NEW YORK COOKIES.
Take a half-pint or a tumbler full of cold water, and mix it with half a pound of powdered white sugar. Sift three pounds of flour into a large pan and cut up in it a pound of b.u.t.ter; rub the b.u.t.ter very fine into the flour. Add a grated nutmeg, and a tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon, with a wine gla.s.s of rose water.
Work in the sugar, and make the whole into a stiff dough, adding, if necessary, a little cold water. Dissolve a tea-spoonful of pearl-ash in just enough of warm water to cover it, and mix it in at the last. Take the lump of dough out of the pan, and knead it on the paste-board till it becomes quite light. Then roll it out rather more than half an inch thick, and cut it into square cakes with a jagging iron or with a sharp knife. Stamp the surface of each with a cake print. Lay them in b.u.t.tered pans, and bake them of a light brown in a brisk oven.
They are similar to what are called New Year"s cakes, and will keep two or three weeks.
In mixing the dough, you may add three table-spoonfuls of carraway seeds.
SUGAR BISCUIT.
Wet a pound of sugar with two large tea-cups full of milk; and rub a pound of b.u.t.ter into two pounds of flour; adding a table-spoonful of cinnamon, and a handful of carraway seeds. Mix in the sugar, add a tea-spoonful of pearl-ash dissolved, and make the whole into a stiff dough. Knead it, and then roll it out into a sheet about half an inch thick. Beat it on both sides with the rolling-pin, and then cut it out with the edge of a tumbler into round cakes. p.r.i.c.k them with a fork, lay them in b.u.t.tered pans, and bake them light brown in a quick oven. You may colour them yellow by mixing in with the other ingredients a little of the infusion of saffron.
RUSKS.
Sift three pounds of flour into a large pan, and rub into it half a pound of b.u.t.ter, and half a pound of sugar. Beat two eggs very light, and stir them into a pint and a half of milk, adding two table-spoonfuls of rose water, and three table-spoonfuls of the best and strongest yeast. Make a hole in the middle of the flour, pour in the liquid, and gradually mix the flour into it till you have a thick batter. Cover it, and set it by the fire to rise.
When it is quite light, put it on your paste-board and knead it well. Then divide it into small round cakes and knead each separately. Lay them very near each other in shallow iron pans that have been sprinkled with flour. p.r.i.c.k the top of each rusk with a fork, and set them by the fire to rise again for half an hour or more. When they are perfectly light, bake them in a moderate oven. They are best when fresh.
You can convert them into what are called Hard Rusks, or Tops and Bottoms, by splitting them in half, and putting them again into the oven to harden and crisp.
MILK BISCUIT.
Cut up three quarters of a pound of b.u.t.ter in a quart of milk, and set it near the fire to warm, till the b.u.t.ter becomes soft; then with a knife, mix it thoroughly with the milk, and set it away to cool. Afterwards stir in two wine gla.s.ses of strong fresh yeast, and add by degrees as much sifted flour as will make a dough just stiff enough to roll out. As soon as it is mixed, roll it into a thick sheet, and cut it out into round cakes with the edge of a tumbler or a wine gla.s.s. Sprinkle a large iron pan with flour; lay the biscuits in it, cover it and set it to rise near the fire.
When the biscuits are quite light, knead each one separately; p.r.i.c.k them with a fork, and set them again in a warm place for about half an hour. When they are light again, bake them in a moderate oven. They should be eaten fresh, and pulled open with the fingers, as splitting them with a knife will make them heavy.
WHITE GINGERBREAD.
Sift two pounds of flour into a deep pan, and rub into it three quarters of a pound of b.u.t.ter; then mix in a pound of common white sugar powdered; and three table-spoonfuls of the best white ginger. Having beaten four eggs very light, mix them gradually with the other ingredients in the pan, and add a small tea-spoonful of pearl-ash melted in a wine gla.s.s of warm milk. Stir the whole as hard as possible. Flour your paste-board; lay the lump of dough upon it, and roll it out into a sheet an inch thick; adding more flour if necessary. b.u.t.ter a large shallow square pan.
Lay the dough into it, and bake it in a moderate oven. When cold, cut it into squares. Or you may cut it out into separate cakes with a jagging iron, previous to baking. You must be careful not to lay them too close together in the pan, lest they run into each other.
COMMON GINGERBREAD.
Cut up a pound of b.u.t.ter in a quart of West India mola.s.ses, which must be perfectly sweet; if it is in the least sour, use sugar house mola.s.ses instead. Warm it slightly, just enough to melt the b.u.t.ter. Crush with the rolling-pin, on the paste-board, half a pound of brown sugar, and add it by degrees to the mola.s.ses and b.u.t.ter; then stir in a tea-cup full of powdered ginger, a large tea-spoonful of powdered cloves, and a table-spoonful of powdered cinnamon. Add gradually sufficient flour to make a dough stiff enough to roll out easily; and lastly, a small tea-spoonful of pearl-ash melted in a little warm water. Mix and stir the dough very hard with a spaddle, or a wooden spoon; but do not knead it.
Then divide it with a knife into equal portions; and, having floured your hands, roll it out on the paste-board into long even strips. Place them in shallow tin pans, that have been b.u.t.tered; either laying the strips side by side in straight round sticks, (uniting them at both ends,) or coil them into rings one within another, as you see them at the cake shops. Bake them in a brisk oven, taking care that they do not burn; gingerbread scorching sooner than any other cake.
To save time and trouble, you may roll out the dough into a sheet near an inch thick, and cut it into round flat cakes with a tin cutter, or with the edge of a tumbler.
Ground ginger loses much of its strength by keeping. Therefore it will be frequently found necessary to put in more than the quant.i.ty given in the receipt.
GINGERBREAD NUTS.
Rub half a pound of b.u.t.ter into a pound and a half of sifted flour; and mix in half a pound of brown sugar, crushed fine with the rolling-pin. Add two large table-spoonfuls of ginger, a tea-spoonful of powdered cloves, and a tea-spoonful of powdered cinnamon. Stir in a pint of mola.s.ses, and the grated peel of a large lemon, but not the juice, as you must add at the last, a very small tea-spoonful of pearl-ash dissolved in a little lukewarm water, and pearl-ash entirely destroys the taste of lemon-juice and of every other acid. Stir the whole mixture very hard with a spaddle or with a wooden spoon, and make it into a lump of dough just stiff enough to roll out into a sheet about half an inch thick. Cut it out into small cakes about the size of a quarter dollar; or make it up, with your hands well floured, into little round b.a.l.l.s, flattening them on the top. Lay them in b.u.t.tered pans, and bake them in a moderate oven. They will keep several weeks.
FRANKLIN CAKE.
Mix together a pint of mola.s.ses, and half a pint of milk, and cut up in it half a pound of b.u.t.ter. Warm them just enough to melt the b.u.t.ter, and then stir in six ounces of brown sugar; adding three table-spoonfuls of ginger, a table-spoonful of powdered cinnamon, a tea-spoonful of powdered cloves, and a grated nutmeg. Beat seven eggs very light, and stir them gradually into the mixture, in turn with a pound and two ounces of flour. Add, at the last, the grated peel and juice of two large lemons or oranges; or twelve drops of essence of lemon, there being no pearl-ash in this gingerbread.
Stir the mixture very hard; put it into little queen cake tins, well b.u.t.tered; and bake it in a moderate oven. It is best the second day, and will keep soft a week.
GINGER PLUM CAKE.
Stone a pound and a half of raisins, and cut them in two. Wash and dry half a pound of currants. Sift into a pan two pounds of flour.
Put into another pan a pound of brown sugar, (rolled fine,) and cut up in it a pound of fresh b.u.t.ter. Stir the b.u.t.ter and sugar to a cream, and add to it two table-spoonfuls of the best ginger; one table-spoonful of powdered cinnamon; and one of powdered cloves.
Then beat six eggs very light, and add them gradually to the b.u.t.ter and sugar, in turn with the flour and a quart of mola.s.ses.
Lastly, stir in a tea-spoonful of pearl-ash dissolved in a little vinegar, and add by degrees the fruit, which must be well dredged with flour. Stir all very hard; put the mixture into a b.u.t.tered pan, and bake it in a moderate oven. Take care not to let it burn.
MOLa.s.sES CANDY.
Mix a pound of the best brown sugar with two quarts of West India mola.s.ses, (which must be perfectly sweet,) and boil it in a preserving kettle over a moderate fire for three hours, skimming it well, and stirring it frequently after the sc.u.m has ceased to rise; taking care that it does not burn. Have ready the grated rind and the juice of three lemons, and stir them into the mola.s.ses after it has boiled about two hours and a half; or you may subst.i.tute a large tea-spoonful of strong essence of lemon.
The flavour of the lemon will all be boiled out if it is put in too soon. The mixture should boil at least three hours, that it may be crisp and brittle when cold. If it is taken off the fire too soon, or before it has boiled sufficiently, it will not congeal, but will be tough and ropy, and must be boiled over again. It will cease boiling of itself when it is thoroughly done.
Then take it off the fire; have ready a square tin pan; put the mixture into it, and set it away to cool.
You may make mola.s.ses candy with almonds blanched and slit into pieces; stir them in by degrees after the mixture has boiled two hours and a half. Or you may blanch a quart of ground-nuts and put them in instead of the almonds.
NOUGAT.
Blanch a pound of sh.e.l.led sweet almonds; and with an almond cutter, or a sharp penknife, split each almond into five slips.
Spread them over a large dish, and place them in a gentle oven.
Powder a pound of the finest loaf-sugar, and put it into a preserving pan without a drop of water. Set it on a chafing-dish over a slow fire, or on a hot stove, and stir it with a wooden spoon till the boat has entirely dissolved it. Then take the almonds out of the oven, and mix with them the juice of two or three lemons. Put them into the sugar a few at a time, and let them simmer till it becomes a thick stiff paste, stirring it hard all the while. Have ready a mould, or a square tin pan, greased all over the inside with sweet oil; put the mixture into it; smooth it evenly, and set it in a cold place to harden.
LEMON DROPS.
Squeeze some lemon-juice into a pan. Pound in a mortar some of the best loaf-sugar, and then sift it through a very fine sieve. Mix it with the lemon-juice, making it so thick that you can scarcely stir it. Put it into a porcelain sauce-pan, set it on hot coals, and stir it with a wooden spoon five minutes or more. Then take off the pan, and with the point of a knife drop the liquid on writing paper. When cold, the drops will easily come off.
Peppermint drops may be made as above, subst.i.tuting for the lemon-juice essence of peppermint.
WARM CAKES FOR BREAKFAST AND TEA.
BUCKWHEAT CAKES.
Take a quart of buckwheat meal, mix with it a tea-spoonful of salt, and add a handful of Indian meal. Pour a large table-spoonful of the best brewer"s yeast into the centre of the meal.
Then mix it gradually with cold water till it becomes a batter.
Cover it, put it in a warm place and set it to rise; it will take about three hours. When it is quite light, and covered with bubbles, it is fit to bake. Put your griddle over the fire, and let it get quite hot before you begin. Grease it well with a piece of b.u.t.ter tied in a rag. Then dip out a large ladle full of the batter and bake it on the griddle; turning it with a broad wooden paddle. Let the cakes be of large size, and even at the edges.
Ragged edges to batter cakes look very badly. b.u.t.ter them as you take them off the griddle. Put several on a plate, and cut them across in six pieces.