The Cook's Oracle; and Housekeeper's Manual Part 83

Leave out four ounces of flour from the last receipt, and add two ounces more of currants, and two ounces of candied peel cut small; work it the same as in the last receipt, and when ready put the measure into a biscuit-funnel,[378-*] and lay them out in drops about the size of half a crown, on white paper; bake them in a hot oven, and, when nearly cold, take them from the paper.

_Shrewsbury Cakes._--(No. 63.)

Rub well together one pound of pounded sugar, one pound of fresh b.u.t.ter, and one pound and a half of sifted flour, mix it into a paste, with half a gill of milk or cream, and one egg, let it lie half an hour, roll it out thin, cut it out into small cakes with a tin cutter, about three inches over, and bake them on a clean baking-plate in a moderate oven.

_Banbury Cakes._--(No. 64.)

Set a sponge with two table-spoonfuls of thick yest, a gill of warm milk, and a pound of flour; when it has worked a little, mix with it half a pound of currants, washed and picked, half a pound of candied orange and lemon peel cut small, one ounce of spice, such as ground cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and grated nutmeg: mix the whole together with half a pound of honey; roll out puff paste (No. 1,) a quarter of an inch thick, cut it into rounds with a cutter, about four inches over, lay on each with a spoon a small quant.i.ty of the mixture; close it round with the fingers in the form of an oval; place the join underneath; press it flat with the hand; sift sugar over it, and bake them on a plate a quarter of an hour, in a moderate oven, and of a light colour.

_Bath Buns._--(No. 65.)

Rub together with the hand one pound of fine flour, and half a pound of b.u.t.ter; beat six eggs, and add them to the flour, &c. with a table-spoonful of good yest; mix them all together, with about half a tea-cupful of milk; set it in a warm place for an hour, then mix in six ounces of sifted sugar, and a few caraway seeds; mould them into buns with a table-spoon, on a clean baking-plate; throw six or eight caraway comfits on each, and bake them in a hot oven about ten minutes. This quant.i.ty should make about eighteen.

_Sponge Biscuits._--(No. 66.)

Break into a round-bottomed preserving-pan[379-*] nine good-sized eggs, with one pound of sifted loaf sugar, and some grated lemon-peel; set the pan over a very slow fire, and whisk it till quite warm (but not too hot to set the eggs); remove the pan from the fire, and whisk it till cold, which may be a quarter of an hour; then stir in the flour lightly with a spattle; previous to which, prepare the sponge frame as follows:--Wipe them well out with a clean cloth, rub the insides with a brush dipped in b.u.t.ter, which has been clarified, and sift loaf sugar over; fill the frames with the mixture; throw pounded sugar over; bake them five minutes in a brisk oven: when done, take them from the frames, and lay them on a sieve.

_Savoy Cake, or Sponge Cake in a Mould._--(No. 67.)

Take nine eggs, their weight of sugar, and six of flour, some grated lemon, or a few drops of essence of lemon, and half a gill of orange-flower water, work them as in the last receipt; put in the orange-flower water when you take it from the fire; be very careful the mould is quite dry; rub it all over the inside with b.u.t.ter; put some pounded sugar round the mould upon the b.u.t.ter, and shake it well to get it out of the crevices: tie a slip of paper round the mould; fill it three parts full with the mixture, and bake it one hour in a slack oven; when done, let it stand for a few minutes, and take it from the mould, which may be done by shaking it a little.

_Biscuit Drops._--(No. 68.)

Beat well together in a pan one pound of sifted sugar with eight eggs for twenty minutes; then add a quarter of an ounce of caraway seeds, and one pound and a quarter of flour: lay wafer-paper on a baking-plate, put the mixture into a biscuit-funnel, and drop it out on the paper about the size of half a crown; sift sugar over, and bake them in a hot oven.

_Savoy Biscuits._--(No. 69.)

To be made as drop biscuits, omitting the caraways, and quarter of a pound of flour: put it into the biscuit-funnel, and lay it out about the length and size of your finger, on common shop paper; strew sugar over, and bake them in a hot oven; when cold, wet the backs of the paper with a paste-brush and water: when they have lain some time, take them carefully off, and place them back to back.

_Italian Macaroons._--(No. 70.)

Take one pound of Valentia or Jordan almonds, blanched, pound them quite fine with the whites of four eggs; add two pounds and a half of sifted loaf sugar, and rub them well together with the pestle; put in by degrees about ten or eleven more whites, working them well as you put them in; but the best criterion to go by in trying their lightness is to bake one or two, and if you find them heavy, put one or two more whites; put the mixture into a biscuit-funnel, and lay them out on wafer-paper, in pieces about the size of a small walnut, having ready about two ounces of blanched and dry almonds cut into slips, put three or four pieces on each, and bake them on wires, or a baking-plate, in a slow oven.

_Obs._--Almonds should be blanched and dried gradually two or three days before they are used, by which means they will work much better, and where large quant.i.ties are used, it is advised to grind them in a mill provided for that purpose.

_Ratafia Cakes._--(No. 71.)

To half a pound of blanched bitter, and half a pound of sweet, almonds, put the whites of four eggs; beat them quite fine in a mortar, and stir in two pounds and a quarter of loaf sugar, pounded and sifted; rub them well together with the whites (by degrees) of nine eggs (try their lightness as in the last receipt); lay them out from the biscuit-funnel on cartridge-paper, in drops about the size of a s.h.i.+lling, and bake them in a middling-heated oven, of a light brown colour, and take them from the papers as soon as cold.

N.B. A smaller pipe must be used in the funnel than for other articles.

_Almond Sponge Cake._--(No. 72.)

Pound in a mortar one pound of blanched almonds quite fine, with the whites of three eggs; then put in one pound of sifted loaf sugar, some grated lemon-peel, and the yelks of fifteen eggs--work them well together: beat up to a solid froth the whites of twelve eggs, and stir them into the other ingredients with a quarter of a pound of sifted dry flour: prepare a mould as at No. 67; put in the mixture, and bake it an hour in a slow oven: take it carefully from the mould, and set it on a sieve.

_Ratafia Cake._--(No. 73.)

To be made as above, omitting a quarter of a pound of sweet, and subst.i.tuting a quarter of a pound of bitter almonds.

_Diet Bread Cake._--(No. 74.)

Boil, in half a pint of water, one pound and a half of lump sugar; have ready one pint of eggs, three parts yelks, in a pan; pour in the sugar, and whisk it quick till cold, or about a quarter of an hour; then stir in two pounds of sifted flour; case the inside of square tins with white paper; fill them three parts full; sift a little sugar over, and bake it in a warm oven, and while hot remove them from the moulds.

_Orange Gingerbread._--(No. 75.)

Sift two pounds and a quarter of fine flour, and add to it a pound and three quarters of treacle, six ounces of candied orange-peel cut small, three quarters of a pound of moist sugar, one ounce of ground ginger, and one ounce of allspice: melt to an oil three quarters of a pound of b.u.t.ter; mix the whole well together, and lay it by for twelve hours; roll it out with as little flour as possible, about half an inch thick; cut it into pieces three inches long and two wide; mark them in the form of checkers with the back of a knife; put them on a baking-plate about a quarter of an inch apart; rub them over with a brush dipped into the yelk of an egg beat up with a tea-cupful of milk; bake it in a cool oven about a quarter of an hour: when done, wash them slightly over again, divide the pieces with a knife (as in baking they will run together).

_Gingerbread Nuts._--(No. 76.)

To two pounds of sifted flour, put two pounds of treacle, three quarters of a pound of moist sugar, half a pound of candied orange-peel cut small, one ounce and a half of ground ginger, one ounce of ground caraways, and three quarters of a pound of b.u.t.ter oiled: mix all well together, and set it by some time; then roll it out in pieces about the size of a small walnut; lay them in rows on a baking-plate; dress them flat with the hand, and bake them in a slow oven about ten minutes.

_Plain Buns._--(No. 77.)

To four pounds of sifted flour put one pound of good moist sugar; make a cavity in the centre, and stir in a gill of good yest, a pint of lukewarm milk, with enough of the flour to make it the thickness of cream; cover it over, and let it lie two hours; then melt to an oil (but not hot) one pound of b.u.t.ter, stir it into the other ingredients, with enough warm milk to make it a soft paste; throw a little flour over, and let them lie an hour; have ready a baking-platter rubbed over with b.u.t.ter; mould with the hand the dough into buns, about the size of a large egg; lay them in rows full three inches apart; set them in a warm place for half an hour, or till they have risen to double their size; bake them in a hot oven of a good colour, and wash them over with a brush dipped into milk when drawn from the oven.

_Cross Buns._--(No. 78.)

To the above mixture put one ounce and a half of ground allspice, cinnamon, and mace, mixed; and when half proved, press the form of a cross with a tin mould (made for the purpose) in the centre, and proceed as above.

_Seed Buns._--(No. 79.)

Take two pounds of plain bun dough (No. 77), and mix in one ounce of caraway seeds; b.u.t.ter the insides of small tart-pans; mould the dough into buns, and put one in each pan; set them to rise in a warm place; and when sufficiently proved, ice them with the white of an egg beat to a froth, and laid on with a paste-brush; some pounded sugar upon that, and dissolve it with water splashed from the brush: bake them in a warm oven about ten minutes.

_Plum Buns._--(No. 80.)

To two pounds of No. 77 mixture, put half a pound of currants, a quarter of a pound of candied orange-peel cut into small pieces, half a nutmeg grated, half an ounce of mixed spice, such as allspice, cinnamon, &c.: mould them into buns; jag them round the edge with a knife, and proceed as with plain buns, No. 77.

_Orgeat._--(No. 81.)