American Cake - Cake #16: 1917 Applesauce Cake

Time Period: 1917 - 1945

It came as absolutely no surprise to learn that this cake was extremely popular around the time of WWI, and that it's popularity expanded in times of economic turmoil. Need to conserve ingredients? This is the cake for you! Applesauce was used to substitute for fat and/or eggs, and a handful of spices and raisins took care of the flavor element, eliminating the need for frosting. Saving on food was a point of pride for Americans eager to support the war effort, and this cake was able to satisfy the national sweet tooth without being overly fussy.

That simplicity definitely carried over into modern preparation. A lot of the cakes so far have taken significant effort. Most of them have been a joy to make, but I can't deny that they tend to require a big chunk of a weekend afternoon to prepare, and often involve dirtying a huge pile of dishes.

I knocked out the 1917 Applesauce cake in less than an hour and a half on a Friday afternoon, and that includes clean-up. There are no eggs, and barely any butter in this recipe; the applesauce substitutes for all of the liquid components.

Can such a plain cake truly satisfy? Yup! The spices give a nice hit of flavor, while the applesauce and raisins provide moisture. The cake did benefit from some whipped cream on top, in my opinion, but that's purely optional. 

This recipe might not impress at a royal gala, but if you ever need to whip out a quick dessert during a busy week, this humble cake will be a welcome ally in your baking arsenal.

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American Cake - Cake #15: Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Time Period: 1917-1945

Hey, it's my first cake from this time period! I've made pineapple upside-down cake before, but never with this recipe, so it was still an adventure. It's from a time that baking powder was the new, novel ingredient that everyone was getting into. As with any cake that's been popular since the 1920s, it's gone through any amount of variation, from the fruit used (apple or pear at various points), to other flavors introduced into the cake batter (lemon or almond). Several recipes include cherries, mostly just for visual purposes, but I detest those, and left them out.

Naturally, I was a little curious about how this cake fared during the Great Depression, since I imagine that getting canned pineapple in from Hawaii was beyond the buying power of a lot of people. Unfortunately, the book doesn't go into this, but indeed, based on a study I found ("Advertising and the Hawaiian Pineapple Canning Industry, 1929-39"), between 1931 and 1932 the production of canned pineapple fell by 60 percent. Fortunately, it was able to bounce back later and Americans were able to once again enjoy this tasty concoction.

This cake is grand fun to make, but wow, does it take just about every dish in the house to bake it. Set aside lots of prep and clean-up time, because you're going to need it. Happily, all that work is definitely worth it, because it came out looking great, and the flavor was delightful as well. I just used basic canned pineapple from the store, so I can only imagine what a punch this cake would pack if I used fresh slices of fruit.

Part of how I've been ranking these cakes is via the metric of "Will I ever make this again?" and in this case, I definitely will be. It's zingy, it's pretty, it's comforting, and it makes me think of lying on a Hawaiian beach. What's not to like?

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