Saffron Cake

Ingredients

• a pint of milk
• 2 lb. of flour
• three-quarters of a pint of yeast
• a good dust of pounded cinnamon, cloves, and mace
• 1 oz. carraway seeds
• loz. rose water
• about the same of saffron water
• 1 lb. of sugar
• three whole eggs

Method

1. 1

   Boil together butter and milk, skim off the butter, and mix with flour.

2. 2

   Stir yeast with the rest of the milk and work into the flour.

3. 3

   Add spices, carraway seeds, rose water, saffron water, sugar, and eggs.

4. 4

   Work lightly and bake in a well buttered mould for 45-60 minutes.

Nutrition per serving

As published

This recipe was extracted from Bread, cakes, and biscuits (1902) by S. Beaty-Pownall, page 67. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.

a pint of milk, then skim off the butter, and mix it with 21b. of Hour, with a little of the milk ; now stir three-quarters of a pint of yeast with the rest of the milk, and work this into the flour, &c. Next add a good dust of pounded cinnamon, cloves, and mace, lloz. carraway seeds, -loz. rose water, and about the same of saffron water (made by infusing a good pinch of saffron in half a gill of boiling water), ilb. of sugar, and three whole eggs ; work it all up lightly with the hands,, and bake in a well buttered mould. It will take three- quarters of an hour to an hour to bake. The carraways are a matter of taste. Scripture. — This somewhat foolish recipe runs thus : Four and a half cups of I. Kings iv., 22 (flour) ; one and a half cups Judges v., 25, last clause (butter) ; two cups Jeremiah vi., 20 (sugar) ; two cups I. Samuel xxx., 12 (raisins) ; two cups Nahum iii., 12 (figs) ; one cup Numbers, xvii., 8 (almonds) ; two tablespoonfuls I. Samuel xiv., 25 (honey) ; season to taste with II. Chronicles ix., 9 (spice) ; six of Jeremiah xvii., 11 (eggs) ; a pinch of Leviticus ii., 13 (salt) ; half cup Judges iv., 19, last clause (milk) ; two tea- spoonfuls of Amos iv., 5 (baking powder). Follow Solomon’s advice for a good boy (Proverbs xxiii., 14), and you will have a good cake. School Children’s. — This is an excellent cake for 106 BREAD, CAKES, AND BISCUITS. a school treat or tea, but should be kept two days at least before being cut, as, like many other cakes, it improves by keeping. To each pound of flour allow jib. of mixed fruit, currants, raisins, and sultanas, 5oz. of butter or well clarified dripping or lard, 4oz. brown sugar, 2oz. very finely shred candied peel, one and a half teaspoonfuls of baking powder, and just enough milk to mix it nicely. No eggs are needed. Make up in large cakes (these cut to best advantage), and bake two hours or more. If seed cake is preferred, use half a teaspoonful of carraway seeds and 2oz. more sugar instead of the fruit. If used for tea, when bread and butter, jam, &c., is given, you reckon from 5oz. to 6oz. a head , but given alone it is safer to count on 9oz. to lOoz. per child. Cake, Scotch ( New Year's) Bun. — Put 4lb. of hour into a pan, reserving a little to work it up with, hollow this out in the centre, and put in jib. of butter broken up ; mix together one and a half gills of yeast with half a pint of warm water, and work this with the flour and butter to a smooth dough. If not moist enough, a little more water may be used, but be careful about this, as at the best this cake is distinctly solid. Set aside one-third of the dough for a cover ; now mix together joz. powdered cinnamon, joz. powdered cloves, and loz. ground ginger ; then mix separately 1 jib. stoned raisins, ljlb, washed and dried currants, 4oz. shred almonds, and 8oz. very finely shred candied peel. Spread out the larger portion of dough, lay the fruit on it, and strew it thickly with the mixed spice ; now mix it all well together, kneading it thoroughly and steadily. Then roll out the cover, lay the bun on it, cover it neatly in a square, cutting the corners, and after pricking it all over with a fork, binding it into shape with bands of stiff buttered paper, bake in a pretty sharp oven, and glaze it with a beaten egg just before taking it out of the oven. This is only a modified edition of Meg Dod’s famous recipe, which, as it is largely made in Scotland, is CAKES. 107 though very nice, portentous in its solidity, not to say indigestibility. Cake, Seed. — 4oz. butter, 4oz. lard, loz. sugar, lflb. of flour, 4oz. lemon peel, half pint of milk, four large eggs, ioz. carraway seeds

Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.