YOUR CHRISTMAS CAKE

New Zealand Listener, Volume 3, Issue 73, 15 November 1940, Page 52

YOUR CHRISTMAS CAKE

Cheaper This Year, But Still Nice

TIS is our second war-time Christmas, and while making the whole season as festive as possible, and seeing to it that the children, especially, do not miss the charm and sweetness of what is, after all, the children’s own festival, most mothers will find it necessary to bring into play some ingenuity in order to make the usual brave display with a leaner purse, Moreover, our rapidly-growing desire to eat as healthily as possible-to use every scrap of vegetable and meat in such a way as to derive the greatest nourishment from it, to use as much wholemeal and good vitalising food as we can-must not be scrapped or suspended during Christmas time; but rather incorporated into the usual procedure and so skilfully that even the sceptics and scoffers may be won over! When to Cook? It is impossible to declare a definite time for the cooking of the Christmas cake; because one miufst allow for difference of mixture, size of eggs, the kind of stove-(and every stove of the same make does not behave exactly the Same, any more than every motor-car of the same make does-even the position of the stove in the room, the draught, and many other little things. But generally speaking, a good Christmas cake will take four to five hours to cook. If less butter and eggs, three hours will probably do; but this again depends partly upon how deep a cake you make. Cooked in a square tin, like a meat-dish, a cake will take only about two and a-half hours, while the same mixture in a deep, round tin would meed three and a-half to four hours.

As a general rule, however, have the oven at 350deg. in an electric range with the top off and bottom at low, and put the cake just under the middle; and in a gas oven place the cake just above the middle. A teaspoonful of glycerine mixed. in with the creamed butter will keep the cake moist, and does away with the necessity for spirits. A tiny sprinkling of cayenne pepper is another good hint, or a quarter of a teaspoonful of good curry powder. Reasonable Christmas Cake This recipe is the favourite one of "Green Ink," a trusty link in our Daisy Chain, at the Auckland end. She says it keeps good for twelve months, One pound of flour, 34lb. butter, lb. light brown sugar, %41b. (four tablespoons) golden syrup, 6 eggs, lb. raisins, 1lb. currants and 1b. sultanas; 141b. almonds and 14lb. cherries, a large cup of milk, Yalb. of mixed. peel if liked, and a teaspoon of baking powder. Put the baking powder with the ‘flour. Now beat the sugar and butter to.a cream, add the eggs one by one, and beat well after each egg. When all the eggs are in, add the fruit a little at a time, and still beat well until all.the fruit is used. Warm the milk with the golden syrup, and add; lastly the flour and baking powder. Cook for 4 to 5 hours in a slow oven, 320 deg. to 350 dég. If an electric oven, 350 deg., top off and bottom low. Light Coloured Cake This is a special recipe for "Mary of Waitoa," who wrote asking for a light-coloured cake-a fairly rich one, also the time and temperature for cooking in an electric oven. Any rich cake

recipe would do, using only half the fruit, and no golden syrup, or spices or soda, but the same quantity of sugar, butter, eggs and flour, However, here is a definite recipe: One pound of butter, 1lb. of castor sugar, 144lb. of flour, 6 eggs, 1lb. currants, 4tb. raisins, Yzlb. sultanas, 20z. orange peel, 2oz. citron peel, lb. blanched chopped almonds, %lb. cher-

ries, and one teaspoon each of the following flavouring essences — brandy, whisky, rum, gin, and vanilla, and % teaspoon of cinnamon flavouring essence. Cream the butter and sugar together, add the flavourings, and the eggs one at a time, unbeaten. Add three-quarters of the flour gradually, and mix the remaining flour with the fruit. Bake this mixture in a 12-in. cake tin for 4% hours — at 350deg. with the top off, bottom low, and placed just a little under the centre of the oven. One-Egg Wholemeal Cake This is a very economical cake indeed. In fact, I had not thought of using it as a Christmas recipe till I received a letter from an Island Bay "link" who says: "I would like to point out what a splendid cake that ~one-egg fruit cake is, the recipe for which you gave us a little while agoit was made with wholemeal and raw sugar. I have never tasted a better or more economical cake, and I may say that I shall use the recipe for my Christmas cake this year, as it behoves us to economise, It is very moist and delicious,"

Half a pound of butter, creamed with 14lb. of raw sugar. Add 1 egg lightly beaten, 2 teaspoons of vinegar, 1 teaspoon each of lemon and almond essences, 1lb. of mixed fruit, which can be bought already mixed, washed and prepared, 1lb. of wholemeal, and 1 cup of milk with 1 teaspoon of soda dissolved in it. Cook in a moderate oven, for approximately two hours. Country Christmas Cake This was sent to me from Blenheim, and is still economical, even if it does contain 9 eggs and a cup of sweet cream, ‘because it uses 2Ib. of flour and makes a big cake, and cream and eggs are both plentiful in the country. Two pounds of flour, 144lb, butter, 140z. of sugar, 1lb. currants, 4b. raisins, 2lb. dates, 3 pieces of peel, 1 cup of sweet cream, 1 teaspoon of soda, and 9 eggs. Beat the sugar and butter to a cream, add the cream, beat again. Then add the eggs one at a time, then the flour and fruit mixed together, the soda mixed well in a little warmed milk1% cup is sufficient, Bake about 4 hours, Makes two fair-sized cakes. A tablespoon of brandy may be added, but this is not necessary. If lb. of ground almonds, and a little cinnamon, is added, it improves the flavour even more. Twenty-Minute Cake This is a great labour-saver, but not particularly economical otherwise. It takes only twenty minutes to mix! This is the method: Mix all the dry ingredients together, including the sugar and the fruit. Melt all the butter and let it cool slightly-do not oil it. Beat all the eggs well, and add the butter to them. Then pour this into the dry ingredients, and beat well till smooth. Here are the ingredients: % packet of spice, 1lb, of butter, 1lb. of sugar, 1 grated nutmeg, 9 eggs, 14%4lb. of flour, 14lb. peel, 1lb. of currants, 1b. of raisins, lb. of almonds, llb. of sultanas, If you are using the packets of mixed, washed fruits, you would need 314lb. Bake in a large tin for approximately 5 hours. A wineglass of brandy or whisky optional. Auckland Christmas Cake This has another rather different method, although the ingredients are much as usual. It was given’ me in Auckland some years ago. One pound of butter, 114lb. of flour, 1b. of sugar, 1lb. of raisins, 1lb. of sultanas, 1lb. of currants, 42 a grated nutmeg, 1 tablespoon of finely cut preserved ginger, 1 teaspoon of lemon and almond essences mixed, 60z. of cherries, 1 small cup of warm milk, 60z. of blanched and chopped almonds, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 9 large eggs or ten small ones, 1 teaspoon of mixed spice, 4o0z. of mixed peel, cut fine, Cream butter alone, then add half the flour and cream these together, until like a thick cream; next add the eggs, which should be beaten well with (Continued on next page)

(Continued from previous page) the sugar (as for a sponge), until the sugar is dissolved-about five minutes. Add the remaining flour with the salt, and baking powder added, now the fruit, which should be cleaned beforehand. Mix well. Rinse well the bowl in which the eggs were beaten with the warm milk, add to the mixture, and beat well. Bake in a well-papered tin 4 to 5 hours in a slow oven. The oven should be hot when the cake is put in. Pineapple Christmas Cake One cup of butter, 142 cups of brown sugar, 4 eggs, 3 cups of flour, 2 small teaspoons of salt, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoons of allspice, 1 teaspoon ground cloves, 1 cup of tinned pineapple juice, 142 cups of candied cherries, 144 cups of chopped figs, 142 cups of chopped tinned pineapple, 1 cup of raisins, 2 cups of chopped nuts, ¥2 cup of shredded peel. Mix the butter, sugar and egg yolks, and beat. Sift 2 cups of flour, spices, salt and baking powder, and add alternately with the fruit juice to the first mixture. Then add the fruits and nuts, previously mixed with the other cup of flour. Fold in the stiffly beaten whites of eggs, put into wellgreased papered tin, and bake in a very slow oven for 3 or 4 hours. These quantities make a very large cake which keeps moist for a long time, 1ZR Special Christmas Cake Half a pound of butter, 2lb. sugar, 5 eggs, 2lb. of mixed fruit, 4% teaspoon each of the following food flavouringsvanilla, lemon, pineapple, brandy, cherry and almond, or any other flavourings; 1 teaspoon of baking powder, % to a teaspoon of curry powder, and 10oz. of flour. Prepare the fruit, and sprinkle with flour. Put in a warm place while creaming the butter and sugar. Also have the flour sifted ready, and in a warm place. After the butter and sugar are nicely beaten, add the eggs one at a time, and sprinkle in a little flour with each egg to prevent curdling. Now add the curry powder, then the fruit and flour alternately, and the baking powder last. Turn quickly the mixture into a well greased tin, and bake in a moderate oven for 342 hours, at a temperature of 300 deg. to start with, and after the first three-quarters of an hour, the heat may be lowered,