Miss Parloa's kitchen companion

Have the butter soft, and rub it together with the sugar. Mix the soda with the flour, and rub through the sieve. Add the milk to the sugar and butter ; then add the flour and a little nutmeg. Bake in shallow pans in a rather quick oven for twenty-five minutes. A few currants make a pleasant change. The quanti- ties given will make two sheets. * Soft Sugar Gingerbread. This is a delicious gingerbread, and is made of two cupfuls of .sugar, one of milk, three of flour, two-thirds of a cupful of butter, two eggs, one teaspoonful of creamof- CAKE. 767 tartar, half a teaspoonful of soda, and one table-spoonful of bright yellow ginger. Beat the butter to a cream, and gradually beat the sugar into it. Add the ginger, the eggs, well beaten, the milk, and finally the flour, mixed with the soda and cream-of-tartar. Spread this batter in four buttered shallow cake-pans, and bake for a quarter of an hour in a rather quick oven. On removing the gingerbread from the oven, sprinkle it with sugar. Cut it into broad strips, and spread on a large dish to cool. It will, of course, be very thin. If one prefer, ginger not so strong as the yellow kind may be used. *Troy Molasses Cake. Mix together half a cupful of sugar, half a cupful of molasses, and a table-spoonful of butter. Dissolve an even teaspoonful of soda in half a cupful of sweet milk, and add it to the mixture ; add also an egg, well- beaten ; and after mixing all these ingredients thor- oughly, add two cupfuls of flour. Give the batter another good stirring, and spreading it two inches thick in shallow tin pans, bake it in a rather quick oven for from twenty to twenty-five minutes. This cake when hot is particularly nice for luncheon. * Delicate Molasses Gingerbread. Use two cupfuls of flour, measured after sifting, one cupful of molasses, half a cupful of sour milk or cream, one teaspoonful of soda, one of ginger, half a teaspoon- ful of salt, one generous table-spoonful of butter, and one of water. Put the molasses, milk, salt, and ginger in a bowl. Dissolve the soda in the cold water, and add it, with the butter, melted, to the mixture in the bowl. Now add the flour, and beat quickly. Pour the mixture into three deep tin plates that have been well buttered, and bake 768 MISS PARLOA'S KITCHEN COMPANION. in a quick oven for from eighteen to twenty minutes. Serve while fresh ; it will be especially nice then. * Soft Molasses Gingerbread. A cupful of molasses, a cupful of sour cream, two cup- fuls of flour, an egg, a large teaspoonf ul of ginger, two level teaspoonf uls of soda, and half a teaspoonf ul of salt are blended to produce soft gingerbread. Put the molasses, cream, salt, and ginger into a bowl. Beat the egg well. Dissolve the soda in one table- spoonful of cold water, and stir the liquid into the mix- ture in the bowl. Add the beaten egg, arid then the flour, and after beating the batter vigorously for one minute, pour it into two buttered shallow pans, and bake for twenty minutes in a rather hot oven. *Bath Soft Molasses Gingerbread. For three sheets of this delicious gingerbread use two cupfuls of molasses, three of flour (measured before sifting), one of buttermilk or sour milk, two-thirds of a cupful of butter, one egg, one table-spoonful of soda, one teaspoonf ul of ginger, or three if a strong flavor be Desired.