An Excellent Cake*
| Categories: | English 17th century Baked goods |
| Original Source: | Kenelme Digbie, The Closet Opened |
| Secondary Source: | Cariadoc Collection |
| Cook: | Wantelet FitzNigel |
| Meeting Date: | 0000-00-00 |
| Serves: | 10
|
To a Peck of fine flower, take six pounds of fresh butter, which must be tenderly melted, ten pounds of Currants, of Cloves and Mace, half an ounce of each, an ounce of Cinnamon, half an ounce of Nutmegs, four ounces of Sugar, one pint of Sack mixed with a quart at least of thick barm of Ale (as soon as it is settled, to have the thick fall to the bottom, which will be, when it is about two days old) half a pint of Rose-water; half a quarter of an ounce of Saffron. Then make your paste, strewing the spices, finely beaten, upon the flower: Then put the melted butter (but even just melted) to it; then the barm, and other liquors; and put it into the oven well heated presently. For the better baking of it, put it in a hoop, and let it stand in the oven one hour and half. You ice the Cake with the whites of two Eggs, a small quantity of Rose-water, and some Sugar.
Ingredients
| 1 c. | sugar |
| 1 lb. | flour |
| 1/2 lb. | butter (unsalted if possible) |
| 1/2 c. | ale |
| 1 scant Tbs. | yeast |
| 1/3 c. | dry white wine |
| 1/3 c. | milk |
| 1 tsp. | ground cloves |
| 1 tsp. | ground mace |
| 1 tsp. | ground cinnamon |
| 1 tsp. | ground nutmeg |
| pinch | saffron |
| 2 Tbs. | rosewater |
| 2 | eggs |
| 5 oz. | currants |
| enough white icing to cover the cake | |
| 1 tsp. | rosewater |
Steps
- Combine the flour and the butter cut in tablespoon amounts or melted.
- Dissolve the yeast in 1/4 cup of warm water with a Tb of sugar.
- Combine the ale, sack, milk and rosewater. Beat the eggs until uniform. Add the yeast to the liquids, and combine the liquids and the eggs with the flour and butter. When fairly mixed, add the currants and mix just until the currants are uniformly distributed.
- Place the mixture in a greased pan. Allow the dough to rise for 1 1/2 hours in a warm place.
- Preheat the oven to 425°. Bake for about 1 hour until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Ice with a white icing flavored with a tsp of rosewater.
Note
I seriously reduced the amounts to conform to one rectangular cake pan or two round cake pans. Sack is any dry white wine. I use baker's yeast instead of barm. The paste is not thick enough to just use a hoop or flan ring. I also found it wise to let it rise before baking for about an hour and a half.
Excellent cake for feasts and subtlety construction. Moderately inexpensive, can leave out the ale.