In the 18th century, entertaining was done with desserts that could feed a crowd — a huge crowd. An election cake might serve up to 150 people, says Michael Krondl, a New York City food historian and author of "Sweet Invention: A History of Dessert."
An example of such largesse can be found in the "Booke of Cookery" owned by Martha Washington, wife of President George Washington. Her "Great Cake" was a truly grand edifice, calling for 40 eggs, 5 pounds of flour, 4 pounds each of butter and sugar and some 5 pounds of unspecified fruits. Her recipe is very much of its time, not just in terms of scale but in the lack of detail considered essential today. No modern recipe would call for 5 pounds of fruit without offering suggestions on what to use. Nor could a recipe writer today get away with the words, "2 hours will bake it," without offering a specific oven temperature or ways to test for doneness.
"You almost never see measurements in 18th century recipes,'' says Frank Clark, supervisor of historic foodways at Colonial Williamsburg, the living history museum in Williamsburg, Va.
Clark notes that cookbooks were written for people who knew how to cook. Two centuries ago, cooks baked a dish until it was done — and that depended on how hot the hearth or oven was. Visitors to Colonial Williamsburg have difficulty with that, he says.
"Modern people are obsessed with time," Clark says. "It tells you a lot about society. Our society is more dependent on numbers."
Martha Custis Washington's Excellent Cake
Prep: 45 minutes, plus time to make the frosting and tea simple syrup
Rise: 2 hours
Cook: 40 to 60 minutes
Makes: One 10-inch, 4-layer cake, 10 to 12 servings
Walter Staib, chef of City Tavern in Philadelphia, offers his adaption of a cake from Martha Washington's family "Booke of Cookery" in his new book, "A Sweet Taste of History" (Lyons Press, $29.95). Staib adds an orange buttercream icing and a rum-infused syrup to moisten the cake. The Washington recipe, originally titled To Make an Excellent Cake, differs from modern cake recipes in that ale and yeast are called for and the dough rises like a bread before baking, Staib notes. The recipe is quite involved; but you can make the syrup and frosting during rise time. For a simpler dessert, we found that the cake was moist and delicious by itself, without frosting or syrup.
For the cake:
1 cup ale
1 ounce active yeast
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sherry
8 cups flour
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon each: ground cloves, ground mace
1 cup granulated sugar
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, cold
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon each: rose water, lemon juice
1 1/2 pounds currants
2 ounces candied orange peel, chopped
Tea simple syrup, see recipe
Orange buttercream icing, see recipe
Candied orange peel or dehydrated orange slices
1Warm 1/2 cup ale and dissolve the yeast in it. Let sit about 5 minutes or until the yeast begins to froth in the ale.
2Mix cream, sherry and remaining 1/2 cup ale in a large bowl
3In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, spices and sugar at a low speed. Then cut in the butter until pea-size bits remain and the mixture resembles wet sand. Slowly add the barm, the cream-sherry-ale mixture, eggs, egg yolk, rose water and lemon juice while the mixer is running. Beat until combined on low speed. Stir in the currants and orange peel with a wooden spoon.
4Cover the bowl with plastic wrap; allow the dough to rise for 1 hour, or until doubled in volume, in a warm place. Spray two 10-inch cake pans with nonstick spray; line bottoms with parchment paper. Divide the dough in half; press each half into cake pans. Cover with plastic wrap; allow the dough to rise in a warm place until the pans are three-quarters full, about 1 hour.
5Gently remove the plastic wrap; bake the cakes in a 340-degree oven until a toothpick comes out clean, 45-60 minutes. Let cool.
6Using a serrated knife, slice the rounded top off of each cake, making it level and flat. Slice each cake in half horizontally, making two layers from each pan, being careful to keep the layers as even as possible. You will end up with four even round layers.
7Brush each layer with the tea simple syrup.
8Place one layer on a cake stand or plate. Top with orange buttercream, spreading the icing to the edge. Repeat with the other layers, building a four-layer cake. Finish the cake by icing the top and sides with the orange butter cream. Garnish with candied orange peel or dehydrated orange slices.
Nutrition information per serving: calories, g fat, g saturated fat, mg cholesterol, g carbohydrates, g protein, mg sodium, g fiber
Tea simple syrup
Heat 3/4 cup granulated sugar and 1 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat. Add 1 black tea bag; steep until the syrup turns brown, about 5 minutes. Remove the tea bag; stir in 1 ounce spiced rum and 1 teaspoon rose water. Let stand at room temperature until ready to use; can be made and kept refrigerated up to 3 days in advance.
Place 2 1/2 pounds confectioners' sugar and 2 cups egg whites in the heat proof bowl of an electric mixer. Set the bowl over a pan of gently simmering water; whisk until the sugar has dissolved and the egg whites are hot to the touch, about 3 minutes. The mixture should be completely smooth. Transfer the bowl to the mixer stand. Using the whisk attachment, beat on high speed until the mixture has cooled completely and formed stiff and glossy peaks, about 10 minutes. Cut 2 pounds (8 sticks) butter into 1/2-inch pieces and add it, one piece at a time, beating until incorporated after each addition. Add the zest of 2 oranges; slowly whisk to combine.
Home cooks hungry to sample historic desserts and other recipes have an increasing number of resources to turn to, in cookbooks and online.
•The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation offers "18th-century recipes for the 21st-century kitchen" at its website, recipes.history.org.
•Massachusett's Old Sturbridge Village (osv.org) also has historic recipes with modern adaptions.
•The American Antiquarian Society and Andrews McMeel Publishing are currently issuing an array of vintage cookbooks, either in hardcover or as ebooks. Recently published works include •Eliza Leslie's "Seventy-Five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes & Sweetmeats" and "The Virginia House-Wife" by Mary Randolph.
•George Washington's Mount Vernon published a coffee table-size book in 2011 titled "Dining with the Washingtons," with 90 historic recipes adapted for today's cooks.
•Walter Staib, chef of City Tavern in Philadelphia, and host of television's "A Taste of History" series, has just published the cookbook "A Sweet Taste of History."
— B.D.Copyright © 2015, Chicago Tribune