly with the almonds and sugar. Put it into a preserving pan, and set it over a moderate fire. Keep stirring it one way until it is pretty hot, and, when a little cool, form it in small rolls, and cut it into thin cakes. Dip your hands in flour, and shake them on them; give each a light tap with your finger, and put them on sugar papers. Sift a little sugar on them before you put them into the oven, which must be quite slack.

Apricot Cakes.

TAKE a pound of ripe apricots, scald and peel them, and, as soon as you find the skin will come off, take out the stones. Beat the fruit in a mortar to a pulp; then boil half a pound of double-refined sugar, with a spoonful of water, skim it well, and put to it the pulp of your apricots. Let it simmer a quarter of an hour over a slow fire, and keep stirring it all the time. Then pour it into shallow flat glasses, turn them out upon glass plates, put them into a stove, and turn them once a day till they are dry.

Orange Cakes.

QUARTER what quantity you please of Seville oranges that have very good rinds, and boil them in two or three waters till they are tender, and the bitterness gone off. Skim them, and then lay them on a clean napkin to dry. Take all the skins and seeds out of the pulp with a knife, shred the peels fine, put them to the pulp, weigh them, and put rather more than their weight of fine sugar into a pan, with just as much water as will dissolve it. Boil it till it becomes a perfect sugar, and then by degrees, put in your orange-peels and pulp. Stir them well before you set them on the fire; boil it very gently till it looks clear and thick, and then put them into flat-bottomed glasses. Set them in a stove, and keep them in a constant and moderate heat; and when they are candied on the top, turn them out upon glasses.

Lemon Cakes.

TAKE the whites of ten eggs, put to them three spoonsful of rose or orange-flower water, and beat them an hour with a whisk. Then put in a pound of beaten and sifted sugar, and grate into it the rind of a lemon. When it is well mixed put in the juice of half a lemon, and the yolks of ten eggs beat smooth.—Just before you put it into the oven, stir in three quarters of a pound of flour, butter your pan, put it into a moderate oven, and an hour will bake it.

Currant Cakes.

DRY well before a fire a pound and a half of fine flour, take a pound of butter, half a pound of fine loaf sugar well beaten and sifted, four yolks of eggs, four spoonsful of rose-water, the same of sack, a little mace, and a nutmeg grated. Beat the eggs well, and put them to the rose-water and sack. Then put to it the sugar and butter. Work them all together, and then strew in the currants and flour, having taken care to have them ready warmed for mixing. You may make six or eight cakes of them; but mind to bake them of a fine brown, and pretty crisp

Whigs.

PUT half a pint of warm milk to three quarters of a pound of fine flour, and mix in it two or three spoonsful of light barm. Cover it up, and set it before the fire an hour, in order to make it rise. Work into the paste four ounces of sugar, and the same quantity of butter. Make it into cakes or whigs, with as little flour as possible, and a few seeds, and bake them in a quick oven.

Common Biscuits.

BEAT eight eggs well up together, and mix with them a pound of sifted sugar with the rind of a lemon grated. Whisk it about till it looks light, and then put in a pound of flour, with a little rose-water. Sugar them over, and bake them on tins, or on papers.

Sponge Biscuits.

Beat the yolks of twelve eggs for half an hour; then put in a pound and a half of sugar beat and sifted, and whisk it till you see it rise in bubbles. Then beat the whites to a strong froth, and whisk them well with your sugar and yolks. Work in fourteen ounces of flour, with the rinds of two lemons grated. Bake them in tin moulds buttered, and in a quick oven.—They will take about half an hour baking; but before you put them into the oven, remember to sift pounded sugar over them.

Spanish Biscuits.

TAKE the yolks of eight eggs, beat them half an hour, and then put to them eight spoonsful of sifted sugar. Then beat the whites to a strong froth, and work them well with the yolks and sugar. Put in four spoonsful of flour, and a little lemon-peel cut fine. Mix all well together, and bake them on paper.

Drop Biscuits.

BEAT up the whites of six eggs, and the yolks of ten, with a spoonful of rose-water, and then put in ten ounces of beaten and sifted loaf sugar. Whisk them well for half an hour, and then add an ounce of carraway-seeds crushed a little, and six ounces of fine flour. Mix the whole well together, drop them on papers, and bake them in a moderately heated oven.

Lemon Biscuits.

TAKE the yolks often eggs, and the whites of five, and beat them well together, with four spoonsful of orange-flower water, till they froth up. Then put in a pound of loaf sugar sifted, beat it one way for half an hour or more, put in half a pound of flour, with the raspings of two lemons, and the pulp of a small one. Butter your tin, and bake it in a quick oven; but do not stop up the mouth at first, for fear it should scorch. Dust it with sugar before you put it into the oven.

Macaroons.

BLANCH and beat fine a pound of sweet almonds, and put to them a pound of sugar and a little rose-water, to keep them from oiling. Then beat the whites of seven eggs to a froth, put them in, and work the whole well together. Drop them on wafer-paper, grate sugar over them, and put them into the oven.

Green Caps.

HAVING gathered as many codlins as you want, just before they are ripe, green them in the same manner as for preserving. Then rub them over with a little oiled butter, grate double-refined sugar over them, and set them in the oven till they look bright, and sparkle like frost. Then take them out, and put them into a china dish. Make a very fine custard, and pour it round them. Stick single flowers in every apple, and serve them up.

Black Caps.

TAKE out the cores, and cut into halves twelve large apples. Place them on a tin patty-pan as close as they can lie, with the flat side downwards. Squeeze a lemon into two spoonsful of orange-flower water, and pour it over them. Shred some lemon-peel fine, and throw over them, and grate fine sugar over all. Set them in a quick oven, and half an hour will do them. When you send them to table, strew fine sugar all over the dish.

Snow Balls.

PARE and take out the cores of five large baking apples, and fill the holes with orange or quince marmalade. Then make some good hot paste, roll your apples in it, and make your crust of an equal thickness. Put them in a tin dripping-pan, bake them in a moderate oven, and when you take them out, make icing for them, directions for which you will find at the close of the second section in the next chapter. Let your icing be about a quarter of an inch thick, and set them at a good distance from the fire till they are hardened; but take care you do not let them brown. Put one in the middle of a dish, and the others round it.