it stand three hours in a moderate oven. You must observe always, in beating of butter, to do it with a cool hand, and beat it always one way in a deep earthern dish.
To make pepper cakes.
TAKE half a gill of sack, half a quarter of an ounce of whole white pepper, put it in and boil it together a quarter of an hour, then take the pepper out, and put in as much double-refined sugar as will make it like a paste, then drop it in what shape your please on plates, and let it dry itself.
To make Portugal cakes.
MIX in a pound of fine flour, a pound of loaf-sugar beat and sifted, then rub it into a pound of pur sweet butter till it is thick lke grated white bread, then put to ti two spoonfuls of rose-water, two of sack, ten eggs, whip them very well with a whisk, them mix it into eight ounces of currants, mixed all well together; butter the tin pans, fill them but half full, and bake them; if made without currants they will keep half a year; add a pound of almonds blanched, and beat with rose-water, as above, and leave out the flour. These are another sort and better.
To make a pretty cake.
TAKE five pounds of flour well dried, one pound of sugar, half an ounce of mace, as much nutmeg, beat your spice very fine, mix the sugar and spice in the flour, take twenty-two eggs, leave out six whites, beat them, put a pint of ale-yeast and the eggs in the flour, take two pounds and a half of fresh butter, a pint and a half of cream; set the cream and butter over the fire, till the butter is melted, let it stand till it is blood-warm, before you put it into the flour set it an hour by the fire to rise, then put in seven pounds of currants, which must be plumped in half a pint of brandy, and three quarters of a pound of candied peels. It must be an hour and a quarter in the oven. You must put two pounds of chopped raisins in the flour, and a quarter of a pint of sack. When you put the currants in, bake it in a hoop.
To make ginger-bread.
TAKE three quarts of fine flour, two ounces of beaten ginger, a quarter of an ounce of nutmeg, cloves, and mace beat fine, but most of the last; mix all together, three quarters of a pound of fine sugar, two pounds of treacle, set it over the fire
