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YORKSHIRE SPICE CAKE (sometimes called Yule Cake)

These cakes are made in large quantities in Yorkshire families at Christmas time. They are freely offered to strangers and presented to friends, and are frequently eaten with cheese instead of bread. Put eight pounds of flour into a bowl, and mix a table-spoonful of salt with it; then rub into it a pound and a half of butter, and two pounds of lard. Scoop a hole in the centre of the paste without touching the bottom, and pour in half a pint of fresh sweet brewer's yeast mixed with water. Stir flour into the yeast till it is like batter, sprinkle flour over the top, and set the bowl in a warm place. When the yeast rises in bubbles through the flour, knead the dough thoroughly as for common bread, and let it rise till it is light. When risen, work in with it six pounds of currants, picked and dried thoroughly, three pounds of raw sugar, some grated nutmeg, and eight well-beaten eggs. Divide it into loaves of various sizes, put these into tins which they will half fill, lined with buttered paper, and bake the cakes in a well-heated oven. The yeast must on no account be bitter. Time to bake the cakes, according to size. Probable cost, 10d. per pound.