Take a peck of flower, and put it in half. Then take two quarts of good Ale-yest, and strain it into half the flower, and some new milk boiled, and almost cold again; make it into a very light paste, and set it before the fire to rise; Then take five pound of Butter, and melt it in a skillet, with a quarter of a pint of Rose-water; when your paste is risen, and your oven almost hot, which will be by this time, take your paste from the fire, and break it into small pieces, and take your other part of flower, and strew it round your paste; Then take the melted Butter, and put it to the past, and by degrees work the paste and flower together, till you have mingled all very well. Take six Nutmegs, some Cinnamon and Mace well beaten, and two pound of Sugar, and strew it into the Paste, as they are a working it. Take three pounds of Raisins stoned, and twelve pounds of Currants very well washed and dryed again; one pound of Dates sliced; half a pound of green Citron dryed and sliced very thin; strew all these into the paste, till it have received them all; Then let your oven be ready, and make up your Cake, and set it into the oven; but you must have a great care, it doth not take cold. Then to Ice it, take a pound and half of double refined Sugar beaten and searsed; The whites of three Eggs new-laid, and a little Orange-flower-water, with a little musk and Ambergreece, beaten and searsed, and put to your sugar; Then strew your Sugar into the Eggs, and beat it in a stone Mortar with a Woodden Pestel, till it be as white as snow, which will be by that time the Cake is baked; Then draw it to the ovens mouth, and drop it on, in what form you will; let it stand a little again in the oven to harden. TO MAKE AN EXCELLENT CAKE To a Peck of fine flower, take six pounds of fresh butter, which must be tenderly melted, ten pounds of Currants, of Cloves and Mace, half an ounce of each, an ounce of Cinnamon, half an ounce of Nutmegs, four ounces of Sugar, one pint of Sack mixed with a quart at least of thick barm of Ale (as soon as it is settled, to have the thick fall to the bottom, which will be, when it is about two days old) half a pint of Rose-water; half a quarter of an ounce of Saffron. Then make your paste, strewing the spices, finely beaten, upon the flower: Then put the melted butter (but even just melted) to it; then the barm, and other liquors: and put it into the oven well heated presently. For the better baking of it, put it in a hoop, and let it stand in the oven one hour and half. You Ice the Cake with the whites of two Eggs, a small quantity of Rose-water, and some Sugar. TO MAKE BISKET To half a peck of flower, take three spoonfuls of barm, two ounces of seeds; Aniseeds or Fennel-seeds. Make the paste very stiff, with nothing but water, and dry it (they must not have so much heat, as to make them rise, but only dry by degrees; as in an oven after Manchet is taken out, or a gentle stove) in flat Cakes very well in an oven or stove.