Perfection in baking

Take small bits of sponge cake, rub with a little thin jelly, cover with a thin sheet of marzipan, brush over with a little sugar color and roll in grated chocolate. Then, with a pointed stick, prick some holes in them, and stick small bits of sliced almonds in, to represent sprouts of the potatoes. Apples, Pears, etc. These can be made out of sponge cake (lady finger mixture). With bag and tube lay out in the shape of the fruit, and bake a nice brown. When well done, set two together with apple or apricot marmalade, and frost some with white, some with yellow icing. — 95 — Pears and Apples of Meringue. Take a very thin layer of sponge cake, spread it with marmalade and cut out with round or oval cutter. Now prepare a good meringue (as for Kisses, see Part VI.) and lay out in the shape of apples, pears, peaches, etc., and bake on wet boards. Where there is a good crust on top, lay one on a piece of the sponge cake, same shape, and sprinkle a very little with red coloring. Then frost very thin with transparent water icing, and stick on the end a whole clove for the core, and on the other end a thin stick of citron for the stem. Almond Souffle Kisses. (Auflauf). Pound very fine two ounces blanched almonds with the white of one egg and sufficient XXXX confectioner's sugar. Then add the whites of three more eggs, beaten up a little first, and enough more fine sugar to make a stiff paste. Roll out one-fifth of an inch thick, and cut out in stars, rosettes, rings, etc., and set on flour-dusted tins. Let dry a few hours, and bake very cool. They will raise over an inch high and come up straight, if oven is cool enough. Then frost with thin water icing or royal icing, and sprinkle with colored sugars, or paint them. Vanilla and Rose Soufflés The same as above, only omit the almonds and add a few drops of alcohol and a little vanilla or rose and red coloring. American Marzipan Cut up two pounds of almond paste in thin slices and spread on candy marble, which you first sprinkle with ice water. While this is being done, boil five pounds of sugar with one quart of water and a half pound of glucose to the ball (245 degrees), and pour over the paste. Let it cool off, then rub with spatula until it is all smooth and creamed. Work all in one lump and cover up. This is very fine for fancy bonbons and fancy hand-modeled cakes. Sugar Couleur [Burned Sugar). Dissolve one pound powdered sugar on a good fire, stirring it. Let it get black, until a thick, heavy smoke ascends and it foams up. Then pour in a pint of water and stir until all is dissolved again. — 96 — Croquant or Nougat. Melt in a kettle one and a half pounds of white sugar without water, stirring it occasionally. Then add one pound of thin sliced or chopped blanched almonds, which you have first heated. Mix well and quickly now, and roll out on well oiled marble slab, and cut out or mould in any shapes desired to make pyramids, centre pieces, etc. Clear Caramel. FOR SPUN SUGAR ORNAMENTS, FLOWERS, ETC. Boil two and a half pounds of loaf sugar with a pint of water (short measure) and a pinch of cream of tartar to the crack (280 degrees). Take off the fire and keep in hot water bath. Now dip in your spoon and run out the design as drawn on well oiled marble slab, or for flowers dip in your lead moulds. Rock Sugar (Honeycomb).