Of all the branches of the science and art of cooking, pastry, if not
the most difficult, requires the greatest care. An inferior piece of
meat makes an inferior dish, but still it can be eaten without danger:
but inferior pastry can hardly be eaten; or, if eaten, it is
indigestible. We will recommend our readers to be very careful about
proportions; it would not make a great difference for some kinds, but
for others, putting too much or too little of one or more things would
certainly result in failure. It is very important to have good
materials. New flour is very inferior for pastry; it must have been
ground for at least three months. Always keep it in bags, and in a dry
and well-ventilated place. Sift before using it. Use fresh eggs, good
butter, and good pulverized sugar.
The most important of all is the oven, for, supposing that you have used
good materials, have mixed them well, if not properly baked, every thing
is lost, materials and labor. Supposing that you have a good oven, there
is still a difficulty--and if the last, not the least--the degree of
heat. Some require a quick oven, as puff-paste, _choux_, etc.; others a
warm one, and others a slow oven, as _meringues_ biscuits, etc. By
putting the hand in the oven you can tell if it is properly heated, but
it requires experience, and even practitioners are often mistaken;
therefore, the easiest way is to have a thermometer in the oven. It may
be placed in the oven of every stove or range; it is only necessary to
bore a hole on the top of the range or stove, reaching the oven, and
have a thermometer with the bulb inclosed in a brass sheath, perforated,
long enough to reach the oven, and of the size of the hole bored--the
glass tube being above the top of the range.
_Pastes._--There are several kinds of paste. Puff-paste is the most
important; it can be made very rich, rich, and less so; and several
hundred different cakes can be made with it. Small cakes are called
_petits fours_.
The next in importance is the _pate-a-choux_; then the paste for
meat-pies, sometimes called _pate brisee_.
Puff-paste requires care, but is easily made; _pate-a-choux_ must be
well worked.
_Puff-paste._--To make good puff-paste, good flour and butter, free from
salt or sour milk, are indispensable. It must be made in a cool place.
Take half a pound of good butter and knead it well in a bowl of cold
water; if fresh and not salt, the kneading will take the sour milk out
of it; if salty, it will remove the salt, then put it in another bowl of
cold water and leave it till it is perfectly firm, and then use. When
the butter is ready, put half a pound of flour on the paste-board or
marble, make a hole in it, in which you put a pinch of salt, and cold
water enough to make a rather stiff dough. It requires about half a pint
of water, knead well, make a kind of ball with the dough, and put it on
a corner of your marble or paste-board. Take the butter from the water
and knead it on the board, to press all the water out of it. Give it the
shape of a large sausage; dredge the board slightly with flour, roll the
butter over only once, as it must take very little of it, dredge both
ends of the piece of butter with flour also, then by putting one end on
the board and pressing on the other end with your hands, you will
flatten it of a rather round shape, and till of about half an inch in
thickness. Put it thus on the corner of the board also. Immediately
after having prepared the butter, take the dough and roll it down, of a
round form also, and till large enough to envelop the butter in it
easily. Remember that during the whole operation of folding and rolling
the paste down, you must dust the marble or paste-board with flour, very
slightly and often; do the same on the top of the paste. It is done in
order to prevent the paste from adhering to the board or to the
rolling-pin. It must be dusted slightly, so that the paste cannot absorb
much of it, as it would make it tough. Have a slab of marble or slate;
it is much easier than wood, and cooler.
When the dough is spread, place the butter right on the middle of it.
Turn one side of the dough over the butter, covering it a little more
than half way; do the game with the opposite side, the dough lapping
over that of the first side turned; do the same with the side toward
you, and also with the side opposite. Dough stretching easily when
pulled, and contracting easily when let loose after having pulled it,
you have now still four corners of the dough to bring over the butter
and in the same way as above, and by doing which, you give to the whole
a somewhat round form, and also have the butter perfectly enveloped in
the dough. Place the rolling-pin on the middle of the paste,
horizontally, and press gently on it so as to make a furrow; do the same
from place to place, on the whole surface, making furrows about an inch
apart. Repeat the process again, this time placing the rolling-pin right
on the top of each elevated line; and again, repeat it a third time,
also placing the pin on each elevated line. Now do exactly the same
contrariwise. Then, roll the paste down, gently, evenly, to a thickness
of about one fourth of an inch, and of a rectangular shape. Fold it in
three by turning over one-third of its length toward the other end, and
thus covering another third of it; fold or turn over the remaining
third, so as to cover the first third turned over. Roll it down again of
about the same thickness as above, but without making furrows in it;
give it also the same rectangular shape, taking care to make the length
of what was the width, _i. e._ extending it the longer way in an
opposite direction to that of the first time, so that the ends will be
what the sides were. Fold in three as before, put it on a plate and set
in a refrigerator for from ten to twenty minutes. Take hold of it again,
roll down as above, fold in the same way also, and put away for ten
minutes. You roll down and fold from four to six times, not counting the
time you envelop the butter in the dough. In cold weather, and when the
butter is firm, fold and roll only four times; but in rather warm
weather, fold and roll six times. If it is too warm, it is of no use to
try with butter.
Puff-paste may be made without stopping; that is, without putting it
away in a cool place for some time; but it is better to let it rest; it
is lighter and rises better. When finished, it can be used immediately;
but it is better also to put it in a plate or dish, cover it with a
towel, and put it in a refrigerator for from twelve to twenty-four
hours. Although it must be kept in a cool place, do not put it near
enough to the ice to freeze. It may be kept thus for two or three days.
_Puff-paste with Beef-Suet_.--Take half a pound of fresh beef suet, the
nearest the kidney the best; break it in small pieces with the hands,
at the same time removing the thin skin and fibres as much as possible;
put it in a bowl of cold water and knead well till it is rather soft;
take it off, mash and bruise it well on the paste-board with a
rolling-pin; knead it again like butter; roll it in flour like butter
also, and proceed as above for the rest, and with the same proportion,
weight for weight of flour and beef-suet, but it requires more salt.
Beef-suet being more firm than butter, puff-paste can be made with it
during summer, but it must be eaten immediately, being very inferior
after a while.
The proportion of butter and flour may be varied. Weight for weight
makes the real puff-paste, and very rich. If less butter is used it will
not rise as much, but is excellent nevertheless, and is more handy to
make different cakes, such as short-cakes with fruit. Therefore
puff-paste may be made with the following proportions: to one pound of
flour, use fourteen, twelve, ten, eight, or even four ounces of butter
or suet. Another way is to mix one or two eggs in the flour, water, and
salt before rolling it down. When eggs are used, it requires less water.
Envelop the butter in it in the same way.
_Allumettes._--Cut strips of puff-paste of any length, about three
inches wide and about one-fifth of an inch in thickness; mix well
together, and for about three or four minutes, one ounce of sugar and
about half the white of an egg; spread this mixture over the strips of
paste, so as to have a rather thin coat of it; then cut the paste
across, so as to make small strips about one inch broad and three inches
long. Bake in an oven at about 400 deg. Fahr.
_Feuillettes._--Roll puff-paste down to a thickness of from one-eighth
to one-half of an inch in thickness; cut it in pieces of any size and
shape, according to fancy with a knife or with a paste-cutter; glaze the
top only with egg, and bake in an oven at about 450 deg. Fahr.
_Feuillettes a la Conde._--Roll and cut the paste exactly as for the
above; then, instead of baking it, fry it in hot fat (_see_ Frying);
turn into a colander when fried, dust with sugar, and serve as warm as
possible.
_Pommees._--Line the bottom of a bakepan with puff-paste, about
one-eighth of an inch in thickness; spread stewed apples over it of a
thickness of one-quarter of an inch; cover these with another thickness
of puff-paste; prick the cover all over with the point of a knife, and
bake in an oven at about 400 deg. Fahr. When baked, cut it in square
pieces, dust with sugar, and serve hot or cold, according to taste.
_Porte-manteaux._--Cut strips of puff-paste of any length, about three
inches broad, and one-eighth of an inch in thickness; spread on the
middle of the strips, and lengthwise, some frangipane, or stewed apples,
or any kind of sweetmeats, of the size of the finger. Then turn one side
of the paste over the frangipane or sweetmeats, glaze the border with
egg (we mean by "the border," about half an inch in width, measuring
from the edge); then turn the other side over it so that the glazing
will cause the two pastes to stick together. Thus it will be only a
little over an inch broad and about half an inch thick. Cut the strips
across in small pieces about two inches long, glaze the top with egg,
and then bake in an oven at 400 deg. Fahr.
_Tartelettes._--Roll some puff-paste down to a thickness of about
one-sixteenth of an inch; cut it, with a paste-cutter, of the size of
small tin moulds, and place the pieces in the moulds; put about a
teaspoonful of frangipane in each; place two narrow strips of paste
across each, which strips you cut with a truckle; bake in an oven at
about 380 deg. Fahr.
_Tartelettes (sweet)._--Proceed as for the above in every particular,
except that you use any kind of sweetmeats or jelly instead of
frangipane.
_Cake Pithiviers._--Roll some puff-paste down to a thickness of about
one-eighth of an inch; cut it round and place on a baking-pan; if the
pan be square or rectangular, cut a round piece that will go in easily;
cut a strip of paste about one inch broad, glaze with egg the border of
the paste in the pan, place the strip all around, and then glaze it
also. Fill the middle with the following mixture: pound four ounces of
sweet almonds and mix them well with half a pound of sugar, two ounces
of butter, four yolks of eggs, essence to flavor, and four macaroons
chopped. Cut another piece of puff-paste round, and of the same size as
the other; dust it slightly with flour, fold it gently in four; the
piece then will have two straight sides and a circular one. With a sharp
knife make three cuts in each of the two straight sides through the four
thicknesses of the paste, and about half an inch in length. Make another
cut through the paste also, representing half of the figure 8, right in
the middle of the piece of paste, commencing half an inch from the
border of the circular side and in the middle of it, and going toward
the point, so that when the paste is open there are sixteen cuts in it.
Place the paste still folded on the paste and mixture in the pan, the
circular side on the border and the point right in the middle; open it
gently, and the whole will be covered. Glaze with egg, and put in an
oven at from 430 to 460 deg. Fahr. The same cake may be filled with a
frangipane, and prepared as the above for the rest.
_Rissoles (also called Fourres)._--Cut round pieces of puff-paste about
three inches in diameter; wet the edge with water, put a teaspoonful of
compote or any kind of sweetmeat on one side of it, then fold the paste
in two, so as to cover the sweetmeat; pinch the paste around to cause it
to adhere, in order to envelop the sweetmeat; you have then a cake of a
semicircular shape. Glaze with egg, bake in a quick oven, dust with
sugar, and serve.
_Galette du Gymnase._--Make puff-paste with half a pound of butter to a
pound of flour, and when done as directed, knead it. Then roll it down
to the thickness of about one-fourth of an inch, cut it in strips of any
length and about an inch and a half wide, glaze with egg, bake in a
quick oven, about 420 deg. Fahr. The two ends of the strips may be
brought together and joined, forming a crown. The same _galette_ is made
with trimmings of puff-paste, kneaded and rolled as above.
_Fanchonnettes._--These are made with the same puff-paste as the
_galette_ above; then cut it in round pieces, place them on small
moulds, fill them with any kind of sweetmeats and frangipane, with
almonds, half of each; bake, dust with sugar, and serve. Instead of
frangipane, spread raisins over the sweetmeats, or almonds, peanuts,
hazel-nuts, etc., all cut in small strips, lengthwise; you make then an
infinite number of different small cakes.
_Fans._--Make some puff-paste with equal weight of flour and butter,
fold and roll it down six times, and put in a cold place. Leave it of a
thickness of about one-quarter of an inch; cut it with a sharp knife in
pieces of a rectangular shape, about four inches long and two broad,
which cut again in two, across and from one corner to the other, so that
you make two pieces of a right-angled triangle shape. Place the pieces
on their sides in a bake-pan, on their sides, far apart, and bake in a
very quick oven. When done, dust with sugar, and serve.
_Vol-au-vent_ and _bouchees_ for the day's use are baked early in the
morning. They are warmed in a slow oven just before filling them.
_Vol-au-vent._--A _vol-au-vent_ is made with puff-paste and filled with
oysters, meat, etc., when baked; that is, when the cake is baked and
emptied, it is warmed in the oven, filled, and served warm. It is made
of an oval or round shape. When made small it is generally of a round
shape, but when made rather large it is generally of an oval shape. When
the puff-paste is ready to be used, roll down to any thickness from
one-quarter to three-quarters of an inch; cut it with a sharp-pointed
knife of the size and shape you wish, then with the same knife cut what
is called the cover, _i. e._, make a cut all around, about half an inch
from the edge or border, and about one-third through the paste, leaving
two-thirds of the thickness of the paste uncut. This operation is called
marking out the cover. Glaze the top of the paste with egg, and bake it
in a very quick oven, about 500 deg. Fahr. In glazing, be careful not to
glaze the sides or allow any egg to run on the sides; it would prevent
the paste from rising. Some drawings may be made on the cover with the
back of a knife, according to fancy: leaves, for instance, are very
easily imitated; it is only necessary to run the knife on the paste,
without cutting it. When in the oven, do not look at it for at least
seven or eight minutes, for in opening the door of the oven it might
cause the paste to fall and even after that time open and shut the door
quickly; take off when properly baked. When the oven is hot enough it
takes about twelve minutes, and even less time when the _vol-au-vent_ is
small. Take from the oven when baked, and immediately run the point of
the knife all around and in the same place as you did before being
baked, which place is well marked. Thus you cut off the cover and remove
it, then remove also all the unbaked paste that is inside of the
_vol-au-vent_, so that you have left what may be called a shell. Keep it
then till the oysters or meat are ready to put in it. About five minutes
before the filling is ready, put the shell or baked paste in a slow oven
to warm it, turn the filling into it, enough to fill it entirely; place
the cover on the top, and serve warm. The unbaked paste removed from the
inside is baked, and makes an excellent cake, though not a sightly one.
_Another._--Cut a piece of puff-paste the same as for the above one,
that is, either round or oval, and of the size you wish. Instead of
marking a cover, glaze the border with egg. It is understood here by
"the border," a space about three-quarters of an inch broad and all
around it, the space being measured from the edge toward the centre.
Then cut a strip of puff-paste about three-quarters of an inch broad,
long enough to cover the place or space glazed, which strip you put all
around the first paste, and you then have a border. The place between
the two pastes being glazed, they will adhere in baking. Then also glaze
the upper side of the border carefully with egg. With a knife or fork,
prick the paste, inside of the border only, in ten, fifteen, or twenty
places, according to the size of the _vol-au-vent_, and in order to
prevent that part from rising as much as it would if not pricked. Bake
in the same oven as the above--a very quick one.
A _vol-au-vent_ thus made is deeper than the first one, having two
thicknesses of paste. Generally there is little or no paste (unbaked) to
remove; having pricked the centre, it prevents it from rising and bakes
it evenly, but if there is any, remove it. A cover may be made by
cutting a piece of puff-paste of the size of the _vol-au-vent_ and
baking it separately. It may be decorated with the back of the knife as
the above one, and made convex on the top by baking it on a piece of
tin. It is warmed, filled, and served the same as the above.
A _vol-au-vent_ is filled with the following:
_With Oysters._--The quantity is according to the size of the
_vol-au-vent_. Blanch one quart of oysters. Put two ounces of butter in
a saucepan, set it on the fire, and when melted add a tablespoonful of
flour; stir, and when turning rather yellow add also about a pint of
milk, and the liquor from the oysters; stir, and as soon as it turns
rather thick put the oysters in, taking care to have them free from
pieces of the shell. Give one boil, add salt to taste, two yolks of
eggs, stir again, turn into the warm paste, place the cover on, and
serve warm.
_With Lobster._--Prepare the lobster as for _bouchees_, fill the shell
with it, and serve warm.
_With Cod-fish._--Prepare fresh cod-fish _a la Bechamel_, fill the
_vol-au-vent_ or shell with it, and serve warm.
_With Turbot._--Proceed as for cod-fish in every particular.
_With Eels._--Fill the _vol-au-vent_ with eels, oyster sauce, or in
_poulette_, and serve warm.
_With Chicken._--Fill with a chicken or part of a chicken in _fricassee_
or _saute_.
_With Livers and Combs of Chicken._--Prepare combs and livers of chicken
in _fricassee_, the same as a chicken, fill the _vol-au-vent_ with them.
Serve hot.
_With Sweetbreads._--Cook the sweetbreads as directed, and fill the
_vol-au-vent_ with them. Serve warm.
_With Veal._--Fill the _vol-au-vent_ with veal in _blanquette_, in
_ragout_, or in _bourgeoise_, and serve. It is generally filled with
what has been left the day previous, as it requires very little for a
_vol-au-vent_.
_With Brains._--It may be filled with brains of calf, pig, sheep, or
veal; prepared in _poulette_, or stewed.
_With Rabbit._--Fill it with part of a rabbit _saute_.
It may also be filled with any other _meat_ or _fish_, according to
taste, and being cooked previously.
_With Fruits._--Fill the _vol-au-vent_ with any kind of stewed fruit,
jelly, sweetmeats, etc. It may be only filled, or the fruit may be
dressed in pyramid inside of it.
_Bouchees._--_Bouchees_, or _petites bouchees_, as they are sometimes
called, are small, round _vol-au-vent_, served warm. They are also
called _bouchees de dames_ and _petites bouchees_. Roll puff-paste down
to a thickness of about one-quarter of an inch, cut it with a
paste-cutter of any size, mark the cover, and bake in an oven at about
450 deg. Fahr. A good size is about three inches in diameter. When cut, take
another paste-cutter about two inches in diameter, place it on the piece
of paste; press on it just enough to mark the place where it was, but
not enough to cut the paste, remove it and then the cover is marked;
that is, you have a circle on the top of the paste, half an inch from
the edge all around. Glaze with egg and bake. Make one for each person.
Immediately on taking them from the oven, cut off the cover with a
sharp-pointed knife. That is easily done; it is only necessary to follow
the mark made with the paste-cutter, which is just as visible as before
baking. Remove the cover and then carefully take out some unbaked paste
inside of the _bouchee_, fill with lobster prepared as directed below,
put the cover on, and serve as warm as possible.
_The Filling._--Cut some flesh of boiled lobster in dice. Put two ounces
of butter in a saucepan and set it on the fire; when melted, add a
tablespoonful of flour, stir for about one minute, and add also broth
(the quantity must be according to the number of _bouchees_, but we will
give here the quantity necessary for five or six _bouchees_), about
three gills, also salt, pepper, then the cut lobster; stir now and then
for five or six minutes, and use.
_Of Oysters._--Prepare, fill and serve exactly as the above, except that
you fill with oysters prepared as for _vol-au-vent_, instead of filling
with lobster.
_Of Cod-fish._--Fill the _bouchees_ with cod-fish, prepared _a la
Bechamel_, and serve warm.
_Of Eels._--Have some eels prepared either in _poulette_ or
oyster-sauce, fill the _bouchees_, and serve warm.
_Of Turbot._--It is filled with turbot _a la creme_ or _a la Bechamel_.
It may also be filled with any kind of fish, prepared _a la Bechamel_,
_a la creme_, in white sauce, oyster-sauce, etc.
_Of Truffles._--Cut the white flesh of a chicken in dice, prepare it as
a chicken _saute_, using truffles but no mushrooms, fill the _bouchees_
with it and serve warm.
_Of Puree of Chicken, or Bouchees de Dames._--It is filled with some
_puree_ of chicken, and served as warm as possible.
Do the same with a _puree_ of game.
_Of Bobolink._--Prepare and clean twelve bobolinks as directed for
birds, put a teaspoonful of truffles, cut in small dice, in each bird,
for stuffing; sew the incision, and bake or roast the birds. Put each
bird in a _bouchee_, and serve warm. A more delicate dish cannot be
made.
The same may be done with any kind of _small bird_.
_Bouchees_ are generally served on a napkin and on a dish, in pyramid.
_Pate a choux._--Weigh four ounces of flour, to which add half a
teaspoonful of sugar. Put two gills of cold water in a tin saucepan with
two ounces of butter, and set it on the fire, stir a little with a
wooden spoon to melt the butter before the water boils. At the first
boiling of the water, throw into it the four ounces of flour and stir
very fast with the spoon, holding the pan fast with the left hand. As
soon as the whole is thoroughly mixed, take from the fire, but continue
stirring for about fifteen or twenty seconds. It takes hardly half a
minute from the time the flour is dropped in the pan to that when taken
from the fire. The quicker it is done, the better. When properly done,
nothing at all sticks to the pan, and by touching it with the finger it
feels as soft as velvet, and does not adhere to it at all. Let it stand
two or three minutes, then mix well with it, by means of a spoon, one
egg; then another, and so on; in all four. It takes some time and work
to mix the eggs, especially to mix the first one, the paste being rather
stiff. They are added one at a time, in order to mix them better. If the
eggs are small, add half of one or one more. To use only half a one, it
is necessary to beat it first. Let the paste stand half an hour, stir
again a little, and use. If it is left standing for some time and is
found rather dry, add a little egg, which mix, and then use.
_Beignets Souffles_--(_also called Pets de Nonne_).--Make some _pate a
choux_; take a small tablespoonful of it, holding the spoon with the
left hand, and with the forefinger of the right cause the paste to fall
in hot fat on the fire (_see_ Frying), turn over and over again till
fried, then turn into a colander, dust with sugar, and serve hot. In
frying, the paste will swell four or five times its size, and by
dropping it carefully and as nearly of a round shape as possible, the
cakes will be nearly round when done.
_Choux or Cream Cakes._--Make some _pate a choux_: have a buttered
bakepan, and drop the paste upon it in the same way as you drop the
_beignets_ above; glaze with egg, and bake in an oven at about 380 deg.
Fahr. When baked and cold, make a cut on one side, about two-thirds
through, the cut to be horizontal, a little above the middle, then, by
raising the top a little, fill the cake, which is hollow, with one of
the following creams: _whipped_, _Chantilly_, _cuite_, _frangipane_, or
_legere_; dust with sugar, and serve.
_The same, with Almonds._--Blanch sweet almonds and cut them in small
strips, lengthwise; then, when the choux are in the bakepan and glazed
with egg, spread the almonds all over, bake, fill, and serve as the
above.
_Saint Honore._--Make some _pate a choux_. Then put four tablespoonfuls
of flour on the paste-board with two of sugar, one egg, one ounce of
butter, salt, and a pinch of cinnamon; mix and knead the whole well;
roll the paste down to a thickness of about one quarter of an inch and
place it in a bakepan. Put a dessert-plate upside down on the paste, and
cut it all around the plate with a knife; remove what is cut off and
also the plate. Spread some _pate a choux_, about a teaspoonful, all
over the paste left in the bakepan, about one-sixteenth of an inch in
thickness; put some of it also in the pastry-bag, and by squeezing it
out, make a border with it about the size of the finger; prick the
middle of the paste in about a dozen places with a fork and inside of
the border; glaze the border with egg, and then bake in an oven at about
400 deg. Fahr. While the above is baking, make very small _choux_ (about the
size of a macaroon), and bake them also. When both are baked, and while
they are cooking, make some _creme legere_, fill the inside of the cake
with it, so as to imitate a sugar-loaf or mound, about four inches in
height, smooth it or scallop it with a knife. Put two tablespoonfuls of
sugar and two of water in a saucepan, set it on the fire, toss the pan
occasionally to boil evenly, and till it becomes like syrup. Do not stir
too much, else it will turn white and somewhat like molasses-candy. It
is reduced enough when, by dipping (not stirring) a little stick in it
and dipping it again immediately in cold water, the syrup-like liquor
that has adhered to it breaks easily and is very transparent. It must be
as transparent as glass. As soon as reduced thus, take from the fire and
use. Dip the top of each small _chou_ in it, holding the _chou_ with a
small knife stuck in it; place a piece of candy (generally, sugar-plums
of various colors are used) on the top of each _chou_; place them apart
and around the _creme legere_, and upon the border of the cake, with one
a little larger than the others on the top of it; serve cold. This cake
is as good as it is sightly.
_Eclairs._--_Eclairs_ are also called _petits pains_ or _profiterolles
au chocolat_.
_Eclairs au Chocolat._--Make some _pate a choux_ as directed above, and
put it in the pastry-bag with tube No. 1 at the end of it. Force it out
of the bag into a baking-pan greased with butter. By closing and holding
up the larger end of the bag and by pressing it downward, it will come
out of the tube in a rope-like shape and of the size of the tube. Draw
the bag toward you while pressing, and stop when you have spread a
length of about four inches. Repeat this operation till the baking-pan
is full or till the paste is all out. Leave a space of about two inches
between each cake, as they swell in baking. Bake in an oven at about 370
degrees. When baked and cold, slit one side about half through, open
gently and fill each cake with the following cream, and then close it.
Cream: put in a block-tin saucepan three tablespoonfuls of sugar, two
of flour, four yolks of eggs, and mix well with a wooden spoon. Add a
pint of milk, little by little, and mixing the while; set on the fire,
stir continually till it becomes rather thick, and take off. Have one
ounce of chocolate melted on a slow fire in half a gill of milk, and mix
it with the rest, and use. Put one ounce of chocolate in a tin saucepan
with a teaspoonful of water, and set on a slow fire; when melted, mix
with it two tablespoonfuls of sugar, stir for a while; that is, till it
is just thick enough to spread it over the cakes, and not liquid enough
to run down the sides. A thickness of about one-sixteenth of an inch is
sufficient. The cakes may either be dipped in the chocolate or the
chocolate may be spread over them with a knife. Serve cold.
_Eclairs au Cafe._--It is made exactly like the above, except that you
mix with the cream three tablespoonfuls of strong coffee, instead of
chocolate and milk.
_Eclairs au The._--It is made like the preceding one, with the exception
that strong tea is used instead of strong coffee.
_Eclairs a la Vanille._--Proceed as for the above, but mix a teaspoonful
of essence of vanilla in the cream instead of tea.
_Eclairs a l'Essence._--The meaning of _eclairs a l'essence_ is, that a
few drops of any kind of essence are mixed with the cream instead of
chocolate and milk, and prepared and served like the others.
_Eclairs aux Fraises._--Instead of filling the cakes with cream, fill
them with strawberry-jelly, and for the rest proceed as for _eclairs au
chocolat_.
_Eclairs aux Groseilles._--Made like the above, but filled with
currant-jelly.
Do the same with _apple_, _blackberry_, _cherry_, _grape_, _peach_,
_pear_, _plum_, _quince_, _raspberry jelly_, etc.
_Petits Pains a la Reine._--_Eclairs_ are so called when filled with
marmalade of peaches in which sweet almonds chopped fine have been mixed
previously.
_Petits Pains a la Rose._--Like the above, and by adding a few drops of
essence of roses to the marmalade.
_Petits Pains a l'Essence._--Like the above, with any kind of essence:
_pink_, _violet_, _geranium_, etc.
_Biscuits in Boxes._--Make some square boxes with sheets of white paper;
fill them about two-thirds full with the same mixture as for lady's
fingers, dust with sugar, and bake in a slow oven; serve cold.
_With Almonds._--Mix well together with a wooden spoon four yolks of
eggs with four ounces of sugar (pulverized), add three ounces of flour
and mix well again. Beat the four whites to a stiff froth, and then have
somebody to turn the mixture into them while you finish beating, and
then mix the whole gently but well. It must not be stirred too much.
Have two ounces of bitter almonds well pounded, with a teaspoonful of
sugar, and mix them with the rest. Butter small moulds, turn the mixture
into them, filling about two-thirds full, glaze with egg, dust with
sugar, and bake in an oven at about 300 degrees Fahr.; serve cold.
_With Chocolate._--Make some biscuits like the above, omitting the
almonds, and flavoring them with a few drops of essence of vanilla. When
cold, glaze them with chocolate, the same as described for _eclairs_,
and serve.
_With Essence._--Make biscuits with almonds or without, as the above
ones, and flavor them with any kind of essence, or with orange and lemon
rind grated.
_Glazed._--When the biscuits are baked, glaze them with icing, and
serve cold. These are sometimes called _biscuits a la royale_.
_Of Rheims._--Mix well in a bowl six yolks of eggs with six ounces of
sugar, with a wooden spoon. Add and mix with the above five ounces of
flour and lemon-rind grated; beat four whites of eggs to a stiff froth,
and mix them also with the rest. Butter small moulds, turn the mixture
into them, and bake in a slow oven, about 300 degrees Fahr. These are
often made of the shape of lady's fingers. They are excellent eaten with
wine.
_With Filberts._--Put ten or twelve ounces of filberts or peanuts in a
mortar with a few drops of orange-flower water and about half the white
of an egg; when reduced to a paste, mix well with it four ounces of
sifted flour, eight ounces of fine, white sugar, the yolks of two eggs
well beaten, and the whites of four eggs whisked to a froth; when the
whole is properly mixed, put it into a well-buttered mould, which place
in a moderately-heated oven; watch it carefully, take out when cooked,
which is easily known by the color it assumes.
Biscuits with hazel-nuts, peach, or other kernels, may be made in the
same way; that is, using them instead of filberts.
_Lady's Fingers._--Mix well together with a wooden spoon four yolks of
eggs and four ounces of pulverized sugar, then add three ounces of flour
and mix well again. Beat four whites of eggs to a stiff froth; have
somebody to turn two tablespoonfuls of the mixture into the whites as
soon as beaten enough, and which you mix with the egg-beater, then turn
the rest or the mixture in, mixing gently with the wooden spoon. This
must be done rather quickly, to prevent the whole from turning liquid.
Put the mixture in the pastry-bag with tin tube No. 1 at the end of it,
squeeze it out in sticks about four inches long into a baking-pan
slightly buttered and dusted with flour, or on a piece of paper placed
in the bottom of the pan; then dust them with sugar, and bake in a
rather slow oven. They must not change in the oven, that is, they must
not spread or swell, showing that the oven is too hot or too slow, or
that the mixture has not been properly prepared. They must be like small
sticks, round on the upper side and flat underneath. They are sometimes
called _biscuits a la cuiller_. They are used to make a _Charlotte
Russe_, or eaten with wine.
Cakes.--_Almond._--Blanch, skin, and pound well one ounce of sweet
almonds and the same of bitter ones, which you mix with eight ounces of
pulverized sugar, six of flour, two eggs, a tablespoonful of brandy or
rum, and a pinch of sugar. When thoroughly mixed, add five yolks of
eggs, mix and stir for five minutes, then add also and mix half a pound
of melted butter. Turn the mixture in small moulds, well buttered, and
bake in a rather slow oven. Some almonds cut in small pieces may be
spread over just before baking; or, when baked, some icing may be spread
over. Serve cold. This is also called _Nantais cake_. Instead of
almonds, use filberts, hazel-nuts, currants, peanuts, or raisins.
_Fourre._--This is made with puff-paste and cream, or puff-paste and
different mixtures placed inside of it, such as _Pithiviers cake_ and
fruit-pies.
_Anchovy._--Knead four ounces of flour with two ounces of butter, a
little salt, and a little water. Clean four anchovies and put them in
vinegar for five minutes; then cut them in small pieces, put them in a
bowl, and cover them with sweet-oil; leave them thus ten minutes. Roll
the paste thin, then place a little more than half of it on a tart-dish,
raising it all around with the thumb and forefinger; cover the paste
with the anchovies, and these with the remainder of the paste, after
having cut it in square pieces; spread some of the oil in which were the
anchovies on it, bake in a warm oven, baste now and then with a little
of the oil, and serve warm.
_Apple._--Stew eight or ten apples and mash them through a sieve. Put
them in a saucepan with about two ounces of butter and eight of sugar,
set on the fire for five minutes, take off, let cool, and then mix with
it five or six eggs, one after another. Turn the mixture into a buttered
mould, which you place in a pan of boiling water, then boil slowly about
half an hour, turn over a dish, and serve warm or cold.
_Hard._--Put half a pound of flour on the paste-board and make a hole in
the middle; put into it three ounces of pulverized sugar, three ounces
of butter, two eggs, a pinch of cinnamon, a few drops of essence, and
knead the whole well, dust the board with flour, roll the paste down to
a thickness of about one-fourth of an inch, cut it in pieces with a
paste-cutter, of any shape; beat one egg with a teaspoonful of sugar and
glaze the pieces with it; with a piece of wood draw leaves or flowers on
each, and bake in an oven at about 360 degrees Fahr. They are eaten cold
at tea.
_Heavy or Gateau de Plomb._--Proceed as above with one pound of flour, a
pinch of salt, one ounce of sugar, four yolks of eggs, one pound of
butter, half a pint of cream; when rolled down as above, fold in two or
four, and roll down again; repeat the process four times. Then place it
in a bakepan and put in a hot oven. Serve cold at tea.
_Milanais._--Put one pound of flour on the paste-board and make a hole
in the middle, in which you put half a pound of butter, same of sugar,
two eggs, a pinch of salt, and a quarter of a gill of rum. Mix and knead
to a rather stiff dough with cold water. Spread it and roll it down to a
thickness of about one-eighth of an inch. Glaze it with egg, dust with
sugar and bake in a rather quick oven. When cold, cut it in two, spread
some _compote_ of peaches or of apricots on one half, put the other half
over it, cut in pieces according to fancy, and serve.
_Rum Cakes._--These are made with sponge cake cut with a paste-cutter,
some sweetmeats or jelly is placed on the middle, then it is dusted with
pulverized sugar, watered with rum, and then placed in the oven for
about two minutes. These cakes have several names, according to the kind
of sweetmeat used.
_Savarin._--Put one pound of flour on the paste-board and make a hole in
the middle; put into it four ounces of sugar, and make a hole again;
then put in the middle four eggs, twelve ounces of butter, one and a
half gills of milk; mix and knead the whole well; then mix again in the
whole four ounces of leaven prepared as directed; butter a mould, dust
it with sweet almonds chopped; put the mixture in it; put in a warm
place (about 78 degrees Fahr.) to rise, and bake in an oven at 430
degrees Fahr. It will take about two and a half hours to rise. The mould
must not be filled, else it will run over in rising.
_Sauce for Savarin._--Put four ounces of sugar and half a pint of cold
water in a block-tin saucepan, set it on the fire and boil till reduced
about one-third; then add from one-half to one gill of rum (according to
taste), give one more boil, and turn over the cake. Baste the cake with
the sauce till the whole is absorbed by it. Serve warm or cold.
_Sponge Cake._--Mix well together in a bowl six yolks of eggs with four
ounces of sugar; add four ounces of flour and mix again, add also a few
drops of essence, then whisk six whites of eggs to a stiff froth and mix
them again with the rest. Butter a mould, put the mixture into it, not
filling it more than two-thirds full, and bake in an oven at about 320
degrees. Sponge cake may be cut in pieces and used to make a _Charlotte
Russe_, instead of lady's fingers.
_Apple Dumplings._--Quarter, peel, and core the apples, and cut them in
pieces, then envelop them in puff-paste with beef-suet, boil till
thoroughly done, and serve warm with sugar, or with apple or wine sauce.
It may also be served with sauce for puddings.
_Buckwheat Cakes._--Make a kind of thin dough with tepid water, yeast,
buckwheat flour, and a little sugar and salt, let rise, and fry with
butter. Serve hot with sugar, or molasses, or butter.
_Corn Cakes._--Mix well in a bowl two eggs with two ounces of melted
butter, a pint of corn-meal, salt and sugar to taste. While mixing set
milk on the fire, and as soon as it rises, turn it into the mixture,
little by little, stirring and mixing the while, and till it makes a
kind of thick dough. Butter well a shallow bakepan, put the mixture into
it, and bake.
_Crullers._--Mix well together and work with a wooden spoon, in a bowl,
one egg with two ounces of melted butter and half a pound of pulverized
sugar; then add salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, a few drops of essence, and one
pound of flour, and mix again; add also milk, little by little, stirring
and mixing at the same time, enough to make a thick batter. Divide the
mixture in parts and fry in hot fat. (_See_ Frying.)
_Doughnuts._--Mix well together in a bowl four eggs with half a pound of
sugar, add two or three ounces of melted butter and mix again, then mix
with the whole, about one pound of flour and boiled milk enough to make
a rather thick dough, season and mix well with the whole, nutmeg,
cinnamon, and a few drops of essence. Cut in fancy pieces with a knife
or paste-cutter, and fry in hot fat. (_See_ Frying.) Dust with sugar,
and serve hot.
_Muffins._--Mix well together on the paste-board one pound of flour and
three eggs, then add and mix again milk enough to make a thin dough, a
little yeast and salt. Put away to rise; divide in parts and bake.
_Pound Cake._--Take a large bowl and put in it one pound of melted
butter and one pound of pulverized sugar, and mix the two thoroughly
together with a wooden spoon; then add and mix well also with them,
three eggs previously beaten with a saltspoonful of nutmeg and cinnamon,
half of each. When the eggs are mixed, add also half a pound of flour,
mix well again; then add six well-beaten eggs, and mix; then another
half pound of flour, a few drops of essence of rose, half a gill of
Sherry wine, a liquor-glass of brandy, four ounces of citron, and half a
pound of comfited fruit, chopped fine. Beat and mix as well as possible.
Butter a mould, dust it with fine bread-crumbs, turn the mixture into
it, and bake in a warm but not quick oven. It takes about two and a half
hours to bake. As soon as cold, serve it. It may be glazed with sugar,
or sugar and white of egg.
_Short Cake._--Cut puff-paste, made with a pound of flour and six or
eight ounces of butter, in square or round pieces, bake; when cold,
spread sweetened strawberries on, then cover with another cake, spread
strawberries again on it, etc. Strawberry-jelly may be used.
_Plum._--Mix well in a vessel a pound of sugar with a pound of butter,
and then again with eight eggs, one at a time, also half a pound of
raisins, half a pound of flour, a little rum, and a little yeast. Line a
mould with buttered paper, turn the mixture into it, not filling it more
than two-thirds full, place it in a warm but not quick oven for nearly
two hours, remove the mould, and serve hot or cold.
_Tea Cake._--Put half a pound of flour on the paste-board, and in the
middle of it a pinch of salt, half an ounce of sugar, two eggs, four
ounces of melted butter, and cold water enough to make a rather stiff
paste. Knead well, roll down to about a quarter of an inch in thickness;
cut it in pieces with a knife or paste-cutter; moisten the top with
water by means of a brush, dust with sugar, and bake in an oven at about
370 degrees Fahr. Serve cold.
_Viennois._--Make some biscuits in boxes, and when cold, cut off a
little piece on the top, in the centre, which place you fill with
peaches or apricots in _compote_; put two together; serve cold.
_With Jelly._--Proceed as above in every particular, using currant or
raspberry jelly instead of _compote_.