Grandma’s Russian Tea Cakes

Grandma’s Russian Tea Cakes
(Makes about 4 dozen)

1 cup softened butter (do not use margarine)
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups sifted flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup finely chopped nuts

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix together butter, sugar and vanilla. Sift flour and salt together and add to butter mixture. Mix in nuts.

2. Roll dough into 1″ balls. Place on ungreased baking sheet. (Cookies do not spread.) Bake until set, but not brown, approximately 10 minutes.

3. While still hot, roll in confectioner’s sugar. Cool completely and roll in confectioners’ sugar again. Store in airtight container with wax paper placed between layers of cookies. Cookies keep up to 4 weeks in areas of low humidity. Do not freeze.

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Grandma’s Christmas Nut Cake

Grandma’s Christmas Nut Cake
Make this delicious cake 2 weeks before your tea party.

(makes 1 large cake)

32 oz. chopped walnuts or 24 oz. chopped pecans
3 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup rum or brandy
1 1/2 cups butter
2 cups sugar
6 eggs
Sherry
Cheese Cloth

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Lightly grease bottom & sides of a 10″ angel food cake pan. Line the greased botton and sides with brown paper and grease the paper.

2. Place chopped nuts in a large bowl and set aside. Sift flour, salt and baking powder into a bowl and set aside.

3. Combine milk and rum(or brandy); set aside. Beat butter and sugar in large mixing bowl until fluffy.

4. Add eggs one at a time, beating at high speed until fluffy after each addition.

5. At low speed, alternately beat into the butter mixture, the flour and milk a quarter at a time. Begin and end with the flour.

6. Pour batter over the chopped nuts and fold the nuts into batter. Then pour into prepared pan and bake for 2 1/2 hours.

7. Let cake cool 30 minutes in pan and take out. Cool completely on a rack.

8. Soak cheese cloth in Sherry and wrap around cake. Next wrap cake in plastic wrap and finally in foil. Store in refrigerator for 2 weeks. Periodically check cheese cloth and re-soak as needed to keep it damp.

9. Serve in thin slices.

This cake is not only Grandma’s favorite, it’s very rich. Warn your guests not to eat too much at one time.

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