For anyone just learning to make homemade cakes and cookies, the perfect tutorial comes in The Family Circle Cake & Cooky Cookbook, published in 1953.
Authors include information about the equipment required, how to bake at high altitudes, the purpose of flour, how to use the oven, right through to offering seven ways to cut a cake — complete with diagrams.
This week’s recipes come from the Family Circle Book.
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Family Cake
1 3/4 cups sifted cake flour
2 1/2 tsps. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg, unbeaten
1 tsp. vanilla
2/3 cup milk
Grease bottoms of two 8-inch layer cake pans or one 8x8x2 inch pan. Line with waxed paper and then grease paper.
Measure cake flour, baking powder and salt into a sifter.
Cream shortening until soft. Add sugar gradually, creaming until well-blended. Beat in egg and stir in vanilla.
Sift and add dry ingredients, alternating with milk, beating after each addition until batter is smooth.
Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes or until centres spring back when lightly pressed with fingertip.
Cool in pans on wire racks for five minutes. Loosen around edges with a knife and turn out onto cake racks. Remove waxed paper and cool completely.
Frost with a favourite frosting.
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Banana Cream Spice Cake
2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
3 tsps. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
3 eggs, unbeaten
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
Grease bottoms of two 9 inch layer cake pans. Line with waxed paper and grease again. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Measure flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and baking soda into a sifter. Sift twice onto waxed paper then return to sifter.
Cream shortening until soft. Add sugar gradually, creaming after each addition. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla.
Sift and add dry ingredients, alternating with mashed bananas. Blend until smooth. Pour batter into pans and bake 30 minutes or until centre springs back when lightly pressed.
Cool in pans on racks for 5 minutes, remove from pans, remove waxed paper and cool completely on cake racks. Frost with favourite frosting.
• • •
Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
1-3 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
2 tbsps. undiluted evaporated milk
2 cups icing sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate pieces, melted
Blend cream cheese and milk until smooth. Add sugar, gradually, creaming well after each addition. Stir in salt and melted chocolate. Blend until frosting is smooth. Makes frosting for tops and sides of an 8 inch layer cake or 12 cupcakes.
Joyce Walter can be reached at [email protected]
