Pineapple Upside Down Cake

July 11, 2021July 10, 2021 Little Dorrit2 Comments

Although canned foods were commercially available in America as early as the 1820s, for many years canned foods were considered tasteless at best, and potentially hazardous at worst. Cooks who did use canned foods were often criticized as being lazy. By the 1930s, however, that reputation had completely reversed, as canning technology improved and efficiency and economy were prized. Cheaper canned goods brought expensive foods such as pineapple within the reach of ordinary Americans. The Good Housekeeping Institute promoted canned foods in quick dishes to make for company, such as in this 1933 recipe for pineapple upside down cake.

Victoria Sandwiches

March 14, 2021March 9, 2021 Little Dorrit2 Comments

Victoria sandwich, also known as Victoria sponge, was named after Queen Victoria (naturally) and is still a popular British cake to this day. This is the earliest known recipe for Victoria sandwiches, from Isabella Beeton’s 1861 cookbook The Book of Household Management.

Heart Cakes

February 14, 2021February 11, 2021 Little Dorrit1 Comment

These 18th century heart cakes are a variation on queen cakes, which were also often baked in heart-shaped tins. This recipe, from Charlotte Mason’s 1777 book The Lady’s Assistant, spruces up a basic queen cake recipe with the addition of candied orange peel and citron. You could certainly bake them in regular muffin tins, too – but as hearts, they are perfect for Valentine’s Day!

Queen Cakes

December 13, 2020December 11, 2020 Little Dorrit2 Comments

Queen cakes, popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, were little cakes usually baked in fancy molds. I was drawn to this particular recipe, from Eliza Leslie’s 1828 book Seventy-Five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats, because it seemed especially fancy. Although queen cakes could be made any time of year, Leslie suggests decorating these with red and green nonpareils, which made me think they would be perfect for Christmas.

Great-Great-Grandmother Raver’s Cake

November 29, 2020November 23, 2020 Little Dorrit2 Comments

I rediscovered this recipe from my great-great-grandmother thanks to a bit of internet serendipity.

Madeleines

October 4, 2020December 12, 2020 Little Dorrit1 Comment

Madeleines are tiny Genoese sponge cakes that get their distinctive shape from special shell-shaped baking molds. While the exact origin of the name “madeleine” is uncertain, it is known that the little cakes most likely originated in France sometime in the 18th century.

Tennis Cake

September 20, 2020September 10, 2020 Little DorritLeave a comment

After playing a game of tennis in a corset and heavy skirts, who wouldn’t want to eat cake?

Lamington Cake

September 7, 2020September 5, 2020 Little DorritLeave a comment

Lamington cakes, an Australian favorite, are named after either Lord Lamington, governor of Queensland from 1896 to 1901, or his wife, Lady Lamington. Lamingtons are beloved enough that they are celebrated by an Australian Lamington Appreciation Society and have an official holiday, National Lamington Day, on July 21st.

Black Coffee Cake

August 30, 2020August 25, 2020 Little Dorrit1 Comment

This 1930’s coffee cake combines all the things I’ve loved about the other coffee cakes I’ve tried: it’s made with coffee and it’s good to eat with coffee!

Orange Coffee Cake

August 16, 2020August 8, 2020 Little DorritLeave a comment

This coffee cake recipe comes from Sunkist Orange Recipes for Year-Round Freshness, a 1940 advertising pamphlet for Sunkist oranges. Every single recipe in the booklet contains oranges in some shape or form – and every page contains eye-popping bright orange illustrations.

History in the Making

recreating historic foods and crafts

Tag: Cake