MOLASSES FRUIT CAKE.

One teacupful of butter, one teacupful of brown sugar, worked well together; next, two teacupfuls of cooking molasses, one cupful of milk with a teaspoonful of soda dissolved in it, one tablespoonful of ginger, one tablespoonful of cinnamon and one teaspoonful of cloves, a little grated nutmeg.  Now add four eggs well beaten and five cups of sifted flour, or enough to make a stiff batter.  Flour a cup of raisins and one of currants; add last.  Bake in a very moderate oven one hour.  If well covered will keep six months.

SPONGE CAKE.

SEPARATE the whites and yolks of six eggs.  Beat the yolks to a cream, to which add two teacupfuls of powdered sugar, beating again from five to ten minutes, then add two tablespoonfuls of milk or water, a pinch of salt and flavoring.  Now add part of the beaten whites; then two cups of flour in which you have sifted two teaspoonfuls of baking powder; mix gradually into the above ingredients, stirring slowly and lightly, only enough to mix them well; lastly add the remainder of the whites of the eggs.  Line the tins with buttered paper and fill two-thirds full.

WHITE SPONGE CAKE.

Whites of five eggs, one cup of flour, one cup sugar, one teaspoonful baking powder; flavor with vanilla.  Bake in a quick oven.

ALMOND SPONGE CAKE.

The addition of almonds makes this cake very superior to the usual sponge cake.  Sift one pint of fine flour; blanch in scalding water two ounces of sweet and two ounces of bitter almonds, renewing the hot water when expedient; when the skins are all off wash the almonds in cold water (mixing the sweet and bitter) and wipe them dry; pound them to a fine, smooth paste (one at a time), adding, as you proceed, water or white of egg to prevent their boiling.  Set them in a cool place; beat ten eggs, the whites and yolks separately, till very smooth and thick, and then beat into them gradually two cups powdered sugar in turn with the pounded almonds; lastly, add the flour, stirring it round slowly and lightly on the surface of the mixture, as in common sponge cake; have ready buttered a deep square pan; put the mixture carefully into it, set into the oven and bake till thoroughly done and risen very high; when cool, cover it with plain white icing flavored with rose-water, or with almond icing.  With sweet almonds always use a small portion of bitter; without them, sweet almonds have little or no taste, though they add to the richness of the cake.

Use two heaping teaspoonfuls of baking powder in the flour.

OLD-FASHIONED SPONGE CAKE.

Two cups of sifted white sugar, two cups of flour measured before sifting, ten eggs.  Stir the yolks and sugar together until perfectly light; add a pinch of salt; beat the whites of the eggs to a very stiff froth and add them with the flour, after beating together lightly; flavor with lemon.  Bake in a moderate oven about forty-five minutes.  Baking powder is an improvement to this cake, using two large teaspoonfuls.