Sugar can be caramelized easily by placing it in a heavy skillet over slow even heat, and stirring it constantly until it melts and becomes a heavy brown sirup. As soon as it reaches this stage take it from the fire at once, and use it for flavoring and sweetening the custard.
Roll the pastry in a thin sheet and cut it in rounds. Place a whole, cored apple in center of each round of pastry.
Sprinkle sugar over the apple, dot with butter, and bring the edges of the pastry together over the apple. Bake in muffin pans, in a moderate oven (350°F.) until apple is tender, about 1 hour. Serve hot with hard sauce (page 9).
1 cup sour cream. 1 cup sugar. 1 cup seeded raisins, cut fine. 2 eggs. ½ teaspoon powdered cinnamon. ½ teaspoon powdered cloves. ⅛ teaspoon salt. 2 tablespoons vinegar.
Beat the eggs. Mix the spices with the sugar, and add to the eggs with the raisins, cream, salt, and vinegar. Beat well. Pour the mixture into a deep, pastry-lined pie pan. Moisten the outer rim of the pastry, and press the top crust over the lower one to hold in the custard. Bake in a moderate oven (350°F.) until golden brown.
1½ cups pitted dates. ½ cup milk. 1 cup chopped nuts. 1 cup sugar. 3 eggs. 1 cup flour. 2 tablespoons butter. 1 teaspoon vanilla. 1 teaspoon baking powder. ¼ teaspoon salt.
Mix the butter and sugar and add the beaten eggs and milk. Sift the dry ingredients and add them to the liquid mixture, reserving enough flour to coat the dates and nuts. Add them and the vanilla. Bake in a shallow greased pan in a very slow oven (250°F.) for 1 hour 45 minutes, until set in the center. Cut in squares and serve with whipped cream.
1½ cups cooked pumpkin. 1 cup milk. ½ cup sugar. 1 teaspoon cinnamon. ½ teaspoon salt. ½ teaspoon allspice. ¼ teaspoon mace. 2 eggs. 1 tablespoon butter.
Put all the ingredients, except the eggs and the butter, in the double boiler. Bring to the scalding point. Beat eggs well; stir a small amount of hot mixture into the eggs; stir egg mixture into the remaining hot mixture. Stir until it starts to thicken. Add the butter. Line a pie pan with pastry and bake until light brown. Pour the hot filling into a baked crust. Bake the pie in a moderately hot oven (400°F.) until the filling sets.