Bohemian-American Cook Book/Layer Cakes

In order to make good cakes, all the ingredients must be fresh and of good quality, properly put together, and the oven must be heated so that no fuel need be added during the baking. If the oven is too hot for baking layer cakes, the layers crack on the surface; if not hot enough, the dough shrinks and does not rise properly. When baking a layer cake, do not open the oven during the first ten minutes. Measure the flour after sifting, it may be sifted four or five times. To cach cup of flour add a teaspoon of baking powder. Use finely granulated sugar. The eggs should be cold, as the whites beat stiffer that way. A pinch of salt added to the whites helps to make them stiffer. Stir the batter in a crock, using a wooden spoon or paddle. Grease the pans with cold butter or lard and dust evenly with flour. Let the cake cool before applying icing or frosting. When putting the ingredients together, do it thus: cream the butter, then add sugar gradually, cream the two together, then add the beaten yolks and flavoring, then add the flour and milk, alternately, a small quantity at the time, stirring until smooth, then fold in carefully the whites beaten stiff. The cups used as measure in the following recipes are ordinary coffee ​cups, containing one half pint each. Layer cakes require a hotter oven than loaf cakes. When the cake shrinks from the sides of the pan, it is done. Another test is inserting a tooth-pick and if nothing adheres to it, the cake is baked.

Cream together half a cup of butter with one and a half cups of sugar, add three beaten yolks, two thirds of a cup of water, three cups of flour with two teaspoons of baking powder, and finally the beaten whites and vanilla flavoring. Pour into layer cake tins and bake. Filling: half a cup of sugar, half a cup of syrup, half a cup of milk or cream, a teaspoon of butter, boiled together five minutes, then add five tablespoons of grated chocolate. Boil until thick, then add a few drops of vanilla and when cool spread between the layers.

Cream a fourth of a cup of butter with a cup of sugar, add two beaten yolks, half a cup of milk and three tablespoons of grated chocolate. Stir well, then add one and a half cups of flour to which you have added a teaspoon of cream of tartar, and after stirring well, add half a teaspoon of baking soda dissolved in hot water and vanilla flavoring. Three teaspoons of baking powder may be used instead of the cream of tartar and soda. Bake in layer cake tins. Filling: melt the desired quantity of chocolate, add it to beaten whites, then add sugar until it thickens.

Boil together half a cup of sweet milk, one beaten yolk and half a cup of grated chocolate, stirring constantly until it thickens, then cool. Now add a cup ​of sugar, one heaping tablespoon of butter, half a cup of milk and two cups of flour sifted with two teaspoons of baking powder, a teaspoon of vanilla flavoring, beat smooth and bake in four layer tins. When cool spread with the following filling: boil together one cup of fine sugar with two tablespoons of water. When it spins a thread, pour it into a beaten white, beating until cool.

Cream half a cup of butter with a cup of sugar, add three beaten yolks, a cup of sweet milk, two teaspoons of baking powder and enough flour to make the batter thicker than for pancakes. Bake in layer cake tins. Filling: beat the three whites stiff, add about a cup of powdered sugar and a few drops of vanilla flavoring. After spreading each layer with the frosting, sprinkle with cocoanut.

Cream half a cup of butter with a cup of sugar, add three beaten yolks. Sift two cups of flour with two teaspoons of baking powder. Add half a cup of milk to the first named, then half of the flour, then add the other half cup of milk and the rest of the flour, beat smooth, add a teaspoon of vanilla flavoring and fold in the three whites beaten stiff. Bake in layer cake tins. When cool, spread with currant, strawberry, or other jelly except the top layer. Sprinkle that with powdered sugar.

Cream half a cup of butter with two cups of sugar, add three yolks, a cup of milk, three cups of flour, three teaspoons of baking powder and a teaspoon of lemon flavoring. Bake in layer cake tins. ​Filling: boil together half a cup of water, a cup of sugar, two beaten eggs, the grated rind of one lemon, the juice of two lemons, a teaspoon of butter and two tablespoons of flour. Boil in a double boiler until thick. When cool, spread between the layers, but not on top, dust that thickly with powdered sugar. You may use orange juice and rind instead of lemon, if you wish.

Beat six whites stiff, fold in carefully two cups of flour sifted with two teaspoons of baking powder. Cream the yolks with two cups of sugar, mix the yolks and whites together carefully, bake in six layer cake tins and when cool spread with any kind of jelly. Lemon filling is very good when made thus: three eggs with one cup of sugar, one cup of butter, the juice and rind of three lemons, and boil until thick.

Cream a scant cup of butter with two and a half cups of sugar, add a teaspoon of vanilla extract, a cup of milk, three cups of flour sifted with three teaspoons of baking powder, then fold in carefully eight whites beaten stiff. Bake in four layers. When cool spread with ordinary frosting or icing.

Cream a cup of butter with two and a half cups of sugar, add a teaspoon of lemon extract, a cup of milk, one beaten egg, seven beaten yolks and three cups of flour sifted with three teaspoons of baking powder. Spread with yellow frosting, as described under “Frostings”.

Bake four layers according to recipe No. 823 (Silver Layer Cake) omitting the flavoring. Prepare the gold colored dough thus: cream half a cup of butter with a cup of sugar, add a teaspoon of cinnamon extract, seven yolks and one whole egg, half a cup of milk, a cup and a half of flour sifted with a teaspoon and a half of baking powder. Beat smooth, pour into layer cake tins half the usual quantity, cover with choped or sliced figs, dust with a bit of flour, add the rest of the batter and bake. This will make two layers, and you will thus have four white layers and two gold colored. Make two cakes, putting one gold colored layer between two white. Spread with cinnamon frosting. You may use preserved strawberries, raspberries or pineapple instead of the figs.

Cream one and a half cups of butter with one and a half cups of sugar, add five beaten yolks, one cup of black coffee, stir well, then add enough flour to make the batter thicker than for pancakes. Now add half a teaspoon of cinnamon, half a teaspoon of cloves, half a teaspoon of allspice and two teaspoons of baking powder. Beat smooth, fold in five whites beaten stiff. Bake in a medium oven, in layer cake tins. When done and cool spread with the following: boil a fourth of a cup of water with one and a half cups of sugar to a thick syrup. In the meantime beat two whites and when the syrup spins a thread, pour it into the beaten whites, beating constantly. Add a few drops of vanilla and beat until cool.