Charlotte Russe. (Plain.)

One pint of cream. One tea-spoonful of vanilla. One-half cupful of sugar. Sponge cake.

Mix the cream, vanilla and sugar together, and set them on the ice for an hour, to chill thoroughly. Then whip to a stiff froth, skim the froth off into a sieve to drain, and whip the liquid that drains from it. All the cream will not whip light. Set the froth on the ice, or in a very cold place. At serving time line a glass dish with lady-fingers or sponge cake, and turn in the whipped cream. Loaf sponge cake is very satisfactory for this dish. Cut the slices not too thin, and lay them side by side on a platter or a flat dish. With a table-spoon distribute the thin cream that would not whip among the slices, to moisten them ; then heap the whipped cream upon the cake, and serve.

Charlotte Russe With Eggs

One pint of cream.

One tea-spoonful of vanilla.

Sponge cake.

One-half cupful of sugar.

Two eggs (whites).

Charlotte russe made in this way will be firm and will harden sufficiently after being on the ice. Place the sugar and vanilla with the cream, and whip as previously directed, having the cream very cold. Beat the whites of the eggs stiff, and add them to the whipped cream. The sponge cake should be baked in a large sheet on a dripping-pan Cut an oval piece from the cake to fit the bottom of the charlotte pan, or whatever the charlotte russe is to be served in, and cut even-sized parallelograms to fit the sides. Fill the dish with the cream as soon as whipped, and set it on the ice. Should there be only sufficient cake to cover the sides, put a paper cut the proper shape in the bottom of the mould, and heap in the cream the same as if the bottom were cake.

Charlotte Russe With Gelatine

One-quarter box of gelatine. One pint of cream. One tea-spoonful of vanilla. One table-spoonful of wine. One-quarter cupful of cold water. One-quarter cupful of boiling water. One-half cupful of powdered sugar.

Soak the gelatine in the cold water until it is softened. Whip the cream, placing the froth as it is made in a pan set in ice-water; and when all is whipped, sift over it the sugar, and add the vanilla and wine. Pour the boiling water upon the gelatine, and when it is dissolved, strain it over the whipped cream. Then stir (not beat) rapidly, resting the bowl of the spoon upon the bottom of the pan, and turning the pan with the left hand while stirring with the right. Stir until the gelatine is well mixed with the cream, and when the charlotte is nearly stiff enough to drop, turn it into the mould, which should be in readiness nicely lined with sponge-cake as directed in the preceding recipe.

Charlotte Russe Without Cream

This charlotte is, of course, not to be compared with that made with cream, but it makes an excellent substitute when cream cannot be obtained. For a three-pint mould allow

One-third of a package of gelatine.

One quart of milk.

Four eggs.

One cupful of sugar.

Two tea-spoonfuls of vanilla.

Soak the gelatine for two hours in a cupful of the cold milk. Beat the sugar and the yolks of the eggs together, and add one-half a cupful of the milk. Set the rest of the milk on the fire in a double boiler, and when it is scalding, pour in the egg mixture and cook for five minutes; then add the gelatine, and stir until it is dissolved, after which remove from the fire, and cool. Place the preparation in a bowl of ice-water to chill thoroughly, and when it is very cold, add the whites of the eggs, unbeaten ; beat until the whole is thick and frothy, turn it into a cake-lined mould, and set away to harden.