Shrewsbury Cakes

Did anyone else read the American Girl Felicity books as a child?  If so, you may remember that Felicity made Shrewsbury Cakes with her family in the book Felicity's Surprise.  Well, Shrewsbury Cakes really are an eighteenth-century recipe, and I made them the other day in the kitchens.

 (Me, with my tray of Shrewsbury Cakes)

I used Hannah Glasse's recipe: "Take two pounds of flour, a pound of sugar finely searced, mix them together (take out a quarter of a pound to roll them in); take four eggs beat, four spoonfuls of cream, and two spoonfuls of rose-water; beat them well together, and mix them with the flour into a paste, roll them into thin cakes, and bake them in a quick oven."

Pretty simple, right?  Let's clarify something first: once made, these should end up more like sugar cookies than like what we think of as "cakes."  In the eighteenth century, things that we now call "cookies" were termed "cakes," since the word "cookie" had not yet entered the English language, at least not to signify a small sweet treat.  Shrewsbury Cakes are also flavored with rose-water instead of vanilla.  Why not vanilla?  Well, vanilla isn't really used in the eighteenth-century; rose-water and orange-blossom water are much more common flavorings.  Try them!  They are quite nice.

So, to make these, take a pound and twelve ounces of flour (because we set a quarter aside to use when we roll out the cakes/cookies), a pound of granulated sugar, three or four eggs, enough cream to make it into a paste about the consistency of a cookie dough, and a little rose-water for flavoring.  Once you've rolled out your dough until about a quarter of an inch thick, take cookie cutters in whatever shape you choose and cut out your Shrewsbury Cakes.  Put them on parchment paper on a baking sheet, and bake them in an oven at around 350 degrees F, for maybe 10-15 minutes.  They should not get golden brown!  Carefully tap them to check if they are hard-- then they are done.  You can also look at the bottoms, which may get slightly brown when done. 

Then, arrange them prettily on a plate and enjoy!