The Lady's Own Cookery Book, and New Dinner-Table Directory Part 54

_Cocoa-nut Cakes._

Grate the cocoa-nut on a fine bread grater; boil an equal quant.i.ty of loaf-sugar, melted with six table-spoonfuls of rose-water; take off all the sc.u.m; throw in the grated cocoa-nut, and let it heat thoroughly in the syrup, and keep constantly stirring, to prevent its burning to the bottom of the pan. Have ready beaten the yolks of eight eggs, with two table-spoonfuls of rose-water; throw in the cocoa-nut by degrees, and keep beating it with a wooden slice one hour; then fill your pans, and send them to the oven immediately, or they will be heavy.

_Currant clear Cakes._

Take the currants before they are very ripe, and put them into water, scarcely enough to cover them; when they have boiled a little while, strain them through a woollen bag; put a pound and a quarter of fine sugar, boiled to a candy; then put a pint of the jelly, and make it scalding hot: put the whole into pots to dry, and, when jellied, turn them on gla.s.ses.

_Egg Cake._

Beat eight eggs, leaving out half the whites, for half an hour; half a pound of lump-sugar, pounded and sifted, to be put in during that time; then, by degrees, mix in half a pound of flour. Bake as soon after as possible. b.u.t.ter the tin.

_Enamelled Cake._

Beat one pound of almonds, with three quarters of a pound of fine sugar, to a paste; then put a little musk, and roll it out thin. Cut it in what shape you please, and let it dry. Then beat up isingla.s.s with white of eggs, and cover it on both sides.

_Epsom Cake._

Half a pound of b.u.t.ter beat to a cream, half a pound of sugar, four eggs, whites and yolks beat separately, half a quartern of French roll dough, two ounces of caraway seeds, and one tea-spoonful of grated ginger: if for a plum-cake, a quarter of a pound of currants.

_Ginger Cakes._

To a pound of sugar put half an ounce of ginger, the rind of a lemon, and four large spoonfuls of water. Stir it well together, and boil it till it is a stiff candy; then drop it in small cakes on a wet table.

_Ginger or Hunting Cakes._ No. 1.

Take three pounds of flour, two pounds of sugar, one pound of b.u.t.ter, two ounces of ginger, pounded and sifted fine, and a nutmeg grated. Rub these ingredients very fine in the flour, and wet it with a pint of cream, just warm, sufficiently to roll out into thin cakes. Bake them in a slack oven.

_Ginger or Hunting Cakes._ No. 2.

Rub half a pound of b.u.t.ter into a pound of flour; add a quarter of a pound of powder-sugar, one ounce of ginger, beat and sifted, the yolks of three eggs, and one gill of cream. A slow fire does them best.

_Ginger or Hunting Cakes._ No. 3.

One ounce of b.u.t.ter, one ounce of sugar, twelve grains of ginger, a quarter of a pound of flour, and treacle sufficient to make it into a paste; roll it out thin, and bake it.

_Gooseberry clear Cakes._

Take the gooseberries very green; just cover them with water, and, when they are boiled and mashed, strain them through a sieve or woollen bag, and squeeze it well. Then boil up a candy of a pound and a quarter of fine sugar to a pint of the jelly; put it into pots to dry in a stove, and, when they jelly, turn them out on gla.s.ses.

_Jersey Cake._

To a pound of flour take three quarters of a pound of fresh b.u.t.ter beaten to a cream, three quarters of a pound of lump sugar finely pounded, nine eggs, whites and yolks beaten separately, nutmeg to your taste. Add a gla.s.s of brandy.

_Jersey Merveilles._

One pound of flour, two ounces of b.u.t.ter, the same of sugar, a spoonful of brandy, and five eggs. When well mixed, roll out and make into fancy shapes, and boil in hot lard. The Jersey shape is a true-lover's knot.

_London Wigs._

Take a quarter of a peck of flour; put to it half a pound of sugar, and as much caraways, smooth or rough, as you like; mix these, and set them to the fire to dry. Then make a pound and half of b.u.t.ter hot over a gentle fire; stir it often, and add to it nearly a quart of milk or cream; when the b.u.t.ter is melted in the cream, pour it into the middle of the flour, and to it add a couple of wine-gla.s.ses of good white wine, and a full pint and half of very good ale yest; let it stand before the fire to rise, before you lay your cakes on the tin plates to bake.

_Onion Cake._

Slice onions thin; set them in b.u.t.ter till they are soft, and, when they are cold, put into a pan to a quart basin of these stewed onions three eggs, three spoonfuls of fine dried bread crumbs, salt, and three spoonfuls of cream. Put common pie-crust in a tin; turn it up all round, like a cheesecake, and spread the onions over the cake; beat up an egg, and with a brush spread it in, and bake it of a fine yellow.

_Orange Cakes._

Put the Seville oranges you intend to use into water for two days. Pare them very thick, and boil the rind tender. Mince it fine; squeeze in the juice; take out all the meat from the strings and put into it. Then take one-fourth more than its weight in double-refined sugar; wet it with water, and boil it almost to sugar again. Cool it a little; put in the orange, and let it scald till it looks clear and sinks in the syrup, but do not let it boil. Put it into deep gla.s.s plates, and stove them till they are candied on the tops. Turn them out, and shape them as you please with a knife. Continue to turn them till they are dry; keep them so, and between papers.

Lemon cakes are made in the same way, only with half the juice.

_Another way._

Take three large oranges; pare and rub them with salt; boil them tender and cut them in halves; take out the seeds; then beat your oranges, and rub them through a hair sieve till you have a pound; add one pound and a quarter of double-refined sugar, boiled till it comes to the consistency of sugar, and put in a pint of strong juice of pippins and juice of lemon; keep stirring it on the fire till the sugar is completely melted.

_Orange Clove Cake._

Make a very strong jelly of apples, and to every pint of jelly put in the peel of an orange. Set it on a quick fire, and boil it well; then run it through a jelly-bag and measure it. To every pint take a pound of fine sugar; set it on the fire, make it scalding hot, and strain it from the sc.u.m. Take the orange-peel, boiled very tender, shred it very small, and put it into it; give it another scald, and serve it out.

Lemon clove cake may be done the same way, but you must scald the peel before the sugar is put in.

_Orange-flower Cakes._

Dip sugar in water, and let it boil over a quick fire till it is almost dry sugar again. To half a pound of sugar, when it is perfectly clear, add seven spoonfuls of water; then put in the orange-flowers: just give the mixture a boil up; drop it on china or silver plates, and set them in the sun till the cakes are dry enough to be taken off.

_Plum Cake._ No. 1.

Take eight pounds and three quarters of fine flour well dried and sifted, one ounce of beaten mace, one pound and a half of sugar. Mix them together, and take one quart of cream and six pounds of b.u.t.ter, put together, and set them over the fire till the b.u.t.ter is melted. Then take thirty-three eggs, one quart of yest, and twelve spoonfuls of sack; put it into the flour, stir it well together, and, when well mixed, set it before the fire to rise for an hour. Then take ten pounds of currants washed and dried, and set them to dry before the fire, one pound of citron minced, one pound of orange and lemon-peel together, sliced. When your oven is ready, stir your cake thoroughly; put in your sweetmeats and currants; mix them well in, and put into tin hoops. The quant.i.ty here given will make two large cakes, which will take two hours' baking.