The Bread And Biscuit Baker's And Sugar-Boiler's Assistant
Robert Wells
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255 chapters
THE BREAD AND BISCUIT BAKER’S AND SUGAR-BOILER’S ASSISTANT
THE BREAD AND BISCUIT BAKER’S AND SUGAR-BOILER’S ASSISTANT
Including a large variety of Modern Recipes FOR BREAD — TEA CAKES — HARD AND FANCY BISCUITS — BUNS — GINGERBREADS — SHORTBREADS — PASTRY — CUSTARDS — FRUIT CAKES — SMALL GOODS FOR SMALL MASTERS — CONFECTIONS IN SUGAR — LOZENGES — ICE CREAMS — PRESERVING FRUIT — CHOCOLATE, ETC., ETC. WITH REMARKS ON THE ART OF BREAD-MAKING AND CHEMISTRY AS APPLIED TO BREAD-MAKING BY ROBERT WELLS PRACTICAL BAKER, CONFECTIONER, AND PASTRYCOOK, SCARBOROUGH Second Edition, with Additional Recipes. LONDON CROSBY LOCKW
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PREFACE.
PREFACE.
In submitting the following pages for public approval, the Author hopes that the work may prove acceptable and useful to the Baking Trade as a Book of Instruction for Learners, and for daily reference in the Shop and Bakehouse; and having exercised great care in its compilation, he believes that in all its details it will be found a trustworthy guide. From his own experience in the Baker’s business, he is satisfied that a book of this kind, embodying in a handy form the accumulated results of th
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Chemistry as applied to Bread-Making.
Chemistry as applied to Bread-Making.
It is not my intention to depreciate the great good that would be derived from scientific chemistry if properly applied to bread-making. But who is to study and apply it? Surely not a man who earns from 20s. to 30s. per week, and works twelve, fourteen, and sixteen hours a day in an overheated atmosphere. What hours of rest he has should be used to recuperate his lost vitality. Not till scientific chemistry is taught in our Board schools and made one of the elements of a scholar’s ordinary educa
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Fermentation.
Fermentation.
The process of fermentation, which has for its object either the manufacture of bread, or of an alcoholic product in a more or less concentrated form, is very similar in action during its earlier stages. It commences with the growth and multiplication of the fermenting germs contained in the minute organisms floating in the air, the inorganic constituents of the water, and the protoplasm (essence of life) of the yeast; and all the changes brought about are accompanied by heat. Fermentation is ca
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Process of Bread-Making.
Process of Bread-Making.
It will be useful to give here some remarks by the great scientist, Liebig, on the best process of making bread:— “Many chemists are of opinion that flour by the fermentation in the dough loses somewhat of its nutritious constituents, from a decomposition of the gluten; and it has been proposed to render the dough porous without fermentation by means of substances which when brought into contact yield carbonic acid. But on a closer investigation of the process this view appears to have little fo
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Brown Bread.
Brown Bread.
With regard to the nutritive qualities of brown bread, Professor Jago (who I think one of our highest authorities) says that whole meal, and flour from which the bran and germ have not been removed, do not keep well. These bodies contain oil and nitrogenous principles which readily decompose, producing rancidity and mustiness in flavour. Not only do these changes occur in the flour, but they also proceed apace in the dough. The diastastic bodies of the bran and germ attack the starch, and more o
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Essentials of Good Bread-Making.
Essentials of Good Bread-Making.
Two of the most essential things in bread-baking, in order to produce a full-flavoured, showy, and sweet loaf, are good yeast and good flour. A good oven is also necessary. An oven which is either too hot or too cold will spoil what would otherwise be a good batch of bread: so great care should be used in order to have the oven of the proper heat. Pan bread, or bread baked in tins, need a greater heat than batch bread, as pan-bread dough is of a lighter nature than batch-bread dough, and consequ
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German Yeast and Parisian Barm.
German Yeast and Parisian Barm.
Yeasts, or barms, are of many varieties, but I purpose here to deal with only two kinds—that commonly known as German yeast, which is mostly used in England, and Parisian barm, the kind most in use in Scotland. A great point in working German yeast is to know when it is in proper condition, as it is very liable to go bad in very warm weather, or if kept in a very warm place. Care should be taken to keep it in a place as near a temperature of 56° to 60° Fahr. as possible. Should there be any susp
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American Patent Yeast.
American Patent Yeast.
I may add the following recipe for American patent yeast:—Take half a pound of hops and two pailfuls of water; mix and boil them till the liquid is reduced one half; strain the decoction into a tub, and when luke-warm add half a peck of malt. In the meantime, put the strained-off hops again into two pailfuls of water, and boil as before till they are reduced one half; strain the liquid while hot into a tub. (The heat will not injuriously affect malt previously mixed with tepid water.) When the l
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Good or Bad Flour.
Good or Bad Flour.
Experience is also necessary to judge of flour; but any one in the habit of using flour may form a pretty accurate idea whether it is good or bad. If fine and white, it may be considered good so far as colour is concerned; but if it be brown, it shows that it was either made from inferior wheat, or has been coarsely dressed—that is, that it contains particles of bran. However, brown flour may be of a good sound quality, and fine white flour may not. To judge of flour, take a portion in your hand
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Alum in Bread.
Alum in Bread.
A common custom to improve flour was to add a small quantity of alum to a sack of flour—a custom which, it may be hoped, is entirely a thing of the past. According to Liebig, the action of alum in the process of bread-making is to form certain insoluble combinations which render digestion difficult, and detract largely from the value of bread as food. Professor Vaughan, of the University of Michigan, says: “The use of alum is an adulteration which is injurious to health. It unites with the phosp
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Butter for Pastry and Cakes.
Butter for Pastry and Cakes.
Butter, which so largely enters into the pastrycook’s business, is another important point for consideration. It should be perfectly sweet, and before it is used made smooth on a marble slab. Salt butter made from cows fed on poor pasture is the best for puff paste, and is the most proper for ornamental work; it should be washed in water two or three times before being used. On the other hand, for every kind of cake the butter cannot be too rich. In the course of this work I likewise intend to t
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1.—To make Home-made Bread.
1.—To make Home-made Bread.
Put 1 stone of fine flour into your mixing pan; make a hole in the middle of the flour, and press the sides of the hole to prevent the liquid running through; dissolve 2½ ozs. of yeast in 1 gill of water, and put it in the hole made in the flour; mix a little flour in the liquid to make a thin batter, cover your pan over and let it rise to a nice cauliflower top; when ready, dissolve 2½ ozs. of salt in 1 gill of water, put this into your pan, and then take sufficient water (or water and milk) to
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2.—Bread-making by the Old Method.
2.—Bread-making by the Old Method.
To make a sack of flour into bread the baker takes the flour and empties it into the kneading trough; it is then carefully passed through a wire sieve, which makes it lie lighter and reduces any lumps that may have formed in it. Next he dissolves 2 oz. of alum (called in the trade “stuff” or “rocky”) in a little water placed over the fire. This is poured into the seasoning tub with a pailful of warm water, but not too hot. When this mixture has cooled to a temperature of about 84 degrees, from 3
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3.—Modern Way of making Bread.
3.—Modern Way of making Bread.
The modern way of making bread is as follows: Put 1 sack, or 20 stone, of flour into the trough, and, to take it all up, sponge 12 gallons of water of the required temperature, and from 10 to 16 ozs. of yeast, according to the strength. Then dissolve 2 lbs. of salt in the water and mix all together. In the morning, or when taken up again, add 6 gallons of water and 1½ lb. of salt. If a quick or “flying” sponge is required to be ready in an hour and a half, empty the sack of flour into the trough
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4.—Scotch Style of making Bread.
4.—Scotch Style of making Bread.
The bread-making industry has made great strides in Scotland. In Glasgow alone there are two firms which each bake over two thousand bags of flour a week—namely, J. and B. Stevenson and Bilsland Brothers—while five other firms each bake from five hundred to one thousand bags a week. In respect to the output, Scotland is a long way in advance of either England or Ireland. I can well remember the time when oatmeal cakes and scones were the staple food in Scotland; but such food is now notable by i
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5.—Home-made Whole Meal Bread.
5.—Home-made Whole Meal Bread.
Take 1 stone of wheat meal (granulated is best); put your flour in the basin or mixing bowl, and make a hole in the centre of the meal: dissolve 2 ozs. of yeast in a gill and a half of water, about 90° Fahr.; pour the yeast and water into the hole, and mix in as much of the meal as will make a soft batter; cover it up, and when it is ready (which you will know by its having a nice cauliflower top), add 2½ ozs. of salt, and sufficient water, at a temperature of say 80° Fahr., and mix all lightly
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6.—Whole Meal Bread.
6.—Whole Meal Bread.
( For Master Bakers, as generally used in the Trade. ) When setting your ordinary sponges at night for fine bread, dissolve 2½ ozs. of yeast and 2½ ozs. of salt in 1½ gallons of water, about 4° to 6° Fahr., under whatever heat at which you may be setting your fine sponges (according to the nature of the meal you are using); take as much whole meal flour as will make this quantity of water into a weak sponge, and in the morning, when it is ready, give it half a gallon of water off same heat as yo
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7.—Unfermented, or Diet Bread.
7.—Unfermented, or Diet Bread.
Take 8 lbs. of granulated wheat meal (or meal made with a mixture of barley meal and wheat meal properly blended), 4 ozs. of cream of tartar, and 2 ozs. of carbonate of soda; mix the tartar and soda amongst the flour and sift all through a sieve; make a bay, and add 2 ozs. of crushed salt and 4 ozs. of castor sugar, putting the above in the bay and pouring in a little churned milk to dissolve the salt and sugar; then add as much churned milk as will take the 8 lbs. of meal in, and make into a ni
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8.—Rye Bread.
8.—Rye Bread.
Rye bread used to be in greater favour with the public than it now is, but I consider that is owing to the sodden, heavy way in which it is generally made; for if rye flour is properly blended with fine flour, instead of the barley meal generally used, it produces a very nice-flavoured loaf. Set a sponge at night with fine flour—say, 1 gallon of water, 1½ ozs. of yeast, and 1½ ozs. of salt; let your sponge be about the same consistency as for muffin batter; in the morning add 1 quart of water an
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9.—Coarse Bread.
9.—Coarse Bread.
Coarse flour (or “overheads,” as it is generally called in the south of Scotland) is the cheapest grade of flour made, and if properly manufactured it will vie with any class of flour in the market for a fine, sweet, nutty flavour; but of course it is dark in colour, and I have seen flour of this grade very strong and carry an exceedingly large quantity of water. In a test I had some time ago, I produced 110 4-lb. loaves, weighed in dough at 4 lbs. 6 ozs., out of 20 stone of this flour; but I ma
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10.—Germ Flour Bread.
10.—Germ Flour Bread.
Germ flour is amongst one of the newest kinds of flour placed before the public as a speciality. It is in appearance something like granulated wheat meal, and the vendors of it claim to have found a new process of removing the germ from the flour, and subjecting it to a certain process before it is again mixed with the flour. I am having germ bread made almost daily. Our mode of making it is as follows:— Dissolve 1½ ozs. of yeast in half a gallon of water, say 90° Fahr., and mix with this about
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11.—Tea-Cakes.
11.—Tea-Cakes.
To be able to make a good tea-cake is considered a great point in the baking trade. The following not only makes good tea-cakes, but also capital Scotch cookies. Take ½ a gallon of water at, say, 94° Fahr.; add 1 lb. of moist sugar, 5 ozs. of German yeast; dissolve all together, add, say, 1½ lb. of flour and mix. When well risen, add 1 lb. of lard and butter, 2 ozs. of salt, a few currants to taste; mix all together into tea-cake dough. Let it remain in a warm place for about half an hour, then
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12.—Queen’s Bread.
12.—Queen’s Bread.
This can be made with the same dough, but omitting the currants, and making the dough tighter than for tea-cakes; add 1 egg to each pound of dough. Weigh at 3 ounces for a penny, and make into different shapes, such as half-moons, cart-wheels, twists, &c....
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13.—Sally Luns, Yorkshire, or Tea Cakes.
13.—Sally Luns, Yorkshire, or Tea Cakes.
Take 1 quart of milk, ¼ lb. of moist sugar, and 2 ozs. of German yeast. Ferment this with a little flour, and when ready, add ½ lb. of butter (some add also 4 eggs to this quantity) and make into dough as for tea-cakes; butter some rings or hoops, and place them on buttered tins, weigh or divide into 5 or 6 ozs. for twopence; mould them round, put them in the hoops, and, when half proved, make a hole in each with a piece of stick. Do not overprove them, or they will eat poor and dry. When baked,
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14.—Muffins.
14.—Muffins.
Sift through the sieve 4 lbs. of good Hungarian flour; take as much water and milk as will make the above into a nice-sized batter, having previously dissolved 2 ozs. of yeast, 1 oz. of sugar, and ¾ oz. of salt in the liquid; then beat this well with your hand for at least ten minutes; after it has half risen in your pan beat again for other ten minutes; then let it stand till ready, which you will know by the batter starting to drop. Have one of your roll-boards well dusted with sifted flour, a
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16.—Crumpets.
16.—Crumpets.
Crumpets are generally made by muffin-makers, the most modern formula being the following:—Take 4 lbs. of good English flour, 2 ozs. of good yeast, and 2 ozs. of salt. The flour and salt may be sifted together. Take 1 quart of milk, and 1½ quarts of water, at about 100° Fahr.; dissolve your yeast in the water, then mix in your flour and salt; make all into a thin liquid paste, giving it a thoroughly good mixing; let it stand for one hour, when you may again give it a thoroughly good beat; let it
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17.—Oatmeal Cake.
17.—Oatmeal Cake.
Take 7 lbs. of medium oatmeal, 1½ oz. salt, 1½ oz. carbonate of soda, 1½ oz. cream of tartar, 1½ lb. of flour, 1½ lb. of lard. Rub the lard in the oatmeal and flour, having previously mixed all the other ingredients in the oatmeal; make a bay, add sufficient cold water to make all into a good working dough, weigh off at 8 ozs., mould up, pin out the size you think most suitable, cut into four, and place on clean dry tins. Bake in a sharp oven....
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18.—Bath Buns.
18.—Bath Buns.
1 lb. of flour, 8 ozs. of butter, 8 ozs. of sugar, 4 eggs, a little warm milk, 1 oz. of Parisian yeast, some citron peel cut small, and half a nutmeg grated. This will make fourteen twopenny buns. Rub the butter in with the flour, make a bay and break in the eggs, add the yeast with sufficient milk to make the whole into a dough of moderate consistency, and put in a warm place to prove. When it has risen enough mix in the peel, a little essence of lemon, and the sugar, which should be in small p
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20.—Hot Cross Buns.
20.—Hot Cross Buns.
Take 1 quart of milk or water, 3 ozs. of yeast, 12 ozs. of moist sugar, 12 ozs. of butter, 1 oz. of salt, with sufficient flour to make a nice mellow dough. Proceed the same as for tea-cakes (p. 24 ), adding spice, currants, and peel to taste; weigh 4 ozs. for a penny, make a cross in the middle of the bun, wash over with egg, and prove. Spice, however, is very seldom used, as it tends to darken the buns, and thus giving them a poor appearance. An ingenious apparatus has been invented called a P
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21.—Chelsea Buns.
21.—Chelsea Buns.
Take plain bun dough (or if for common buns, bread dough), roll it out in a sheet, break some firm butter in small pieces and place over it, roll it out as you would paste; after you have given it two or three turns, moisten the surface of the dough, and strew over it some moist sugar; roll up the sheet into a roll, and cut it in slices; or cut the dough in strips of the required size and turn them round; place on buttered tins having edges, half-an-inch from each. Prove them well, and bake in a
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22.—Balmoral Cakes.
22.—Balmoral Cakes.
3½ lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. of sugar, 5 eggs, nearly 1 quart of milk, a few caraway seeds, with 1½ oz. of carbonate of soda and tartaric acid, mixed in proportion of 1 oz. of soda to ¾ oz. of acid. Mix the soda and acid well with the flour, then rub in the butter and sugar; make a bay with the flour, add the seeds, beat up the eggs with the milk, and make all into a dough. Put into buttered pans according to the size; dust with castor sugar, and bake in a moderate oven....
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23.—Balloon or Prussian Cakes.
23.—Balloon or Prussian Cakes.
Take currant bun dough and make it into a round flat cake of any required size, and place it on a buttered tin. When it is about half proved, divide it with a long, flat piece of wood having a thin graduated edge, into eight equal parts, and place it again to prove. When it is proved enough, brush over the top lightly with the white of an egg well whisked, dust it with fine powdered sugar and sprinkle it with water, just sufficient to moisten the sugar. Bake it in a rather cool oven to prevent t
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24.—Saffron Buns.
24.—Saffron Buns.
Take the same mixture as for tea cakes, add 1 oz. of caraway seeds, and colour it with saffron. Mould them round, and put them on the tins so as not to touch. When they are near proof, wash the tops with egg and milk, and dust them with castor sugar. Put them in the oven to finish proving, and bake them in a moderately hot oven....
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25.—Cinnamon Buns.
25.—Cinnamon Buns.
Made same way as saffron buns, but leaving out the caraway seeds and saffron, and using instead sufficient ground cinnamon to flavour them....
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26.—Jubilee Buns.
26.—Jubilee Buns.
2 lbs. of flour, ¾ lb. of butter, ¾ lb. of sugar, 4 eggs, ½ oz. of voil. Rub the butter in with the flour, make a bay and add the sugar, pound the salt in a little milk and pour it in, break the eggs, and mix all together into a dough. Make six buns out of 1 lb. of dough, mould them round, wash the top with eggs, put some currants on the top, and dust with sugar....
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27.—German Buns.
27.—German Buns.
4 lbs. of flour, 2 ozs. of tartar, 1 oz. of carbonate of soda, 12 ozs. of butter, 1½ lbs. of sugar, 4 eggs, 10 drops of essence of lemon, with milk. Mix tartar and carbonate of soda with the flour, make a sprint or bay, put butter and sugar in bay, cream; add eggs, then milk, make all into a dough, and size them off on buttered tins one inch apart. Wash over with egg, and put a little sugar on top, and bake in a moderate oven....
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28.—Common German Buns (for wholesale purposes).
28.—Common German Buns (for wholesale purposes).
4 lbs. of flour, 2 ozs. of tartar, 1 oz. of carbonate of soda, ½ lb. of lard, 1½ lb. of moist sugar, a little turmeric and churned milk; then proceed as for best German buns. Bake in a sharp oven....
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29.—London Buns.
29.—London Buns.
Take 1 pint of milk warmed in a basin, add 2 ozs. of yeast, 8 ozs. of moist sugar, and make a dough with sufficient flour. When the sponge is ready add 12 ozs. of butter, a pinch of salt, and have ready 4 ozs. of chopped peel. Mix all in the dough with 2 eggs and lemon, and prove. When about half proved wash over with yolk of egg. Put sugar on top when full proved....
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30.—Penny Queen Cakes.
30.—Penny Queen Cakes.
1½ lb. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 15 eggs, 2 lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of patent flour. Cream butter and sugar in a basin, add eggs, then flour, and as much milk as will make a nice batter. Bake in fluted pans....
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31.—Patent Flour.
31.—Patent Flour.
Take 4 ozs. of tartar, and 2 ozs. of carbonate of soda, and 8 lbs. of flour, and sift through a sieve three times....
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32.—Penny Rice Cakes.
32.—Penny Rice Cakes.
4 lbs. of flour, 2½ lbs. of castor sugar, 1½ lb. of butter, 10 eggs, 1 oz. of tartar, ¾ oz. of carbonate of soda, ½ lb. of ground rice, milk to dough. Cream butter and sugar together, add eggs; when well creamed, add flour, rice, and milk. Bake in small round hoops papered round the side....
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33.—Cocoanut Cakes.
33.—Cocoanut Cakes.
These are made in the same way, with the same mixture, but leaving out the rice and adding the same quantity of cocoanut. Dust cocoanut on the top of each....
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34.—Albert Cakes.
34.—Albert Cakes.
Cream 12 oz. of butter with 1 lb. of sugar, add 13 eggs; mix ½ oz. of carbonate of soda and ¼ oz. of acid with 2 lbs. of flour; weigh 8 ozs. of currants. Mix all together with milk, and bake in a small edged pan. Cut into squares when cold....
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35.—Queen’s Gingerbread.
35.—Queen’s Gingerbread.
Take 2 lbs. of honey, 1¾ lb. of best moist sugar, and 3 lbs. of flour, ½ lb. of sweet almonds blanched, and ½ lb. of preserved orange peel cut into thin fillets, the yellow rinds of two lemons grated off, 1 oz. of cinnamon, ½ oz. of cloves, mace, and cardamoms mixed and powdered. Put the honey in a pan over the fire with a wineglassful of water, and make it quite hot; mix the other ingredients and the flour together, make a bay, pour in the honey, and mix all well together. Let it stand till nex
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36.—German Gingerbread.
36.—German Gingerbread.
Same as Queen’s Gingerbread, but dust tins with flour instead of grease....
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37.—Spiced Gingerbread.
37.—Spiced Gingerbread.
Take 3 lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. of moist sugar, 4 ozs. of candied lemon or orange peel cut small, 1 oz. of powdered ginger, 2 ozs. of powdered allspice, ½ oz. of powdered cinnamon, 1 oz. of caraway seeds, and 3 lbs. of treacle. Rub the butter into the flour, then add the other ingredients, and mix in the dough with the treacle. Make it into nuts or cakes, and bake in a cool oven....
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38.—Scarborough Gingerbread (for wholesale purposes).
38.—Scarborough Gingerbread (for wholesale purposes).
Take 180 lb. of treacle, 4 lbs. of lard, 4 lbs. 10 ozs. of carbonate of soda, 2 lbs. 11 ozs. of caraway seeds, 2 lbs. 11 ozs. of ginger, and ½ a gallon of water to dissolve the soda. Mix all together with a sufficient quantity of flour. This should turn out about 390 lbs. of very good gingerbread. Wash with glue and water which has been boiled. The taste for gingerbread is very widespread, large quantities of the best quality being exported to India. Holland is regarded as carrying off the palm
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39.—Ginger Cakes.
39.—Ginger Cakes.
2¼ lbs. of flour, ½ lb. of butter, 1 lb. moist sugar, 2 ozs. of ginger. Rub the butter in with the flour and make the whole into a paste with prepared treacle. Make them into round flat cakes, wash the top with milk, lay a slice of peel on each, and bake in a cool oven....
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40.—Prepared Treacle.
40.—Prepared Treacle.
Take 4 lbs. of treacle, 1 oz. of alum, 2 ozs. of pearlash, and mix....
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41.—Prepared Treacle for Thick Gingerbread.
41.—Prepared Treacle for Thick Gingerbread.
Take 7 lbs. of treacle, 3 ozs. of potash, 1 oz. volatile salt, and 2 ozs. of alum. The colour of the gingerbread when baked will be according to the quality of the treacle used. Golden syrup makes the lightest coloured and best....
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42.—Laughing or Fun Nuts.
42.—Laughing or Fun Nuts.
1 lb. of gingerbread dough, 3 ozs. of butter, 3 ozs. of sugar, 1 oz. of cayenne pepper. Mix all together, pin out in a sheet, one-eighth of an inch thick. Cut them out the size of a penny. They are very hot....
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43.—Grantham or White Gingerbread.
43.—Grantham or White Gingerbread.
4 lbs. of flour, 2½ lbs. of loaf sugar, 4 ozs. of butter, 1 oz. of volatile salt, 1 pint of milk, ½ oz. of ginger, ¼ oz. of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and mace, ½ oz. caraway seeds....
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44.—Spice Nuts.
44.—Spice Nuts.
3 lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. of moist sugar, 4 ozs. of candied peel cut small, 1 oz. ginger, 2 ozs. allspice, ¼ oz. of cinnamon, 1 oz. caraway seeds, 3 lbs. prepared treacle. Mix same as other doughs. 45. Another Way. —Take 3 lbs. of flour, 2 lbs. of sugar, 2 lbs. of treacle, 2 ozs. of ginger, ¼ oz. of carbonate of soda, 2 drs. of tartaric acid. Mix the day before baking. 46. Another Way. —7 lbs. of flour, 5 lbs. of syrup, 2¾ lbs. of moist sugar, 1 lb. of lard, 4 ozs. ginger, ½ oz. of
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47.—Light Gingerbread.
47.—Light Gingerbread.
Dr. Colquhoun gives a recipe for preparing a light gingerbread as follows: Take 1 lb. of flour, ¼ oz. of carbonate of magnesia, and 1/8 oz. of tartaric acid. Mix the flour and magnesia thoroughly, then dissolve and add the acid; take the usual quantity of butter, treacle, and spice; melt the butter and pour it with the treacle and acid into the flour and magnesia. The whole must then be made into a dough by kneading, and set aside for a period varying from half an hour to an hour; it will then b
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48.—Italian Jumbles, or Brandy Snaps.
48.—Italian Jumbles, or Brandy Snaps.
6 lbs. of flour, 7 lbs. of good rich sugar, 1¼ lb. of butter or lard, 2 ozs. of ginger or mixed spice, 6 lbs. of raw syrup. Make the whole into a moderately stiff paste or dough, roll out into sheets fully an eighth of an inch thick, cut them with a plain round cutter of 3 inches diameter, put them on tins well greased, and bake in a moderate oven. When baked cut them from the tin and lay them on the peel-shaft till they are hard. If they should get too cold to turn, put them in the oven to warm
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49.—Halfpenny Gingerbread Squares.
49.—Halfpenny Gingerbread Squares.
8 lbs. of flour, 4 lbs. of treacle, 3 ozs. of pearlash, 3 ozs. of alum, and 1 oz. of carbonate of soda. Make a bay, put in the treacle, add the soda, dissolve the pearlash in 1 gill of cold water and pour it on the treacle; put another gill of water in a small pan, add the alum, and let it boil till it is dissolved; then pour it on the other ingredients. Mix all together, put into two tins about 24 inches by 18 inches with an edge 1 inch high. Cut out of each tin 2s. 3½d. worth. This mixture is
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50.—Hunting Nuts.
50.—Hunting Nuts.
7 lbs. of flour, 3½ lbs. of treacle, 1 lb. of sugar, 1 lb. of butter, 3 ozs. of pearlash, 3 ozs. of alum, half a teaspoonful of essence of lemon, 1 lb. of lemon peel cut small. Mix as above; roll out the dough in strips, and with the fingers break off pieces the size of a small marble, lay on the tins in rows and bake in a moderate oven on tins slightly buttered....
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51.—Parkings.
51.—Parkings.
3½ lbs. of oatmeal, 1 lb. of flour, 1 lb. of butter, 8 ozs. of moist sugar, ½ oz. of baking powder, with sufficient syrup to make all into a moderately stiff dough; weigh off at 4 ozs. for a penny, mould up round, and place on tins 2½ inches apart. Bake in a cool oven. 52. Another Way. —6 lbs. of snap dough, 12 ozs. of moist sugar, 10 ozs. of butter, 1¾ lb. of oatmeal, 1½ oz. of carbonate of soda, 1 oz. of caraway seeds, 1 oz. of seasoning. Proceed as above....
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53.—Parking Cake.
53.—Parking Cake.
3 lbs. of oatmeal, 1 lb. of flour, 4 lbs. of treacle, 1 lb. of good butter, 2 teaspoonfuls of carbonate of soda, 1 gill of beer. Mixed up as above. Baked in an edged pan 3 inches high, in a cool oven....
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54.—Scotch Shortbread.
54.—Scotch Shortbread.
Take 1 lb. of butter, 2 lbs. of flour, 8 ozs. of powdered sugar. Mix the sugar in the butter, then take in all the flour and thoroughly mix and rub all together till of a nice mellow colour and easy to work; weigh off the size required, and shape into square or round pieces; dock them on the top, notch them round the sides, put on clean dry tins, and bake in a moderate oven....
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55.—English Shortbread.
55.—English Shortbread.
1 lb. of flour, ½ lb. of sugar, ½ lb. butter, 2 eggs. Mix as for Scotch Shortbread, ornament the tops with designs of neatly-cut lemon peel and caraway comfits....
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56.—French Shortbread.
56.—French Shortbread.
2 lbs. of flour, ¾ lb. of butter, ¾ lb. of sugar, 4 eggs, ½ oz. of ammonia. Rub the butter in the flour, make a bay, put in the eggs, sugar, and ammonia; beat them well with your hand, then draw in the flour and butter; make all into a dough, weigh at 12 ozs., chaff them up round, pin out a good breadth, mark them off into eight, place a piece of peel on each, and bake in good oven. Cut the marked pieces with a sharp knife after they are baked....
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57.—Machine-made Biscuits.
57.—Machine-made Biscuits.
In making the dough for hard biscuits it should be kept in a loose crumbly state until the whole is of an equal consistency, then work, rub, or press it together with your hands until the whole is collected or formed into a mass. If the old-fashioned biscuit brake is replaced by a biscuit machine so much the better for the baker and the goods he turns out. If so, then all that is necessary will be to properly adjust the rollers whether for braking (that is making the dough) or rolling out for th
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58.—Ship Biscuits.
58.—Ship Biscuits.
These were evidently the first biscuits, from which have sprung all the varieties of hard biscuits which we at present possess. They are of the same character as those which were first made by man in his progress towards civilisation, and were baked or roasted on hot embers. Before this, men knew of no other use for their meal than to make it into a kind of porridge. Biscuits prepared in a simple fashion were for centuries the food of the Roman soldiers. The name is derived from the Latin bis ,
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59.—Captains’ Biscuits.
59.—Captains’ Biscuits.
7 lbs. of fine flour, 6 ozs. of butter, 1 quart of water or milk. Rub the butter in with the flour until it is crumbled into very small pieces, make a bay in the centre of the flour, pour in the water or milk, make it into a dough, and break it when made into dough, chaff or mould up the required size, 4 or 5 ozs. each, pin out with a rolling pin about 5 inches in diameter, dock them and lay them with their faces together. When they are ready bake them in a moderately quick oven, of a nice brown
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60.—Thick Captains.
60.—Thick Captains.
7½ lbs. of flour, ½ lb. of butter, 1 quart of water or milk. Mix as directed. When ready weigh out at 2 ozs. each, mould or chaff, roll out, dock quite through and bake in a hot oven. All biscuits of this class require thorough drying in the drying room....
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61.—Abernethy Biscuits.
61.—Abernethy Biscuits.
( Dr. Abernethy’s Original Recipe. ) 1 quart of milk, 6 eggs, 8 ozs. of sugar, ½ oz. of caraway seeds, with flour sufficient to make the whole of the required consistency. They are generally weighed off at 2 ozs. each, moulded up, pinned and docked, and baked in a moderate oven. Note. —The heat of an oven is not required so strong for biscuits containing sugar, as it causes them to take more colour in less time....
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62.—Abernethys as made in London.
62.—Abernethys as made in London.
7 lbs. of flour, 8 ozs. of sugar, 8 ozs. of butter, 4 eggs, 1½ pint of milk, 2 tablespoonfuls of orange-flower water, ½ oz. of caraway seeds....
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63.—Usual Way of making Abernethy Biscuits.
63.—Usual Way of making Abernethy Biscuits.
Take 8 lbs. of flour, 1½ lb. of butter and lard, 12 ozs. of sugar, ½ oz. of caraway seeds; some use about ½ oz. of powdered volatile salts. Proceed to make into dough as before. Well break the dough and finish with either hand or machine....
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64.—Wine Biscuits.
64.—Wine Biscuits.
Take 8 lbs. of flour, rub in 2 lbs. of good butter. Make a bay, add about 1 quart of water, take in your flour and butter and well shake up, and note the more your mixture is shaken up and worked the better biscuits you will have. Also note in shaking up these biscuits, when they are mixed let your two thumbs meet, giving the mixture a shake up in the air till you have all the dry flour worked in and the mixture is nice and moist. Bake in a smart oven on wires....
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65.—Soda Biscuits.
65.—Soda Biscuits.
14 lbs. of flour, 1¼ lb. of butter, ½ oz. of carbonate of soda, 3 drachms of muriatic acid, 2 quarts of water. Mix as the last, adding the acid mixed with half-a-pint of the water after the dough is shaken up, then finish with the machine....
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66.—Boston Lemon Crackers.
66.—Boston Lemon Crackers.
26 lbs. of flour, 2¼ lbs. of butter, 5 lbs. of sugar, 2 ozs. of ammonia, ½ oz. of essence of lemon, 3 quarts of water. This should be made into small round biscuits rather larger than pic-nics. Bake them in a sound oven....
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67.—Pic-Nics.
67.—Pic-Nics.
30 lbs. of flour, 4 lbs. of butter, 4 lbs. of castor sugar, 3 ozs. of carbonate of soda, 2 ozs. of muriatic acid, 4 quarts of milk....
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68.—Common Pic-Nics.
68.—Common Pic-Nics.
28 lbs. of flour, 2 lbs. of lard, 2 lbs. of sugar, 2 ozs. of carbonate of soda, 2 ozs. of hydrochloric acid. Mix as above and finish the dough in the usual way. Bake in a moderately brisk oven....
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69.—Luncheon Biscuits.
69.—Luncheon Biscuits.
56 lbs. of flour, 3½ lbs. of lard, 3½ lbs. of butter, 1¼ lb. of castor sugar, 4 quarts of milk, 4 quarts of water, 2 ozs. of carbonate of soda, 1½ oz. of hydrochloric acid. Mix as before described. Let the dough be of a good stiffness and broken very clear. The cutters may be either round or oval. They require about 20 minutes’ baking. As soon as they are drawing put them in the stove for about two hours....
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70.—Digestive Biscuits.
70.—Digestive Biscuits.
Take equal parts of fine flour and wheat-meal flour and mix them together to 5 quarts of milk and water. Use 2½ lbs. of butter and 2 ozs. of German yeast. Rub the butter in the flour, make a bay, pour in your liquor and yeast. Mix the whole into a dough, break it a little, and put it in a warm place to prove. After it is light enough, break it quite smooth and clear, roll it out in a sheet one-eighth of an inch in thickness and cut out your biscuits. As soon as the biscuits are cut out bake in a
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72.—Small Arrowroot Biscuits.
72.—Small Arrowroot Biscuits.
5½ lbs. of flour, 8 ozs. of butter, 6 ozs. of sugar, 6 ozs. of arrowroot, 3 eggs, 1 pint of liquor. Prepare as the last. Make 16 biscuits from 1 lb. of dough. Mould and pin into round cakes 3 inches in diameter, dock them with an arrowroot docker, and bake them in a sound oven....
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73.—Coffee Biscuits.
73.—Coffee Biscuits.
4 lbs. of flour, 4 ozs. of butter, 4 ozs. of castor sugar, 5 large eggs, with enough water to fill a pint. Make a bay; after the butter is rubbed in with the flour, add the sugar and beat up the eggs and water together; pour into your bay, make the whole into a dough, break it clear and make it quite thin. When you finish it roll it out the tenth of an inch in thickness, cut with your coffee biscuit cutter and bake them in a brisk oven. If the oven should not be hot enough to raise them round th
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74.—Victoria Biscuits.
74.—Victoria Biscuits.
3½ lbs. of flour, 2 ozs. butter, 2 ozs. of sugar, 1 pint of eggs. Make a bay, rub the butter in the flour before you make a bay, add the sugar, pour in the eggs, beat them well up with your hands, make the whole into a dough, break well that it may be clear, roll into thin sheets, cut with an oval cutter the same as used for Brightons, put them on clean tins, and bake in a hot oven the same as Coffee Biscuits....
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75.—Shell Biscuits.
75.—Shell Biscuits.
5 lbs. of flour, 12 ozs. of castor sugar, 12 ozs. of butter, 1 pint of milk. Make all into a good dough, roll into sheets half-an-inch thick, cut with an oval-pointed cutter in shape thus oval , place them on a crimp board and with a knife or scraper curl them up, put on clean dry tins. Bake in moderate heat....
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76.—York Biscuits.
76.—York Biscuits.
5¼ lbs. of flour, 12 ozs. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 1 pint of milk. Mix as before into a dough, roll out the dough ¼ of an inch thick, cut them into long strips, and cut them diamond shape or square, dock them either on the table or crimping-board as your fancy dictates. Bake them in a rather warm oven....
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77.—Machine Biscuits.
77.—Machine Biscuits.
10 lbs. of flour, 2¼ lbs. of butter, 10 ozs. of castor sugar, 1 quart of water. Mix up the same as the others, roll out a sheet ½ inch in thickness, cut them out in various forms, dock them, and bake on clean dry tins in a moderate oven....
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78.—Bath Oliver Biscuits.
78.—Bath Oliver Biscuits.
1 quart of milk, 1 lb. of butter, 2 ozs. of German yeast, 6½ lbs. of flour. Make the milk warm, add the sugar, yeast and a handful of flour to form a ferment, let it ferment for an hour and a half. Rub the butter into the remaining flour and make all into a nice smooth dough; let it stand about two hours, then roll it out thin; cut the biscuits out with a cutter about three inches in diameter, dock them well, place on clean tins sprinkled with water, wash over with milk when you have them all of
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79.—Edinburgh Biscuits.
79.—Edinburgh Biscuits.
4 lbs. of flour, 12 ozs. of butter, 6 ozs of sugar, 1 pint of milk. Mix up in the usual way, break smooth, and make 12 biscuits out of a pound of dough; roll thin, dock them, and bake in a brisk oven. Sold at a halfpenny each....
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80.—Nursery Biscuits.
80.—Nursery Biscuits.
Take 1 quart of milk, 5 ozs. sugar, 3 ozs. yeast, ¼ lb. of flour. Mix all together into a ferment and let it drop, add ¼ lb. arrowroot, 5 ozs. butter, and as much flour as will make a good dough. Put it away till you think it is ripe enough to work off, which you will know by its appearing light and spongy. When it has reached this stage take 4 lbs. of the dough and roll it out ½ inch thick, cut out with a plain round cutter an inch and a half in diameter, put them on tins a quarter of an inch a
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81.—Soda Biscuits.
81.—Soda Biscuits.
12½ lbs. of flour, 1 oz. of salt, 6 ozs. of lard, 1 oz. of acid, 1½ oz. of soda, 2 quarts of water. Mix as for Machine Biscuits, break the dough smooth and clear, let it lay for about half an hour, then roll out in large sheets nearly the thickness of three penny pieces, cut out with an oval spring cutter five inches in length and three inches in breadth. The dough must be well made and of a good stiffness. When cut out lay them on top of each other in sixes on carrying boards. Have the oven of
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82.—Digestive Biscuits.
82.—Digestive Biscuits.
5 lbs. of wheat meal, 1 lb. of butter, 4 ozs. of sugar, 4 eggs, ¼ oz. of carbonate of soda in 1 quart of water. Rub the butter in the wheat meal, make a bay, add the sugar, eggs, and soda; mix well together, add the water, and take in the wheat meal. After making it into dough, take about 2 lbs., roll it out into a sheet the thickness of a penny; take it on the pin again, and roll it on to a piece of cloth spread on the table; cut them out with a small oval cutter, put on tins well cleaned but n
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83.—Kent Biscuits.
83.—Kent Biscuits.
4 lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of butter, 1½ lb. of sugar, 10 eggs, and 3 drs. of volatile salt. Rub butter in with flour; or make a bay, put in the butter, partly cream it, add eggs and sugar, and voil after well mixing all together; take in the flour and make it into a dough. Roll out a sheet the thickness of two penny pieces, cut out with a small fluted cutter, lay them in rows, take a brush and egg-wash top, lay them on lump sugar previously broken into pieces the size of split peas, and bake on tin
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84.—Imperial or Lemon Biscuits.
84.—Imperial or Lemon Biscuits.
Take 1¼ lb. of flour, 1¼ lb. of sugar, 4 eggs, 4 ozs. of butter, and a pinch of volatile salt. Rub butter in the flour, then take the sugar and mix it with the flour and butter; make a bay, put in your eggs and voil, and mix all lightly but well together. Take a piece, roll it out same as for hunting nuts, in strips, place on slightly buttered tins 1 inch apart, and bake on double tins, unless the oven is very cold. Note. —In making fancy biscuits the tins must be as clean as it is possible to g
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85.—Venice Biscuits.
85.—Venice Biscuits.
5 lbs. of flour, 1½ lb. of butter, 2½ lbs. of sugar, 11 eggs, 1 lb. of mixed peel and 1 oz. of volatile salt. Proceed to make the dough in the same way as for Imperial or Lemon Biscuits, roll out in a sheet, and cut out with a small oval fluted cutter; egg them on the top, and throw them on large crystallised sugar. Bake on slightly buttered tins in a moderate oven....
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86.—Shrewsbury Biscuits.
86.—Shrewsbury Biscuits.
2 lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of sugar, 1 lb. of butter, 4 eggs, pinch of powdered cinnamon, and a little milk. 87. Another Way. —14 ozs. of flour, 10 ozs. of sugar, 10 ozs. of butter, 2 small eggs, half a nutmeg grated, a little cinnamon and mace, and a pinch of voil. 88. Another Way. —1½ lb. of flour, ½ lb. of butter, ½ lb. of sugar, 1 egg, with sufficient milk to make dough. Some add about ¼ oz. of volatile salt. Rub the butter in with the flour, make a bay, add the sugar, eggs, milk, and spice; mak
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89.—Peruvian Biscuits.
89.—Peruvian Biscuits.
4 ozs. of flour, 1 lb. of rice-flour, ½ lb. of arrowroot, 1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. of sugar, 6 eggs, ½ oz. of voil. Make into a dough same as for other biscuits, roll into strips the thickness of your finger, cut them the size of small marbles, and bake on slightly greased tins in a moderate oven....
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90.—Currant Fruit Biscuits.
90.—Currant Fruit Biscuits.
3 lbs. of flour, 12 ozs. of arrowroot, 14 ozs. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 10 eggs, 20 ozs. of currants, ½ oz. of voil. Proceed to make dough as before; roll out in a sheet the thickness of two penny pieces. Cut with a plain round cutter, and bake in a moderate oven....
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91.—Snowdrop Biscuits.
91.—Snowdrop Biscuits.
1 lb. of arrowroot, 1 lb. of flour, the whites of 10 eggs, ½ lb. of butter, ¾ lb. of sugar, ¼ oz. of voil. Rub the butter in the flour, add the arrowroot, make a bay, add all the other ingredients, mix into a dough. Proceed the same as for Peruvian biscuits, and bake in a very cool oven....
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92.—Rice Biscuits.
92.—Rice Biscuits.
1¼ lb. flour, ¾ lb. rice-flour, ½ lb. butter, 1 lb. sugar, 2 eggs, ¼ oz. of voil. Make into dough with a little milk, roll out in sheets same size as for Currant Fruit, place on dry tins, and dust the tops with ground rice....
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93.—Genoa and Toulouse Biscuits, Exhibition Nuts and Marseillaise Biscuits.
93.—Genoa and Toulouse Biscuits, Exhibition Nuts and Marseillaise Biscuits.
6 lbs. flour, 14 ozs. butter, 4 lbs. sugar, 10 eggs, ¼ oz. voil. Make a nice stiff dough with the rest milk. Genoas are made by rolling out the dough in strips and cutting off in pieces the length of the little finger. Wash them on top with white of egg and throw on lump sugar the size of split peas. Marseillaise Biscuits are made from the same dough, rolled out in strips, but cut the size of small marbles. Put about twenty or thirty of them into a sieve, and roll them about to make them round.
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94.—Walnut Biscuits.
94.—Walnut Biscuits.
2 lbs. flour, ½ lb. brown sugar, ½ lb. castor sugar, ½ lb. butter, and yolk of one egg. Simmer the sugar and a little milk over a slow fire, rub the butter into the flour; after the sugar has become cold put it into the bay and make into a stiffish dough. Put the dough into blocks, and give them the impression of half a walnut, after which cut off the surplus dough with a sharp knife, knock out the biscuits, and bake on slightly buttered tins until a nice brown. After they are baked dip in white
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95.—Queen’s Drops.
95.—Queen’s Drops.
8 ozs. butter, 8 ozs. sugar, 4 eggs, 10 ozs. flour, 6 ozs. currants. Some add a little voil, but if well creamed there is no use for voil. Cream the butter and sugar together, add the eggs, then flour and currants; have ready a linen bag with a small tin funnel at the end of it; have a small cork in the funnel so as to keep the mixture from dropping out, drop them on paper about the breadth of a shilling, put them on tins, and bake in a sound oven....
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96.—Cracknel Biscuits.
96.—Cracknel Biscuits.
3½ lbs. flour, 3 ozs. butter, 6 ozs. castor sugar, 13 eggs, 2 drs. voil. Rub the butter in the flour, make a bay, put in the sugar in powder with the eggs and voil, make the whole into a dough of moderate consistence; break it well and let it be quite clear and smooth; roll out a quarter of an inch thick, cut out with an oval cutter, or one in the form of an oak-leaf, dock them in the centre, lay them on a tray in rows, cover them with a damp cloth. Have a copper on the fire boiling, throw them
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97.—Premium Drops.
97.—Premium Drops.
1 lb. butter, 1 lb. sugar, 9 eggs, 1 lb. rice-flour, ¼ oz. voil, 1 lb. flour, 4 drops essence of lemon. Proceed the same as for Queen’s Drops. The batter, however, will be found a good deal stiffer. This makes a nice drop when well got up....
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98.—German Wafers.
98.—German Wafers.
8 ozs. sugar, 8 eggs, 4 ozs. flour, 1 oz. butter. Put the flour in a small basin, rub in the butter and add eggs and sugar; have the tins well greased, and drop the batter on them with a spoon in pieces a little larger than a penny. Bake in a cool oven. When baked form into the shape of a cone, dip each edge in white of egg, and then each end in coloured sugar. They make a nice show for a window....
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99.—Crimp, or Honeycomb Biscuits.
99.—Crimp, or Honeycomb Biscuits.
4 lbs. flour, 2 lbs. sugar, 1 lb. butter, 9 eggs, ½ oz. voil. Rub the butter in with the flour, make a bay, add the sugar, eggs and voil. Roll out a sheet a nice thickness. Cut out with a small round plain cutter, but before doing so run over the surface of the dough with a crimp-pin. Bake in a moderate oven....
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100.—Hermit Biscuits.
100.—Hermit Biscuits.
2 lbs. flour, 4 oz. butter, 12 ozs. sugar, ¼ oz. caraway seeds, 5 or 6 eggs, ¼ oz. voil. Make up the dough as usual for biscuits, cut them out the size of spice nuts with spice-nut cutter, egg them on top; have some loaf sugar, and almonds with the skins on cut the size of split peas, place the biscuits on the sugar and almonds, gently press them down before putting them on slightly buttered tins, and bake in a moderate oven....
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101.—Italian Macaroons.
101.—Italian Macaroons.
1 lb. of Valentia almonds, 2 lbs. of powdered sugar, 7 or 8 whites of eggs. Beat the almonds with whites of eggs, but not so fine as for common macaroons; lay out stiff on wafer-paper; have almonds cut in slices, one into six pieces, lay them on the sides and top of each macaroon; ice them well from the icing-bag, and bake in a slow oven....
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102.—Common Macaroons.
102.—Common Macaroons.
1 lb. Valentia almonds, 1½ lb. sugar, about 8 whites of eggs. Beat the almonds very fine with the white of an egg in a mortar, and then add the sugar and two or three whites of eggs; beat well together. Take out the pestle, add two more whites, and work them well with a spatter until the whole of the whites are incorporated. Lay out one on wafer-paper and bake it in a slow oven. If it appears smooth and light the mixture is ready, but if not add one more white of egg, as it is hardly possible to
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103.—French Macaroons.
103.—French Macaroons.
1 lb. of Valentia almonds, 1 lb. of sugar, 5 or 6 whites of eggs. Proceed as before, but instead of beating the almonds with whites of eggs use rose or orange-flower water, and when beaten very fine put in the whites of eggs and sugar, beating them well with the spatter. Lay out one oval on wafer-paper and bake it. If it runs into its shape the mixture is ready; if too stiff, add one more white of egg; lay out on wafer-paper, dust sugar on top, and bake them in a good oven....
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104.—Ratafias.
104.—Ratafias.
8 ozs. of bitter almonds, 8 ozs. of sweet almonds, 2½ lbs. of sugar, and about eight whites of eggs. Blanch and beat the almonds with white of egg as fine as possible, and be careful when beating them you do not oil them. When beaten fine, mix in the sugar and beat both well together; then add more whites of eggs, work them well with the spatter, adding more whites of eggs as you proceed. Then lay one or two on dry paper half the size of a macaroon, and bake them in a slow oven. If they are of p
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105.—Princess Biscuits.
105.—Princess Biscuits.
These are exactly the same as common macaroons, but must be laid out on wafer paper half the size, and a dried cherry put on the top for effect. Use a square of citron on some, and a square of angelica on others. Dust them on top with sugar, and bake them in a slow oven....
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106.—Rusks.
106.—Rusks.
1 quart of sponge, 4 ozs. sugar, 2 eggs, 2 ozs. of butter. Mix all the ingredients together, make it up the size of bun dough with best flour, let it lie for two hours, make into long rolls and batch them on tins, greasing between each roll. Bake in moderate oven for thirty-five minutes. After they are baked let them lie for one day. Rasp top and bottom off, cut into neat slices, and bake again in a moderate oven until thoroughly crisp and dry, and of a nice brown colour. Put them in a basket, a
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107.—Rock Almonds (White).
107.—Rock Almonds (White).
Blanch and cut the long way any quantity of almonds. Make some icing pretty stiff (p. 63 ), put the almonds into it and let them take up all the icing. Citron, lemon, and orange cut small may also be added. Lay out on wafer paper in small heaps and bake in a very slow oven....
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108.—Rock Almonds (Pink).
108.—Rock Almonds (Pink).
Make any desired quantity of icing, colour it with lake finely ground, mix in as many cut almonds, citron, and lemon as it will take; lay out on wafer paper in small heaps and bake in a slow oven....
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109.—Rock Almonds (Brown).
109.—Rock Almonds (Brown).
Take any quantity of Jordan almonds, cut them up very small (but not blanch them); also citron, lemon, and orange cut small. Prepare some very light icing, with which mix the almonds, &c., into a soft paste. Lay out on wafer paper and bake in a slow oven....
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110.—Almond Fruit Biscuits.
110.—Almond Fruit Biscuits.
1 lb. of Valentia almonds, 1 lb. of powdered sugar, 2 or 3 whites of egg. Beat up the almonds very fine with white of one egg; then rub the sugar and almonds into a fine paste with 1 or 2 whites of egg, divide it into two parts, work 2 ozs. of flour into one part and roll it out thin for the bottom, cut it square and cover it with good raspberry jam; then roll out another square the same size, and lay it on the top of the fruit, cover this thinly with icing and cut it up into different shapes ac
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111.—Meringues.
111.—Meringues.
Take any desired quantity of whites of eggs (half duck whites if you can procure them), whisk them until so stiff that an egg will lie on the surface, then mix in with the spatter some fine powdered sugar until they appear of a proper stiffness, which may be known by laying out one oval with a knife and spoon. If it retains the mark of the knife they are ready to bake; if not, more sugar must be added. Lay out oval on dry paper and bake on a piece of wood two inches thick: this is to prevent the
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113.—Common Drop Biscuits.
113.—Common Drop Biscuits.
Break the eggs into a round-bottom pan, whisk them till they are hot, having your pan placed over hot water; take them off and whisk them till they are cold, then put in the sugar and whisk till hot, after which again whisk till they are cold. When the eggs and sugar are perfectly light take out the whisk, stir in the flour gently. From beginning to end the operation should not take more than twenty minutes. Cover the tins or wires with wafer paper, and lay out the biscuits any size required fro
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114.—Savoy Biscuits.
114.—Savoy Biscuits.
For ingredients, take 8 eggs, 1 lb. of sugar, and 1 lb. of flour, and see directions below under Fruit Biscuits ....
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115.—French Savoy Biscuits.
115.—French Savoy Biscuits.
Take 8 eggs and 4 yolks, 1 lb. of sugar, and 1 lb. of flour, and see directions below....
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116.—Judges’ Biscuits.
116.—Judges’ Biscuits.
Take 8 eggs and 4 yolks, 1 lb. of sugar, 1 lb. of flour, and a few caraway seeds, and see directions below....
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117.—Lord Mayor’s Biscuits.
117.—Lord Mayor’s Biscuits.
Take 8 eggs, 1 lb. of sugar, 1 lb. of flour, and a few caraway seeds, and see directions below....
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118.—Fruit Biscuits.
118.—Fruit Biscuits.
For these the ingredients are 6 eggs and 6 yolks, 1 lb. of sugar, and 1 lb. of flour. To mix the above five recipes, observe the directions given for Common Drop Biscuits . They must be baked in a hot oven. The Savoy Biscuits must be laid out from a savoy bag on “cap” paper one-half round and one-half long. The French Savoys must be laid out oval, and when baked two are to be put together. The Judges’ Biscuits are to be laid out round, about the size of a half-crown; and the Lord Mayor’s are to
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119.—Palais Royal Biscuits.
119.—Palais Royal Biscuits.
Make the mixture exactly the same way as for French Savoys. Bake them in paper boxes about two inches long, one inch and a-half wide, and an inch deep. Dust them lightly on the top with sugar and bake in a moderate oven. The boxes must be made of the best writing paper. They are very proper to mix with rout biscuits....
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120.—Rice Biscuits.
120.—Rice Biscuits.
Take the weight of 8 eggs in sugar, 2 eggs in flour, and 6 eggs in rice-flour; or take 1 lb. of sugar, 4 ozs. of flour, 12 ozs. of rice-flour, and 8 eggs. Mix cold in the same manner as for Savoy Biscuits. Bake in a moderate oven in sponge frames nicely buttered....
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121.—Scarborough Water Cakes.
121.—Scarborough Water Cakes.
8 eggs, 1 lb. of sugar, 1 lb. of flour, and a little ground cinnamon. Mix the same way as for Savoy Biscuits. Flavour with as much ground cinnamon as will make them pleasant to the taste. When taken off the paper put two together....
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122.—Sponge Biscuits.
122.—Sponge Biscuits.
Take 12 eggs, 1 lb. 2 ozs. of sugar, 15 ozs. of flour. Mix cold the same as for Savoy Biscuits, which is the best method; or they may be mixed hot. The pans must be neatly buttered with creamed butter, and a dust of sugar thrown over them. Bake in a moderate oven, but not too hot. The bottoms should be a neat brown....
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123.—Almond Sponge Biscuits.
123.—Almond Sponge Biscuits.
Make exactly the same way as Sponge Biscuits, only have ready Jordan almonds blanched and each cut the long way into 6 or 8 pieces. Put them neatly on the top of each biscuit, dust sugar over them and bake as before....
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124.—Naples Biscuits.
124.—Naples Biscuits.
8 eggs, 1 lb. of sugar, 1 gill of water, 1 lb. 2 oz. of flour. A Naples Biscuit frame is about 8 ins. long, 3 ins. broad, and 1 in. deep. In this the partitions are upright, and must be papered neatly. Put the sugar and water into a small pan, let it dissolve and boil; then whisk the eggs. Pour in the sugar gently, and keep whisking until very light. When it is quite cold scatter in the flour, and mix it until smooth, stirring it as lightly as possible. Put it into the frames, well filled, and b
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125.—Butter for Puff Paste.
125.—Butter for Puff Paste.
The butter must be perfectly sweet, and before it is used worked on a marble slab to make it smooth. Salt butter from cows fed on poor land makes the best puff paste, but it must first be washed in two or three waters. For every kind of cakes the butter cannot be too rich....
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126.—Puff Paste.
126.—Puff Paste.
3 lbs. of butter and 3 lbs. of flour. The butter must be tough: if salt, wash it in two waters the night before using it. Take half of it and rub into the flour, and with pure water make into a paste the same stiffness as the butter. Roll it on a marble slab half an inch thick, spot it with small pieces of butter, dust it with flour; then double it up again, spot it as before, and roll it out again, spot it the third time, roll out again twice, and put in a cool place for half an hour with a clo
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128.—Crisp Tart Paste.
128.—Crisp Tart Paste.
1 lb. of butter, and 2 lbs. of flour. Rub the butter and flour very finely together, then mix it, with water, into a paste of the stiffness of the butter. This is a choice paste for tarts made of fresh fruit....
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129.—Sweet Tart Paste.
129.—Sweet Tart Paste.
6 ozs. of butter, 2 ozs. of sugar, 1 lb. of flour. Beat to a froth the whites of two eggs, rub the butter and flour very finely together, make the paste of the proper stiffness with whites of egg and a little water....
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130.—Paste for a Baked Custard.
130.—Paste for a Baked Custard.
8 oz. of butter and 1 lb. of flour. Boil the butter in a small teacupful of water, mix it into the flour, make it smooth, and raise it to any shape desired....
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131.—Paste for small Raised Pies.
131.—Paste for small Raised Pies.
12 ozs. of butter, 2 lbs. of flour, and 1 gill of water. Mix the same way as for baked custards....
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132.—To make a handsome Tartlet.
132.—To make a handsome Tartlet.
Take a large oval dish and sheet it with the best puff paste; cut it round the sides to make leaves, and fill it three-parts full with good preserved fruit. On the fruit put some device in cut paste, such as a large star, a sprig of flowers, or a tree....
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133.—Nelson Cake or Eccles Cake.
133.—Nelson Cake or Eccles Cake.
Take 2 lbs. of puff paste, roll out half of it, spread 1½ lb. of clean currants and ½ lb. of raw sugar upon it with a little spice, and dash a little water on the sugar and currants to make them unite; then roll out the remainder of the paste and lay it on the top. Ice it well with whites of eggs and sugar. Bake on a square tin in a good oven....
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134.—To make a Custard.
134.—To make a Custard.
Boil 1 pint of milk with a bit of cinnamon and a little fresh lemon-peel, then mix in a pint of cream and the yolks of 7 eggs well beaten. Sweeten to taste and let the whole simmer until of a proper thickness. It must not be allowed to boil. Stir it one way the whole time with a small whisk, until quite smooth, then stir in a glass of brandy....
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135.—Common Custard.
135.—Common Custard.
Beat up 3 eggs, add 1 gill of cream or new milk and a little sugar. Put a dust of cinnamon on each before putting in the oven....
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136.—Directions for mixing Cakes made with Butter.
136.—Directions for mixing Cakes made with Butter.
Take your butter and work it on a marble slab, then cream it in a warm earthenware pan, and be particularly careful not to let the butter oil; add the sugar and work it well with your hand, mixing in one or two eggs at a time, and so on progressing until all the eggs are used. Beat it well up, and as soon as you perceive the mixing rise in the pan put in the flour and beat it well. Then add the spices, currants, and whatever else is required for the mixing. You may then put it up into the tins y
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138.—London Way of mixing Cakes.
138.—London Way of mixing Cakes.
Weigh down the flour and sugar on a clean smooth table, make a hole in it, and bank it well up; in this hole put your eggs; cream the butter in an earthenware pan; then add to the flour and sugar the eggs and butter; mix all together and beat up well with both hands. You may work it up this way as light as a feather; then add the currants, spices, &c. 139. Another Way. —Take six pieces of cane about 18 inches long, tie them fast together at one end, but in order to make them open put in
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140.—Citron Cake.
140.—Citron Cake.
1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. 2 ozs. of sugar, 6 eggs, and 4 yolks; 1 lb. 4 ozs. of flour. Cut 4 ozs. of green citron in long thin pieces and place them in two or three layers as you put the cake up. It must be baked in a deep tin or rim papered with fine paper. Neatly buttered and baked in a slow oven....
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141.—Common Fruit Cake.
141.—Common Fruit Cake.
3 lbs. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 24 eggs, 5¼ lbs. of flour, 4½ lbs. of currants, 1 lb. 8 ozs. of lemon and orange peel, a little mace, a pint of warm milk, ¼ oz. of soda, about ½ oz. cream of tartar. Proceed as directed....
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142.—Pound Cakes.
142.—Pound Cakes.
1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. of sugar, 8 eggs, 1 lb. 2 ozs. of flour, 1 lb. 8 ozs. of currants, 8 ozs. of orange and lemon peel. Proceed as directed....
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143.—Seed Cakes.
143.—Seed Cakes.
1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. of sugar, 8 eggs, 1 lb. of flour, caraway seeds. Some put 1 tablespoonful of brandy and 2 ozs. of cut almonds....
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144.—Two and Three Pound Cakes.
144.—Two and Three Pound Cakes.
2 lbs. 4 ozs. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 16 eggs, 2 lbs. 6 ozs. of flour, 3 lbs. 8 ozs. of currants, 1 lb. 8 ozs. of orange, lemon, and citron; almonds and brandy if required; ¾ oz. of cream of tartar and carbonate of soda. Proceed as directed....
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145.—Another Seed Cake.
145.—Another Seed Cake.
2 lbs. 8 ozs. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 16 eggs, 2 lbs. 4 ozs. of flour, 4 ozs. of cut almonds, caraway seeds, and a glass of brandy; ¾ oz. of cream of tartar and carbonate of soda. Proceed as directed....
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146.—Four and Six Pound Cakes.
146.—Four and Six Pound Cakes.
2 lbs. 8 ozs. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 16 eggs, 3 lbs. 8 ozs. of flour, 6 lbs. of currants, 2 lbs. of orange and lemon, citron and almonds. Proceed as directed....
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147.—Bride Cakes.
147.—Bride Cakes.
The following mixtures are made in a few first-class shops, and the recipes for the same are not generally known. The prices quoted allow for almond-icing as well....
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148.—Icing Sugar for Bride Cakes, &c.
148.—Icing Sugar for Bride Cakes, &c.
To make this take 2 lbs. of finely powdered icing sugar (first having an earthenware pan made warm), put in six fresh whites of eggs, and immediately whisk them, and as quickly as possible, until quite stiff; then add the sugar by degrees, whisking all the time. As soon as it appears light cease whisking, and beat it well with the spatter until you have put in all the sugar. A little tartaric acid or lemon-juice may be added towards the end of the mixing. To know when it is sufficiently beaten,
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149.—Almond Icing for Bride Cakes.
149.—Almond Icing for Bride Cakes.
1 lb. Valencia almonds, 2 lbs. of icing sugar, and about 3 whites of eggs and 2 yolks. Blanch and beat the almonds. Fine with whites of eggs, then add the sugar and whites and yolks, beat them well together and make them into a stiffish paste. As soon as the cake is baked, take it out and take off the hoop and the paper carefully from the sides, then put the almond icing carefully on the top of the cake, and make it as smooth as you can. Put into the oven, and let it remain until the almond icin
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150.—Wedding Cake.
150.—Wedding Cake.
1¼ lb. of flour, 1 lb. 2 oz. of butter, 1 lb. of moist sugar, 4 lbs. of currants, 1½ lb. of mixed peel, 2 nutmegs grated, ½ oz. ground cinnamon, 10 eggs, ½ lb. blanched sweet almonds cut in halves, and a wineglassful of brandy. Mix as before directed....
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151.—Rich Twelfth Cake.
151.—Rich Twelfth Cake.
Same as wedding cake. In olden times a bean and a pea were introduced into the cake to determine who should be king and queen of the evening festivities....
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152.—Madeira Cakes.
152.—Madeira Cakes.
1¾ lb. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 2 lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of patent flour, 24 eggs. Proceed as before directed. This mixing makes eight cakes, selling at a shilling each. Put two thin slices of citron on each. Bake in a cool oven. Note.—Patent flour is made with 8 lbs. of flour, 4 ozs. cream of tartar, 2 ozs. carbonate of soda, and sifted three times....
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153.—Plum Cake. (As made for best shops in Edinburgh.)
153.—Plum Cake. (As made for best shops in Edinburgh.)
3 lbs. of butter, 3 lbs. of sugar, 4½ lbs. of flour, 40 eggs, 8 or 10 lbs. of currants, 2 lbs. of peel, a few drops of essence of lemon. Cream and finish as before directed....
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154.—Genoa Cake.
154.—Genoa Cake.
1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. of sugar, 1¼ lb. of flour, 1 lb. of eggs, 2½ lbs. of currants, washed and picked, 1½ lb. of orange peel. Bake in a small square-edged tin. Proceed as before directed. When nicely in the tin have prepared some blanched and chopped almonds, strew them rather thickly on the top, and bake in a moderate oven....
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155.—Rice Cake (Scotch Mixture).
155.—Rice Cake (Scotch Mixture).
2 lbs. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 2¼ lbs. of flour, ¼ lb. of rice flour, 20 eggs, essence of lemon. Proceed as before directed....
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156.—Madeira Cake (Scotch Mixture).
156.—Madeira Cake (Scotch Mixture).
1¼ lb. of butter, 1¾ lb. of sugar, 2¼ lbs. of flour, 20 eggs, a small pinch of tartaric acid and carbonate of soda. Proceed as before directed....
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157.—Pond Cake or Dundee Cake.
157.—Pond Cake or Dundee Cake.
1 lb. of butter, 1¼ lb. of sugar, 13 eggs, 1¾ lb. of flour, 2 lbs. of peel cut in small squares. After it is creamed up and ready, entirely cover the top with small comfits. Bake in moderate oven. Do not cream it so light as for other cakes so as to keep the comfits from sinking in the cake....
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158.—Silver Cake.
158.—Silver Cake.
1 lb. of butter, 1 lb. of sugar, 1 pint of whites of eggs, 1¾ lb. of flour, almond to flavour....
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159.—Gold Cake.
159.—Gold Cake.
1¼ lb. of butter, 1½ lb. of sugar, 1 pint of yolks of eggs, 1¾ lb. of sultana raisins, ½ lb. of lemon peel, 2 lbs. of flour, ¼ lb. of patent or soda flour. Add a little milk to make it as soft as the Silver mixture, paper a deep square tin, and spread the gold mixture 2 inches thick, then spread the silver mixture nicely over the top of the gold. Baking, about 2¼ hours....
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160.—Plum Cake at 6d. per lb. (As sold by Grocers.)
160.—Plum Cake at 6d. per lb. (As sold by Grocers.)
8 lbs. of flour, 2 lbs. of butter, 3 lbs. of sugar, 4 lbs. of currants, ½ lb. of peel, 15 eggs, 2 ozs. of carbonate of soda, 3 ozs. of cream of tartar, essence of lemon, and fresh churned milk, to make into a nice dough. Have some square one-pound tins nicely papered, and weigh in 1 lb. of the mixture. This is an excellent mixture if well got up. 161. Another Way. —1 lb. of lard, 1¼ lb. of sugar, 8 ozs. of peel, 5 lbs. of currants, 6 lbs. of flour, a grated nutmeg, 1 oz. carbonate of soda, 2 ozs
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163.—Mystery, or Cheap Plum Cake at 3d. per lb.
163.—Mystery, or Cheap Plum Cake at 3d. per lb.
8 lbs. of common flour, 3 lbs. of brown sugar, 1 lb. of lard, 2 ozs. of peel, 3 lbs. of currants, 1½ oz. of spice, 2 ozs. of carbonate of soda, 1 oz. of tartaric acid. Dough with milk. Bake in a slow oven, wash with egg on top....
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164.—Plum Cake at 4d. per lb.
164.—Plum Cake at 4d. per lb.
4 lbs. of flour, 3 lbs. of currants, 12 ozs. of lard, 14 ozs. of sugar, 1½ oz. of cream of tartar, 1 oz. of carbonate of soda, ¼ oz. of spice. Dough with good churned milk....
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165.—Lafayette Cakes.
165.—Lafayette Cakes.
½ lb. of butter, ½ lb. of sugar, ½ lb. of flour, 6 eggs, ¼ oz. of volatile salts in powder. Mix same as pound cake. Bake in round flat tins about ¼ of an inch deep, or drop some of the paste on whity-brown paper and spread it out into a round thin cake about 6 inches in diameter. This will make 12 cakes. Bake them in a moderate oven in tins. Take them off the paper when baked, spread some raspberry or other jam on two of them and put three together. Trim them round the edges with a knife, and di
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166.—American Genoa Cake.
166.—American Genoa Cake.
Take 7 lbs. of common butter or butterine, 7 lbs. of castor sugar, 60 eggs, 12 lbs. of flour, 10 lbs. of currants, 3 lbs. of chopped peel, 1½ oz. of cream of tartar, ¾ oz. of soda, about 2 pints of churned milk. Cream the butter and sugar together, add the eggs, then mix all the other ingredients together. Paper a square-edged pan, lay on your batter about three inches thick, and bake in a sound oven. After the cake is baked, put it aside in a cool room till next morning, when you may turn it ou
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167.—Lemon Cake.
167.—Lemon Cake.
¾ lb. of butter, ¾ lb. of sugar, 1 lb. of eggs, ½ gill of brandy, ½ lb. of flour, the grated rind of two lemons. Cream the butter, sugar, and eggs, in the usual way, stir in the lemon rind, brandy, and flour; put in small moulds and bake in a moderate oven....
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168.—Bristol Cake.
168.—Bristol Cake.
2 lbs. of butter, 2 lbs. of sugar, 2 lbs. of eggs, 2 lbs. of flour, 1 lb. of patent flour, 3 lbs. of sultana raisins. Cream this cake in the usual way, bake in small round hoops, weighed out at 1 lb. each. Bake in moderate oven....
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169.—Jubilee Cakes.
169.—Jubilee Cakes.
4½ lbs. of flour, 1 lb. 6 ozs. of butter, 1 lb. 14 ozs. of castor sugar, 11 eggs, 1¼ oz. of carbonate of soda, 1¾ oz. of cream of tartar, churned milk to dough. Weigh the flour, add the tartar and soda, make a bay; have the butter previously warmed, put it in the bay with the sugar, cream it well with your hand, adding the eggs gradually, then mix all together and make into a nice batter. Weigh at 1 lb. for sixpence. This makes a number of cakes of various kinds—such as Citron Cake , by adding a
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170.—Soda Cakes or Scones.
170.—Soda Cakes or Scones.
12 lbs. of flour, 6 ozs. of cream of tartar, 3 ozs. of carbonate of soda, 12 ozs. of lard, 2 ozs. of salt. Dough up with churned milk, mix the tartar and soda with the flour, rub the lard in the flour, make a bay, add the salt, and make into a nice dough with milk. Weigh off at 6 ozs. for a penny. Mould round, pin out the breadth of a small saucer, wash the top with milk, bake on the bottom of a good sound oven. Dock them with a docker....
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171.—Currant or Milk Scones.
171.—Currant or Milk Scones.
6 lbs. of flour, 6 ozs. of lard, 6 ozs. of sugar, 3 ozs. of cream of tartar, 1½ oz. soda, 1 lb. of currants, 1 oz. of salt; buttermilk to dough. Mix as above. Weigh off at 11 ozs. for 2d., mould, pin out and cut in four; put on flat clean tins; wash with egg on top. Bake in a sound oven....
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172.—Sugar or White Spice Biscuits.
172.—Sugar or White Spice Biscuits.
7 lbs. of good fine flour, 12 ozs. of lard, 3 lbs. of moist sugar, 4 ozs. of ammonia, churned milk to dough; mix as above, but do not work the mixture too much. Take about 4 lbs. of the dough, work it into a square or round shape, pin it out a little thicker than a penny piece, cut out either in shapes or farthing or halfpenny biscuits, but well dock the sheet before you cut them. Bake on greased tins; wash on top; a few currants strewn on the shapes. Bake in a sharp oven....
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173.—Halfpenny Scotch Cakes.
173.—Halfpenny Scotch Cakes.
3½ lbs. of flour, 12 ozs. of lard, 12 ozs. of sugar, ¼ oz. voil, and a little milk, as much as will dissolve the volatile salts and sugar. Mix as above, but well rub the dough; make it nice and easy to work off. Pin out a sheet about ¼ of an inch thick, cut out with a small round cutter; dock each one well; pinch round the edges with the finger and thumb. Bake on clean tins, but not greased, in a moderate oven....
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174.—Large Square Penny Albert Cake.
174.—Large Square Penny Albert Cake.
Rub 6 ozs. of lard in 6 lbs. of flour, then add 4 ozs. of cream of tartar and 2 ozs. of soda. Mix all together and make a bay. Put in the bay 2 lbs. of sugar and 3 lbs. of currants, and dough with churned milk, a little softer than for plum cake mixture. Have a large-edged pan cleaned and greased, put the mixture in the tin and spread it equally over the tin, putting your hand occasionally in a little milk to smooth over the surface. This mixture is best made up in a basin or large bowl and pour
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175.—Brandy Snaps.
175.—Brandy Snaps.
Rub 1 lb. of lard in 4 lbs. of flour, put 4 lbs. of moist sugar on it and mix together; make a bay, put in 4 lbs. of syrup and about half a teaspoonful of essence of lemon. Make all into dough, pin it out, cut with a small round cutter, about the thickness of a penny. Bake on well-greased tins in a moderate oven. You can curl them round the peel or have them plain....
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176.—Nonpareil Biscuits.
176.—Nonpareil Biscuits.
Rub 6 ozs. of lard in 5 lbs. of flour, make a bay, put in 2½ lbs. of moist sugar, 2 ozs. of ammonia; dough with milk; make into a dough, but do not work it too much. Cut out the same size and thickness as for brandy snaps; wash the top with milk; have some nonpareil sweets spread on the table, throw the biscuits on them, put on slightly greased tins. Bake in moderate oven....
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177.—Common Halfpenny Queen Cake.
177.—Common Halfpenny Queen Cake.
3 lbs. of flour, add 1 oz. of cream of tartar, 1 oz. of soda; mix; rub in 12 ozs. of lard, make a bay, put in 24 ozs. of castor sugar, essence of lemon; dough with churned milk; dough rather soft. Have some fluted tins ready greased, take a spoon and three-parts fill your tins. Bake in a moderate oven....
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178.—Halfpenny Lunch Cake.
178.—Halfpenny Lunch Cake.
2 lbs. of flour, 4 ozs. of lard, 8 ozs. of sugar, 8 ozs. of currants, 1 oz. of soda, 1 oz. of cream of tartar; dough with churned milk and mix as for queens. Have some square sponge cake tins ready greased, take a spoon and three-parts fill them; wash with egg on top, dust them with castor sugar and bake in sound oven....
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179.—Polkas or Halfpenny Sponges.
179.—Polkas or Halfpenny Sponges.
Put 2½ lbs. of good flour on the table, make a bay, put in S eggs, 1½ lb. of castor sugar, and 1 oz. voil; beat eggs, sugar, and ammonia with your hand for twelve or fifteen minutes, add a little churned milk, take in your flour and beat all well together with 12 drops of essence of lemon. Have your tins greased, take a spoon, half fill it with the mixture; put on tins about 2 inches apart; put about 6 or 8 currants on each and bake in a hot oven. THE SUGAR-BOILER’S ASSISTANT. THE SUGAR-BOILER’S
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180.—Clarifying Sugar.
180.—Clarifying Sugar.
The clarifying and boiling of sugar to the different degrees must be considered as the key to all sorts of stove working, and I will give here the method used for clarifying sugar. The pan used must be perfectly clean and bright. Whisk two whites of eggs in one pint of water; break 30 lbs. of good lump sugar into small pieces and put it into the pan; pour over it 6 quarts of water, set it on a clear stove to melt, but be careful it does not blubber and boil before it is melted; when you see it r
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181.—Testing Sugar.
181.—Testing Sugar.
Granulated sugar is considered the best to use, as it is less liable to adulteration than any other kind. Of moist sugars, Demerara is the best. The simplest way to test sugar for its purity is to dissolve a little in a glass of clear water. If the sugar be quite pure the water will only be slightly thickened, but not in the least clouded, neither will there be any sediment. In keeping sugar care should be taken to protect it from dampness and vermin—especially ants....
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To boil Sugar to the different degrees.
To boil Sugar to the different degrees.
182. To the degree called “Pearled.” —Cover your preserving pan bottom two or three inches deep, boil it briskly over a clear fire for a short time, then dip in your finger and put it to your thumb, if on separating them a small string of sugar adheres to each it is boiled to the degree called pearled. 183. To the degree called “Blown.” —After you have ascertained that the sugar is boiled to the degree called pearled put in the skimmer and let it boil a few minutes, then shake it out of the suga
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188.—To boil Sugar by the Thermometer.
188.—To boil Sugar by the Thermometer.
All the foregoing tests are according to the old style of boiling; but a boiling-glass can now be had which enables us to boil to a better degree of accuracy. Thus, to boil to the pearl is to boil to 220 degrees; the small thread 228 degrees; the large thread 236 degrees; the blow 240 degrees; the feather 242 degrees; the small ball 244 degrees; the large ball 250 degrees; the small crack 261 degrees; the hard crack 281 degrees; the caramel 360 degrees....
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189.—Barley Sugar.
189.—Barley Sugar.
Put some sugar in a pan with water and place it on the fire to boil; when it is at the feather add a little lemon juice and continue boiling to the caramel; when done add a few drops of essence of lemon. Pour it on a marble slab previously oiled, cut into strips. When nearly cold take the strips in your fingers and twist them, and when quite cold put them into tin boxes and keep them closed down. The reason that barley sugar is so named is that it was originally made with a decoction of barley..
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190.—Barley Sugar Drops.
190.—Barley Sugar Drops.
These are made in the same manner as the preceding. You pour the sugar while hot into impressions made in dried icing sugar....
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191.—Acid Drops.
191.—Acid Drops.
Boil 3 lbs. of loaf sugar, 1 pint of water, and a teaspoonful of cream of tartar to the caramel; add a few drops of essence of lemon, and pour it on an oiled marble slab or stone; sprinkle on it a tablespoonful of powdered tartaric acid and work it in. Oil a tin sheet and put the sugar on it in a warm place, then cut off a small piece and roll it into a round pipe, cut this into small pieces the size of drops with a pair of scissors and roll them round under the hand; mix with fine powdered suga
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192.—Pine-apple Drops.
192.—Pine-apple Drops.
Cut the half of a pine-apple into slices, drop them into a mortar and pound them; put the pulp into a cloth and extract the juice; take as much sugar as will be required and boil it to the crack. When the sugar is at the feather commence to add the pine-apple juice; pour it on slowly, so that by the time the syrup is at the crack it shall all be mixed in with the sugar. Finish as for barley sugar drops....
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193.—Poppy Drops.
193.—Poppy Drops.
Extract the essence of the poppies (the wild flowers are the best) in hot water, boil some sugar in a pan—the same way as for barley sugar drops—and add the decoction of poppies just before the syrup is at the crack. No essence of lemon should be used, and they need not be sugared when put into boxes....
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194.—Ginger Drops.
194.—Ginger Drops.
Make these after the same manner as barley sugar drops, in boiling the sugar, and flavour with a few drops of the essence of ginger just before the syrup is at the crack....
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195.—Cayenne Drops.
195.—Cayenne Drops.
These are made the same way as barley sugar drops and the poppy and ginger drops. Flavour a minute before the boiling sugar is at the crack. To give the cayenne flavour add a few drops of the essence of capsicum....
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196.—Ginger Candy.
196.—Ginger Candy.
Boil some clarified sugar to the ball, and flavour with essence of ginger, then rub some of the sugar against the sides of the pan with a spatula until the sugar turns white; pour it into tins which have been oiled and put into the stove. The sugar should be coloured with some vegetable yellow whilst boiling....
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197.—Lemon Candy.
197.—Lemon Candy.
This is made in the same manner as ginger candy. Colour yellow with a little saffron, add a few drops of essence of lemon. This is made by boiling sugar to the feather and ball, and grained by rubbing against the pan....
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198.—Peppermint Candy.
198.—Peppermint Candy.
The mode of making this candy is the same as that for making ginger candy, only add essence of peppermint....
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199.—Rose Candy.
199.—Rose Candy.
Made the same way as ginger candy. Rose candy should be coloured with cochineal or carmine....
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200.—Burnt Almonds.
200.—Burnt Almonds.
1 lb. of almonds, 2 lbs. of sugar. Take 2 lbs. of clarified sugar and boil it to the “ball;” put 1 lb. of Jordan or Valencia almonds, blanched and dried, into the pan with the sugar; stir them from the fire, and let them absorb as much sugar as possible. If you want them well saturated with sugar repeat this until the sweetening is completed. Flavour with orange-flower water....
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201.—Cast Sugar Drops.
201.—Cast Sugar Drops.
Select the best refined sugar with a good grain, pound it and pass through a coarse hair sieve; sift again in a lawn sieve, to take out the finest part, as the sugar, when it is too fine, makes the drops heavy and compact and destroys their brilliancy and shining appearance. Now put the sugar into a pan and moisten it with any aromatic spirit you intend to use, using a little water to make it of such a consistence as to allow of its dropping off the spoon without sticking to it. Rose water is th
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202.—Rose Drops.
202.—Rose Drops.
These are made as in the preceding case. Flavour with essence of rose and colour with cochineal....
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203.—Orange-flower Drops.
203.—Orange-flower Drops.
Flavour with orange-flower water or a little of the essence of neroli....
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204.—Chocolate Drops.
204.—Chocolate Drops.
2 ozs. of chocolate, 2 lbs. of sugar. The chocolate must be scraped to a powder and then made into a paste with cold water, finishing as for cast sugar drops....
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205.—Coffee Drops.
205.—Coffee Drops.
2 ozs. of coffee, 2 lbs. of sugar. Make a decoction of coffee in the regular manner and add it to your sugar to make the paste or syrup. Finish in the same way as for cast sugar drops....
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206.—Barberry Drops.
206.—Barberry Drops.
6 ozs. of barberries, 1½ lb. of sugar. Press the juice out of the barberries and mix it into the pounded sugar. Should there not be sufficient juice add a little clear water. Make no more paste than you can actually use, as the second time it is heated it becomes greasy and difficult to drop....
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207.—Peppermint Drops.
207.—Peppermint Drops.
Moisten the sugar, which should be white and of the finest quality, with peppermint water, or flavour it with the essence of peppermint and moisten it with a little clear water. See that your utensils are very clean....
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208.—Pine-apple Drops.
208.—Pine-apple Drops.
Take the pine-apple and rub the rind on a piece of rough sugar. The sugar thus impregnated you scrape off for use directly. Pound the pine-apple, and pass the pulp or juice through a fine hair sieve. Add the sugar just scraped off and as much more as you think it requires to make it sweet. Make it into a paste with clear water. Every precaution must be used, as it soon greases. No more should be made than you actually want for immediate use....
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209.—Vanilla Drops.
209.—Vanilla Drops.
2 pods of vanilla, 1 lb. of pounded sugar. Use the pods of vanilla in preference to the essence; the latter is apt to grease the paste. Cut the vanilla up very fine, put it in a mortar, and pound it well along with a portion of your sugar. When sufficiently smooth, sift it through a fine sieve. Finish as for the rest....
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210.—Ginger Drops.
210.—Ginger Drops.
Take as much ginger as you wish to use, pound, and sift it through a fine lawn sieve; add it to as much sugar as you desire to flavour, and mix it with clear water. Some use the ginger sold at the shops already powdered; some, again, the essence of ginger, colouring the paste with saffron....
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211.—Lemon Drops.
211.—Lemon Drops.
Rub off the yellow rind of some lemons on a piece of rough sugar; scrape it off, and mix it into your paste. Add sufficient to your sugar to give it a good flavour, and colour it a light yellow with saffron. Moisten with clear water, and mix as the rest....
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212.—Orange Drops.
212.—Orange Drops.
These are made the same as lemon drops....
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213.—Pear Drops.
213.—Pear Drops.
Made the same as above, and flavoured with the essence of jargonel pear....
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214.—Lavender, Violet, Musk, and Millefleur Drops.
214.—Lavender, Violet, Musk, and Millefleur Drops.
These are all made the same way as the above, being flavoured with the essences that give them their names....
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215.—Pink Burnt Almonds.
215.—Pink Burnt Almonds.
Put 1 pint of clarified sugar in a round-bottomed pan on a clear fire, boil it to the degree called blown, mix in as much prepared cochineal as will make it a good colour, boil it again to the degree called blown, throw in the brown burnt almonds free from small; take the pan off the fire and stir the almonds well about in the sugar with the spatter until it is all upon them, which is very easily done if you are careful. You may repeat this two or three times, which will make the almonds very ha
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216.—Philadelphia Caramels.
216.—Philadelphia Caramels.
Take 10 lbs. of sugar, 2 quarts of rich cream, 1½ lb. of glucose, 1 lb. of fresh butter, 1 teaspoonful of cream of tartar, 1 lb. of cocoa paste, and ¼ of a lb. of white wax of paraffin. Boil these to the “crack,” pour upon a greased marble slab, between iron bars, and let it remain until cold, then cut it into small cubes and fold in wax-paper....
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217.—Boston Chips.
217.—Boston Chips.
These are made of sugar boiled to the hard crack, flavoured and tinted to suit your fancy; it is then poured upon a greased marble slab. As soon as it becomes sufficiently cold the edges are turned in and the batch is folded in a mass, placed upon the candy hook and pulled; it is then run through a machine the iron rollers of which are set very closely together, so that the candy comes through as thin as a wafer; it is then cut into strips to suit, or it may be wound around an oiled round stick
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218.—Engagement Favours.
218.—Engagement Favours.
Break up 1 lb. of loaf sugar into small particles, let it dissolve in a pan with ½ pint of water and 2 spoonfuls of lemon-juice; skim and boil to the ball, add pieces of lemon peel tied together with a string, boil until a sample is brittle; take out the lemon peel, pour out the sugar on an oiled slab, taking care to distribute it so that the whole mass cools at the same time. It is pulled, manipulated, and cut in the ordinary way. A small part of the sugar coloured red and boiled separately may
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219.—Almond Hardbake.
219.—Almond Hardbake.
Oil a square or round tin with low edges, split some almonds in halves and place them in rows over the bottom with the split side downward until the surface is covered. Boil some raw sugar to the crack, pour it over them so as to cover the whole with a thin sheet of sugar. Cocoanut cut in thin slices, currants, and other similar candies are made in the same way, except that the sugar is ground before it is poured over....
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220.—To make Gum Paste.
220.—To make Gum Paste.
Put any quantity of picked gum dragon into an upright earthen jar, cover it over with cold water and let it stand two or three days. Have ready some of the very finest icing sugar, take the gum into a coarse piece of canvas and let another person assist in twisting it round until the whole has passed through. Beat it well up in the mortar to make it tough and white, then add sugar by degrees, still beating it with the pestle. When it is stiff take it out and keep it in an earthen jar for use. Wh
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221.—To spin a Silver Web.
221.—To spin a Silver Web.
Take 1 pint of clarified sugar and 1 teaspoonful of lemon juice, boil it in a small pan to the degree called caramelled; the moment the sugar is ready take it off and put the bottom of the pan in cold water. As soon as the water is warmed take the pan out. This precaution will keep the sugar from discolouring. As this sugar is to represent silver you must be particularly careful not to boil it too high. Have ready a crocanth mould neatly oiled with sweet oil, then take a teaspoon and dip the sha
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222.—To spin a Gold Web.
222.—To spin a Gold Web.
Proceed with a gold web exactly the same as with the silver web, only boil the sugar a moment longer....
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223.—A Spun Sugar Pyramid.
223.—A Spun Sugar Pyramid.
Provide four or five round moulds, the one larger than the other, oil them neatly, then boil your sugar as for silver web, only let it remain on the fire one minute longer, then take up sugar with the shank of the spoon and spin it as near the side of the mould as possible, but let no blotches appear; do this to the four moulds. As soon as cold take them out and fix one above another with hot sugar, then spin long lengths of sugar round until they form a complete pyramid. You may spin long threa
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224.—To spin a Gold Sugar Crocanth.
224.—To spin a Gold Sugar Crocanth.
Boil your sugar a minute longer than for the silver web, using the same precaution as before. Have ready your mould neatly oiled, then take a little sugar on the shank of your spoon, spin it quite close to the side of your mould (be careful you make no blotches), spin all round, and strengthen the sugar as much as you can. There must be no holes or blotches, but an even regular sugar, all parts as near alike as possible. When the sugar is perfectly cold turn it out carefully, and set it over a c
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225.—To spin a Gold Cup.
225.—To spin a Gold Cup.
Provide a copper mould like a cup. It must be made in three parts, and must be perfectly smooth within; oil each neatly, and spin sugar in each, agreeable to the directions for the crocanth. If two persons can spin at the same time it will be much better. When the three moulds are perfectly covered with sugar, and cold, take each out and put them together in a proper manner with hot sugar. You may ornament the cup with gum paste, which will make it very beautiful. Note. —In boiling sugar to spin
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226.—A Spun Sugar Bee-hive.
226.—A Spun Sugar Bee-hive.
Mould twenty or thirty bees in gum paste, as near the colour and shape as possible, make a hole with a pin on each side of the mouth and let them dry; make some of the wings extend as if flying. Provide a large round crocanth mould as near the shape of a bee-hive as possible, then boil the sugar as formerly instructed. Spin the sugar hot close to the inside of the mould. It must be regularly spun and very strong, the threads very fine, and no blotches. When it is so, let it stand until quite col
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227.—To Ornament a Bee-hive.
227.—To Ornament a Bee-hive.
Before you begin to boil the sugar take as many borders out of your gum paste moulds as will go round the bottom; also take out leaves for the top; run a husk round the sides to represent the matting of the hive, lay your borders and leaves on a marble slab, with a cloth over them to keep them moist. You may also twist a length of gum paste like a wreath and make it into a large ring; this must be dried; then fix on the ornaments with a little hot sugar and set the ring upright on the top. You m
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228.—To prepare Sugar for Colouring.
228.—To prepare Sugar for Colouring.
Take good loaf sugar, get it ground well, put it through a hair sieve; what remains in the hair sieve put into a fine wire sieve and sift it, and the sugar which comes through the wire sieve will be rough sugar proper for colouring....
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229.—To colour Sugar.
229.—To colour Sugar.
Divide the sugar into as many parts as you intend to colour, put each into a sheet of paper, then prepare your colours. Take a round-bottomed pan and put it on a warm stove, pour in your lot of sugar, stir it about with a dry whisk until the sugar is warm, add the colour, stir it well with the whisk to make the sugar all of that colour, then stir it about till the sugar is nearly dry, when you may spread it about on the sheet of paper. You may proceed in this manner with all the colours. The fir
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230.—Blue Colouring.
230.—Blue Colouring.
Take a fig of the best indigo, dip one side in warm water and rub it on a marble slab until you gain the strength you want; or if you wish for a quantity, put a fig into a small cup, drop a tablespoonful of water upon it, and let it stand half an hour; then pour off the water at the top, and you will have a fine smooth colour....
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231.—Carmine Colouring.
231.—Carmine Colouring.
Take carmine, No. 24 or 40, 1 dr., liquor potassæ 2½ drs., water 2 ozs., glycerine sufficient to make 4 ozs. Rub the carmine to a paste with liquor potassæ and add the water and glycerine. This is a splendid red, and works well with liquor acids....
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232.—Green Colouring.
232.—Green Colouring.
Take some strong saffron colour and a little of the fine melted blue; mix them well together, which will make a green colour. If you want a pale green, use more yellow; if a dark green, use more blue. 233. Another Way. —Take a quantity of spinach, pick the leaves from the stalks, put them very tight down in a small pan, add a small quantity of water, cover them closely up, and set the pan on a warm stove for two hours; then turn the leaves into a coarse canvas, and let two persons twist it round
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234.—Orange Colouring.
234.—Orange Colouring.
Take one tablespoonful of cochineal colour and the same quantity of the saffron liquor; mix them together and you will have an orange colour. If it be too red, add a little more yellow; if it be too yellow, add a little more red....
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235.—Red Colouring.
235.—Red Colouring.
Beat 1 oz. of cochineal fine in a mortar, to which put 1½ pint of soft water and ½ oz. of cream of tartar; simmer them in a pan for half an hour over a slow fire. Take it off, and throw in ½ oz. of roach alum to strike the colour. You may ascertain the strength by dipping in a piece of writing paper. If not sufficiently strong, simmer it again for a short time. When nearly cold, strain it through a strong piece of canvas, and before you bottle it add 2 ozs. of double refined sugar....
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236.—Yellow Colouring.
236.—Yellow Colouring.
Put the best saffron down tightly in a small jar, pour a little boiling water over it, cover it closely up, and set it in a warm place for half an hour, turning it two or three times in the water; then strain and bottle it for use. Lozenges are made of loaf sugar finely ground, gum arabic dissolved in water, also gum dragon. They are mixed together into a paste, cut round or oval with cutters, and dried. To make the best sort of lozenges, 1 lb. of gum arabic should be dissolved in 1 pint of wate
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237.—Peppermint Lozenges.
237.—Peppermint Lozenges.
Take some finely powdered loaf sugar, put it on a marble slab, make a bay in the centre, pour in some dissolved gum, and mix into a paste, flavour with the essence of peppermint, roll the paste on the marble slab until it is about an eighth of an inch thick. Use starch-powder to dust it with; this keeps it from sticking. Dust the surface with a little starch-powder and sugar, and rub it over with the palm of your hand. Cut out the lozenges and place them on wooden trays, and place them in the st
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238.—Rose Lozenges.
238.—Rose Lozenges.
Make the paste the same way as the preceding, and use essence of roses to flavour with; colour the paste with cochineal....
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239.—Ginger Lozenges.
239.—Ginger Lozenges.
1 oz. of powdered ginger, 1 lb. of powdered sugar. Mix to a paste with dissolved gum; colour with yellow....
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240.—Transparent Mint Lozenges.
240.—Transparent Mint Lozenges.
These are made with the coarser grains of powdered loaf sugar. Pass the sugar through a hair sieve, then sift it through a fine sieve to take away the powder. Flavour with peppermint. Finish as the others....
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241.—Cinnamon Lozenges.
241.—Cinnamon Lozenges.
Mix as the others; flavour with cinnamon in powder, adding a few drops of essential oil. Colour with coffee colour....
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242.—Clove Lozenges.
242.—Clove Lozenges.
1 oz. of cloves powdered and 2½ lbs. of sugar. Mix, and finish as for the others....
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243.—Nutmeg Lozenges.
243.—Nutmeg Lozenges.
¼ oz. of oil of nutmeg, 2 lbs. of sugar. Mix as instructions for the others....
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244.—Lavender Lozenges.
244.—Lavender Lozenges.
Mix as for others; flavour with English oil of lavender, and colour with a little cochineal and blue mixed....
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245.—Vanilla Lozenges.
245.—Vanilla Lozenges.
Use essence of vanilla or the stick pounded with sugar and sifted through a fine hair sieve....
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246.—Brilliants.
246.—Brilliants.
Take either of the pastes for lozenges and cut into small fancy devices or ornaments. The genuine recipe for making ice creams will be found below. The first operation is the thorough scalding of the cream, sugar, and eggs: this gives it greater body and richness....
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247.—Vanilla Ice Cream.
247.—Vanilla Ice Cream.
Put into a perfectly bright and clean copper basin 2 lbs. of sugar, 4 eggs, 1 large fine bean of vanilla split and cut into small pieces, stir all well together with a large wire whisk, then add 4 quarts of rich cream, place it upon the fire and stir well and constantly until it is about to boil; then immediately remove it from the fire and strain it through a hair sieve into an earthen tureen or crock; let it stand till cool, pour it into your freezing-can already imbedded in broken ice and roc
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248.—Bisque or Biscuit Glace.
248.—Bisque or Biscuit Glace.
Make a rich and highly flavoured vanilla ice cream and add for each quart ¼ of a lb. of almond macaroons dried crisp and reduced to a powder in a stone mortar. After the cream is frozen, add and work into it the macaroon powder, and finish as above directed for vanilla ice cream....
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249.—Crushed Strawberry Ice Cream.
249.—Crushed Strawberry Ice Cream.
As for bisque, make a rich vanilla ice cream, and when it is well frozen add to it 1 pint of strawberries to each quart of cream. The berries must be full ripe and be crushed to a pulp with some fine sugar before adding and working them into the cream. Finish as for vanilla....
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250.—Hokey Pokey.
250.—Hokey Pokey.
This article is not an ice cream proper, but a species of frozen custard made of milk, eggs, sugar, gelatine, and flavouring. Take 2 ozs. of gelatine, dissolve in ½ pint of milk or water, then to 4 quarts of milk and 8 eggs slightly beaten add 1½ lb. of sugar and the thin yellow rind of 2 lemons, and a pinch of salt; put the ingredients into a clean, bright basin, place on a moderate fire, and stir constantly till it begins to thicken, then remove quickly, and pour it into an earthen pan and con
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251.—Cocoanut Ice.
251.—Cocoanut Ice.
Take grated white meat of 3 fine cocoanuts and the milk they have contained, to which add 3 quarts of filtered water; place on the fire and boil for ten minutes, then pour it into an earthen or stoneware crock, cover, and let it infuse till nearly cold, then strain and press off the liquid with a fine sieve; to this liquid add 1¼ lb. of pulverised sugar and the whites of 3 eggs; mix all thoroughly well together and pour it into the freezer already imbedded in ice and salt. Freeze and finish as o
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252.—Large Strawberries.
252.—Large Strawberries.
Procure the largest Carolina or Hanoverian strawberries, pack two layers with care in a flat-bottomed preserving pan, then pour over them 1 pint of currant juice, cover them with smooth clarified sugar, and over it a sheet of paper, set them on a warm part of the stove until the syrup is new-milk warm, then take them off; next morning take them out one at a time with an egg-spoon and lay them on a fine splinter sieve set over a pan to drain; add to the syrup a little clarified sugar and boil it
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253.—Strawberry Jam.
253.—Strawberry Jam.
Take any quantity of scarlet strawberries, pass them through a fine splinter sieve, add to them 1 or 2 pints of red currant juice, according to the quantity of strawberries, put the same weight of sifted loaf sugar as fruit, boil them over a bright fire, keep stirring all the time with a spatter, and with it make a figure of eight in the pan to prevent the jam taking hold of the bottom; when it has boiled ten minutes take it off and take a little jam out with a scraper, which drop upon a plate;
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254.—Raspberry Jelly.
254.—Raspberry Jelly.
Take 4 quarts of clear raspberry juice, add to it 8 pounds of sifted lump sugar, set it on a clear fire in your preserving pan, stir it with the spatter to keep it from burning; let it rise, then take it from the fire, skim it, set it on the fire again, and let it rise three or four times, skimming it each time. If, on taking out the skimmer, small flakes hang from it, it is of a proper consistency and may be put into jars. When cold cover it with writing-paper dipped in brandy, and bladder them
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255.—Black Currant Jelly.
255.—Black Currant Jelly.
Pick black currants from the stalks as well and in as short a time as you can, then put them into strong earthen jars or stew pots, cover them well over and set them in a slow oven for one night; next morning put them into the jelly-bag, and as soon as drained, which will be in three or four hours, measure the juice. To each pint of juice take 1 lb. 4 ozs. of sifted loaf sugar, boil and skim it as before. You may if you think proper clarify the sugar, but this is a much easier way....
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256.—Red Currant Jam.
256.—Red Currant Jam.
Pick red currants until you have 7 lbs., then force the whole of them through a splinter sieve, to which add 7 lbs. of sifted lump sugar; boil this very well over a brisk fire for twenty minutes, stirring it all the time with the spatter. This is very useful for tartlets, cheaper than rasps, and a much better colour. Put it into jars, cover them with paper dipped in brandy and bladder them over....
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257.—Apple Jelly.
257.—Apple Jelly.
Take codlin apples, cut them very thin across, fill your preserving pan nearly full, cover them with soft water and then with a sheet of paper, set them on a slow fire, let them simmer slowly for a considerable time to extract the jelly from the apple. They must not on any account be stirred about in the pan. When the virtue appears to be quite extracted from them pour them into a jelly-bag. Cut more apples as before, about half the quantity, put them into the pan, and pour over them the extract
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258.—Gooseberry Jam.
258.—Gooseberry Jam.
Take 7 lbs. of clean, picked, dry gooseberries, put them into your preserving pan with 1 pint of water and 7 lbs. of sifted loaf sugar. Boil over a clear fire from twenty minutes to half an hour; when they are boiled to the consistency required take them off, put them into jars and secure them from the air as the others....
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259.—Orange Marmalade.
259.—Orange Marmalade.
Take 12 Seville and 12 China oranges, pare the outer skin off as thin as you can, lay it in soft water and freshen it every two hours to take out the bitterness, then pull off the white skin from the pared oranges and throw it away; cut them across, squeeze the juice from them, and set them on the fire in the preserving pan with plenty of soft water, boil them until so soft as to pulp through a hair sieve. Then boil the outer skin equally soft. If it will not go through, beat it well in a mortar
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260.—General Directions for Making Chocolate.
260.—General Directions for Making Chocolate.
Provide yourself with an iron pestle and mortar, also a stone slab of a very fine grain about two feet square, and a rolling-pin of hard stone or iron. The stone must have an opening beneath in which to place a pot of burning charcoal to heat it. Warm the mortar and pestle by placing them on a stove, or charcoal may be used, until they are so hot that you can scarcely bear your hand against them. Wipe the mortar out clean, and put any convenient quantity of prepared nuts in it, which pound until
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261.—Chocolate Harlequin Pistachios.
261.—Chocolate Harlequin Pistachios.
In making harlequin pistachios, you warm some of the sweet chocolate by pounding it in a hot mortar. After it has been prepared in this manner, take some of it and wrap it round a blanched pistachio nut; roll it in the hand to give it the form of an olive, and throw it into nonpareils of mixed colours, so that it may be variously coloured, à la harlequin. Proceed with the remaining pistachio nuts after the same fashion, dropping them into the nonpareils so that the comfits will adhere to the pis
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262.—Chocolate Drops with Nonpareils.
262.—Chocolate Drops with Nonpareils.
Prepare some warm chocolate as in the preceding recipe. When the chocolate has been well pounded and is a smooth impalpable paste, make it into balls the size of a small marble by rolling in the hand. Place them on square sheets of paper about one inch apart; having filled the sheet, take it by the corners and lift it up and down, letting it touch the table each time: this will flatten them. Completely cover their surfaces with white nonpareils, gently shaking off the surplus ones. After the dro
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263.—Chocolate in Moulds.
263.—Chocolate in Moulds.
It is usual now amongst confectioners to use the English unsweetened chocolate, as it saves much time and trouble, and is equally good. To form it into shapes you must have two kinds of moulds, made either of thick tin or copper tinned inside; the one sort is impressed with a device or figure, and with a narrow edge; the other is flat or nearly so, and the same size as the previous mould, with a shallow device in the centre. You put a piece of prepared chocolate into the first mould, and then co
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