Part 52 (1/2)
_To make Almond Bisket._
Take the whites of four new laid eggs and two yolks, beat them together very well for an hour, then have in readiness a quarter of a pound of the best almonds blanched in cold water, beat them very small with rosewater to keep them from oiling, then have a pound of the best loaf sugar finely beaten, beat it in the eggs a while, then put in the almonds, and five or six spoonfuls of fine flour, so bake them on paper, plates, or wafers; then have a little fine sugar in a piece of tiffany, dust them over as they go into the oven, and bake them as you do bisket.
_To make Almond-Cakes._
Take a pound of almonds, blanch them and beat them very small in a little rose-water where some musk hath been steeped, put a pound of sugar to them fine beaten, and four yolks of eggs, but first beat the sugar and the eggs well together, then put them to the almonds and rose-water, and lay the cakes on wafers by half spoonfuls, set them into an oven after manchet is baked.
_To make Almond-Cakes otherways._
Take a pound of the best Jordan almonds, blanch them in cold water as you do marchpane, being blanched wipe them dry in a clean cloth, & cut away all the rotten from them, then pound them in a stone-motar, & sometimes in the beating put in a spoonful of rose-water wherein you must steep some musk; when they are beaten small mix the almonds with a pound of refined sugar beaten and sea.r.s.ed; then put the stuff on a chafing-dish of coals in a made dish, keep it stirring, and beat the whites of seven eggs all to froth, put it into the stuff and mix it very well together, drop it on a white paper, put it on plates, and bake them in an oven; but they must not be coloured.
_To make white Ambergriese Cakes._
Take the purest refined sugar that can be got, beat it and sea.r.s.e it; then have six new laid eggs, and beat them into a froth, take the froth as it riseth, and drop it into the sugar by little and little, grinding it still round in a marble mortar and pestle, till it be throughly moistened, and wrought thin enough to drop on plates; then put in some ambergriese, a little civet, and some anniseeds well picked, then take your pie plates, wipe them, b.u.t.ter them, and drop the stuff on them with a spoon in form of round cakes, put them into a very mild oven and when you see them be hard and rise a little, take them out and keep them for use.
_To make Sugar-Cakes or Jambals._
Take two pound of flour, dry it, and season it very fine, then take a pound of loaf sugar, beat it very fine, and sea.r.s.e it, mingle your flour and sugar very well; then take a pound and a half of sweet b.u.t.ter, wash out the salt and break it into bits into the flour and sugar, then take the yolks of four new laid eggs, four or five spoonfuls of sack, and four spoonfuls of cream, beat all these together, put them into the flour, and work it up into paste, make them into what fas.h.i.+on you please, lay them upon papers or plates, and put them into the oven; be careful of them, for a very little thing bakes them.
_To make Jemelloes._
Take a pound of fine sugar, being finely beat, and the yolks of four new laid eggs, and a grain of musk, a thimble full of caraway seed sea.r.s.ed, a little gum dragon steeped in rose-water, and six spoonfuls of fine flour beat all these in a thin paste a little stiffer then b.u.t.ter, then run it through a b.u.t.ter-squirt of two or three ells long bigger then a wheat straw, and let them dry upon sheets of paper a quarter of an hour, then tie them in knots or what pretty fas.h.i.+on you please, and when they be dry, boil them in rose-water and sugar; it is an excellent sort of banqueting.
_To make Jambals._
Take a pint of fine wheat flour, the yolks of three or four new laid eggs, three or four spoonfuls of sweet cream, a few anniseeds, and some cold b.u.t.ter, make it into paste, and roul it into long rouls, as big as a little arrow, make them into divers knots, then boil them in fair water like simnels; bake them, and being baked, box them and keep them in a stove. Thus you may use them, and keep them all the year.
_To make Sugar Plate._
Take double refined sugar, sift it very small through a fine sea.r.s.e, then take the white of an egg, gum dragon, and rose-water, wet it, and beat it in a mortar till you are able to mould it, but wet it not to much at the first. If you will colour it, and the colour be of a watry substance, put it in with the rose-water, if a powder, mix it with your sugar before you wet it; when you have beat it in the mortar, and that it is all wet, and your colour well mixt in every place, then mould it and make it into what form you please.
_To make Muskedines called Rising Comfits or Vissing Comfits._
Take half a pound of refined sugar, being beaten and sea.r.s.ed, put into it two grains of musk, a grain of civet, two grains of ambergriese, and a thimble full of white orris powder, beat all these with gum-dragon steeped in rose-water; then roul it as thin as you can, and cut it into little lozenges with your iging-iron, and stow them in some warm oven or stove, then box them and keep them all the year.
_To make Craknels._
Take half a pound of fine flour dryed and sea.r.s.ed, and as much fine sugar sea.r.s.ed, mingled with a spoonfull of coriander-seed bruised, and two ounces of b.u.t.ter rubbed amongst the flour and sugar, wet it with the yolks of two eggs, half a spoonful of white rose-water, and two spoonfuls of cream, or as much as will wet it, work the paste till it be soft and limber to roul and work, then roul it very thin, and cut them round by little plats, lay them upon b.u.t.tered papers, and when they go into the oven, p.r.i.c.k them, and wash the tops with the yolk of an egg, beaten and made thin with rose-water or fair water; they will give with keeping, therfore before they are eaten they must be dried in a warm oven to make them crisp.
_To make Mackeroons._