CAKES AND CAKE-MAKING. The following general rules must be observed in the making of cakes : Make up the fire so that the oven is the right heat when the cake is ready. When cooking by gas or electricity make the oven hot 15 min utes before the cake is put in, then lower heat. For large cakes, after they have risen and set, lower heat yet again. Small cakes, buns, etc., require a fairly hot oven and should cook in from 10 to 20 minutes. Large cakes require a moderate oven and heavy fruit cakes take from 23- to 3 hours to cook. After the cake has browned a greased paper should be placed over it while the inside bakes. To ascertain if a cake is done insert a skewer gently into the centre, if it comes out clean the cake is ready.
Preparation of Tins.—Grease inside of tin, then dust all over with equal quantities of cornflour and icing sugar which have been sieved together several times. Any mixture not ad hering shake out. This is a less tiresome process than papering tins which used to be Thought necessary. Cakes which need long cooking should be placed on an upturned baking sheet.
Preparation of Fruit.—Place fruit on sieve with a table spoonful of flour, rub well and pick off stalks. Cut raisins open and remove stones. Dip thumb and finger into hot water fre quently while doing this. Shred candied peel finely. Peel, shred or chop nuts.
To Cream Butter and Sugar.—Beat in a basin with a wooden spoon, add sugar and stir and beat until nearly white and quite creamy. If using more than three eggs the butter is apt to curdle. To check this, add a spoonful of sieved flour with each extra egg and the beating and stirring must be very rapid when adding eggs, as sometimes when slight indication of curdling occurs rapid beating will check it.
Rub the flour and baking powder with salt through a sieve. For very light cakes dry the flour in the oven before sifting. When the cake is cooked turn on to a sieve or wire tray to cool.
Fundamental Methods.—There are three fundamental methods of making cakes : Plain cakes, when baking powder is sifted with the flour, fat is rubbed into flour, any dried fruits such as raisins, sultanas, currants, cherries, dates, candied peel, caraway seeds, preserved ginger or nuts are added, according to kind of cake required. Eggs or milk or both are used to moisten. (2) Cakes in which butter or fat and sugar are beaten to a cream, the eggs, if used, added one by one and well beaten in, and the flour, fruit or flavouring stirred in lightly last of all. If a small quantity of fat and one egg only is used in these cakes a little baking powder is required. The quality of the cake is varied by the amount of fat and eggs used in making it. These cakes are sometimes made without fruit, flavoured with essence, or with nuts only. (3) The lightest cakes of all are made by beating up eggs and sugar over hot water to a very stiff froth, then adding sifted flour very lightly. Sometimes a little oiled butter is added to the beaten up eggs, alternately with flour, as in Genoese mix ture. These cakes do not contain fruit but are flavoured with various essences. In some cases yolks and whites of eggs are beaten separately and beaten whites stirred in lightly after flour is added.
Reasons for Failure.—If cakes containing carbonate of soda or baking powder are not put into the oven quickly after adding moisture they may become heavy. If the oven is not hot enough a cake will not rise well and will be heavy. If the oven is too hot when the cake is put in it will become hollow inside as the mixture will rise too quickly and a hard crust form on the out side before the mixture has had time to rise properly all through. If the fruit sinks in a cake, the mixture has been made too light or the cake has not been put into a sufficiently hot oven. The oven door must not be opened for at least io minutes after the cake goes in as sudden draught checks rising. If a cake crumbles when cut it generally means that too much baking powder and too little liquid have been used when mixing, but if a cake is cut too new it will crumble.
Useful Recipes.—The following recipes will serve as a basis for a number of different kinds of cakes: Plain Fruit Cake.-4 lb. flour, 3 oz. butter, lard or margarine, 2 oz. castor sugar, i oz. candied peel, pinch of salt, 3 oz. gul tanas or currants or both, i teaspoonful baking powder, i egg, 1- gill of milk. Mix according to directions (i ) and bake in a moderate oven for about i hour. This mixture may be used for rock cakes. Put it in spoonfuls on a floured tin and bake for about io to 5 minutes. It is also suitable for seed cake, using a full teaspoonful of caraway seeds instead of the sultanas. It may be made richer by the addition of a second egg.
Rich Plum Cake. a lb. flour, lb. butter, 4 lb. brown sugar, lb. mixed peel, I lb. currants, 6 oz. raisins, a lb. sultanas, lb. almonds, grated rind of half a lemon, i teaspoonful mixed spice, 4 eggs, I tablespoonful golden syrup, a very little milk. Make according to directions (2) . If liked, half a gill of brandy or cider may be added to this cake mixture; it improves it but is not necessary. For baking, see general rules.
Sponge Cake.-5 eggs, their weight in sugar, half their weight in flour, the grated rind and juice of i lemon. Make according to directions (3), using yolks and whites of eggs separately and stirring in the stiffly whipped whites at the last. Bake from 40 to 5o minutes in a hot oven, which must be allowed to get cooler.
Angel Cake.—Whites of 6 eggs, a breakfastcupful sugar, breakfastcupful flour, i teaspoonful vanilla, a teaspoonful ing powder, pinch of salt. Sift baking powder five times with flour. Rub sugar through a hair sieve. Whip egg whites very stiff, adding a pinch of salt, then add sugar to whipped whites, placing it on the end of a plate and gradually beating it in from below. The same should be done with flour, and lastly add flavouring. Keep mixture light, and when once the beating is begun do not stop till finished. Bake from 20 to 3o minutes in a moderate oven. Ice with white glace icing.
Glace Icing.--4 lb. icing sugar, juice of half a lemon, a little water. Rub sugar through a hair sieve, put into a clean pan, mix in lemon juice and enough water to make it of the consistency of a stiff sauce. Warm over fire sufficiently to take chill off and when it just coats the back of a wooden spoon pour over the cake.
Sandwich Cake.-4 oz. butter, 4 oz. castor sugar, 2 eggs, 6 oz. flour, r teaspoonful baking powder, a little milk. Mix ac cording to directions (2) : beat until light and creamy, bake in greased sandwich tins or on two enamelled plates for 12 to 15 minutes. Turn out carefully, leave to cool, spread with jam, press together again and ice or leave plain as preferred. This mixture is sometimes known as Genoese.
Fancy Cakes.—Use the above mixture but bake in fancy tins or in one large sheet ; cut into fancy shapes and decorate as re quired.
Layer Cakes.—Use the same mixture. Spread with fancy fill ing, press layers together, neaten and ice and decorate as required.
Chocolate Cake.—Use the same mixture, adding lb. choco late, which has been melted over the fire in 3 tablespoonsful of water, to creamed butter and sugar.
Gingerbread. —4 lb. flour, a lb. butter, 4 lb. brown sugar, 6 oz. black treacle, 6 oz. golden syrup, i teaspoonful ground ginger, teaspoonful bicarbonate of soda, 2 fresh eggs, i oz. almonds. Put butter, sugar, treacle and golden syrup into a pan over a low fire and stir now and then until sugar and butter are melted. Stir this mixture into the flour, add beaten eggs and mix well. Add enough milk to make the mixture of the consistency of thick custard. Put into a flat tin, bake in a moderate oven from one to one and a half hours. After the cake has risen decorate the top with blanched and split almonds. (D. C. PE.)