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Short Cakes

Ordinary short cakes are simply made of pastry, sweetened with sugar, rolled out to the thickness of three-quarters of an inch, cut into pieces of any convenient size, baked, and served hot. In economical households these are frequently made of pastry that is left after making pies and tarts. Superior short cakes may be made as follows:--No. 1.--Rub half a pound of fresh butter into a pound of flour; add a pinch of salt, four table-spoonfuls of powdered sugar, a beaten egg, and as much milk as will make a smooth paste. Roll out the pastry to the thickness of a quarter of an inch, stamp it into fancy shapes, and bake these on tins till crisp and lightly coloured. No. 2.--Put a pint of flour into a basin, and scoop a hollow place out of the centre. Dissolve a little more than half a tea-spoonful of soda in a tea-spoonful of boiling water. Stir this into half a pint of thick sour milk, and beat it well with a pinch of salt and three ounces of creamed butter. Pour this mixture into the hollow, and stir it with the flour to form a smooth paste. Roll it out on a floured board to the thickness of the third of an inch, stamp it into fancy shapes, and bake these on tins in a brisk oven. No. 3.--Rub six ounces of fresh butter into a pound of ground rice; add a pinch of salt and as much cold water as will make a smooth paste. Roll this out, stamp it into cakes, and bake in a brisk oven. No. 4.--Dissolve half a pound of fresh butter in a pint of milk. Stir in as much flour as will make a smooth, light paste. Roll this out to the thickness of a quarter of an inch, cut it into large round cakes, and bake these in a frying-pan over a clear fire. Serve hot. A pinch of salt should be mixed with the flour. Time, ten minutes to bake the small cakes.