Ingredients
2 cup sifted flour
2 cup sugar
3/4 cup shortening
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup cocoa
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
3 eggs, unbeaten
1 tsp vanilla
Directions
Measure first 6 ingredients into a mixing bowl. Beat vigorously by
hand or with an electric mixer (at medium speed) for 2 minutes. Stir
in baking soda and rest of ingredients.
Beat vigorously by hand or mixer (medium speed) for 2 minutes. Pour
into two 9-inch layer cake pans that have been lightly greased. Bake
for 30 minutes at 350!. Cool cake in pan on rack for 15 minutes
before removing from pan. Loosen edges from the pans with a spatula.
Place rack over cake and pan; invert together. Frost as desired.
From the files of Al Rice, North Pole Alaska. Feb 1994
Servings: 1 servings
Cocoalight Cake Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Cake; Dessert
The History of Recipes
Historians have tracked the existence of recipes way back into ancient history, in truth as far as pharonic Egypt, and maybe even further. However, sadly, these ancient cookbooks were just simple pictorial instructions for preparing meals.
The truth of the matter is, the most ancient recipe found, according to experts in ancient history is a collection of clay tablets in the Sumerian language which recount the preparation of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made those who drank it feel `wonderful`. Later on, in The time of the roman empire 25BC a roman called Apicius created a number of documents which described recipes prepared by his fellow Romans. In his scrolls, he describes how the roman meals were split into appetizers, main meal and dessert, something that is very familiar to us today. Aspicius informs us how the ancient Romans were skilled in the use of many different aromatic flavours, including many that are still in use today for example thyme, fennel and parsley. Later, we find two interesting cookery books which were published in the 14th Century ; a book entitled `Forme of Cury`, and another named `Curye on Inglish`. Amusingly, these two books are unconnected to the indian food that appears on menues today, but instead recipes for the types of food on the menus of the rich and wealthy people of those days. Later, in the fifteenth century, people returning from the crusades brought back many new foods and herbs from the Middle-East, including rosemary and coriander. These new spices and herbs led to an eruption in recipe publications, some of which are kept safe in private libraries. During the following few hundred years, the families of Europe tried to serve the most extravagent meals, and as a result the best cooks and their recipe collections increased in prestige. Even so, it was during the 19th century that haute cuisine and recipe publications became popular. The Famous Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and the equally well-known Fannie Farmer in the USA, spent years to collating, trying out, and recording the recipes of their peers. By the time we get to the 1900s, cookbooks were increasing in popularity mostly as a result of increased literacy, people having more leisure time and a general increase in wealth. The arrival of television gave us celebrity chefs and the demand for the accompanying recipe books. And that pretty much brings us to the present day and the invention of the internet, permitting everyone to access thousands of recipes like those on sites such as the one you are reading now. |
We hope you enjoy this Cocoalight Cake recipe.
