The Old Folks Home

[Alaskan]

It has quite a bit but not as much as some of the new style cakes. This recipe if from the 1956 edition of betty crockers cook book.

Black Midnight Cake

This recipe appears in the 1956 Betty Crocker Cookbook. It's the chocolate birthday cake that I made for my children when they were at home. It's an excellent chocolate cake and when topped with a tasty chocolate icing, it just can't be beat.

Grease and flour 2 9-inch pans or a 13 x 9 inch oblong pan. Alternatively, use parchment paper for the 9-inch round pans.

Set the temperature in your oven to 350 degrees. (moderately hot oven.)

Cream the following ingredients together by beating for 5 minutes on high speed in a mixer or mix thoroughly by hand:

• 2/3 cup soft shortening
• 1 2/3 cups white sugar
• 3 eggs

Sift together in a separate bowl and set aside:

• 2 1/4 cups sifted flour
• 2/3 cup cocoa
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt

Mix together and set aside:

• 1 1/3 cups water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

· Add about 1/3 of the flour mixture to the creamed shortening, sugar and egg mixture. Mix well with the mixer or by hand. Then add 1/3 of the water and vanilla mixture. Mix well. Repeat using the second 1/3 of dry then the second w/3 of liquid. Do the same to the last 1/3 of dry and and then the last 1/3 of liquid until all ingredience are incorporated into the cake batter. It is important to mix well after each addition of the dry ingredients and after each addition of the liquid. This gives a very smooth cake batter. Mixing time for each addition should be about 1/2 to 1 minute.

Pour into the prepared pans. Bake until cake test done. (Approximately 30 minutes for the 9 inch round pans or 40 to 45 minutes for the oblong pan.) Cool. This will probably take 30 minutes. If you have done the round cakes and plan on doing a 2 layered cake, you can do the following. Insert a table knife, cutting knife or other straight edge between the cake and the side of the pan. Make sure it goes to the bottom of the pan. Move the knife around the entire circle (or square) of the pan. For the greased floured pans, you can then let them set upside down over a plate. The cake should fall away from the bottom of the pan onto the plate. If you have put wax paper on the bottom of the pan, turn the cake pan upside down either on your hand on on a plate, take off the paper, and then flip the cake right side up onto a cake plate. Put icing on the cake as desired. There are several tests to see if a cake is done. If a cake is done, you can take your finger and press lightly in the center of the cake and it will spring back without leaving an indentation. Take a cake out of the oven and listen to it. It sings slightly when it is baking. When it is done, it makes no sound. Cakes also pull away from the sides of the pan slightly when they are done. A toothpick put in the center of a cake will come out clean when the cake is done.

huh! just cocoa powder! And all that shortening! Interesting.

When we want chocolate, we usually do a flour less chocolate cake.

Funny... I don't cook much, but it just dawned on me, when I do cook, I tend to reach for the stuff I have made a hundred times before. I guess because I KNOW I will like it.

 

[ronott1]

huh! just cocoa powder! And all that shortening! Interesting.

When we want chocolate, we usually do a flour less chocolate cake.

Funny... I don't cook much, but it just dawned on me, when I do cook, I tend to reach for the stuff I have made a hundred times before. I guess because I KNOW I will like it.

I substituted butter for the shortening

 

[Alaskan]

I substituted butter for the shortening

I usually do too in recipes. .. but sometimes it backfires since the melting point is different.

 

[Cynthia12]

Did I show you my first egg? View attachment 1230791
Chicken hatched mid August laid the brown one, the other is store bought Grade A large, for comparison.

I got a first today too! My Plymouth Rock finally laid a real pretty cream colored one.

 

[Cynthia12]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RON.

 

[ronott1]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RON. View attachment 1230817

Thanks!

 

[pennyJo1960]

Good to see you @Cynthia12 how are you ?

 

[Cynthia12]

Doing pretty good after that shoulder surgery...thanks! Just got back from PT. I am getting that arm higher, and getting more range.

 

[Cynthia12]

Doing pretty good after that shoulder surgery...thanks! Just got back from PT. I am getting that arm higher, and getting more range.

 

[CapricornFarm]

Gotta love first eggs!

Everyone else should be following soon! Longer days now! YEAH!

Have you had any more deaths? Or has the horror settled?

No deaths recently but one looks bad, closing her eyes and not going outside. I am on the 5th day of Deneguard treatment for them. She looked bad before, laying on her side and kicking feet. But then she got up and went outside so idk. Thanks for asking!