Ice Cream Cake

A plain white layer cake built on the standard butter-cake formula, with the interest carried entirely by the frosting. The recipe assumes you already know the mixing method the book gives elsewhere.

• The butter-cake methodThe book's own mixing instructions are not reproduced here. The usual method is to cream the butter and sugar until pale, add the sifted flour and baking powder alternately with the milk, and fold in the beaten egg whites last; folding rather than stirring at that stage helps keep the crumb light.
• Ice cream frosting is not ice creamIn cookbooks of this period the name usually refers to a boiled sugar-syrup icing poured over beaten egg whites, a cooked meringue frosting, smooth and cold-looking on the cake. Check the book's own frosting recipe, as versions under this name vary.
• OvenThe recipe gives no oven direction; about 350F suits a butter layer cake of this kind.
• Pans and timeThree 8-inch or two 9-inch round pans, greased and floured or lined. Three thin layers bake in about 22-25 minutes, two thicker ones in about 30. The cake is done when it springs back and pulls slightly from the sides.
• VanillaNo quantity is given, as was usual. One teaspoon suits this batter; a second teaspoon in the frosting is not out of place.
• Baking powderFour teaspoons to three cups of flour is more than a modern cake needs; the single-acting powders of the period may account for the quantity. Three teaspoons of modern double-acting powder is ample and lessens the risk of a coarse crumb or a faint chemical aftertaste.
• Butter and milkHalf a cup of butter is one stick, 4 oz. If using unsalted butter, a scant half teaspoon of salt is worth adding; the original may omit salt because butter of the period was commonly sold salted.
• YieldA three-layer cake serving 10 to 12. The four leftover yolks keep a day or two covered and are best used for custard or a boiled dressing.