English and French cookery

Pound Cake.— One pound of fresh butter, 1 pound of fine flour (Hungarian or Vienna if possible), 6 medium-sized eggs, one pound of castor sugar, £ pound of minced almonds, \ pound of currants or sultanas, 3 ounces of candied peel, a few drops of essence of ratafia. Whip the butter to a cream. Add the sugar gradually ; next the eggs, which must previously be well whisked ; then sift in the flour ; and, last of all, work in fruit, almonds, and flavouring, and keep stirring one way. This cake takes a good J hour to mix, as all the ingredients must be well worked together. Bake in smallish tins, for about 40 minutes, in a moderate oven. Rice Cake. — One pound of ground rice, 1 pound powdered loaf sugar, h pound of fresh butter whipped into a cream with a fork, 8 eggs, the yolks and whites beaten separately and well, and a few drops ol Langdale’s essence of almonds. Bake in a mould well buttered, or a tin lined with buttered paper. The oven should be moderate. Seed Cake, Rich.. — Take 8 eggs, 1| pounds of fine dried flour, 1 pound of butter, 1 pound of castor sugar, 2 ounces caraway seeds, 1 grated nutmeg, and its weight in cinnamon. Whip the butter to a cream, and work in the sugar ; beat the whites and yolks of the eggs separately, then mix them with the butter and sugar. A short time before placing in the oven beat in the flour, spice, and seed. Bake in a quick oven. Time, 2 hours to bake. Sponge Cake. — Take 4 eggs and their equal weight of pounded lump sugar, and 3 eggs and their equal weight of flour. Beat the 7 eggs and the sugar together for £ hour ; then add the flour, and beat the whole 5 minutes longer. Put this paste into a buttered mould, and set immediately into a smart oven. Tea Cake. — Rub into a quart of flour J pound of butter, then beat up 2 eggs with 2 teaspoonfuls of sifted sugar, and 2 tablespoonfuls of yeast, or a small portion of baking powder ; pour this mixture into the centre of the flour, and add a pint of warm milk as you mix it ; beat up with the hand until the paste comes off without sticking ; set to rise before the fire, first covering with a cloth ; after remaining there an hour, make up into good-sized cakes an inch thick ; set these in tin plates to rise before the fire during 10 minutes, then bake in a slow oven. These cakes may be split and buttered hot from the oven, or, when cold, split, toasted, and buttered. Tipsy Cake. — Take 10 sponge-cakes, place 4 close together upon the dish upon which the cake is to be served, spread over them a thick layer of raspberry or cherry jam ; upon this place 3 sponge-cakes close together, spreading over a thick layer of jam ; upon this put 2 sponge-cakes, with a third layer of jam, and complete the pyramid with the 1 cake left. Pour over the whole 3 glasses of sherry or Madeira, but pour only 1 at a time, so that the cakes may absorb the whole of the wine ; when this is done, add 2 glasses of brandy slowly, so that in absorbing the spirit the cakes do not become too moist and break. Make a rich custard, and pour over the whole ; it is then ready for table, and a most delicious Christmas cake it will prove.