1511. Angel Cakes à la Mrs. Gertrude Vanderbilt.
—Sift together on a paper half a pound of flour, two ounces of corn-starch, and half a pound of powdered sugar; beat up in a copper basin the whites of ten eggs, with a wire whip, to a very stiff froth (reserving the yolks in a bowl in the ice-box for ice-cream or any other purpose desired); remove the whip, and then, with a skimmer in the right hand, with the left lift up the paper containing the ingredients, and gradually drop the contents into the basin; thoroughly mix with the skimmer for five minutes, adding meanwhile a gill of maraschino. Have a plain, round, two-quart cake-mold with a tube in the centre, lightly butter and flour the inside all around; then place the preparation in the mold, and put it into a very slow oven to bake for two hours and a half; remove from out the oven, lay it on a table, and let cool for at least three hours; then carefully run a thin knife all around the mold, so as to easily detach the cake from top to bottom of the mold. Place a wire grate over the mold, turn it upside down, remove the mold, then glaze the cake all around with the following glaze:
Pour into a saucepan two gills of water, with twelve ounces of powdered sugar; thoroughly mix with the spatula for two minutes, then place the pan on the hot range, stir all well until lukewarm; take from off the range, lay the pan on a table; then pour in half a gill of good brandy, mix well together for two minutes, and then pour this glaze over the cake, evenly spreading all around with a knife; let dry for twenty minutes, and then decorate with the following glace royale:
Pour into a bowl the white of one egg, with six ounces of extra fine sugar; briskly beat with the spatula for five minutes; squeeze three drops of lemon juice, sharply beat again for ten minutes longer; make a paper cornet, transfer the glace into it, close the upper part with the hand, and with scissors cut away a small piece from the point the eighth of an inch long; then gently press down the glace on the cake, artistically decorating the top and all around, giving, if possible, an angel shape on the surface, and let dry for two hours. Have a silver dish, with a fancy paper over it. Lay the cake over and serve.
1512. Lady Cakes à la Miss Frederick Vanderbilt.
—Have in a bowl half a pound of powdered sugar, half a pound of well-washed butter; grate in the rind of a medium-sized, sound, juicy lemon, knead well with the hand for fifteen minutes. Beat up in a copper basin the whites of seven fresh eggs with the wire whip to a rather soft froth for five minutes, then add this to the other preparation in the bowl; thoroughly mix the whole together for five minutes. Add now half a pound of well-sifted flour, and gently incorporate it with the rest for five minutes. Gently butter and dredge with powdered sugar the inside of a plain cake-mold eight inches long by five inches wide and five high. Place the preparation into the mold, then in a very slow oven to bake for two hours. Remove it from out the oven, lay it on a table, and let cool for three hours. Run a thin knife down all around the sides from top to bottom of the mold, arrange a wire grate over it, turn it upside down, lift up the mold, and then glaze the top of the cake with the following glace: have in a bowl the white of half a fresh egg, with three ounces of powdered sugar, and with the spatula sharply beat for fifteen minutes, then pour this on top of the cake, and with a knife equally spread it over the surface, and again with the knife carefully make four light incisions over the surface of the glace, lengthwise, one inch apart from one another. Arrange a square fancy paper over a silver dish, dress the cake over it, and then send to the table.
1513. Ginger Snaps.
—Place in a vessel half a pound of powdered sugar, four ounces of well-washed butter, and one and a half fresh raw eggs; thoroughly mix with the spatula for ten minutes; then add one gill of molasses, a tablespoonful of powdered ginger, a saltspoonful of ground cinnamon, half an ounce of baking soda, and a pound and a quarter of well-sifted flour; mix the whole well together for five minutes. Slide down a tube (No. 3) into the pastry-bag ([No. 1079]), put the preparation into it. Have two well-buttered pastry baking-pans ready, then carefully press down the preparation into each pan, in forms of the size of a silver dollar, an inch apart from one another. When all finished, place the pans in a moderate oven to bake for twenty minutes. Remove from out the oven, put the pans on a table, let cool off for thirty minutes, and then they will be ready to serve when required.
1514. Domino Cakes à la Paul Morphy.
—Have in a copper basin twelve ounces of powdered sugar, crack in ten whole fresh eggs, adding a teaspoonful of vanilla essence; mix well for two minutes with the wire whip, then place the basin on the fire, and sharply beat for ten minutes. Remove the basin from the fire, and lay it on a table; continue beating for ten minutes longer. Remove the whip, and immediately add twelve ounces of well-sifted flour, then with a skimmer gently mix together for four minutes. Add now four ounces of melted cocoa, mixing well again for two minutes. Have two pastry baking-pans twenty-eight inches long by fourteen inches wide; entirely cover both with brown paper, and then place the preparation, equally divided, into the two pans; with the aid of a palette-knife evenly spread it all over the papers. Place the pans in a moderate oven to bake for fifteen minutes. Take the pans from out the oven, lay them on a table, and let cool for one hour. Carefully lift up the papers, one after another, turn them upside down on a clean table, then gently remove the papers from the cakes, and then glaze them with the following glace: