Christmas Holiday foods Specialty Cakes Specialty Foods admin 5 years agoNovember 29, 2021

Holiday Baking #31, 1930-40’s Xmas Cake, Sugar Cookies and Eggless Cake

Holiday Cooking #31

Mahoney Bay Canada 1930’s and 40’s

Xmas Cake

2 lbs. butter 5 lbs. currants

2 lbs. sugar 6 lbs. raisins

24 eggs 2 lbs. mixed peel

3 lbs. flour 1 oz. cassia

1 teaspoon Magic Soda 3 nutmegs

1 glass orange juice 1 tablespoon cloves

2 lbs. almonds

Cream butter and sugar, add eggs one by one beating all the time, put in spices, stir in flour, with soda in the last cupful, then fruit and nuts, beat thoroughly. Line cake tins with thick well greased paper and bake 3 ½ to 4 hours, first ½ hour in hot oven, second ½ hour moderate oven, and then finish in very slow oven.

There are no baking temperatures listed in these recipes; during this time, it was assumed you would know how to put together a recipe without directions and what temperature to cook or bake them at. You gauged your oven temps through experience of working in the kitchen next to your mother and other relatives throughout your childhood and youth. You learned methods, techniques and timing so you never needed to have it written down in the cook books or diaries passed through each generation of the family

Oven temperatures are seldom given in the old books and recipes; most times the only say something like a slow oven or quick oven. These are the equlivent to today’s oven temperatures;

A very slow oven equals 250 to 275 degrees.

A slow oven equals 300 to 325 degrees.

A moderate oven equals 350 to 375 degrees.

A hot or quick oven equals 375 to 400 degrees.

A very hot oven equals 400 to 450 degrees.

Sugar Cookies

1 ½ cups brown sugar, 2 eggs, 1 heaping cup butter & lard, 1 teaspoon soda, 2 teaspoons cream of tartar with just enough milk to dissolve soda, 1 teaspoon salt: flour enough to roll out: with vanilla flavoring.

Sugar Cookies Auburn N.Y.

Mrs. Lewis 28 Carmell St.

½ cup butter 2 eggs

1 cup sugar 2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon milk ¼ teaspoon salt

& flavoring 2 cups flour

Cream butter, add sugar, yolks well beaten, flour. Baking powder and salt, add milk. Then add whites of eggs beaten to a stiff froth and enough more flour to make consistency to roll.

Cut off a small piece of dough, roll on floured board. Sprinkle with sugar. Shape with cooky cutters. Bake 10 minutes, save trimmings until last, do not mix with fresh dough.