Featured in Katherine Campion's "Cakes for Christmas" feature for the Good Housekeeping Institute, the Silver and Gold Cake is structured as a layered batter and baked meringue topping. A rich, golden egg-yolk base scented with vanilla and lemon extract is spread thinly into the pan, then directly topped before baking with a stiff almond-meringue mixture and an extra dusting of granulated sugar.
Original
Silver and Gold Cake breathes the very spirit of Christmas with its deeply yellow foundation like the Christmas sunshine, and the ethereal silvery top like the snow we always look for at this season. Beat one-half cupful of butter to a cream with one-half cupful of sugar and one teaspoonful of vanilla. Add the well-beaten yolks of four eggs and stir in three tablespoonfuls of milk; sift one cupful of pastry flour with one teaspoonful of baking-powder and one-fourth teaspoonful of salt, and beat these into the batter, adding also a few drops of lemon extract. Spread the batter very thinly in a well-greased and floured baking pan. Now whip the whites of the eggs to a stiff, dry froth, adding to them gradually three-fourths cupful of granulated sugar. Beat very hard until the mixture resembles snow and will hold its shape when the egg-beater is lifted from it, then fold in one-half cupful of almonds which have been blanched, shredded, and roasted in the oven to a delicate brown. Spread this icing over the cake batter, sprinkle with granulated sugar, and bake for thirty minutes at 350° F. Cool and cut before removing from the pan. Batter and icing should both be thinly spread, and the finished cake should be golden and fine-textured with a thick, foamy, and very delectable almond icing over the top.
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Public rights statementThis material was originally published in the United States in 1921 and is believed to be in the public domain in the United States. Source: Good Housekeeping 1921-12: Vol 73 Iss 6, 1921-12-01, page n58, via https://archive.org/details/sim_good-housekeeping_1921-12_73_6. Repastory is not affiliated with or endorsed by Good Housekeeping 1921-12: Vol 73 Iss 6 or its current owner. Rights may vary outside the United States.
Recipe
Ingredients
1/2 cupful butter
1/2 cupful sugar
1 teaspoonful vanilla
4 egg yolks, well-beaten
3 tablespoonfuls milk
1 cupful pastry flour, sifted
1 teaspoonful baking powder
1/4 teaspoonful salt
drops lemon extract
Directions
Beat butter to a cream with sugar and vanilla. Add the well-beaten egg yolks and stir in milk. Sift pastry flour with baking powder and salt, and beat into the batter along with lemon extract. Spread batter very thinly in a well-greased and floured baking pan. Prepare the almond icing and spread it over the cake batter, then sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake for thirty minutes at 350° F. Cool and cut before removing from the pan.
Almond Icing
Ingredients
4 egg whites, whipped to a stiff, dry froth
3/4 cupful granulated sugar
1/2 cupful almonds, blanched, shredded, and roasted in the oven to a delicate brown
granulated sugar, for sprinkling
Directions
Whip egg whites to a stiff, dry froth, gradually adding granulated sugar. Beat very hard until the mixture holds its shape, then fold in blanched, shredded, and roasted almonds. Spread over the unbaked cake batter and sprinkle with additional granulated sugar.
Item type
recipe
Yield
Not stated
Timing
thirty minutes
Temperature
350° F.
Equipment
baking pan; egg-beater
Names & connections
Christmas cakestopic · editorial category
Source context
publication context
Cakes for Christmas
DEPARTMENT OF COOKERY
Good Housekeeping Institute
Mildred Maddocks, Director
Cakes for Christmas
By Katherine Campion
Each recipe has been tested for you
Good Cheer is the spirit of Christmas time, and there is no better way to further this feeling than to make sure that the feast of the day is well cooked and properly served. The pages which we offer you here contain recipes and methods which are bound to aid you in securing a high culinary standard for the holiday season. Every recipe is planned to serve six unless otherwise stated, and has been tested and tried by the staff of the Department of Cookery.