Thursday, January 05, 2017

Twelfth Cake in Rhyme.

After sundown on January 5th is ‘Twelfth Night’, the eve of Epiphany. There has been a long tradition of special cakes to mark the end of the Twelve Days of Christmas, and today I bring you a rhyming recipe from The Huddersfield Chronicle and West Yorkshire Advertiser (West Yorkshire, England), Saturday, December 21, 1867

TWELFTH CAKE
To two pounds of flour – well sifted – unite
Of loaf-sugar, ounces sixteen;
Two pounds of fresh butter, with eighteen fine eggs,
Add four pounds of currants washed clean;
Eight ounces of almonds, well blanched and cut small,
The same weight of citron slice;
Of orange and lemon peel, candied one ounce,
Or a little less, perhaps, may suffice;
A large nutmeg grated; about half an ounce
Of allspice, but only a quarter
Of mace, coriander, and ginger well ground
Or pounded to dust in a mortar
An important addition is cinnamon which
Is better increased than diminished –
The fourth of an ounce is sufficient. Now this
May be baked four hours until finished.

Other recipes for food for Twelfth Day can be found in previous posts:
And Twelfth Night Cider Punch is here:
http://www.theoldfoodie.com/2015/01/twelfth-night-cider-punch-1919.html