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January 20, 2014

Bake up a tasty vintage Honey Pound Cake

Like El Camios and Woody Allen films, raisins are one of those things that people generally tend to love or loath. Adoring them something fierce, I definitely fall into the first camp and have been known to combine raisins with everything from baby spinach to stuffed pork loin.

One of my favourite ways to enjoy raisins is actually so straight forward its instructions can't even be called a real recipe: simply smear however much plain cream cheese you like on bread, a bagel, crackers, etc and sprinkle over a handful of raisins and, should you like, shelled sunflower seeds, too (I could eat that combo until the cows come home!).

Today's vintage recipe for Honey Pound Cake - which originally appeared in the December 1944 edition of National Home Monthly magazine - calls for nine ingredients and is a somewhat more traditional use of these charming little dehydrated grapes.


Vintage 1940s recipe ad for Honey Pound Cake, Chronically Vintage

{Honey and raisins mingle beautifully in this timelessly appealing 1940s cake recipe, which has a great cold weather vibe to it. Image via jbcurio on Flickr.}


Humans have harnessed the power of the sun to dry various fruits for thousands of years, one of the earliest of which is believed to be the grape. While not everyone adores raisins, many people do, which helps to explain widespread use (in both sweet and savoury dishes) and continued popularity. In simple to make loaf cakes like this they add flavour, texture, and a hint of moisture - as well as pops of dark colour in each delectable slice.

This cake sounds perfectly fine as it stands now, but (in a nod to raisin studded cinnamon buns) I'd most likely add a teaspoon of cinnamon, and perhaps a dash of nutmeg for extra spice. Alternatively, dried ginger or even cardamom would be lovely - and wholly aromatic - as well.

With each reading of this terrific 1940s recipe (which of course you can use butter or margarine in place of the shortening for), the more I keep thinking that a generous grating of orange zest (in lieu of the lemon extract, and perhaps in combination with some cinnamon) would be flat out fantastic here, too.

Cakes like this are excellent for those times - like an afternoon coffee break or relaxed weekend breakfast on a chilly winter morn - when you want a touch of sweetness, but not a full on sugar laden dessert.

It’s shape and compact crumb means it transports (and freezes) well, making Honey Pound Cake a delightful gift to bring your favourite hostess the next time you're invited over for dinner - assuming of course, she's a raisin fan. Smile

29 comments:

  1. To be honest, this cake looks appealing.
    Now: using butter would be fine, but margarine would change the taste of it too much. It's hard to substitute shortening, because it has such nature that it enhances other tastes while it neutralizes it's own. And that is why I love old recipes (that and the fact that I love my fats) :D

    Thank you for the cake, dear.
    Hug
    Marija

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  2. This looks interesting. Thanks for sharing! I'm a big fan or raisins, too. I love to make breads and cakes like this, especially in cold weather.
    Have a great day :)

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  3. It's an odd thing for me, I like raisins out of the box and eat them by the handful - but I don't like them combined with bread or salads or pork. What a weirdo I am.

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  4. I agree with you about raisins! I think you love them or you hate them! I love them and oatmeal raisin cookies are a favorite of mine. Thanks so much for the delicious recipe and you are right a dash of cinnamon would be delightful!

    Rebecca
    www.winnipegstyle.ca

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  5. Oh, yum!! I love all the scrumptious recipes you share with us. Although I've cut back a lot in my sugar/bread intake, I do love getting a "taste" of it through these posts.

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    1. Hi sweet Sean, I hear you loud and clear. I've been following a very low carb (ketogenic) diet for two years now on top of my medically dictated diet, as a means of both trying to control my weight (I've had a super slow metabolism my whole life, that got worse after I became chronically ill and which some of my meds do a further number on - big time!) and because I find it helps with some of my chronic gastrointestinal conditions.

      So while I blog about (and pin on Pinterest) such foods fairly often, I very rarely actually eat deserts or other carb-y foods myself these day (as much as I love them). They're usually a treat reserved for holidays or other special occasions. I've always enjoyed writing and talking about food, whether I could eat something or not, so I'll likely always keep sharing recipes like this here. I'm really happy to know that you also enjoy "getting a taste" of such foods through these posts.

      Big hugs & happy Monday wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  6. thanks for sharing. i think we will try this soon ...

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  7. *LOL* You reminded me in this lovely post of a character in "All My Children" (an old soap opera), who once said that h hated eating raisins because they "squeak" when you chew them!
    Thanks bunches for the unintended laugh...and keep on enjoying those yummy bits of wonder!

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    1. That's quite an interesting reason not to be a fan of a certain food! I'd imagine he'd massively detest cottage cheese then! :D

      Thank you very much for the smile inducing comment,
      ♥ Jessica

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  8. Heehee, "El Camios and Woody Allen films" -- the most accurate turn of phrase I've heard all day! I love Depression/rationing recipes. The whole phenomenon of substitution in the chemistry/tradition of baking is so fascinating! I was raised Vedic vegetarian, so I didn't eat eggs, which probably explains some of that. And growing up to become this vegan health nut probably explains the rest! But anyway, my parents both taught me all about about how to bind or leaven without eggs, but just to make sure nobody got too big for their britches on the subject, my grandma always joked that there was nothing "new age" about substitutions! :D

    Anyway, even though I tragically come down on the anti-raisin side of this debate (I try to like them, I swear!), I may have to try this recipe with a few new revisions!

    http://dresseduplikealady.com

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    1. I'm delighted to know that that line tickled your funny bone. It made me smile as I wrote it and several times since, as I've thought back on it. I speak from firsthand experience when I say that this cake/loaf can very easily me made egg-free. I've had a serious egg allergy (not deadly, thankfully, but enough to make me exceedingly ill for a couple of weeks if I consume any egg at all) for a few years now and make all baked goods (or other foods) that I'm going to be eating any of myself without eggs. This cake works great when you opt for a vegan egg replacement or you can just up the baking power, add in a bit more liquid, and forgo the eggs/egg replacer and it should turn out great (it has for me).

      If you're a fan of dried cherries or blueberries, they're both rather wonderful here as well.

      Happy baking and many thanks for your great comment,
      ♥ Jessica

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  9. I am one of those silly creatures that adores some dried fruit (apricots, cranberries, dates-yum!) but could care less for others, like sultana's and raisins. Contrary, I know! But I do love trying old recipes and this one looks great. Just maybe not with raisins!

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  10. Those, "Three generations of Canadian housewives" mush have had good strong arms to beat cakes by hand. No rotary beaters for those gals! Admittedly, shortening is pretty soft, but still-I am never going to anger a Canadian housewife (at least not when she's holding a wooden spoon)!

    I'm surprised sugar was rationed, but not honey. I guess it doesn't require processing, energy, etc. Makes you notice all we take for granted.

    You know, this would be a good, first recipe for a youngster-made from scratch, but not too complicated.

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    1. Excellent point, I completely agree that this would be a great recipe to start youngsters with. It's very easy and straightforward to create, doesn't require any fancy tools or cooking techniques, and has always turned out well for me. Thanks for suggesting that great idea, dear gal.

      Big hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  11. This sounds really yummy! Thanks for sharing! I hope you and Tony are doing well, and I wish you a fabulous week!

    PS. How is Annie doing? Have you gotten any results on what might be bothering her?

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  12. I always thought pound cake sounded like a really solid, stomach-filling cake... I'm pleased to see this one is sugarless, I may have to try it out and see how it fares!

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    1. They certainly can be, but this one is relatively light and an absolute breeze to whip up (so it's light on the energy required to make it, too :)). I hope you really enjoy it if you give it a go. I've made a version before using blueberry honey and dried blueberries that is really fantastic, too, if you're not in the mood for raisins.

      ♥ Jessica

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  13. I've developed a mild obsession with this recipe. 3 out of 5 of us love raisins and we all love honey! I'm going to make this cake as a treat for my husband when he comes home from work on Friday. I'll let you know how it goes! X x

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    1. I'm really happy to know that this recipe seems like one that go down a treat at your house. It's not an overly sweet cake/loaf IMO, but sometimes that's precisely what one is after (and you could always frost or top slices with jam, if further sweetness was desired), especially if you're serving it for breakfast or with tea as a snack/light meal.

      Happy baking, my dear friend!
      ♥ Jessica

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    2. I made this cake! The only changes I made were using butter instead of shortening and I didn't snip up the raisins as I thought they would have more impact whole. The result is a cake that is plenty sweet enough by itself, heavy very much like a fruit cake, and actually of a very fresh fruity flavour (which I put down in part to the lemon extract). One of the reasons I was so keen to make it was because there is no added sugar. For me it was a delicious taste of by gone times and has made me want to try more vintage recipes. I will make it again - thank you Jessica!

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    3. Hello sweet Philippa, I'm delighted to know that this cake turned out well for you. If memory serves me right, I've only made a gluten and egg-free version (multiple times now) that comes out really well, too. Dense - much like a fruitcake for sure, especially without the eggs to help it rise - but wonderfully delicious - even better the second and third day, actually, once it's firmed up a bit. Last time I added some candied peel and loved it every bit as much as the original.

      It's awesome that you're game to try more vintage recipes now! Most that I've tried, whether in their original form or altered to fit my medical dietary needs, have turned out wonderfully. I love sharing vintage recipes here and hope you'll find lots more in the future (and also in the existing vintage recipe archives) that tickle your fancy, my lovely friend.

      ♥ Jessica

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  14. I am not a fan of Woody Allen films; however, I am a huge fan of raisins! Growing up, we often had raisins in our lunch bag as our fruit...not in those cute little boxes...ours were wrapped up in aluminum foil :) We always have raisins in the house.

    This Honey Pound Cake sound like a delicious recipe. I can just taste the goodness thinking of that relaxing afternoon coffee break.

    :)Hope


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  15. what a charming recipe! I definitely quite like raisins. I also like prunces, I make a great meatloaf and the secret ingredient is prunes. People think it sounds so odd but it works beautifully

    retro rover

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  16. I actually don't really like raisins in most things, but I think it's more what it is in than the actual raisins. I do like oatmeal cookies with raisins in them. It looks like a great recipe! I may have to try it out one of these days.

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    1. That makes sense - I can think of a couple of foods were I tend to like them on a more situational basis, too. If you're not in the mood for raisins, this is a treat with other dried fruits (I especially like it with dried blueberries or cherries), too. You could always forgo the fruit entirely and opt for some nuts or even chocolate chips, too.

      Thank you very much for both of your lovely blog comments today, dear Abbi Jane,
      ♥ Jessica

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  17. Dear Jessica, I've been having some trouble and have been in the hospital. But yesterday I was back home and even open that twitter account! Today, I finally came to read your lovely new posts. I have to say I'm delighted and surely I will be baking this cake! I love these sort of cakes that aren't too sweetened and somehow are quite traditional. I'm quite excited to try this recipe! :-)

    Thank you lovely Jessica!

    Miss Beta

    PS- Thank you for your kind reply on Twitter.

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    1. Dearest Miss Beta, I am so very sorry to hear that you've been in hospital lately. That's a not-too-infrequent occurrence in my world as well. I hope with all my heart that you're feeling at least a bit better now that you're home.

      It's wonderful to connect with you on Twitter, thank you very much for the lovely follow.

      Countless healing hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  18. I'm a raisin lover too. If I need some sweets I head for the raisin box. Love the new look of your blog. :)

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    1. Same here! I almost always have a bag of organic raisins in the pantry. Paired with nuts and/or seeds, they're one of my favourite healthy pick-me-up snacks when I need a boast of energy.

      Aww, thank you very much! We were hard at work installing and tweaking this new template yesterday. I've been wanting to revamp things here for ages and am soooo happy to have finally been able to. I'll be posting more about it a little later this morning.

      Big hugs, my sweet friend!
      ♥ Jessica

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