Make a
sponge as for bread,
using a pint of warm water or milk, and a large half cup of yeast; when
the sponge is very light, add half a cup of butter, a half cup of
sugar,
a teaspoon of salt and one small teaspoon of soda dissolved in a little
water, one tablespoon of cinnamon, a little grated nutmeg; stir in now
two well-beaten eggs, add sifted flour until it is the consistency of
biscuit
dough, knead it well, cover and let rise;
Roll the
dough out into
a sheet half an inch thick, cut out with a very small biscuit-cutter,
or
in strips half an inch wide and three inches long, place them on
greased
tins, cover them well and let them rise before frying them.
Drop them
in
very hot lard. Raised cakes require longer time than cakes made with
baking
powder. Sift powdered sugar over them as fast as they are fried, while
warm.
NOTE: Our grandmothers
put allspice into these cakes; that, however, is a matter of taste.
