Woman's Institute Library of Cookery Volume IV Part 28

long by 1-1/2 in. wide, as shown in Fig. 14. With the aid of a spoon, as ill.u.s.trated, fill the ladyfinger mixture into a pastry bag containing a plain pastry tube. Then, from the pastry tube, squeeze the cake mixture onto the marked s.p.a.ces, as shown in Fig. 15, making the ma.s.s slightly narrower in the center than at the ends. When all the s.p.a.ces have been filled, set the pan containing the sheet in a slow oven and bake until dry. Remove from the oven and take from the paper by slipping a sharp knife under each ladyfinger. If the ladyfingers are to be used for cake, they must be put together in pairs with the following simple filling, and they will then appear as in Fig. 16.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 15]

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 16]

FILLING FOR LADYFINGERS

Juice of 1 orange Sufficient sugar to spread

Beat the orange juice and sugar together until smooth. Place a layer of the mixture between each two ladyfingers.

LADYFINGERS No. 2 (Sufficient for 3 Dozen Cakes)

6 eggs 1-1/4 c. powdered sugar 1 c. flour Juice of half a lemon

Separate the eggs and beat the whites with an egg whip until stiff. Sift the sugar and flour together several times, add a little to the eggs, and continue beating. Continue to add the sugar and flour, a little at a time, until all has been added. Beat the egg yolks until they are light and lemon-colored and then beat them into the mixture. Add the lemon juice and force the mixture through a pastry tube in the same way as described in the preceding recipe. Bake in a slow oven. When cool, put together with the orange filling.

CAKES MADE WITH YEAST

24. A few varieties of cake are made light by means of yeast instead of being leavened with eggs or chemical leavening agents. These cakes are, of course, similar to bread in many respects, but they are sweeter and richer than bread and contain eggs. For this reason they are not economical mixtures and should not be made if economy must be practiced.

Because of the sugar, b.u.t.ter, and eggs used in them, the action of the yeast is slow; consequently, the processes involved in making these mixtures are neither short nor simple. Often, after they have been baked in a mold, the center is removed and the sh.e.l.ls are then filled with different mixtures to make a variety of desserts.

BRIOCHE

1 c. milk 1-1/2 yeast cakes 1/2 c. sugar 2/3 c. b.u.t.ter 4-1/2 c. flour 3 egg yolks 3 whole eggs 1/2 tsp. lemon extract

Scald the milk, cool until lukewarm, and then add the yeast cakes. When they are thoroughly dissolved, add the sugar, the b.u.t.ter, which has been softened but not melted, and half of the flour. Add the egg yolks and beat with the hands. Add the eggs one at a time and when all have been beaten in thoroughly, continue to add more flour. After all of the flour and also the lemon extract have been added and the mixture is of a consistency to knead, allow it to rise for 6 hours. Punch down and place in the ice box or some other cool place overnight. In the morning, the mixture will be ready to bake in whatever shape is desirable.

The four recipes that follow show various ways in which the brioche may be used to make attractive as well as appetizing desserts.

COFFEE CAKES

Roll the brioche mixture into a long rectangular piece about 1/4 inch thick. Spread with softened b.u.t.ter, fold one-third of the side over the center and the opposite side on top of that, making three layers. Cut this into strips about 3/4 inch wide, cover, and let rise. When light, twist the ends of each piece in the opposite direction, coil, and bring the ends together on the top of the cake. Let rise in pans for 20 minutes, and bake in a moderate oven for about 20 minutes. Upon removing from the oven, brush with confectioner's sugar moistened with enough water to allow it to spread.

BRIOCHE BUNS

Work 1/2 cupful of raisins and 1/2 cupful of chopped nut meats into half of the brioche mixture. Shape into b.a.l.l.s about the size of a walnut, and then place close together in a b.u.t.tered pan. Brush over the top with 1 tablespoonful of sugar dissolved in 2 tablespoonfuls of milk. Bake in a moderate oven for about 25 minutes. Brush a second time with the sugar-and-milk mixture and allow the buns to remain in the oven until they are well browned.

BRIOCHE DESSERT

Fill m.u.f.fin pans about 1/2 full with the brioche mixture. Allow it to rise nearly to the top, bake in a slow oven, remove when sufficiently baked, and cool. Remove the center from each mold, leaving a sh.e.l.l. The centers may be toasted and served separately. Put a teaspoonful or two of any desirable preserves or marmalade into the sh.e.l.ls, fill with sweetened and flavored whipped cream, and over the top sprinkle chopped nuts. This dessert should be prepared just before serving.

BRIOCHE PUDDING

Take enough of the brioche sponge to fill a good-sized mold two-thirds full. Work into this 1/2 cupful of raisins cut into small pieces, 1/4 cupful of candied cherries, 1/2 cupful of chopped nuts, and 1/4 cupful of coconut. Place in a mold and allow it to rise until the mold is nearly full. Bake from 45 minutes to 1 hour, turn out of the mold, and allow to become cold. Cut into thick slices with a knife that has been heated in the flame, and serve with apricot or pineapple sauce.

APPLE CAKE (Sufficient for Three Good-Sized Cakes)

2 c. milk 1 yeast cake 1 tsp. salt 1/2 c. sugar 3/4 c. b.u.t.ter 8-1/2 c. flour 3 eggs Apples

Scald the milk and cool it to lukewarm. Add the yeast, salt, sugar, and b.u.t.ter, which has been softened but not melted. Add half of the flour and beat in the eggs. When all has been mixed thoroughly, add sufficient flour to make a stiff dough. Knead for a short time and place in a bowl to rise. When risen until double in bulk, roll a piece of the dough 1/2 inch thick to fit a rectangular pan. Allow this to rise until it is light. Peel apples, cut into halves and then into thick slices, and rub them with lemon so they will not discolor. When the bread mixture is light, place the apples on the top in rows. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon and bake in a quick oven. Serve with b.u.t.ter or sugar and cream.

SWEDISH TEA RING

Roll a large piece of the mixture used for apple cake into a rectangular shape from 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick, brush with b.u.t.ter, sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon and, if desired, with raisins or chopped nuts. Roll like a jelly roll, and place the two ends together on a cooky sheet so as to form a ring. Try, if possible, to conceal the joining by fastening the ends together carefully. The best way to do this is to cut a slice from each end before joining. Then, with a scissors, cut through the edge of the ring nearly to the center and slightly at a slant, as in Fig. 17.

Make the cuts about 1 inch apart and turn the cut slices over so as to show the layers of dough. Brush with milk, dredge with sugar, and bake for about 1/2 hour. When baked, this cake should appear as shown in Fig. 18.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 17]

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 18]

CREAM PUFFS AND eCLAIRS

25. A delicious form of dessert that is usually cla.s.sed with small cakes includes cream puffs and eclairs. They are made of a special kind of paste that, when baked, becomes hollow in the center, very much as popovers do. The inside is then filled with a mixture similar to a custard mixture or with sweetened and flavored whipped cream. Many persons have an idea that these mixtures are very difficult to make, but the fact is that they may be easily made if the directions for preparing them are carefully followed.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 19]

26. After the paste has been mixed, the way it is to be treated will depend on whether cream puffs or eclairs are to be made. For cream puffs, which are shown in Fig. 19, it is dropped by spoonfuls on a cooky sheet or a large pan, while in the case of eclairs, several of which are shown in Fig. 20, it is forced through a large round pastry tube so as to form long strips. The shapes are then baked in a hot oven, and during this process they puff up and become hollow in the center. If, upon attempting to fill the sh.e.l.ls thus made, the centers are found to contain a little moist, doughy material, this may be removed. The filling may then be introduced either by cutting a slit in the side and putting it in with a spoon or by inserting the end of a pastry tube into the sh.e.l.l and forcing it in with a pastry bag and tube. In addition to being filled with a filling of some kind, eclairs are covered, as here shown, with an icing that usually corresponds in flavor with the filling. For instance, chocolate eclairs are filled with a chocolate filling and covered with a chocolate icing, while coffee eclairs have a coffee filling and a coffee icing.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 20]

Very small cream puffs are attractive and are often served with small cakes for an afternoon tea or a buffet luncheon. These may be made by dropping the paste with a teaspoon on a cooky sheet, baking it until done, and then filling the sh.e.l.ls with any desired paste.

CREAM PUFFS (Sufficient for 1 Dozen Cream Puffs)

1/2 c. b.u.t.ter 1 C. boiling water 1 c. flour 4 eggs

Boil the b.u.t.ter and water together until the b.u.t.ter is melted. Add the flour by pouring it all in at one time. Stir rapidly and cook until the ma.s.s does not stick to the sides of the pan. Continue the stirring so that it does not burn. Remove from the fire and cool, so as not to cook the eggs when they are added. Add one egg at a time and mix thoroughly with the mixture before adding another. Drop by spoonfuls on a greased cooky sheet, place close to the floor of the oven, and bake in a hot oven for about 30 minutes or until the puffs are dry and can be lifted from the sheet. Allow them to cool and then fill with whipped cream or a custard filling. Before serving, sprinkle powdered sugar over the top of each.

eCLAIRS

When eclairs are desired, make the paste as for cream puffs. Then through a large, round pastry tube, one having a diameter of at least 1/2 inch, force this paste in strips 3-1/2 or 4 inches long, putting the paste on a cooky sheet or some other large pan. Bake in a hot oven in the same way as cream puffs. When cool, fill with a custard mixture of any desired flavoring and cover with an icing of the same flavor.

ROYAL eCLAIRS

Royal eclairs are especially delicious and make a very agreeable change from the usual variety. To make these, bake eclairs in the usual shape and set aside to cool. Cut canned peaches into pieces, add sugar to them, and cook down until the sirup becomes thick. Fill each eclair with several spoonfuls of this mixture and, if desired, serve with whipped cream over the top.

CREAM FILLING FOR CREAM PUFFS

1/3 c. flour 2 c. milk 1 egg 3/4 c. sugar 1/8 tsp. salt 2 tsp. b.u.t.ter 1 tsp. vanilla

Moisten the flour with a little cold milk. Heat the remainder of the milk and add the moistened flour. Cook in a double boiler for 10 or 15 minutes. Beat the egg, add the sugar and salt, and pour this into the hot mixture, stirring rapidly. Cook until the egg is thickened, and then add the b.u.t.ter and vanilla. Remove from the fire, cool, and fill into the cream puffs.

CHOCOLATE FILLING FOR eCLAIRS

1 sq. chocolate 3/4 c. sugar 1 c. water 1/3 c. flour 1 c. milk 1 Tb. b.u.t.ter 1 tsp. vanilla