The grated yellow rind and juice of an orange add much to the flavor of ginger cake.

New Orleans molasses is the best to use. Bear in mind that good cake cannot be made with poor molasses. Syrup should not be used.

The oven should be kept at a moderately steady heat, as molasses causes a cake to brown quickly.

Yolks of eggs, where the whites have been used for other purposes, can be utilized in gingerbread; 2 yolks will equal 1 whole egg. Even where the rule does not call for eggs the addition of 1, 2 or more yolks is always an improvement. The yolks will keep several days in a cool place.

FRuit, raisins, etc., is an addition to gingerbread and cookies.

Ginger, if not liked, may be modified by the addition of other spices, or entirely omitted, and its place supplied by various spices, cinnamon, allspice, 2 or 8 teaspoonfuls of finely ground coffee, etc.

Ginger Pound Cake

8 pounds flour. 1 pound butter. 1 pint molasses. 1 pound sugar. ½ teaspoonful salt.

1 dozen eggs.

½ cupful ground ginger.

1 teaspoonful of soda.

2 teaspoonfuls cream-tartar.

Cream the butter, beat the eggs separately. To the yolks of eggs add sugar, then butter and molasses alternately; add the flour sifted with cream-tartar, and the beaten whites of the eggs. Finally pour over the soda a cupful of boiling water to dissolve, and turn it in. Beat once more and bake in a moderate oven. This will keep a long time. The ginger may be modified by the addition of other spices (see rules above), and fruit, raisins, etc., may be added.

Apple Gingerbread

1 pint molasses. 2/3 cupful shortening.

1 pint rich buttermilk.

2 eggs.

1 quart raw sweet apples, pared and cut in long thin slips.

2 teaspoonruls soda. Flour to make a smooth stiff batter.

1 teaspoonful of ginger and same of cassia. ½ teaspoonful salt.

This will make three loaves of good cake. The sweet apple resembling slices of citron and adding much to the taste of the cake.

Sponge Gingerbread

1 cupful sugar.

1 cupful of molasses.

1 cupful butter, or butter and lard.

1 cupful of sour milk.

4 eggs, whites and yolks beaten separately.

1 cupful of raisins, if wished.

4 cupfuls of flour.

1 tablespoonful ginger.

1 teaspoonful of soda, dissolved in the milk. ½ teaspoonful salt. In place of sour milk and soda, sweet milk and baking-powder or cream-tartar and soda may be used.

Honey Gingerbread

1½ cupfuls of honey. ½ cupful of warm water. 2½ cupfuls of flour.

1 heaping tablespoonful butter. 1 tablespoonful of ginger. Pinch of salt.

Layer Ginger Cake

1 cupful of molasses.

2 egg yolks.

Flour to make a stiff batter. 1 teaspoonful of ginger.

1 cupful of boiling water with ¾ teaspoonful of soda dissolved in it.

1 teaspoonful of cinnamon.

½ teaspoonful each of cloves and allspice. Butter size of an egg. Bake in layers, put together with frosting made of the whites of the 2 eggs, frost on top. Do this when the cake is quite cold. Yellow or gilt-edged frosting may be used instead, if so, put the whites of the eggs in the cake and use the yolks for the frosting.