Coffee Cake (1887)

The snow is coming down heavily again, and it feels good to have a fire going in the woodstove. A nice slice of cake, a hot cup of Earl Grey, and a new library book are calling to me, and I’m feeling grateful to be hunkered in for a peaceful winter’s night. 

The cake in question is a coffee cake, baked from the 1887 White House Cook Book. 

I’ve made this a couple of times now, under the guise of “oven temperature research”, and it really is tasty. Not, perhaps, quite as memorable as the Composition Cake we made last week. But still a pleasant little loaf that’s not too sweet, just spicy enough, and begs to be served with hot coffee or tea.

Here’s a photo of the recipe as it appears in the cookbook:

A Few Cooking Notes: 

I really did have to make this one a couple of times to nail the oven temperature and pan type. An hour is rather a long baking time, and the White House Cook Book cake recipes tend to require baking in a pretty moderate oven–so finding the right combination of temperature and pan depth was a fun little challenge.

OVEN TEMPERATURE: 

I found that 330° F seemed to be the right temperature for this cake. No matter the pan I used, 350° made the hour-long recommended baking time excessive. You’ll know the cake is done when the center is well set, and a toothpick (or broom straw if you’d like to be authentic) comes out clean. 

WHAT PAN TO USE: 

This recipe seems meant to be a deep cake, and what worked best for me was making this in a loaf pan, which wasn’t uncommon for 1800’s cakes. It’s still lovely when made in shallower pans, but keep in mind that you’ll need to reduce the baking time. Whatever pan you use, grease it well.

FLOUR. 

If you’re not sifting your flour (and of course we really don’t need to these days), I do suggest fluffing it before measuring, and using a very light hand when measuring it out. You don’t don’t want a bit more than the recipe calls for. 

FROSTING. 

The recipe doesn’t specify that it should be frosted, but frosting cakes of this type was pretty common in this era. Most of the cake recipes in The White House Cook Book don’t contain notes about frosting, yet there are abundant frosting recipes offered. So I felt I wasn’t going out on too much of a limb to frost this. I used just the most basic frosting recipe at the beginning of the frosting section:

CONSISTENCY.

This is a thick, thick batter. It is not your usual cake batter consistency, 1800’s or otherwise. And once you’ve followed the instructions, it’s tempting to suspect you’ve done something wrong. 

“Surely a cake batter this thick won’t turn out”, you’ll likely be thinking. (Seriously, it’s like spreading gingerbread cookie dough in a pan and hoping for cake.) 

But don’t be dismayed. It does rise, and comes out just fine.(Do leave that oven shut, until toward the end when you’re checking for done-ness though!). 

And while it’s a definitely a cake with a dryer texture, I appreciate that the level of sweetness isn’t overwhelming, and that the flavors of the spices and raisins are able to really shine through. I’d love to hear what you think, if you make this!

The snow is coming down thick and fast out there now. If the power holds, tomorrow’s recipe will be for Washington Omelet, from 1881. 

If we do lose power (it is rural Maine after all), I’ll be polishing up my top-of-the-woodstove coffee making skills, and will see you on the other side. ‘Til then, Anna

📖 Recipe