Cinnamon Comfits.—Cinnamon is the bark of a tree, of which there are two sorts. The inferior quality is that usually sold for cinnamon, and is otherwise known as cassia, or cassia lignea. This breaks short, and has a slimy mucilaginous taste, is thicker, and of a darker color than the cinnamon, which is the inner bark. This breaks shivery, and has a warm aromatic taste, and is of a reddish color.
Take one pound of cinnamon bark, and steep it in water for a few hours to soften it, cut it into small pieces about half an inch long, and the size of a large needle. Dry it in the stove. Put your pieces, when dry, into the comfit-pan, and pour on them a little syrup, as for Scotch caraways, proceeding in the same way until they are one-third the required size. You must not use your hand for these as you would for caraways, as they are liable to break in two. Dry them in the stove, then suspend the pearling pot or cot from the bar of the pan or ceiling, so as to hang over the center of the pan; boil some clarified loaf sugar to the large pearl, and fill the cot; put some of the prepared comfits in the pan, but not too many at a time, as it is difficult to get them to pearl alike. Keep the syrup at the boiling point; open the spigot of the cot so as to allow it to run in a very small stream, or more like a continued dropping; swing the pan backwards and forwards gently, and keep a stronger fire under the pan than otherwise.
Be careful that the syrup does not run too fast and wet them too much, but so that it dries as soon as dropped, which causes them to appear rough. If one cot full of sugar is not enough, put in more until they are the required size. When one lot is finished put in sieves to dry, and proceed to another; but do not let them lie in the pan after you have finished shaking them. They will be whiter and better if partly pearled one day and finished the next. Use the best clarified sugar to finish them.
Clove Comfits.—Flavor sugar gum paste with the oil of cloves, and mold it in the form of cloves. Dry and finish as others.
Any flavor may be given to this sort of comfits, and they are molded to form the article of which it bears the name, or cut into any device with small cutters. Dried and finished as other comfits.
Comfits Flavored with Liqueurs.—Blanch some bitter almonds, or the kernels of apricots or peaches; let them soak in hot water for an hour, then drain them, and put them into any sort of liquor or spirit you may desire. Lower the strength of the spirit water, that the kernels may imbibe the better, cork the jug or bottle close, and let them infuse in it until the spirit has fully penetrated them, which will be about fourteen or fifteen days; then take them out, drain and dry them in a moderate heat; when dry, proceed as for almond comfits.
Common Caraways.—Sift the seeds, and warm them in the pan, as for Scotch caraways. Have some gum arabic dissolved, throw in a ladleful, and rub them well about the pan with the hand until dry, dusting them with flour. Give them three or four coatings in this manner, and then a charge of sugar, until they are about one-half the required size. Dry them for a day, give them two or three coatings of gum and flour, finish them by giving them three or four charges of sugar, and dry them. These are made about the size of Bath caraways. Color parts of them different colors, leaving the greatest portion white.
Ginger Comfits.—Flavor gum paste with powdered ginger, make it into small balls about the size of coriander seeds, or peas; dry, and proceed as for Scotch caraways. Color them yellow when finished.
Coriander Comfits.—Proceed with these as for Scotch caraways, working them up to about the same size. The next day pearl them to a good size, as for cinnamon.