War Cake Recipes

WAR CAKE

Steps:

• Put the first 7 ingredients in a heavy gauge saucepan and bring to a boil.
• Cook gently for 5 minutes and remove from heat and let cool until mixture is comfortably cool to your finger.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Grease and flour 2 loaf pans.
• Sift together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
• Add them to the cooled sugar mixture, beat well.
• Stir in walnuts.
• Bake for 45 minutes or toothpick comes out of center clean.
• Cool in pans 10 minutes and then turn out on plate and cool completely.

WW2 WAR CAKE

Steps:

• Place the brown sugar, water, raisins.
• oil, cinnamon, and cloves in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil.
• Cook gently for 5 minutes, then remove from the heat and let cool until the mixture is comfortably warm to your finger.
• While the mixture is cooling, preheat t he oven to 350F.
• Grease and flour an 8x4-inch baking pan.
• Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
• Add them to the cooled sugar mixture, beating until no drifts of flour are visible and the batter is smooth.
• Stir in the walnuts.
• Spread evenly in the baking pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a broomstraw inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
• Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn onto a rack to cool completely.
• Notes: For a good glaze, even if it is a 90's addition, save back a bit of the hot spiced water.
• Mix with confectioner's sugar, a drop of vanilla, and a pinch salt. Glaze the cake while hot.

MARITIME WAR CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a round tube pan or two loaf pans.
• Bring water, raisins, molasses, sugar, and shortening to a boil in a saucepan; reduce heat to low and simmer until raisins are plump, about 5 minutes. Allow to cool.
• Whisk flour, baking soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl. Stir flour mixture into raisin mixture until well combined; pour into prepared baking pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.

CANADIAN WAR CAKE (WW I) RECIPE - (4.3/5)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 10 ¼ X 3 ⅝-inch loaf pan. Combine raisins, butter, brown sugar, spices and water in a heavy saucepan. Place on high heat and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 6 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer raisin mixture into a large bowl. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile combine flour, salt and baking soda and mix gently. When the raisin mixture cools, add the dry ingredients, orange juice and vanilla. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes. Allow cake to cool in pan for 10 minutes then remove from pan to cool completely on wire rack. Let cake sit at least one day before slicing. Frosting: Bring all ingredients to boil until forms a soft ball and remove from heat. Beat with mixer until it is thick enough to spread.

BOILED CAKE (AKA DEPRESSION CAKE, WAR CAKE, POOR MAN'S CAKE)

Steps:

• In a saucepan combine shortening, water, raisins, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves and sugar. Bring to boil, reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand until COMPLETELY cool.
• Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Grease and flour a 9 x 13-inch baking pan, a Bundt pan, or 9 x 5-inch 2 loaf pans. Set aside.
• Stir the flour and baking soda into the cooled raisin mixture and mix until just combined and flour is mostly incorporated.
• Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 30 minutes for a 9 x 13-inch pan or until the top of the cake is just firm to the touch. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
• Traditionally served un-frosted.

WORLD WAR I CAKE 1914-1918

Steps:

• In a medium size saucepan, mix the sugar, water, cinnamon, cloves, salt, shortening and raisins. Boil over medium heat 5 minutes. Set the saucepan away from the stove and let the mixture cool off for 50 minutes or so. Place the saucepan in the the large mixing bowl filled with ice to cool the mixture off quickly.
• Heat the oven up to 350F. Grease a baking dish (tube pan or sheet pan). Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda to the liquid mixture. Stir well. Pour the batter into the baking dish and bake for 1 hour in a tube pan or 30 minutes in a sheet pan. Do not open the oven for the first 20 minutes of baking. Check on the cake doneness with a knife or a toothpick (if it comes out clean, the cake is ready). Let the baked cake sit in the pan for at least 15 minutes before slicing. Sprinkle the cake top with the powdered sugar mixed with the ground cinnamon, if desired.

WAR CAKE

Steps:

• Combine raisins, brown sugar, water, lard, salt, cinnamon, and cloves in a 2-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cool to room temperature.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 10-inch tube pan. Stir together flour and baking soda. Fold dry ingredients into cooled raisin mixture. Spoon into greased pan and bake 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Cool 5 minutes in pan, then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.

WAR CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan.
• In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine brown sugar and water. Add raisins, nuts, candied citron, shortening, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon; bring to a boil and boil 3 minutes. Remove from heat and cool.
• Sift in flour and baking powder; stir until well blended. Pour into prepared pan.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Leave in pan and cut into squares. .