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Icing
Mrs. H. P. Stowell.
One pound pulverized sugar, pour over one tablespoon cold water, beat whites of three eggs a little, not to a stiff froth; add to the sugar and water; put in a deep bowl; place in a vessel of boiling water and heat. It will become thin and clear, afterward begin to thicken. When it becomes quite thick remove from the fire and stir while it becomes cool till thiek enough to spread with a knife. This will frost several ordinary sized cakes.
This is what a modern baker would call a Swiss meringue icing: whites and sugar warmed together over water, then beaten as they cool. The proportions are sound, but almost everything hinges on heat control.
- The hinge: stir constantly, and stop earlyThe hinge: stir and stop before it is stiff -- Egg white sets at a low temperature, so an unstirred bowl can leave grainy white flecks that never smooth out. Stir while it is over the water, and bear in mind that the recipe's "quite thick" will firm up considerably as it cools, so err on the early side.
- Pulverized sugarIn 1870s usage this means sugar ground fine, closer to today's superfine (caster) sugar than to the cornstarch-cut confectioners' sugar in a modern box. Either works here; confectioners' sugar gives a slightly softer, more opaque set.
- One pound of sugarAbout 2 1/4 cups superfine, or roughly 3 1/2 to 4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar. With three whites this is a very stiff ratio by modern standards, which is why the single tablespoon of water matters — do not omit it.
- Egg sizeNineteenth-century eggs ran smaller than today's large. Three modern large whites are about 3 fluid ounces; if the mixture seems too dry to come together over the heat, that is the reason, and a further teaspoon or two of water is legitimate.
- "A deep bowl in a vessel of boiling water"A bain-marie, improvised. The recipe sets the bowl down in the hot water rather than above it; if you prefer, a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water works as well. Keep the water at a simmer rather than a hard boil.
- "Beat the whites a little, not to a stiff froth"Meant literally. Air beaten in at this stage will collapse and cook out over the heat; the whites only need to be broken up and loosened so they blend with the sugar.
- Food safetyHeld over simmering water and stirred, the mixture is likely to reach the 160F at which egg is pasteurized, but the recipe gives no temperature or timing, so this is not assured. Use a thermometer if you want certainty, and do not shorten the heating step to save time.
- Spreading and settingThe recipe has you stir until cool and thick enough to spread with a knife; work with it while it is still soft enough to move, as it stiffens as it stands and will tear a cake surface once it begins to crust. It dries to a firm surface on standing.
- Yield"Several ordinary sized cakes" presumably means the smaller single cakes of the period. In modern terms this quantity should be ample to fill and cover two 8- or 9-inch layers.
The Home Cook Book (Chicago, first published 1874) is often cited as one of the earliest American charity compilations, assembled from recipes contributed by named local women and sold in aid of the Chicago Home for the Friendless — which is why this page carries Mrs. H. P. Stowell's name rather than an author's. Her method is a household version of what is now called Swiss meringue: sugar and whites warmed together before beating, as distinct from the Italian style in which boiling syrup is poured into whipped whites. Warming the bowl was a practical way to dissolve a large quantity of sugar into a small quantity of egg without graininess or a syrup thermometer. Icings of this sort were a common finish for the plain cakes of the period, valued for the smooth, white surface they dried to.