FOR THE HOLIDAY PARTY

Wairarapa Times-Age, 31 December 1938, Page 8

FOR THE HOLIDAY PARTY

For the holiday party tea, especially for little folk, it is, above all things, essential that the dainties provided should be attractive to look at as well as -delicious to eat, for half of the pleasure lies in the decorative effect.

Strawberry Cream. This delicious sweet is made with a chip of strawberries. Rub the strawberries through a hair sieve, then add half a pint of custard and Joz dissolved gelatine. Mix thoroughly, then pour into a mould and leave to set. Turn out and decorate with whole strawberries. Banana Mould. Take one good tablespoonful gelatine, J pint boiling water, J pint milk, 1 cupful mashed banana, 1 cupful castor sugar, J pint cream. Dissolve the gelatine in boiling water. Mix the sugar and banana pulp well together, then add the milk slowly. Add dissolved gelatine, and when the mixture is beginning to set, fold in the whipped cream. Put into a fancy mould and turn out when set. Fondant for Sweets.

A smooth, creamy fondant mixture made with glucose is an excellent foundation for a large variety of party sweets. Measure 3 cups sugar, 1 cup water, and 1 good tablespoon of glucose. (This may be bought! in lib tins.) Put all to boil in a saucepan, stirring all the time to dissolve sugar. Do not stir after boiling-point is reached. In four minutes drop a tiny portion of the syrup into cold water. Do this at intervals until the syrup forms into a fairly firm jelly, which can be picked up by the fingers. Pour at once into a shallow dish, such as a soup plate—two will be needed. Let stand without disturbing for 15 minutes. Then pour a few drops of whatever, flavouring essence is needed on to each plate—peppermint, vanilla, etc —and beat until the mixture becomes firm and creamy. For peppermint creams, just mould the mixture into balls and set on a tray to dry. Stuffed Fruit and Nuts. Prepare a small quantity of fondant and divide into three parts. Before beating to a cream, colour one part faintly green (a drop too much spoils the effect), another pale pink, and leave the third white. Flavour each with essence of almonds (again have a light hand), and ground almonds. Have ready some stoned dates, prunes, ginger, figs, 'and walnuts (halves). Roll the fondant into slender pieces and insert in dates, fill the cavities in prunes, make small, flat cakes, and press walnuts- or ginger on either side. Crystallised pineapple or any other crystallised fruit can be used.

Marzipan Logs.

For these, prepare fondant as above, but flavour with vanilla. Turn out on to a pastry-board sprinkled with icing sugar, roll with the hands into a long narrow strip, coat with chocolate amj finally roll in desiccated coconut. When it is firm, cut into slices. Tricolour Layer Cake. Take 2 eggs, Jib butter, l-’lb flour, about 1 cup milk, Jib sugar, 2 level teaspoons baking powder, and flavouring essence. Mix and divide into three parts. Then flavour one part with essence of lemon and leave it white. Colour the other part with cochineal to make it pink, and flavour with strawberry essence; colour the thrid part brown with spices. Bake in three shallow tins of the same size and then fasten together with icing when cold. Then ice and decorate to top.

Apricot Baskets.

These are most decorative, yet not too rich for children.

For the cake mixture the ingredients consist of 1 egg, its weight in butterand sugar, 3oz of self-raising flour, J tablespoon of milk, a few drops of vanilla essence. Beat the butter and sugar together until soft and white. Add the egg and a tablespoon of the sieved flour and beat well. Add the milk, essence, and the remainder of the flour. Stir thoroughly, but do not beat. Put the mixture into small greased tins and bake in a moderately-hot oven for 15 minutes.

While the little cakes are cooling, empty a small tin of apricots into a basih and drain dry the apricots. Make up the syrup to about quarter of a pint with the water, bring to the boil, and pour on to quarter of a pint packet of lemon jelly. Stir until dissolved and leave to cool. Put an apricot on each cake, round side uppermost, and coat with the jelly, which must just be starting to thicken. Pipe small stars of whipped cream round the edges of the apricots. Soak a piece of angelica in warm water, then cut into strips about one-quarter inch wide and long enough to arch over the caks to form a handle. Make two small holes in each cake with a skewer to keep the handle in place.