There is not a more delicious dessert than that of Bavarian cream. These creams are exceedingly easy to make, and, as they are prepared some time before dinner, they have the advantage of being out of the way when cooking this meal. They are a cheap country dessert, where one has plenty of cream, yet are not so very expensive in the city, as it only requires a pint of common cream to make a quart and a half of Bavarian cream.

When cream is thoroughly chilled, it is much more readily whipped. A pint can be whipped in a few minutes with a little tin tube cream-whipper. If no whipper is at hand, beat the cream with a fork, and skim off the whipped cream as it rises. It is always better not to cook gelatine; it should be soaked in a little water near the fire for an hour or two, when it will be entirely dissolved, and then it should be stirred into the custard while it is still hot. In making the Bavarian creams, do not add the whipped cream to the ingredients with the gelatine until they are quite cold and are beginning to set, or they would otherwise dissolve the cream. The ingredients will set very soon if placed on ice. The pine-apple Bavarian is especially nice, and can be made with the canned pine-apple if the fresh pine-apple can not be obtained; however, there is not much choice, as they are all delicious.

The Bavarian creams all make good charlottes-russe, the peach Bavarian making an especially delicious one. Sometimes these mixtures are frozen, and put into charlotte molds; the cake is formed in molds a trifle larger. When the cream is frozen, it is inserted into the cake just before serving. When freezing the mixture, the whipped cream is not added until the custard or ingredients with the gelatine are partly frozen.

Bavarian Cream, with Vanilla (Mrs. Blair).

Whip one pint of cream to a stiff froth, laying it on a sieve. Boil another pint of cream or rich milk, with a vanilla bean, and two table-spoonfuls of sugar, until it is well flavored; then take it off the fire and add half a box of Nelson’s or Coxe’s gelatine soaked for an hour in half a cupful of water, in a warm place near the range; when slightly cooled, stir in the yolks of four eggs well beaten. When it has become quite cold, and begins to thicken, stir it without ceasing a few minutes until it is very smooth, then stir in the whipped cream lightly until it is well mixed. Put it into a mold or molds, and set it on ice, or in some cool place.

Bavarian Cream, with Chocolate,

is made as the preceding cream, adding two sticks of chocolate, soaked and smoothed, to the yolks of the eggs.

Bavarian Cream, with Strawberries.

After picking two pounds and a half of strawberries, squeeze them through a colander, and add six ounces of sugar to the juice; when the sugar is dissolved, add half a box of gelatine soaked as before described. Place it on the ice, stir it smooth when it begins to set, then stir in a pint of cream whipped; put it into a mold or molds, and serve with fresh strawberries around it.

Bavarian Cream, with Almonds.

Take three ounces of sweet and one ounce of bitter almonds, blanch and skin them, and put them into a pan on a moderate fire, stirring them continually. As soon as they have acquired a fine yellow color, take them off the fire, and when cold pound them into fine pieces. Then add a pint of cream or rich milk (nearly boiling), and two or three table-spoonfuls of sugar, and half a package of gelatine, which has been soaked as before described. Put it upon the ice, and when about to thicken stir it until it is very smooth, then stir in lightly a pint of cream whipped, and put it into a mold.

Bavarian Cream, with Peaches.

Cut eighteen fine peaches into small pieces, and boil them with half a pound of sugar. When they are reduced to a marmalade, squeeze them through a sieve or colander. Then add half a package of dissolved gelatine, and a glassful of good cream. Stir it well, to make it smooth when it is about to set, then add the pint of cream whipped, and mold it. It makes a still prettier dish to serve halves or quarters of fresh peaches half frozen, around the cream.

Bavarian Cream, with Pine-apple.

Cut a pine-apple into fine pieces; boil it with one half-pound, or a coffee-cupful of sugar; pass the marmalade through a sieve or colander; turn off part of the juice; add half a package of dissolved gelatine. Stir, and add the pint of cream whipped, as before described. Mold it.

Bavarian Cream, with Coffee.

Throw three heaping table-spoonfuls of fresh roasted and ground Mocha coffee into a pint of boiling rich milk. Make a strong infusion, strain it, and add to it the whipped yolks of four eggs well beaten, with an even cupful of sugar. Stir the custard over the fire until it begins to thicken; take it off the fire, and add to it, while still hot, half a box of gelatine which has been standing an hour on the hearth to dissolve in a little cold water. When just beginning to set, stir it well to make it smooth, then add the pint of cream whipped. Mold it.

Charlotte-russe.

The sponge-cake may be made with four eggs, one cupful of sugar, one and one-half cupfuls of flour, and two even tea-spoonfuls of yeast powder, or as described for sponge jelly-cake (see page 300).

To make an even sheet, professional cooks pass the cake batter through the mÉringue bag on a large sheet of foolscap paper in rows which touch each other, and which run together smoothly when baking; or, without the mÉringue bag, it may be spread over the sheet as evenly as possible. When baked, an oval piece is cut to fit the bottom of the charlotte pan, then even-sized parallelograms are cut to fit around the sides. Fill with cream made as follows: Whip one pint of cream flavored with vanilla to a stiff froth, and add to it the well-beaten whites of two eggs, and one half-pound of pulverized sugar; mix it all lightly and carefully together. Fill the charlotte pan, or pans, and put them into the ice-chest to set.

This is the best and simplest manner of making a charlotte-russe. Many take the trouble to add gelatine, which is unnecessary. Professor Blot made the filling of his charlotte-russe of sweetened and flavored whipped cream only. It will harden without difficulty if placed upon the ice, and it is very delicate; yet the whites of eggs are an improvement. If there is only enough cake at hand to fit the sides of the pan, put a paper in the bottom of the mold cut to fit it, and the charlotte can be served without a top.

These charlottes are very prettily decorated on top with icing squeezed through a small-sized funnel; or, you may pour a transparent icing over the whole, and make the decoration over this with the common icing. Sometimes they are made in little molds, one charlotte for each plate, and, again, a large charlotte is decorated with a circle of strawberries around it.

Cream is much more easily frothed when placed on ice and thoroughly chilled before whipping; when whipping it, place the froth on a sieve, and all that drops through can be returned to the bowl to be rewhipped. Sometimes professional cooks work the froth with an egg-whisk to make it finer grained.

Ambrosia.

Slice peeled oranges. Make alternate layers of orange slices, sugar, and grated cocoa-nut, until a glass dish is filled, having grated cocoa-nut on top; now pour a little sherry wine over the top, to run through the mixtures. It is as often served without the wine.