COOL DESSERTS FOR THE HOLIDAYS

New Zealand Listener, Volume 6, Issue 131, 26 December 1941, Page 44

COOL DESSERTS FOR THE HOLIDAYS

HRISTMAS pudding is all very well for Christmas Day; but cool jellies and custards and trifles are the dishes which the busy home-maker needs to ring the changes on during the holidays, and, indeed, all through the summer. Most of these are really not much trouble to make, and with the help of a little imagination they can be varied without any difficulty. A refrigerator is a great help, and widens

the possibilities enormously; but with a good, cool safe one can manage pretty well. I am hoping that the Daisy Chain will send in some good original ideas after reading this, "If you know a good thing, pass it on," as the Women’s Institute Motto says. Apricot Delight (By Mrs. A,-Original.) Put a round of good sponge cake in the bottom of a pretty glass or china bowl. Make a pint of jelly with Apricot Jelly Crystals, and when cooled a little pour it over the sponge, and leave to set. Open a tin of apricots (halves) and arrange the fruit, rounded side uppermost, upon the jelly, reserving one half .apricot for decorating. Now make a pint of custard with unflavoured custard, powder, using the: syrup from the apricots, and making up the required quantity with water. Add a knob of butter to the custard when taking it from the fire, stirring it smoothly in. This makes the custard bland and rich, Let it cool before pouring it over the apricots. On top of this, when cold and set, place a meringue made as follows, and coloured pale pink, Meringue-One cup. of ordinary sugar; the white of 1 egg; a pinch of powdered alum; 2 tablespoons of. boiling water, and a pinch of salt. Put all

e 2. S together in the ‘basin. Stand this basin in a meat-dish of boiling water. Beat the meringue mixture very well, while the water boils around the basin, The meringue comes up like snow. Cook on greaseproof paper in a very cool oven. Finally, pipe some whipped and sweetened cream all round the top of this flavoursome pudding; and decorate with tiny wedges of apricot cut from the one you reserved. You can easily twist a piece of white paper into a cone shape, and pipe the cream through the narrow end, if you haven’t a proper forcing bag outfit, Strawberry Shortcake Two cups of flor, 4 small teaspoons of baking powder; a large pinch of salt; 2 tablespoons of sugar; 4% cup of but-~ ter; and enough rich cream or milk to make a soft dough. Sift the flour with the baking powder, salt and sugar, cut in the butter, and mix well. Then add the liquid gradually, using about threequarters of a cupful. Divide the dough into two sections, and pat into round cakes not more than % inch thick, to fit well-greased pans. Brush well with melted butter, and bake in a hot oven, 400° for about 20 minutes. Have plenty of strawberries, and cut them in halves, crush lightly with a silver fork, and cover with %4 cup of castor sugar. Mix well and set in a moderately warm place while the shortcake is cooking. To serve, place one piece of the shortcake on a dish, cover. with the fruit, place the other piece on top, and spread with more fruit, and

, as ae --- put thick whipped cream on _ top. Decorate with whole strawberries, Variation--Use sponge cake in place of the shortcake, and put together with quartered, well-sugared strawberries, then topped with strawberry meringue. To make this, beat the white of one egg to a partial froth, then add half a cup of crushed strawberries, whip together very lightly, and add very gradually 1 cup of castor sugar, then beat vigorously. When the meringue is fluffy, pile it on the cake and decorate with whole strawberries. Orange Souffle This is an old New Plymouth recipe. Put into a saucepan (a double saucepan is best to use, or a basin standing in a saucepan of hot water), the yolks of 3 eggs, 3 oz. of sugar, the juice of 3 or 4 good sized oranges, and the grated rind of one, Keep stirring until it just comes to the boil. Take from the fire, Have the whites of the eggs stiffly beaten, and mix in the other ingredients while hot. Line a glass dish completely with sponge fingers, and pour the souffle over. Put one or two sponge fingers on the top. Decorate with orange segments, Another Orange Souffle Method.Put into a saucepan 1% Ib. sugar, the juice of 3 oranges, and the grated. rind of 2; and the yolks of 3 eggs. Stir until it thickens-it must not boil. Let it cool. When nearly cold, stir in 4% oz, powdered gelatine dissolved in ¥2 cup "of water; add 1% pint of cream. Stir all together, then fold in lightly the stiffly beaten whites of the eggs, and pour into a wetted mould to set, Strawberry or Raspberry Dainty Make a specially good sponge sandwich, and bake in two sandwich tins, also a raspberry or strawberry jelly, with a little less water than usual, and set it in a sponge tin the same size as the cake. Sandwich the jelly between the two layezs of sponge; and then cut a circle out of the top layer of sponge, altmut the size of a big saucer. This zeeves a double rim round the outside of the cake with the jelly showing in the middle. Fill this hollowed out place with a generous supply of strawberries or raspberries which _bave been mashed with castor sugar. ‘Cover thickly with whipped cream and decorate with some whole berries. Dust with castor sugar. This is a really substantial sweet. Here is a very wellrecommended recipe for the sponge which you may like to try, unless you prefer your own. Butter Sponge--Beat 3 egg whites till very stiff; add 3 egg yolks and beat, then add 6 oz. sugar, and beat till the sugar is dissolved. Add 1 level cup of flour; 2 level teaspoons of baking powder; and a pinch of salt; fold the flour in. Add 1 tablespoon of butter in 3 tablespoons of boiling water. Make about 17 minutes, (Continued on next page) +

(Continued from previous page) Coffee Junket One quart of milk; 1 tablespoon of sugar; 2 tablespoons of coffee essence; and some vanilla. Heat the milk, sugar, and coffee till very hot; stir well. Cool down to blood heat, add the vanilla and pour into glass dish. Now add the rennet. When it is set, serve with whipped cream flavoured with vanilla. For Chocolate Junket use grated chocolate, or cocoa.