226 American Agriculturist, March 1 , 1924 
Cake-Making Secrets and Several Reliable Recipes 
New or Experienced, the Home-Maker Will Find, Tests For Her Skill Here 
E VERY woman finds pleasure in mak¬ 
ing cakes that are a treat to her 
family and friends. Moreover, with the 
aid of a few good recipes, the knowledge 
of some simple rules, and a little practice, 
any woman can surpass the best com¬ 
mercial product.- 
The following recipes have been gather¬ 
ed during years of cake-making, and have 
given great satisfaction. Though chosen 
with a view of economy, they offer a 
pleasing variety suitable for any occasion. 
Little Secrets in Cake-Making 
1. Measure ingredients carefully, and 
follow recipes exactly. Measurements are 
always understood to be level unless 
otherwise stated. 
2. Learn to regulate your oven and 
have it properly heated before you start 
mixing your cake—no matter how good 
your batter is, it is spoiled by improper 
baking. Test oven by placing a sheet of 
white paper in it. If paper turns a nice 
brown in 5 minutes, oven is of moderate 
heat, suitable for most cakes. Cakes 
should rise evenly. If a cone is formed in 
the center, oven is too hot and crust has 
formed too rapidly. If oven is too cool, 
cakes rise over tins and are coarse. The 
larger the cake, the cooler the oven should 
be. Layers ordinarily require 20 minutes 
baking, loaf cakes 35 minutes. 
3. For best results have all required 
ingredients and utensils ready before you 
start mixing your cake. Never grease 
cake tins with salted butter as it causes 
cake to stick. 
4. Beat butter and sugar very light 
before adding other ingredients. Butter 
should be warm and soft though not 
melted unless so stated. 
5. Sweet milk makes a rich close- 
grained cake, while water in the same 
recipe makes it light, delicate. 
6. Pastry flour improves your cake 
and makes it tender. Mix your own 
pastry flour by 3 times sifting 7 parts 
ordinary flour with 1 part cornstarch. It 
is convenient to mix a considerable 
quantity of this flour at one time. 
7. Remember that sifting flour and 
baking powder several times, and long 
beating of batter tends greatly to make 
delicate fine grained cakes. Never stir 
cake after whipped egg whites have been 
folded into it. 
8. To facilitate rerqoving cake from 
tins allow it to stand in them 2 or 3 
minutes after removing from oven. 
9. It is economical, time and labor- 
saving, and always successful to use pul¬ 
verized sugar in making icings and 
fill ings. Do not boil. Just stir to the 
right consistency in about 4 tablespoons 
cream, milk, melted butter. Add a few 
drops vanilla or other extract. 2 table¬ 
spoonfuls of cocoa added in place of part 
of the sugar makes delicious chocolate 
icing. Cocoanut, nuts, candied fruit, etc. 
may be added with excellent results. 
4 tablespoons of fruit juices, as orange 
or lemon, also the same amount of grated 
pineapple, crushed berries, etc. may be 
used in place of the other liquids to 
produce various icings and fillings. 
Snow Queen White Loaf Cake 
1 cup sugar 
y cup shortening 
1 cup milk 
3 egg whites beaten stiff 
3 tablespoons cornstarch 
1 teaspoon baking powder 
about 2 >2 cups ordinary flour 
1 teaspoon vanilla. 
Sift flour, cornstarch, baking powder 
3 times. Beat egg whites stiff. Cream 
shortening and sugar till light. Add milk 
gradually beating constantly, then flour, 
baking powder, cornstarch and vanilla. 
Beat 5 minutes. Fold in lightly the egg 
whites. If desired add a little red cake 
coloring to a small part of the mixture, a 
little cocoa or spice to a little more of the 
white batter and drop in spoonfuls in 
bulk of batter for marbled effect. Bake 
( about 35 minutes. Ice as preferred. 
Feather White Layer Cake 
1 y cup sweet milk 
iy cup sugar / 
y cup butter 
3 egg whites, stiffly beaten 
3 teaspoons baking powder 
3 cups flour (pastry) 
1 teaspoon vanilla or other extract. 
Cream sugar and butter thoroughly, 
gradually add milk, then extract. Beat in 
pastry flour and baking powder which 
have been twice sifted together. Gently 
fold in stiffly beaten egg whites. This 
amount makes 3 ordinary layers. Whip¬ 
ped cream sweetened to taste and flavored 
with vanilla and thickly spread on each 
layer and sides makes a delicious filling 
for this cake. 
Sunshine Loaf Cake 
y cup butter 
y cup sugar 
5 egg yolks 
y teaspoons baking powder 
1 y cups flour (pastry) 
pinch of salt 
y cup milk 
y teaspoon flavoring 
Beat yolks of eggs very light; add salt 
and sugar beating constantly. Whip in 
shortening. Add milk and extract. Beat 
in pastry flour and baking powder which 
have been twice sifted. Bake in small loaf 
pan for y hour in moderate oven. This 
is a very nice little cake to make either 
with the white loaf or white layer cake as 
it utilizes the left over egg yolks. Almond 
or orange extract used in this recipe are 
especially good. Frost with white, cocoa- 
nut, orange or lemon icing. 
Caramel Bread-Sponge Cake 
2 cups sugar 
1 cup butter 
2 eggs 
2 cups light bread sponge 
3 teaspoons hot water 
I teaspoon cinnamon 
1 teaspoon nutmeg 
1 teaspoon allspice 
1 teaspoon soda 
1 lb. raisins 
Cream lightly beaten eggs, sugar, 
butter. Add light bread sponge, spices, 
soda dissolved in water, raisins, enough 
flour to make rather thick batter. Bake 
in layers. This makes a large, rich cake 
and is especially good with butter and 
pulverized sugar icing. 
Fruit and Spice Cake 
Eggless, Milkless 
2 cups hot water 
2 cups sugar 
1 cup shortening 
y teaspoon each of allspice and cloves 
1 to 2 cups raisins, figs, dates, or citron 
1 teaspoon salt 
2 teaspoons each of cinnamon and nut¬ 
meg 
2 teaspoons baking powder. 
Boil water, sugar, shortening, fruit, 
salt and spices 4 minutes. Set aside to 
cool. Add enough pastry flour thoroughly 
sifted with baking powder to make rather 
thick batter. Bake in loaf or layers in 
slow oven—loaf about 45 minutes, 
layers about 30 minutes. Chocolate 
icing or pulverized sugar and butter icing 
flavored with vanilla are excellent on this 
cake. This cake improves with age and if 
kept in a tin box keeps fresh indefinitely. 
When served as plum pudding with a 
butter sauce it makes a delightful desert. 
Butter sauce :—y cup sugar, 1 heaping 
tablespoon flour, thoroughly mixed to¬ 
gether. Add 1 y cups boiling-water, 1 
heaping tablespoon butter, pinch of salt. 
Boil 3 minutes. Remove from fire, add 
one teaspoon vanilla. Serve over thin 
slices of cake. 
Cocoa Delight 
4 tablespoons butter 
2 cups sugar 
1 cup cold water 
4 eggs 
2 cups flour 
4 teaspoons baking powder 
4 tablespoons cocoa 
2 teaspoons vanilla 
Cream butter and sugar, add well 
beaten eggs, add water and vanilla. Sift 
flour, baking powder, and cocoa three 
times. Beat into other mixture. Bake in 
3 layers in moderate oven for 15 minutes. 
Use butter and pulverized sugar filling, 
flavored with vanilla. Ice top and sides 
of cake with chocolate icing. This is a 
very delicious cake. 
Sponge Cake 
5 eggs 
y, teaspoon salt 
1 cup flour 
1 teaspoon baking powder 
1 cup sugar 
1 teaspoon orange extract. 
Add salt to eggs and beat 15 minutes. 
Now beat in sugar till very light, add 
extract, mix in lightly flour and baking 
powder which have been twice sifted to¬ 
gether. Bake in a well-greased and floured 
cake tin in a moderate oven for 40 minutes. 
When cold and served with whipped 
cream and strawberries, etc., this makes 
an exceptionally good desert. Sponge cake 
is very nutritious and easily digested. 
Angel Food Cake 
8 egg whites 
y cup sugar 
1 teaspoonful cream of tarter 
y teaspoonful salt 
y cup flour 
1 teaspoonful baking powder 
1 teaspoonful vanilla. 
Whip eggs to very stiff froth. Add 
cream of tarter. Fold in sugar lightly. 
Now beat in flour which has been sifted 
three times with baking powder and salt. 
Add vanilla. Bake in ungreased pan in 
slow oven about 50 minutes. Remove 
from oven and allow cake to cool in the 
inverted pan. Ice with plain icing. 
MORE FAVORITE CAKES 
THER “tried and true” recipes 
passed on by experienced farm cooks 
include another sponge cake, one which 
P LANT around the house this spring! Blooming flowers, vines, and shrubs help 
make a house a home. A circular on the car£ of trees and shrubs will be sent 
you free if you write to the State College of Agriculture at Ithaca, New York, for 
Mimeo Bulletin L3. Also free is H87, on “ The Decorative Use of Flowers.” 
uses up sour cream, a very simple boiled 
cake and several with fruit flavorings. 
The boiled cake is so simple that it 
might well be chosen for the young house¬ 
keeper’s first attempt. It requires: 
1 cup sugar 
y cup butter or lard 
1 cup water 
1 cup chopped raisins 
1 teaspoon cinnamon 
1 teaspoon cloves 
2 cups flour—1 teaspoon soda. 
Boil together for 5 minutes all ingredi¬ 
ents, but flour and soda. Sift these two, 
then add to mixture. Bake in slow oven. 
—Mrs. F. O. H. 
Maple Icing 
1 cup brown sugar and 1-3 cup sweet 
cream boiled together until it hairs. 
Remove from stove,, beat till nearly cold. 
Add 2 drops of maple flavor and spread 
on cake.— Mrs. V. S. C. 
Orange Cake With Orange Filling 
2 eggs 
1 cup sugar 
1 y cups flour 
2 teaspoonfuls baking powder 
1 tablespoon melted butter 
y cup milk 
1 tablespoonfuls orange juice 
1 teaspoonful grated rind. 
Mix in order given and bake in square 
pan. 
Orange Cream For Filling 
Put into a cup the rind of orange. 
Juice of one orange, 1 tablespoonful lemon 
juice. Fill cup with hot water, strain and 
put on to boil; add 1 tablespoonful corn 
starch, -wet with cold water and cook ten 
minutes in a double boiler. Beat yolk of 
one egg with 2 heaping teaspoonfuls 
sugar; add mixture with teaspoonful of 
butter. Let it cook until the mixture is 
dissolved and cool. Fill cake and put ip' 
on top.—-C. T. 
Velvet Sponge Cake 
^,3 eggs 
1 y cups sugar 
y cup scalding milk 
1 teaspoonful butter 
y cup sifted flour 
y teaspoonful baking powder 
y teaspoonful salt 
Beat the eggs and sugar to the con¬ 
sistency of heavy cream. Add the scalded 
milk and butter to the mixture. Sift 
flour salt and baking powder together and 
add gradually, beating vigorously all the 
time. After the ingredients are well mixed 
beat for about fifteen minutes before 
pouring into buttered cake tin. Bake 
forty-five minutes. 
This cake is excellent served with 
chocolate sauce or with crushed berries. 
Lemon Fruit Cake 
1 egg 
1 cup sugar 
y cup butter 
2 y cups flour 
1 cup seeded raisins 
pulp, juice, grated rind of 
1 lemon 
1 cup sour milk 
1 teaspoon soda 
1 cup chopped dates 
spice to taste. 
Cream sugar and butter, beat egg very 
light and mix quickly. Add lemon, then 
milk, soda, flour and spice. Just before 
pouring into tins, stir in raisins and dates. 
Bake in a moderate oven and frost thickly 
with white frosting.—M rs. E. M. C. 
One cook, noted for her doughnuts,' | 
drops a few whole cloves into the kettle 
of boiling fat she fries them in. 
Keep an eye on the vegetables you 
have in storage. See that the ventilation 
and the moisture are right. Take out 
any vegetables that show even a sign of 
decay. 
