Note.—Some small bits of candied orange-peel sprinkled on the bottom of the dish before the batter is put in give a delicious flavor to the pudding.
Note.—Some small bits of candied orange-peel sprinkled on the bottom of the dish before the batter is put in give a delicious flavor to the pudding.
Puddingsauces are quickly made. They call for but few materials, and, like other sauces, often give the whole character to the dish. Serving the same pudding with a different sauce, makes it a different dish; therefore it is well to vary as much as possible the combinations. Farina pudding can be served with almost any of the sauces given below. Cake, cornstarch, rice, apple, or bread puddings can also be served with almost any sauce, if the flavorings are the same, or such as go well together. Hot puddings can be served with cold sauces. Jellies, creams, and blanc-manges can be served with whipped cream, the fruit sauces, or the whipped egg sauces.
Stewed prunes or compote of orange are good to serve with plain boiled rice, or with sweetened hominy, farina, or cerealine molded in cups.
Dilute the corn-starch with a little cold water, and stir it into the boiling water; add the sugar and stir until the starch becomes clear; then add the butter and flavoring. If the sauce becomes too thick, dilute it with a little boiling water; the whipped white of one egg may be added, but is not essential.
Stir a heaping teaspoonful of corn-starch, which has been moistened with a little cold milk, into a pint of boiling milk, and stir for five minutes, or until it is well cooked; add three quarters of a cupful of sugar, and remove from the fire. When the mixture is cold flavor it, and just before serving beat in the whipped whites of two eggs and serve at once.
(FOR FRUIT PUDDINGS OR CROQUETTES)
Cream the butter; add the sugar, and cream again thoroughly; then add the yolks and beat until light; add the hot water and the nutmeg. Place it in a saucepan of hot water, and beat, adding slowly the lemon-juice and the wine. The sauce should be foamy.
(STEAMED AND BAKED PUDDINGS)
Cream the butter and sugar; add the vanilla and wine, and beat them well. Just before serving stir in the boiling water; add the whipped white of one egg, and beat until foamy.
(FRUIT OR PLUM PUDDINGS)
Put in a saucepan two cupfuls of water with one cupful of sugar. When the sugar is dissolved and the water boils, add slowly a heaping tablespoonful of corn-starch or arrowroot diluted with a little cold water; stir until the corn-starch is clear; then remove from the fire, and add two tablespoonfuls of the liquor. Serve it hot.
Beat in a small saucepan the eggs and sugar to a light cream; add the wine. When ready to serve, place the saucepan in another one containing hot water, and beat until the sugar is melted and the egg beginning to thicken.
Put one cup of sugar, one half cup of sherry, and one egg all together in a saucepan and whip over the fire until it is a little thickened.
Put two cupfuls of sugar and three tablespoonfuls of water into a saucepan on the fire, and stir until the sugar is dissolved; then let it boil without touching until it is a light syrup, and remove from the fire; add a teaspoonful of butter and flavoring, which may be fruit juice, liqueur, brandy, or flavoring extract.
Canned fruits, preserves, or jams make good sauces for blanc-mange, corn-starch, rice, or boiled puddings.
The juice of canned fruit, boiled and thickened a little with arrowroot, and flavored or not with liqueur or essence, makes a good hot sauce.
Dilute one half cupful of apricot jam with one half cupful of hot water; sweeten if necessary; strain and flavor with vanilla or one teaspoonful of Madeira or maraschino.
Strawberries, raspberries, peaches and apricots make excellent pudding sauces. Mash the fruit and press it through a colander or coarse sieve; sweeten to taste; serve hot or cold; if hot, let it come to the boiling-point and thicken with arrowroot, using one teaspoonful to a cupful of purée.
Chop the pineapple (fresh or canned) fine; sweeten and thicken with arrowroot. Serve with fritters, corn-starch, rice, or batter puddings.
Beat the yolks and sugar to a cream; pour over them the scalded milk; return to the fire to cook the eggs, but let it only slightly thicken; remove; add the flavoring and beat with a wire whip to make it light and foamy. When served with plum pudding add rum or brandy to flavor it. Almonds chopped fine improve it for hot puddings.
Put a half cupful each of sugar and water in a saucepan and let boil five minutes. Let the syrup cool, then stir it slowly into four ounces of unsweetened chocolate melted; add one half teaspoonful of vanilla. Let it stand in a pan of hot water until ready to serve; then add one half cupful of cream or of milk.447-*
Put in a saucepan one cupful of white wine, one cupful of hot water, and sugar to taste; add the zest of one half of an orange and one half of a lemon; let it come to the boiling-point; remove from the fire; take out the orange and lemon peel and add one half cupful of seedless raisins, one tablespoonful ofshredded almonds, and a tablespoonful of finely shredded candied orange and lemon peel; cover and let stand a half-hour. When ready to serve let it again come to the boiling-point. Serve with cabinet puddings.
Put one cupful of sugar into a saucepan with one cupful of boiling water; let it boil five minutes; add one teaspoonful of arrowroot moistened with a little water, and cook until clear; then remove from fire. Flavor with one tablespoonful of kirsch and add two tablespoonfuls of shredded almonds and candied cherries cut into small pieces.
Whip the whites of two or three eggs to a very stiff froth. Take as many tablespoonfuls of sugar as you have egg-whites; add a little water and let it cook to the ball (see page512), or so that when dropped into water it will roll into a ball between the fingers. Turn this hot syrup slowly onto the whipped eggs, beating all the time; then beat it over the fire for a minute where the heat is moderate. This is called Italian meringue. Remove it from the fire and add a little lemon-juice or kirsch to take away the excessive sweetness; or a little currant jelly can be used, also grated orange-peel and shredded candied peel; serve it at once. This is a good sauce for soufflés or light puddings.
Beat together one half cupful of butter and one cupful of sugar until they are very white and light; flavor with vanilla, wine, or brandy. The success of this sauce depends upon its being beaten a long time. It may be varied by beating with it the yolk of an egg, or adding the whipped white of an egg after the butter and sugar are beaten. Let it stand on ice to harden a little before serving.
Make a hard sauce as directed above; add the whipped white of one egg and a cupful of strawberries mashed to a pulp. Any fruit-pulp may be added in the same way and makes a good sauce for fruit puddings.
Make a hard sauce as directed above; add the yolks of two eggs; when it is very light and creamy add the whipped whites and a cupful of grated cocoanut.
Stir a half glassful of grape, currant, or any jelly until smooth; then beat into it lightly the whipped whites of two eggs. Serve with any light pudding or with jelly.
423-*If unsweetened chocolate is used, add about three more tablespoonfuls of sugar or to taste, and a teaspoonful of vanilla.447-*This sauce should be smooth and of the consistency of heavy cream. If it is to be used with ice-cream, omit the cream or milk and make it of the right consistency with water. See also page435.—M. R.
423-*If unsweetened chocolate is used, add about three more tablespoonfuls of sugar or to taste, and a teaspoonful of vanilla.
447-*This sauce should be smooth and of the consistency of heavy cream. If it is to be used with ice-cream, omit the cream or milk and make it of the right consistency with water. See also page435.—M. R.
Seasons.TheAmerican pie is perhaps the most ridiculed of all dishes. It has, however, great popularity and undoubted merits. Were the crust, especially the under one, always right, it would remove the most salient point of criticism. The tart pies, made with puff-paste, are a temptation to the most fastidious taste. The mince pie, probably the most indigestible of all, is the one universally accepted as a treat, and seldom refused by the scoffer. Pies have their seasons, like other good things, the apple pie being the only one served the year round. The berries and fruits, each one in their time, make most acceptable and delicious pies and tarts, while rhubarb introduces the spring, and pumpkin announces the autumn. In this day of canned and dried fruits the season need not be so strictly observed, but fresh fruits will always be preferable to preserved ones, and tradition goes far to hold the place for pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving, and mince pie at the Christmas feasts.
Seasons.TheAmerican pie is perhaps the most ridiculed of all dishes. It has, however, great popularity and undoubted merits. Were the crust, especially the under one, always right, it would remove the most salient point of criticism. The tart pies, made with puff-paste, are a temptation to the most fastidious taste. The mince pie, probably the most indigestible of all, is the one universally accepted as a treat, and seldom refused by the scoffer. Pies have their seasons, like other good things, the apple pie being the only one served the year round. The berries and fruits, each one in their time, make most acceptable and delicious pies and tarts, while rhubarb introduces the spring, and pumpkin announces the autumn. In this day of canned and dried fruits the season need not be so strictly observed, but fresh fruits will always be preferable to preserved ones, and tradition goes far to hold the place for pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving, and mince pie at the Christmas feasts.
PLAIN PASTRY FOR PIES
This quantity gives enough for three or four pies. Cottolene makes good pastry. The shortening may be mixed, but the flavor is better where butter alone is used. The richness of pastry depends upon the amount of shortening used.
Sift the salt and flour together, reserving a little flour for the board. With a knife, cut the butter into the flour. Add the water a little at a time, and mix it in lightly with the knife; turn it onto the board, and roll it twice—that is, after it is rolled out once, fold it together and roll it again. If the paste is wanted richer for the top crust, put bits of butter over the paste when rolled; fold and roll it again several times. Fold the paste, and put it in the ice-box for an hour before using, keeping it covered. In making pastry everything should be cold, the handling light, and the hands used as little as possible. Paste will keep several days in a cool place, but should be rolled in a napkin, so it will not dry and form a crust.
To Put a Pie Together.—Roll the paste one eighth inch thick, and a little larger than the tin. Dust the pan with flour; place the paste on it, letting it shrink all it will. Lift it from the sides to fit it into place, and press it as little as possible. Cut a narrow strip of paste, and lay around the edge; moisten it so it will stick. Brush the top of the bottom crust with white of egg, so the filling will not soak in and make it heavy. Put in the filling, and cover with another sheet of pastry. Moisten the top of the strip of pastry so the top crust will adhere to it; this gives three layers around the edge. Trim and press them lightly together. Cut several slits in the top crust to let the steam escape in cooking.
A thin piece of paste cut into fancy shape can be placed in the center for ornament if desired.
Sift the flour, salt, and sugar together. Cut in the butter as directed above. Mix in the beaten yolks, then enough water to make a paste which is not very stiff; roll it two or three times, then wrap it in a cloth, or cover it closely, and put it in the ice-box for an hour. This gives enough paste for four small tart pies like those shown in illustration.
(APRICOT, PLUM, APPLE, BERRY)
Roll the paste one eighth of an inch thick, lay it on a deep pie-dish; let it shrink all it will, and use as little pressure as possible in fitting it to the tin. Cut the paste an inch larger than the dish, and fold it under, giving a high twisted edge. Prick the paste on the bottom in several places with a fork. Lay over it a thin paper, and fill the tart with rice, dried peas, beans, cornmeal, or any dry material convenient. Brush the edge with egg, and bake it in a moderate oven. When done remove the rice, or other filling, and the paper. Brush the bottom with white of egg. This will insure a dry under crust. If apricots or peaches are to be used, peel and cut them in halves, lay them evenly over the tart with the center side up.
Place the half of a blanched almond in each one to represent the pit. Put the juice of the fruit into a saucepan on the fire; if there is no juice use a cupful of water. Sweeten to taste, and when it boils add to each cupful of juice one teaspoonful of arrowroot dissolved in a little cold water, and let it cook until clear; then pour it around the fruit, but not over it, as the fruit should lie on top and show its form. Place in the oven only long enough to cook the fruit tender. If canned fruit is used, cook the juice and arrowroot until a littlethickened and clear; then pour it around the fruit, and let cool. It will not need to be put in the oven.
When plums or cherries are used, remove the pits carefully, and place the fruit close together, with the whole side up. For apple tarts, cut the apples in even quarters or eighths; stew them in sweetened water, with a little lemon-juice added, until tender. Lay them overlapping in even rows or circles in the tart. To a cupful of water in which the apples were stewed add a teaspoonful of arrowroot, and cook until clear; pour it over the apples, sprinkle with sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon. With berries, the fruit may be stewed or not before being placed in the tart; then strips of paste are laid across it, like lattice-work, and the paste brushed with egg. Bake long enough to cook the fruit and the strips of paste. When cold place a fresh berry on each piece of crust where it crosses; or place a drop of meringue on the crusts, and the berries in the openings.
The California canned fruits, costing thirty-five cents, make very good pies. One can of fruit will make two pies. Tart-rings are better to use than pie-tins, as the sides are straight. Place them on a baking-sheet, or tin, before lining them with pastry.
See captionTART RINGS AND CRUSTS.1, 2. Tart Rings.3. Crust baked in ring No. 1.4. Crust filled with rice as prepared for baking. (See page452)
See captionTART PIES.1. Pie filled with quarters of apples arranged in rows.2. Pie filled with apricots cut in halves—a blanched almond in the center of each piece. (See page452.)
Beat the yolks and the sugar together; add the flour, the milk, and the grated rind and juice of the orange. Place it on the fire in a double boiler, and stir until it is a little thickened; then pour it into an open or tart pie, and bake thirty minutes. The crust of the pie should be brushed with white of egg before adding the thickened mixture. The tart crust may be first baked, as directed above, if preferred. Cover the top with meringue made with the whites of the eggs and sweetened with three tablespoonfuls of sugar. Pile it on irregularly, orpress it through a pastry-bag into fancy shapes. Place it in the oven a moment to brown. A little more flour may be used if the pie is wanted more solid.
Fill a pie with apples sliced thin, using enough to make the pie at least an inch thick when done. Add a little water to the apples, and cover with a top crust which is a little richer than the under one. This is done by rolling out a part of the same paste, covering it with bits of butter, folding it together, and rolling it again, repeating the operation two or three times. Cut a few slits in the paste to let out the steam while cooking. Brush the top with beaten yolk of egg.
When the pie is baked, and while it is still hot, lift off carefully the top crust; add sugar, nutmeg, and a little butter, and mix them well with the apples. Replace the top crust, and dust it with powdered sugar. Apple pies seasoned in this way are better than when seasoned before being baked.
Cut a pumpkin into small pieces; remove the soft part and seeds. Cover and cook it slowly in its own steam until tender; then remove the cover and reduce it almost to dryness, using care that it does not burn. Press it through a colander. To two and one half cupfuls of pulp add two cupfuls of milk, one teaspoonful each of salt, butter, cinnamon, and ginger, one tablespoonful of molasses, two eggs, and sugar to taste. Add the beaten eggs last and after the mixture is cold. Pour it into an open crust and bake slowly forty to fifty minutes. Squash pies are made in the same way, but are not the same in flavor, although they are often given the name of pumpkin pies.
Mix the meat and suet together; then add all the dry ingredients and then the liquids. Pack in an earthen jar. It should stand several days before using, and will keep an indefinite time.
The pies should be made of good puff paste for the upper crust and tart paste for the under one, the edge having three layers as directed on page451. The filling of mince meat should be one and a half inches thick. Paint the top crust with egg and trace with a pointed knife some simple design on it, cutting the paste very slightly. Bake for one hour and a quarter. Glaze the top by sifting a very little powdered sugar over it a few minutes before removing it from the oven.
Sift the flour and baking-powder together; beat the yolks and sugar together; add the flour and lastly the whipped whites of the eggs. Bake this cake mixture in two layers, and place between them when cold, and just before serving, a thick layer of whipped cream. Have the top piece covered with aboiled icing, or use between the cakes a cream filling made as follows:
Scald the milk; turn it onto the beaten egg; return it to the fire; add the flour moistened with a little milk, and the sugar, and stir until thickened. Let it cool before adding it to the cake. Serve with whipped cream if desired.
Line a tin basin which is two inches deep with pie paste, and bake it as directed for tart pies (page452). Make a custard of one pint of milk, three egg-yolks, three tablespoonfuls of sugar, and two tablespoonfuls of corn-starch. Scald the milk and turn it onto the yolks and sugar beaten together; return it to the fire; add the corn-starch moistened with cold milk, and stir until well thickened; add one half teaspoonful of vanilla, and the whites of two eggs whipped to a froth; cook one minute to set the egg, then remove, and when nearly cold and stiffened stir in the half of a grated cocoanut. Brush the bottom of the baked pie-crust with white of egg; cover it with a thin layer of grated cocoanut and turn in the thickened custard. Cover the top with meringue made with the white of one egg. Return it to the oven one minute to color the meringue. Let the pie stand long enough to get firm and cold before serving. If the grated cocoanut is not added until the custard has stiffened, it will not sink to the bottom.
Chop one cupful of cranberries and a half cupful of seeded raisins together into small pieces; add to them a cupful of sugar, a half cupful of water, a tablespoonful of flour, and a teaspoonful of vanilla. Bake with an upper and under crust. This resembles cherry pie.
Make two round layer cakes, of sponge or of Genoese cake; spread between them a layer of pastry cream or of chocolate filling. Dust the top with powdered sugar in crossed lines to imitate strips of pastry.
Pastry Cream—Boil with a pint of milk or water five tablespoonfuls of sugar; add two tablespoonfuls of corn-starch, the yolks of five eggs, and a tablespoonful of butter; stir until thickened, add flavoring, and when partly cool spread it on the cake.
Chocolate Filling—Mix a half cupful of milk and a cupful of sugar, and stir until the sugar is dissolved; then add an ounce of shaved chocolate, and the beaten yolks of two eggs; stir until it is thickened; flavor with one half teaspoonful of vanilla, and let it partly cool before spreading it on the cake.
Itis a mistake to consider the making of puff-paste too difficult for any but an experienced cook to undertake. No one need hesitate to attempt it, and if the few simple rules are strictly observed there will be success. The materials are few and inexpensive, and within the compass of the most moderate household. If light, good pastry can be substituted for the sodden crust of the ordinary pie, it will be found not only more palatable, but far more digestible and wholesome. Confections of puff-paste can be served on all occasions, and always make an acceptable dish, whereas ordinary pastry is excluded from any but the most informal service.
The most important rule for making puff-paste, and the secret of success, is to have cold paste and a hot oven. It is well to have a marble slab to roll it on, but this is not positivelyessential. A warm, damp day should be avoided. The paste will keep on ice for a day or two before it is baked, and for several days in a dry place after it is baked, and if placed in the oven for a few moments just before serving, it will have the same crispness as when just baked. If there is no room colder than the kitchen to work in when mixing the paste, stand by an open window or in a current of air, for it is necessary to keep the paste cold during the whole time of preparing it. Use pastry flour if convenient (Plant’s St. Louis Flour). It can be obtained at all first-class grocers. It has a very fine grain, and can easily be distinguished from ordinary flour by rubbing a little between the thumb and forefinger.
1st. Put the butter in a bowl of ice-water, and work it with the hand until it becomes smooth and flexible; then place it in a napkin and knead it a little to free it from moisture. Pat it into a flat square cake, and place it on the ice until ready to use.
2d. Sift the flour and salt together on a board or marble slab; reserve a little flour to be used for dusting the slab. Make a well in the center, and pour in a part of the water. Work in the flour, and use enough water to make a smooth paste. The exact amount of water cannot be given, as at certain times the flour absorbs more than at others. Gather in all the crumbs, and work the paste as you would bread dough until it becomes smooth. Roll it in a napkin, and place it on ice for fifteen minutes, that it may become thoroughly cold.
See captionTHREE PANS ARRANGED FOR CHILLING PUFF PASTE—THE UPPER AND UNDER ONES HOLDING CRACKED ICE, THE CENTER ONE HOLDING THE PASTE WRAPPED IN A NAPKIN.
3d. Sprinkle the slab lightly with flour. Roll the cold paste into a square piece; place the cold butter in the center, and fold the paste over it, first from the sides and then the ends, keeping the shape square, and folding so the butter is completely incased, and cannot escape through the folds whenrolled. This must be absolutely guarded against at all times, and can be prevented if the paste is rolled evenly and folded properly. Turn the folded side down, and with a rolling-pin roll it lightly away from you into a long, narrow strip, keeping it as even as possible. Fold it over, making three even layers of paste. This is called “giving it one turn”; then roll the folded strip again, and fold as before. This must be repeated until it has had six turns, which is as many as it should receive to give it its greatest lightness. After each turn, if it shows signs of softening, otherwise after each two turns, wrap the paste in a napkin, and place it in a pan, which should be placed between two other pans containing cracked ice, and let it remain there twenty to thirty minutes. Great care must be used in rolling the paste to keep the edges even, so that the layers will be even, and to roll lightly and always away from you, so as not to break the air-bubbles which give the lightness to the paste. The rolling is made easier by lightly pounding as well as rolling the paste. After each folding press the edges gently with the rolling-pin to shut in the air, and turn the paste so as to roll in a different direction. The paste should slip on the slab. If it does not, it sticks, and must be put on the ice at once. When it has had six turns cut it into the desired forms, and place again on the ice for twenty to thirty minutes before putting it in the oven. The trimmings, put together and rolled, make a good bottom crust for tart bands, or a top crust for mince pies.
The baking of puff-paste is as important a matter as the rolling. The oven must be very hot, with the greatest heat at the bottom, so the paste may rise before it begins to brown; therefore put it on the bottom of the oven and lay a paper on the shelf for a few minutes. Do not open the door for the first five minutes. It is essential to have the oven very hot. It must not, however, scorch the paste, and if it scorches open the draughts at once, and place a basin of ice-water in the oven to lower the temperature. The amount given in this receipt makes about six pâté shells or one vol-au-vent case.
Roll puff-paste which has had six turns to a quarter-inch thickness; cut it into circles with a fluted or plain cutter two and a quarter inches in diameter. It should be icy-cold when cut, for if it sticks on one side it will not rise evenly. From one half the circles cut a hole in the center with a cutter one inch in diameter. Moisten the edges of the whole circles, and place on them the rings. Brush over the top with egg. (This is to glaze them, and the egg must not touch the edges.) Place them on the ice for half an hour, then bake in hot oven for twenty minutes. Bake the small circles cut from the center on a separate tin, as they do not require as much time; when baked pick out from the center any uncooked paste. Use the small pieces for covers after the cases are filled. If preferred, roll the paste one half inch thick, and with the small cutter cut half-way through the paste. When baked lift off the inner circle, and remove the uncooked paste from the interior.
See captionPÂTÉ SHELLS.
Make a good short paste, using the receipt for tart paste. Roll it one eighth inch thick, and cut it into a circle six inches in diameter, using a basin for guide. Wet the edges and lay around it a band of puff-paste cut in a strip one and one half inches wide and one quarter inch thick. Place the strip neatly and carefully around the edge, using care not to press it; cut the edges that are to join in a sharp diagonal line, and moisten them so they will adhere. Prick the bottom crust in many places with a fork to prevent its puffing up; brush the top of the band with egg, but do not let the egg touch the edges; let it rest on ice for half an hour, then bake in hot oven thirty to forty minutes.
When ready to serve fill it with jam, preserves, purée, or any other mixture used for tart pies.
These tarts are very good, and can be served where pies would not be admissible.
Roll puff-paste turned six times to the thickness of one half inch; cut it with a pastry wheel into pieces three inches long and one inch wide. Brush the tops of the pieces with egg, and sprinkle them with sugar. Let them stand on ice one half hour, and then bake in a hot oven for twenty minutes, or until well browned; these are served in place of cakes. Or, cut the paste three and a half inches long and two inches wide, and when baked place two pieces together with a thin layer of apricot jam between them, and cover the top with meringue. These are served as a dessert dish for luncheon.
Cut puff-paste into rings the same as for pâté shells. Use tart paste for the under crust. After they are baked fill the center with pineapple, with any preserves, or with apple purée covered with apricot jam.
Roll puff-paste one eighth inch thick; cut it with a pastry wheel into squares of three and a half to four inches. Turn the points together in the middle, and press them down lightly. Bake; then put a spoonful of jam in the center of each, and cover the jam with meringue; place them in the oven a moment to brown.
Take an egg and one tablespoonful of water, and beat the egg enough to break it, but not enough to make it froth. The yolk alone may be used with the water, but the white alone will not give it color. Brush it lightly over the pastry, using a brush or quill-feather, and dust it with a very little sugar. This will give a brown and polished surface to the pastry.
When two layers of pastry are to be stuck together, brush the top of one with water, and lay the other on it before baking them.
Baking.Themost difficult part of cake-making is the baking. Unless the oven is right, the cake will be a failure, no matter how carefully it may have been mixed.RULESHave everything ready before beginning to mix the cake.Have the weights and measures exact.Fire.Have the fire so it will last through the baking, and the heat of the oven just right (seebelow), for on this the success of the cake mostly depends.Do not mix the cake until the oven is entirely ready for it to go in.Sift the flour before measuring it.If baking-powder or cream of tartar is used, sift it with the flour.Mix in an earthen bowl with a wooden spoon.Beat the yolks and whites of the eggs separately.Grease the tins with lard, as butter blackens.For some cakes it is better to line the pans with paper.Fruit.When fruit is used, roll it in flour, and add it the last thing.If the fruit is wanted in layers, add it while the mixture is being poured into the tins.Salt.Add one quarter teaspoonful of salt to all cakes.Sugary crust.If a sugary crust is wanted, sprinkle the top with sugar before the cake is baked.Cause of cracking.If the cake cracks open as it rises, too much flour has been used.Uneven rising.If it rises in a cone in the center, the oven is too hot.Beating.Beating eggs and butter makes them light, beating flour makes it tough; hence the rule to add it last.Adding white of egg.When the whipped whites are added do not stir, but turn or fold them in lightly, so as not to break the air-cells.Pans, how filled.In filling the pans let the mixture be a little higher on the sides than in the middle.Soda and baking powder.When molasses is used, baking-powder (also cream of tartar) must be omitted, and soda alone used for raising the cake.Equivalents.One teaspoonful of baking-powder is the equivalent of one teaspoonful of cream of tartar, and one half teaspoonful of soda.HOW TO BEAT EGGSWhites.Place the whites on a flat dish, being careful that not a particle of the yolk gets in. Add a pinch of salt, and with a daisy beater held flat whip the whites with an upward motion to a stiff, dry froth. It will take but a very few minutes if the eggs are fresh and cold.Yolks.Put the yolks in an earthen bowl, and with a wooden or silver spoon beat them until a lemon color. If sugar is used add it at this time, and stir until the whole becomes light and creamy.HOW TO LINE TINS WITH PAPERTurn the tin bottom side up, lay over it the paper, and crease the circle for the bottom. Cut the paper in several places down to the circular mark, fold itaround the pan, and cut away the paper that doubles over. Grease the paper, and fit it neatly inside the pan, leaving an inch of paper rising above the edge.See captionCAKE TINS AND BAKING SHEET.HOW TO GREASE PANSFlouring tins.Warm the pan, and with a brush spread evenly the lard or cottolene. For flat tins to be used for small cakes, brush them lightly with oil; then with a paper or cloth rub them dry, and sprinkle with flour. Jar them so the flour will completely cover them; then turn over the tins, and strike them against the table. All the superfluous flour will fall, leaving the tins lightly coated with flour. This will give a clean surface to the bottom of the cake.HOW TO BAKE CAKERising.The oven should be only moderately hot at first, so that the cake can get heated through, and can rise before forming a crust; the heat should then be increased, so that when the cake has been in the oven one half the time required for baking a light crust will be formed. It should rise evenly, and be smooth on top. When it rises in a cone in the center it is because the oven is too hot, and a crust has formed on the edges before it has had time to rise. Sometimes it rises on one side, showing the oven is hotter on one side than the other, in which case it should be turned or a screen interposed; but it must be done with the greatest care. Moving or jarring the cake before the air-cells are fixed is almost sure to cause it to fall. Do not open the oven door for the first five minutes, and then open and shut it very gently, so as not to jar the cake.Time.Cake takes from fifteen minutes to an hour to bake, according to its kind and thickness. A hotter oven is needed for a thin cake than for a thick one. It is done when it shrinks from the pan, andmakes no singing noise; or when a broom straw run into it comes out clean and smooth. Be sure the cake is done before removing it from the oven. Let it stand a few minutes in the tin, and it will then come out easily. Always handle the cake carefully.Tests for the oven.The following test for the oven is given by Miss Parloa. Put in a piece of white paper. If at the end of five minutes the paper is a rich yellow color, the oven is right for sponge-cake; if light yellow, it is too cool; if dark brown, too hot. For pound or butter-cakes, it should be light yellow at the end of five minutes. For gingerbreads and thin rolled cakes, it should be dark brown.MIXING SPONGE-CAKESCream the yolks and sugar together. Add the flavoring and water; then fold in the beaten whites, and lastly the flour, sprinkling it in, and lightly folding, not stirring it in. If baking-powder is used, it is mixed with the flour.MIXING CAKE MADE WITH BUTTERRub the butter until it is light and smooth. Add the sugar, and stir until creamy. If there is too much sugar to mix with the butter, beat one half with the yolks of the eggs. Add the beaten yolks to the creamed butter and sugar. (If only a little butter is used melt it, and add it to the yolks and sugar.) Next add the flavoring, and then the milk and flour alternately, until all are in. Beat the batter a few minutes to give it fine grain; then fold in the whipped whites of the eggs lightly. If fruit is used, flour and add it the last thing. Turn it into the pans, and put it at once into a moderate oven.465-*
Baking.Themost difficult part of cake-making is the baking. Unless the oven is right, the cake will be a failure, no matter how carefully it may have been mixed.
Have everything ready before beginning to mix the cake.
Have the weights and measures exact.
Fire.Have the fire so it will last through the baking, and the heat of the oven just right (seebelow), for on this the success of the cake mostly depends.
Do not mix the cake until the oven is entirely ready for it to go in.
Sift the flour before measuring it.
If baking-powder or cream of tartar is used, sift it with the flour.
Mix in an earthen bowl with a wooden spoon.
Beat the yolks and whites of the eggs separately.
Grease the tins with lard, as butter blackens.
For some cakes it is better to line the pans with paper.
Fruit.When fruit is used, roll it in flour, and add it the last thing.
If the fruit is wanted in layers, add it while the mixture is being poured into the tins.
Salt.Add one quarter teaspoonful of salt to all cakes.
Sugary crust.If a sugary crust is wanted, sprinkle the top with sugar before the cake is baked.
Cause of cracking.If the cake cracks open as it rises, too much flour has been used.
Uneven rising.If it rises in a cone in the center, the oven is too hot.
Beating.Beating eggs and butter makes them light, beating flour makes it tough; hence the rule to add it last.
Adding white of egg.When the whipped whites are added do not stir, but turn or fold them in lightly, so as not to break the air-cells.
Pans, how filled.In filling the pans let the mixture be a little higher on the sides than in the middle.
Soda and baking powder.When molasses is used, baking-powder (also cream of tartar) must be omitted, and soda alone used for raising the cake.
Equivalents.One teaspoonful of baking-powder is the equivalent of one teaspoonful of cream of tartar, and one half teaspoonful of soda.
Whites.Place the whites on a flat dish, being careful that not a particle of the yolk gets in. Add a pinch of salt, and with a daisy beater held flat whip the whites with an upward motion to a stiff, dry froth. It will take but a very few minutes if the eggs are fresh and cold.Yolks.Put the yolks in an earthen bowl, and with a wooden or silver spoon beat them until a lemon color. If sugar is used add it at this time, and stir until the whole becomes light and creamy.
Turn the tin bottom side up, lay over it the paper, and crease the circle for the bottom. Cut the paper in several places down to the circular mark, fold itaround the pan, and cut away the paper that doubles over. Grease the paper, and fit it neatly inside the pan, leaving an inch of paper rising above the edge.
See captionCAKE TINS AND BAKING SHEET.
Flouring tins.Warm the pan, and with a brush spread evenly the lard or cottolene. For flat tins to be used for small cakes, brush them lightly with oil; then with a paper or cloth rub them dry, and sprinkle with flour. Jar them so the flour will completely cover them; then turn over the tins, and strike them against the table. All the superfluous flour will fall, leaving the tins lightly coated with flour. This will give a clean surface to the bottom of the cake.
Rising.The oven should be only moderately hot at first, so that the cake can get heated through, and can rise before forming a crust; the heat should then be increased, so that when the cake has been in the oven one half the time required for baking a light crust will be formed. It should rise evenly, and be smooth on top. When it rises in a cone in the center it is because the oven is too hot, and a crust has formed on the edges before it has had time to rise. Sometimes it rises on one side, showing the oven is hotter on one side than the other, in which case it should be turned or a screen interposed; but it must be done with the greatest care. Moving or jarring the cake before the air-cells are fixed is almost sure to cause it to fall. Do not open the oven door for the first five minutes, and then open and shut it very gently, so as not to jar the cake.Time.Cake takes from fifteen minutes to an hour to bake, according to its kind and thickness. A hotter oven is needed for a thin cake than for a thick one. It is done when it shrinks from the pan, andmakes no singing noise; or when a broom straw run into it comes out clean and smooth. Be sure the cake is done before removing it from the oven. Let it stand a few minutes in the tin, and it will then come out easily. Always handle the cake carefully.
Tests for the oven.The following test for the oven is given by Miss Parloa. Put in a piece of white paper. If at the end of five minutes the paper is a rich yellow color, the oven is right for sponge-cake; if light yellow, it is too cool; if dark brown, too hot. For pound or butter-cakes, it should be light yellow at the end of five minutes. For gingerbreads and thin rolled cakes, it should be dark brown.
Cream the yolks and sugar together. Add the flavoring and water; then fold in the beaten whites, and lastly the flour, sprinkling it in, and lightly folding, not stirring it in. If baking-powder is used, it is mixed with the flour.
Rub the butter until it is light and smooth. Add the sugar, and stir until creamy. If there is too much sugar to mix with the butter, beat one half with the yolks of the eggs. Add the beaten yolks to the creamed butter and sugar. (If only a little butter is used melt it, and add it to the yolks and sugar.) Next add the flavoring, and then the milk and flour alternately, until all are in. Beat the batter a few minutes to give it fine grain; then fold in the whipped whites of the eggs lightly. If fruit is used, flour and add it the last thing. Turn it into the pans, and put it at once into a moderate oven.465-*
In this cake the beaten whites are added last. The baking-powder mixed with the flour is added to the yolks, sugar, and flavoring. This is a good cake to use for layer-cakes or rolls. It is sufficient for two loaves.
Weigh any number of eggs; take the same weight of sugar and one half the weight of flour; the grated rind and juice of one lemon to five eggs. For mixing this cake, see the directions givenabove; the mixture should be very light and spongy, great care being used not to break down the whipped whites. The oven should be moderate at first, and the heat increased after a time. The cake must not be moved or jarred while baking. The time will be forty to fifty minutes, according to size of loaf. Use powdered sugar for sponge-cake. Rose-water makes a good flavoring when a change from lemon is wanted. Almonds chopped fine mixed in the cake, and also orange rind grated over the cake before it is frosted, are good.
Beat the yolks and sugar together for at least half an hour. It will not be right unless thoroughly beaten; add the lemon, then the whites beaten very stiff, and the flour last; sprinkle the top with sugar. Put it at once into a moderate oven. This is a moist cake and has a thick crust.
Put the cream of tartar into the flour and sift it five or six times; sift the sugar twice. Put a pinch of salt with the whites of the eggs and whip them very stiff; add the sugar to the whipped whites, placing it on the end of the platter and gradually beating it in from below; add the flour in the same way, and lastly add the flavoring. Do not stop beating after the mixing is begun, and keep the mixture light. Bake it in a perfectly bright ungreased pan, or one lined with paper; a pan with a tube in the center is best. Bake in a moderate oven thirty to forty minutes. Do not move or jar it while it is baking. Try it with a broom-straw before removing it from the oven, and do not let it get too deeply colored. Let it stand in the pan a few minutes, then loosen it around the sides, and it will fall out. Turn the cake upside down and ice the bottom and sides if desired. The usual receipt is double the above quantities, eleven eggs being used, but this one gives a cake large enough to serve six people, and as it should be used while it is very fresh, it is better not to make more than enough to serve once. It can be made with five eggs and is very good, but not quite as spongy. Do not cut the cake, but break it apart with two forks.467-*
Make the same as angel cake, adding the beaten yolks of two eggs before putting in the flour.
Three eggs, and the same weight of butter, of sugar, and of flour. Beat the butter and sugar together until very light and creamy; add one saltspoonful of salt and flavoring (one half teaspoonful of vanilla or almond, or one tablespoonful of brandy); then add the eggs one at a time and beat each one well before adding the next. Beat the mixture for fifteen to twenty minutes; then stir in lightly the sifted flour and turn it into a pan, filling it three quarters full. This cake can be used for layers, rolls, canary pudding, or can be cut into small forms for fancy cakes. Bake slowly about forty minutes.
Make a layer of Genoese, or of sponge-cake No. 1. Put the mixture on the layer tins in spoonfuls, placing it around the edges; then with a broad knife smooth it over toward the middle, making it as even as possible. Another way is to press it through a pastry bag in lines onto the tins. The layers should be only one half inch thick when baked, and the crust should not be hard. As soon as it is removed from the oven, and before it has had time to cool, cut off the hard edges, spread it with currant, or any jelly or jam, and roll it up evenly; then roll it in a paper and tie, so it will cool in a round, even shape.
Bake Genoese or sponge-cake No. 1 (one half the receipt will give three layers) in round layer tins, using three for each cake; when baked spread two of them with filling and pile them one on the other. Trim the outside with a sharp knife so it will show a white even edge instead of crust. Cover the top with a soft royal icing made of confectioners’ sugar and flavored the same as the filling.
Beat well together the yolks of five eggs, one half cupful of sugar, and one heaping tablespoonful of cornstarch; dilute it with two cupfuls of boiling milk, and stir it over the fire until thickened; then remove, add the flavoring, and let it cool. If coffee flavoring is wanted, use one half black coffee and one half milk. If chocolate, melt three or four ounces and add it to the custard.
Melt four ounces of chocolate; dilute it with three tablespoonfuls of milk, and then add a cupful of sugar mixed with a well-beaten egg, and stir until thickened.
Cream the butter; add the sugar, and beat for ten minutes; add the milk, and then add alternately the whipped eggs and the flour, the baking-powder having been sifted with the flour; add the lemon-juice last, and mix all lightly. Bake in layer tins; spread the layers with orange filling and frost the top with royal icing flavored with orange-juice and a little lemon.
Beat the whites of two eggs to a stiff froth. Boil one and one quarter cupfuls of sugar with one half cupful of water to the small ball (see page512). Pour the boiling sugar in a very fine stream onto the whipped whites, beating hard all the time. Add the grated rind and juice of one orange and continue to beat until it is cold and the sugar is stiffened enough to place between the cakes without running.
Make three layers of cake after the receipt given for orange cake. Make a cream filling as directed for layer cakes. Flavor it with orange-flower water and a little bitter almond, to give the flavor of pistachio (see page391), and color it a delicate green. Frost the top with a soft royal icing (page484) made of confectioners’ sugar; color it a delicate light green and sprinkle thetop with chopped pistachio nuts. This cake is rather soft and creamy, and should not be cut before going on the table.
Beat the butter and sugar to a cream; add the beaten yolks; then add slowly the water and three quarters of the flour. Beat it a long time until very smooth and light; then add the lemon and the rest of the flour in which the baking-powder is mixed; beat well together, and lastly add the whipped whites of the eggs. Bake in gem-pans, putting a tablespoonful of the mixture into each pan. Raisins may be added to this cake, or two ounces of melted chocolate may be used instead of the lemon-juice, making it chocolate cake; or it may be made into spice cakes by using two tablespoonfuls of molasses with enough water to give one cupful of liquid; add also one half teaspoonful each of ground cloves, cinnamon, and allspice, and a few currants if desired; use one teaspoonful of soda instead of the baking-powder if molasses is used. Bake in a moderate oven about one half hour, and see that the cakes rise evenly and are of the same size. Turn them out of the pans bottom side up, and frost the bottom and sides with royal icing while they are still warm. For chocolate or spice cakes, use chocolate icing.