A Few Words on Cake-Baking
This is not a cook book; but as it is intended principally for ladies, we will include in it a few ideas we have in regard to cake baking, and also a few recipes for refreshments to be served when entertaining.
We are not advertising any particular brand of baking powder, as we use none, neither are we advertising any particular brand of flour. In place of baking powder, we use cream of tartar and soda, and as all pure baking powder is composed practically of nothing but these two ingredients mixed with rice flour, they will, when used in the following manner, give you the same results as baking powder, and also prevent your cake from falling.
Always use winter wheat flour for cake baking. One pound of pure baking powder is composed of one-half pound cream of tartar, one-fourth pound of soda, and one-fourth pound of rice flour. In all recipes that call for baking powder, use just one-half as much cream of tartar as it calls for baking powder, and one-half as much soda as you use of cream of tartar; that is, if a recipe calls for two teaspoonfuls baking powder, you simply use one teaspoonful of cream of tartar and a scant half teaspoonful soda. In measuring soda, always level your spoon off, and in cream of tartar, have it slightly rounding. Always sift your soda with the flour two or three times, and always put the cream of tartar in the eggs. If you use only yolks, when beating them beat the cream of tartar with them, but if your cake calls for the whites, then put in the cream of tartar and beat them until they are stiff. In order to tell when your whites are beaten sufficiently, lift your whipper or beater, turn it over quickly, and the whites that lift with it should stand up perfectly straight, and if they do this, your eggs are beaten sufficiently.
The heat of your oven has everything to do with successful cake baking and you must be careful and not allow it to get too hot. Your cake should first raise in the oven, before it commences to brown on the top, if you wish to make a success of it. If you follow the directions exactly as written here, you need have no fear of your cake falling, from opening the oven doors and looking at it at any time, or from jarring the oven in any manner, as you may take any of these cakes out of the oven when they are only partially done, shake them around, then put them back in the oven, and they will raise perfectly, providing your oven is not too hot, and you mix these cakes exactly as we direct you. This may seem a rather broad assertion, and shatter a great many ideas you now hold in regard to cake baking, but it will only cost you the time and trouble of making one cake to find out that this is correct. We have done this with cakes repeatedly in order to convince people it would not hurt them, and they would come out of the oven as light and as perfect as any cake ever baked.
It does not make a particle of difference which way you beat your cake, or whether you put all of the flour or milk in at once or a little at a time, as some cake makers direct you to, so long as you beat it thoroughly, which is a very essential point. Always put all of the flour and milk in at once, as it is much easier than adding a little at a time. If your cake falls a particle, or fails to come out perfect in any way, the fault beyond a doubt is with your oven, providing you have followed the directions. A gas or gasoline oven is by far the best for cake baking, as you are able to get the heat more regular with them. If you will measure and sift your sugar on a plate, then set it in the oven for just a few moments, until it gets warmed through, you will find it will cream nicer with the butter, as the heat in the sugar softens the butter.
You may take any cake recipe you have, and apply these same directions in making it, using cream of tartar and soda in the proportions directed, follow other directions carefully, and you will never experience any trouble with your cakes.
If you are much of a cake baker, this article alone is worth a great deal to you, and if you never had much success with your cakes, you will find it a very easy branch of domestic science to learn, instead of a difficult one, as some have led you to believe.
Angel Food
Whites of 11 eggs.
1 cup flour.
1½ cup sugar.
1 teaspoonful cream of tartar.
1½ teaspoonful vanilla.
Sift your flour three or four times. If you have powdered sugar, use it for this cake; if not, use granulated and sift it two or three times. Add a pinch of salt to your whites of eggs, beat them a little, then add the cream of tartar and beat until stiff; then stir the sugar and vanilla into the beaten whites, and in doing this always stir from the bottom, as it keeps them fluffy, and do not stir it any more than is necessary. Remember this in all cake recipes where you stir sugar into whites of eggs. Now gently fold in the flour, and put in pan and bake in moderate oven, and it will require about forty-five minutes.
Golden Cake
Yolks of 8 eggs.
1¼ cup granulated sugar.
⅔ cup butter.
⅔ cup sweet milk.
3 cups flour.
1 teaspoonful cream of tartar.
½ teaspoonful soda.
1½ teaspoonful lemon extract.
Sift the flour and soda together three times, and remember in all cake recipes, in measuring soda to use scant measure. Put cream of tartar in yolks and beat them stiff as possible. Sift your sugar on a plate, warm it in the oven a little and then cream it and the butter together thoroughly and add the flavoring while doing this; add beaten yolks to this and beat in well. Now add the milk and flour and beat it hard for about two minutes, then bake in two layers and lay up with white frosting. Have oven moderate and it will bake in thirty or forty minutes. This cake is also very fine when baked in loaf form, and in that, only use two and one-half cups flour, making it otherwise just the same.
Devil’s Food
3 eggs.
1½ cup sugar.
½ cup butter.
¾ cup sweet milk.
3 cups flour.
1 teaspoonful cream of tartar.
2 squares of chocolate.
1 teaspoonful vanilla.
½ teaspoonful soda.
Grate your chocolate, and to it add half of the milk, and set on stove and stir until dissolved. Then stir in half cup of your sugar and set away to cool. Sift the soda in the flour three times. Beat the yolks very stiff. Warm the remainder of the sugar in the oven a little; then cream thoroughly with the butter, then add the beaten yolks to this and stir in well. Add the cream of tartar to the whites of the eggs after beating them a little and then beat until stiff. Add the remainder of the milk to the chocolate and stir in well, and then pour it into the creamed butter and sugar, add flour and beat very hard. Then stir in the egg whites and bake in two layers and lay up with Oriental frosting.
Sponge Cake
5 large eggs.
1½ cups granulated sugar.
1½ cups flour.
⅓ teaspoonful cream of tartar.
1 teaspoonful lemon extract.
Beat the yolks very stiff. Add pinch of salt to the whites, beat a little, then add cream of tartar and beat stiff. Then stir in gently the sugar and vanilla, and the beaten yolks, then fold in the flour and bake in a very moderate oven. This makes a delicious sponge cake.
Sunshine Cake
6 eggs.
1¼ cup granulated sugar.
1 cup flour.
⅓ teaspoonful cream of tartar.
1 teaspoonful vanilla.
Beat yolks very stiff; add pinch of salt to whites, beat a little, then add cream of tartar and beat until stiff. Sift your sugar once or twice, then add it and the beaten yolks to the whites and stir in gently, adding the vanilla when doing this, then fold in the flour carefully and bake in a moderate oven. This cake is very fine to use in making Charlotte Russe, as follows: cut it up in very thin strips, then cut the strips just long enough to fit around the inside of the cup, then fill center with the whipped cream as we direct you in recipe.
Bride’s Cake
6 whites of eggs.
1½ cup sugar.
½ cup butter.
½ cup milk.
2½ cups flour.
1 teaspoonful cream of tartar.
½ teaspoonful soda.
1 teaspoonful vanilla.
Sift first, then warm the sugar as directed before, and cream thoroughly with the butter and add vanilla while doing this. If you wish, you may add a little violet flavoring, as it improves it. Put the soda in the flour and sift three or four times. Then add it and the milk to the creamed butter and sugar and mix well. Beat the whites a little, then add the cream of tartar and beat until stiff; then mix them with the other ingredients, and bake in a deep pan in a moderate oven, and will require from forty-five to sixty minutes.
Oriental Icing
1 pound sugar.
1 egg white.
¼ teaspoonful glycerine.
2 drops acetic acid.
½ teaspoonful vanilla.
Cook the sugar with just enough water to dissolve it to 236, and do this operation the same as directed in making fondant or Oriental cream for centers, adding the glycerine when the sugar is dissolved and the acid when it commences boiling, and be sure and wipe down sides of kettle and steam it. When cooked to 236 pour out on slab or platter, which has been dampened a little, and allow it to get cold; then beat your eggs white and put it on the syrup and cream up the same as in Oriental creams, adding the vanilla when you commence to cream it. When you see this is just commencing to set or thicken a little, it must be put on the cake, and done very rapidly. If you attempt to put it on the cake too soon, it will run off, and if it should commence running off, simply cream it up a little more before putting any more on, and also if you should allow it to get too stiff before putting it on the cake, it would make your cake rough looking. There is just a certain point where you really should commence putting this on the cake, and after trying it once, you will have no difficulty in telling when you have creamed it to the right consistency.
This is beyond a doubt the finest icing made, in every respect, as it is smoother than other icings, and also does not get hard and chip off, as other icings do when you cut the cake. It forms a slight crust on the outside, but next to the cake it remains soft, and will keep nicely for about a week. In using this on a layer cake, the better way is to ice your top first, as the first icing you put on is much smoother than the last, then use the last of the icing for the middle of your cake, as that does not show. After making this icing once, in this manner, we do not think you will ever attempt the other icing which everybody makes. This amount will cover one cake.
Charlotte Russe
1 pint very stiff cream.
4 egg whites.
1 cup sugar. (XXXX sugar).
Good teaspoonful vanilla.
Beat the cream stiff enough to stand alone, and this cannot be done unless you have very thick cream; add the sugar and the vanilla to it and mix thoroughly; beat the whites after adding a pinch of salt to them, until very stiff, then mix them well with the whipped cream, and with a spoon, fill your cups which have previously been lined with the Sunshine cake, cut up as directed, or with Lady Fingers, split open. This makes a delicious dessert, and putting a candied cherry on top of each one, sets them off a great deal.
Oriental Punch
Juice of 2 lemons.
Juice of 3 oranges.
6 to 8 drops of peppermint.
Green coloring.
3 quarts of water.
Mix the water, lemon juice, and orange juice together, and add enough sugar to sweeten to suit the taste. Then strain it and add enough green coloring to make it a very pale green; then add the peppermint, which will give it a peculiar flavor that is very fine.
Claret punch may be made in the same manner, only leave out the peppermint and green coloring, and in their place add enough claret to flavor and color it. Serve these cold.
Chocolate Syrup
1¼ pound granulated sugar.
¼ pound cocoa.
1 pint hot water.
1 teaspoonful vanilla.
Mix sugar and cocoa well together, then add the hot water, set on stove, stir until it commences to boil, then add a pinch of salt and stop stirring, and cook exactly two minutes after it starts boiling. Set off the stove, and when cool stir into it the vanilla. Then pour it into a glass jar and put away until needed. This syrup is to use in making hot chocolate or cocoa, and is done in the following manner: put a tablespoon of the syrup in your cup, then put in two tablespoonfuls of cream, and stir them together thoroughly, then fill your cup with boiling water, and you have a cup of hot cocoa which is very hard to beat, and is made as you see, much easier than stopping to cook it each time, as by having the syrup on hand, the only thing necessary, when you wish a cup of hot cocoa, is to simply have some boiling water. A little whipped cream put on top, after adding the hot water, improves it very much.
This recipe alone, to anyone fond of this drink, is worth a great deal. If the syrup gets too thick at any time, thin it a little with a syrup made of sugar and water. You may also use it in making chocolate icing. It is also used in making chocolate ice cream; and you use for this purpose, one-half pint of the syrup to each gallon of cream, putting it in when the cream is partly frozen.
Table Syrup
1 pound glucose.
½ pound sugar.
1 pint water.
Put all this in a kettle, stir till it boils, then wash down sides of kettle, and cook to about 218 or 220. Set in a cool place, and do not disturb till cold. If it is a little too thick when cold, add a little water. This makes a fine syrup and with the thermometer, it can be made the same every time. If it is allowed to cool without being disturbed, it will not sugar, and will keep indefinitely.