Cécile's Grated Chocolate Cake

It might not look like it, but this cake definitely delivers on chocolate flavor!

We're wrapping up the month of March with another historic cake: Eliza Leslie's chocolate cake. Why have I called it a grated chocolate cake, and why does the cake itself look so blonde? Because this is actually the ancestor to what we know of as chocolate cake! 

We've talked a lot about chocolate in the history of this blog because I'm a bit of a dessert fiend, but I was very excited to try my hand at this recipe because it's pretty far removed from chocolate cakes I've made in the past, as well as what we think of as chocolate cakes today. It's also yet another historical cake recipe that relies on eggs to give it its rise, something I'm always fascinated about and eager to try to perfect. 

Read on to see how this one turned out!

Caroline makes Dolley Madison's Gingerbread

A soft gingerbread that's good for all seasons!

Continuing the trend of making recipes from cookbooks I've long wanted to test out is this unique gingerbread recipe from The President's Cookbook, a cookbook from the 1960's that features interpretations of recipes enjoyed by First Families past and present. As I've said before, Presidential cooking has long been something that's fascinated the American public, and food enjoyed at the White House can influence national trends and introduce new ingredients or dishes to the public. 

This recipe is a modern interpretation of a soft gingerbread Dolley Madison was famous for. The cookbook notes that Dolley herself referred to it as "Jefferson's gingerbread", and she gave the recipe to Martha Washington, who recorded it for her own use. That's the copy that made its way into this cookbook, so it's got a pretty long history and an association with quite a few of the Founding Fathers - and more importantly, their wives and slaves who would have been the ones actually planning and preparing these fancy meals. Read on to find out more about this historic recipe!

Emily's Lentil and Parsley Soup

An authentic WWII recipe that could have done with some workshopping...

One of my favorite things to pick up on my various adventures are historical cookbooks. I've acquired quite a number of them since I started this blog, to the point of where my cookbook shelf is overflowing and I can't bring myself to Konmari any of them because they're all such nice publications! 

This year, I'm doing my best to try and dust off a few of them, including the one I got today's recipe from: Victory in the Kitchen: Wartime Recipes. It was published by the Imperial War Museum, one of my very favorite museums. Visiting their impressive exhibits in the early 2000's helped get me really excited about World War II history, so I was eager to try something out. 

The results... weren't exactly what I was hoping for, but hopefully it'll be interesting for everyone to get a look at what kind of stuff you might run into when trying out another historic recipe.

Kaya's Seaweed and Mushroom Salad

An unusual salad that really brings the earthy flavors!

In 2019, I am trying my best to eat a little healthier. Trying is really the operative word there, because I still catch myself snacking on a lot of stuff I probably shouldn't, but I've been brainstorming ideas for blog posts that are a little more waistline friendly to share with everyone, and this one wound up being a very interesting experience indeed. 

This salad comes from the pages of the Cafe Mitsitam cookbook, one of the best resources for recipes inspired by the Native Peoples of North and South America. I've visited the cafe many, many times and have made a few recipes from the cookbook on the blog in the past - like these delicious pumpkin cookies - but I returned my borrowed copy of the cookbook to my aunt and uncle before I moved down to DC. I finally got my hands on another copy, and almost immediately decided to give this unusual salad a shot. Read on to learn about its connection to Kaya!

First Chefs and a Seed Cake with Jane

A temporary exhibit that really brings you a sweet taste of history!

Last post, I mentioned an exhibit at the National Archives that I had missed out on years ago. Living in DC, such worries are a thing of the past, unless of course there's a cool exhibit going on at a non DMV area museum. Take the current exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library: First Chefs! 

First Chefs spotlights books, documents and artifacts from the library's collection, as well as a few other local institutions that help bring to life how and what people in Britain and North America ate in the late 1500's through the 1700's. The exhibit shines the spotlight on several interesting figures in culinary history, as well as showing the public that more extravagant food often meant exploiting the labor of enslaved people, women, servants, and laborers. Read on to see highlights from the exhibit and a recipe inspired by one of the personalities featured in the gallery!