Miss Corson's practical American cookery and household management

For several cakes use the following ingredients (it is well to make several, because they improve by keeping) : wash and dry a pound and a half of currants ; slightly chop the same quantity of the best dried or candied cherries, and half a pound of shelled and blanched almonds ; half a pound each of orange, lemon, and citron peel, cut in small bits ; use half an ounce of mixed ground cinnamon, cloves, and nutmegs, a teaspoonful of salt, half a pint of brandy, eight eggs, a pound of fine sugar, and a pound and a half each of butter and sifted flour. See that the oven is properly heated, and line the cake-moulds with buttered paper. Beat the butter to a cream, then gradually beat in the sugar, flour, and eggs, then the brandy, salt, spice, and fruit ; when all the ingredients are smoothly mixed, put the cakes into the buttered moulds, and bake them slowly. As plum-cake is usually iced, several good recipes for cake icings are given. SPONGE CAKE. Rub the inside of a smooth cake-pan, or plain charlottemould, with olive-oil or melted butter, and dust it thickly with powdered sugar ; sift six ounces of flour ; grate the yellow rind of a lemon ; separate the whites from the yolks of twelve eggs ; weigh two ounces of powdered sugar, and sift it ; weigh four ounces of powdered sugar, and beat it with the yolks until they are thick and creamy ; if possible, have a second person beating the whites ; at all events, beat them Bag and Cone for mailing Lady-Fingers- to a stiff froth, and lightly mix with them the two ounces of sugar ; then quickly and lightly mix, without beating, a third of the flour with the yolks ; then a third of the whites ; then more flour and whites, until all are used; add the grated rind during the mixing. The motion of mixing must be very light, rather cutting down through the cake-batter than beating it ; beating the eggs makes them light, beating the batter makes the cake tough. As soon as the cake is mixed, turn it into the pan, and bake it in a moderate oven until a broom-straw run into it can be withdrawn clean. LADT-FINGERS. Beat to a cream the yolks of six eggs, and half a pound of powdered sugar; beat six whites to a stiff froth, and lightly mix with them a quarter of a pound of sifted flour ; then quickly and lightly mix these two batters ; put them on paper laid on pans, using the bag and tube as shown in the accompanying cut, or substitute moulds for this purpose ; dust the lady-fingers with powdered sugar, and bake them in a moderate oven until light brown. This recipe makes a good sponge-cake if it is baked in rather thin cakes. CHARLOTTE RUSSB. For a charlotte like that shown irt the accompanying engraving, use for the sides lady-fingers, with the ends cut square, or small slices of sponge-cake ; for the top use small round sponge-cakes or macaroons ; lay the cakes inside a plain round mould, arranging them as shown in the picture, and slightly wetting the overlapping portions with the raw white of egg to keep them in place; while the egg is drying, prepare enough whipped cream to fill the centre of the charlotte, according to the recipe for whipped cream ; just before sending the charlotte to table, fill it with the cream, turn it out of the, mould on a pretty dish, and serve it at once.