Soft Caramel Custard.
One quart of milk, half a cupful of sugar, six eggs, half a teaspoonful of salt. Put the milk on to boil, reserving a cupful. Beat the eggs, and add the cold milk to them. Stir the sugar in a small frying-pan until it becomes liquid and just begins to smoke. Stir it into the boiling milk; then add the beaten eggs and cold milk, and stir constantly until the mixture begins to thicken. Set away to cool.
Serve in gla.s.ses.
Chocolate Whips.
One quart of milk, one (ounce) square of Baker"s chocolate, one generous half cupful of sugar, six eggs, a speck of salt. Sc.r.a.pe the chocolate fine and put it in a small frying-pan with two table- spoonfuls of the sugar and one of boiling water. When dissolved, add it to a pint and a half of the milk, which should be hot in the double boiler. Beat the eggs and the remainder of the sugar together, add the cold milk, and stir into the boiling milk. Stir constantly until it begins to thicken. Add the salt, and set away to cool. Season one pint of cream with two table-spoonfuls of sugar and half a teaspoonful of vanilla extract. Whip to a stiff froth. When the custard is cold, half fill gla.s.ses with it, and heap whipped cream upon it. Or, it can be served in one large dish, with the whipped cream on top.
Kisses.
Beat the whites of six eggs to a stiff froth. They should be beaten until so light and dry that they begin to fly off of the beater. Stir in a cupful of powdered sugar, gently and quickly. Spread paraffin paper over three boards, which measure about nine by twelve inches.
Drop the mixture by spoonfuls on the boards, having perhaps a dozen on each one. Dry in a warm oven for about three-quarters of an hour; then brown them slightly. Lift from the paper and stick them together at the base by twos. A dozen and a half can be made from the quant.i.ties given.
Cream Meringues.
These are made similar to kisses, but are pat on the paper in oblong shape, and dried two hours. Take from the board and, with a spoon, remove all the soft part. Season half a pint of rich cream with a table-spoonful of sugar and one of wine, or a speck of vanilla, and whip it to a stiff froth. Fill the sh.e.l.ls with this, and join them.
Or, they may be filled with ice cream. If the meringues are exposed to much heat they are spoiled.
Kiss Wafers.
Half a pint of blanched bitter almonds, one heaping cupful of powdered sugar, the whites of six eggs, one-third of a cupful of flour, two table-spoonfuls of corn-starch. Blanch the almonds and pound them in a mortar. As soon as they are a little broken add the white of an egg.
Pound until very fine. When there is a smooth paste add the sugar, a little at a time, the whites of two eggs, one at a time, and the flour and corn-starch. When thoroughly mixed, add, by degrees, the three remaining whites. b.u.t.ter the bottom of a flat baking pan and put the mixture on it in spoonfuls. Spread it _very thin_, especially in the centre, and bake in a quick oven. The moment the cakes are taken from the oven, roll into the shape of cornucopias. If allowed to cool, they cannot be rolled, and for this reason it is best to bake only half a dozen at a time. When all are shaped, fill with the kiss mixture, made by beating the whites of three eggs to a stiff froth, and stirring into them, lightly, four table-spoonfuls of powdered sugar. Place the wafers in a warm oven for twenty minutes or half an hour, to dry. With the quant.i.ties given two dozen can be made.
Brier Hill Dessert.
Stew one quart of blackberries with one quart of sugar and half a cupful of water. They should cook only fifteen minutes. When cold, serve with powdered cracker and sugar and cream. The cracker and berries should be in separate dishes.
Richmond Maids of Honor.
In the little town of Richmond, England, is a small pastry shop widely known for its cheese cakes. It is said that the original recipe for them was furnished by a maid of Queen Elizabeth, who had a palace at Richmond. In the neighboring city of London the cakes are in great demand, and the popular opinion there is that the only place to get them is the shop mentioned, where they are made somewhat as follows:
One cupful of sweet milk, one of sour, one of sugar, a lemon, the yolks of four eggs, a speck of salt. Put all the milk in the double boiler and cook until it curds; then strain. Rub the curd through a sieve. Beat the sugar and yolks of eggs together, and add the rind and juice of the lemon and the curd. Line little patty pans with puff or chopped paste, rolled very thin. Put a large spoonful of the mixture in each one, and bake from fifteen to twenty minutes in a moderate oven. Do not remove from the pans until cold. These are nice for suppers or lunches as well as for dessert.
Fanchonettes.
One cupful of sugar, half a cupful of water, one table-spoonful of corn-starch, one teaspoonful of b.u.t.ter, the yolks of four eggs, the juice and rind of two lemons. Mix the cornstarch with a little cold water, and stir in half a cupful of boiling water. Beat the sugar, eggs and lemon together, and stir into the boiling corn-starch. Place the basin in another of boiling water, and stir (over the fire) until it thickens, perhaps from eight to ten minutes; then add the b.u.t.ter and set away to cool. Line little patty pans with puff paste, or any rich paste, rolled very thin. Put a spoonful of the mixture in each one, and bake in a slow oven from twelve to twenty minutes. When cool, slip out of the pans, and serve on a napkin. They are nice for lunch, tea or children"s parties, only for parties make them small. The mixture for fanchonettes will keep a number of weeks in a cool place, so that if one makes a quant.i.ty at one time, portions can be used with the tr.i.m.m.i.n.gs of pastry left from pies.
Fruit Glace.
Boil together for half an hour one cupful of granulated sugar, one of water. Dip the point of a skewer in the syrup, after it has been boiling the given time, and then in water. If the thread formed breaks off brittle the syrup is done. Have oranges pared, divided into eighths and wiped free of moisture. Pour part of the hot syrup into a small cup, which keep in boiling water. Take the pieces of orange on the point of a large needle or skewer and dip them in the syrup. Place them on a dish that has been b.u.t.tered lightly. Grapes, cherries, walnuts, etc., can be prepared in the same way. Care must be taken not to stir the syrup, as that spoils it.
Gateau Saint Honore.
Make a paste the same as for _eclairs_. b.u.t.ter three pie plates.
Roll puff or chopped paste very thin, and cover the plates with it.
Cut off the paste about an inch from the edge all round the plates.
Spread a thin layer of the cooked paste over the puff paste. Put a tube, measuring about half an inch in diameter, in a pastry bag. Turn the remainder of the paste into the bag and press it through the tube on to the edges of the plates, where the puff paste has been cut off.
Care must be taken to have the border of equal thickness all round the plates. With a fork, p.r.i.c.k holes in the paste in the centre of the plate. Bake half an hour in a moderate oven. When the plates have been put in the oven, make what paste is left in the bag into b.a.l.l.s about half the size of an American walnut. There will be enough for three dozen. Drop them into a pan that has been b.u.t.tered lightly, and bake fifteen or twenty minutes. While they are baking, put half a cupful of water and half a cupful of granulated sugar in a small sauce-pan, and boil twenty-five minutes.
When the little b.a.l.l.s and the paste in the plate is done, take the b.a.l.l.s on the point of a skewer or large needle, dip them in the syrup and place them on the border of paste (the syrup will hold them), about two inches apart. A word of caution just here: Do not stir the syrup, as that will make it grain, and, of course, spoil it. A good plan is to pour part of the syrup into a small cup, which place in hot water. That remaining in the sauce-pan should be kept hot, but it should not boil, until needed. When all the b.a.l.l.s have been used, dip four dozen French candied cherries in the syrup, and stick them between the b.a.l.l.s. Reserve about fifteen cherries, with which to garnish the centre of the cake. Whip one pint and a half of cream to a froth. Soak half a package of gelatine in half a cupful of milk for two hours. Pour on this half a cupful of boiling milk. Place the pan of whipped cream in another of ice water, and sprinkle over it two- thirds of a cupful of sugar and nearly a teaspoonful of vanilla flavor. Strain the gelatine on this, and stir gently from the bottom until it begins to thicken. When it will just pour, fill the three plates with it, and set them in the ice chest for half an hour.
Garnish the top with the remaining cherries, and serve. This is an excellent dish for dessert or party suppers.
CAKE.
Rice Cake.
One cupful of b.u.t.ter, two of sugar, two and one-fourth of rice flour, six eggs, the juice and rind of a lemon. Beat the b.u.t.ter to a cream; then gradually beat in the sugar, and add the lemon. Beat the yolks and whites separately, and add them to the beaten sugar and b.u.t.ter.
Add also the rice flour. Pour into a shallow pan, to the depth of about two inches. Bake from thirty-five to forty-five minutes in a moderate oven.
Silver Cake.
One cupful of sugar, half a cupful of b.u.t.ter, the whites of three eggs, half a cupful of corn-starch, dissolved in nearly half a cupful of milk;--one and a fourth cupfuls of flour, half a teaspoonful of cream of tartar, one-fourth of a teaspoonful of soda, and vanilla or almond flavor. Beat the b.u.t.ter to a cream, and gradually beat in the sugar. Add the flavor. Mix the flour, cream of tartar and soda together, and sift. Beat the whites to a stiff froth. Add the corn- starch and milk to the beaten sugar and b.u.t.ter; then add the whites of the eggs and the flour. Mix quickly and thoroughly. Have the batter in sheets, and about two inches deep. Bake in a moderate oven for about half an hour. A chocolate frosting is nice with this cake. [Mrs. L. C.
A.]
Gold Cake.
One cupful of sugar, half a cupful of b.u.t.ter, the yolks of three eggs and one whole egg, half a cupful of milk, one-fourth of a teaspoonful each of soda and cream of tartar, one and three-fourths cupfuls of flour. Mix the b.u.t.ter and sugar together, and add the eggs, milk, flavor and flour, in the order named. Bake the same as the silver cake. A white frosting is good with this cake. [Mrs. L. C. A.]
Angel Cake.
The whites of eleven eggs, one and a half cupfuls of granulated sugar, one cupful of pastry flour, measured after being sifted four times; one teaspoonful of cream of tartar, one of vanilla extract. Sift the flour and cream of tartar together. Beat the whites to a stiff froth.
Beat the sugar into the eggs, and add the seasoning and flour, stirring quickly and lightly. Beat until ready to put the mixture in the oven. Use a pan that has little legs at the top corners, so that when the pan is turned upside down on the table, after the baking, a current of air will pa.s.s under and over it. Bake for forty minutes in a moderate oven. Do not grease the pan.
Sunshine Cake.
This is made almost exactly like angel cake. Have the whites of eleven eggs and yolks of six, one and a half cupfuls of granulated sugar, measured after one sifting; one cupful of flour, measured after sifting; one teaspoonful of cream of tartar and one of orange extract.
Beat the whites to a stiff froth, and gradually beat in the sugar.
Beat the yolks in a similar manner, and add to them the whites and sugar and the flavor. Finally, stir in the flour. Mix quickly and well. Bake for fifty minutes in a slow oven, using a pan like that for angel cake.
Demon Cake.