Bread, cakes, and biscuits

into it with your hands a large teaspoonful of butter or lard ; have ready mixed in a jug half a pint each of milk and water, and pour this gradually on to the flour, &c., working it all the time till it is a very stiff dough (be careful not to get it too wet or soft) ; knead this all well together for five minutes, then put it on a firm table or block, and beat it well with a rolling pin for half an hour, till it becomes brittle ; then form it into small round cakes half an inch thick, prick these with a fork, and bake in a quick oven for about twenty minutes. When ready they should be browned on the top, scarcely coloured at the sides, perfectly snow-white inside, and slightly cracked round the sides. Flannel Cake. — Rub 2oz. of butter smoothly into a quart of flour, then add a teaspoonful of salt, the well-beaten yolks of three eggs, and one and a half pints of milk ; beat this all vigorously into the flour till smooth, when you mix in the stiffly-whipped whites of the eggs and two teaspoonfuls of baking powder. Bake quickly on a hot girdle. Or, dissolve over the fire two full tablespoonfuls of butter in a pint of sweet milk, and, when it is all dissolved, add in, off the fire, a pint of cold milk, the well-beaten yolks of four eggs, a teaspoonful of salt, four tablespoonfuls of potato yeast, and enough flour to make it all a stiff batter. Set it in a warm place to rise, for three hours ; then add the wellwhisked whites of the eggs, and bake on a hot greased girdle. The batter at the last should be just stiff enough to drop neatly from the spoon. “ Gems ” (Corn). — These derive their name chiefly from the small round moulds in which they are made, but tiny patty pans practically answer quite as well. Put into a basin ten full ounces of Indian cornmeal, make a bay in this, and put into it 2oz. fresh butter, pouring over it half a pint of absolutely boiling milk ; stir it well together, then add half a pint of cold milk, three well-beaten eggs, a level (small) teaspoonful of salt, and 4oz. wheat flour. Beat this all well together, then strew in two teaspoonfuls of baking powder ; mix it quickly together and bake in the buttered tins for half an hour, in a hot oven. “Gems” ( Ice Water.) — Butter the pans, and set them to get hot in the oven ; meanwhile pour a pint of ice water on to a teaspoonful of salt, and gradually strew into this (as if making porridge) l}lb. of Graham meal with one hand (held well above the pan), whilst beating it with the other. When it forms a smooth batter pour it into the buttered tins, which should be very hot, and bake at once for thirty minutes in a very hot oven. Pone. — Pour on to a quart of coarsely ground white Indian meal just enough boiling water to scald it thoroughly ; stir it well, then let it stand till cold, when you work in loz. butter, a little salt, two well-beaten whole eggs, and, lastly, a pint of buttermilk or sour milk ; beatit all thoroughly till smooth. Now dissolve loz. bicarbonate of soda in a tablespoonful of boiling water, stir this into the mixture, turn the latter into a well-buttered baking pan, and bake thirty minutes in a quick oven.