Turn any day into a celebration with Mid-Winter Carnival Marble Cake

It's safe to say that for most folks, especially in the Western World, January through to March is not exactly bustling with holidays. The biggest exception to that statement for many is Valentine's Day, but even there, that celebration of all things romantic doesn't usually hold the same gravitas or widespread communal merriment of days like Christmas, Easter, the 4th of July (or Canada Day on this side of the 49th), Halloween, and Thanksgiving.

In these dark, long, icicle bedecked months of winter you'd think that there would be celebrations right, left and center, but alas, in most societies there is not. A point that has always rather perplexed me, a lover of holidays and happy times.

That isn't to say these slate grey months are completely devoid of festivities, they're not - we have the cute and meaningful alike, from Groundhog's Day (which shares a date with the traditional observations of Candlemas) on February 2nd to Mardi Gras, which falls on the 9th next month, to St. Patrick's Day on March 17th, as winter - on paper at least - gets ready to hightail it out of town once more.

Still, even with these and a small number of  other observances (such as the traditional Pagan celebration of Imbolic at the beginning of February), winter calls for every excuse we can find to liven up this often bleak and ridiculously cold chapter of the calendar.

As vintage loving folks, I think we're especially adapt at celebrating life in general. We do so with our fashion joys, our adoration of the past, the toe tapping music so many of us delight in, the vibrancy and fun of the many ways we weave history into the present, and of course with our delightful old school recipes. We're a merry bunch in general and we're well suited to weather, quite literally, these lengthy, frozen months.

Today's recipe from 1947 for Mid-Winter Carnival Cake is a wonderful way to liven up and make a feast out of nearly any meal, be it for one of winter's few holidays/special days or otherwise. At its heart it is really a classic marble cake and thus works splendidly for a wide array of events or everyday meals alike.



{A traditional and much loved dessert for generations now, marble cake is a snap to whip up, always draws cheers, and can be frosted (or not) with a huge range of icings and/or sauces. Vintage Betty Crocker cake recipe ad image source.}


Marble cake is an age old classic that many people adore (myself and Tony both very much included, in fact, it's one of his favourite desserts), that has the added bonus of looking impressive, while being really quite simple to whip up.

One can always tint the white/yellow part of the cake with food colouring, if so desired, to fit a given holiday/special occasion or swap out the chocolate for another flavouring of choice such as cinnamon, orange, strawberry, coffee, or almond - and it takes, I find, wonderfully to being made (either from scratch or store bought mixes) in gluten-free form.

We often like our marble cake un-frosted, with just a little dusting (pretty stencil pattern optional) of icing (powdered) sugar and/or a scoop of ice cream on top. Given the time of the year however, I'd be more apt to reach for hot fudge, warmed up butterscotch, or a straight-from-the-stove top strawberry, raspberry, peach, pineapple, or winter fruit compote instead of ice cream though.

Given the chocolate in this beloved dessert, it's a natural shoe in for Valentine's Day, but really does suit a wide array of celebrations, very much including a random Tuesday night where you need something sweet and toothsome to help make the week more enjoyable.

Lengthy though mid-winter may be, there are ways to spice it up and delicious, budget-friendly old school recipes like this tasty vintage marble cake can go a very long way on that front. So why not bust out the mixing bowls and give this fantastic dessert a spin?

Wonderfully delicious, summertime-friendly Magic Chocolate Pie recipe

✯ Day 215 of Vintage 365 ✯

 

Summer brings with it many interesting - sometimes even humorous - paradoxes, one of which is that it's amongst the most social times of the year (just think of the many barbeques, picnics, pool parties, graduations, bridal showers, weddings, and long weekend celebrations), yet it's also undoubtedly the toastiest. This leads to the conundrum of needing to whip up meals and desserts when your kitchen feels about as warm as the surface of the sun.

Aside from tried-and-true frozen desserts, chilled refrigerator pies that require little or no cooking can be a hostess' dream way to wrap up a great summertime meal. They're usually straightforward and relatively quick to prepare (especially if you use a precooked pie crust, either store bought or homemade in advance), can be relatively economical, and tend to be major crowd-pleasers.

Today's scrumptious Magic Chocolate Pie recipe is sure to appeal to chocoholics and those with a general sweet tooth alike.

I love that most of us have all the ingredients called for on hand right now (who wants to run out to the grocery store when the mercury is boiling over?) and this is one of those great dishes that still leaves you plenty of time to work on the other elements of your meal (or do whatever else you please).

{Click here for a larger version of this tasty Magic Chocolate Pie recipe, which comes by way of Shelf Life Taste Test on Flickr.}

 

This chocolaty 1950s dessert would work great after an array of meals, from a sit down buffet brunch for twelve to a burger and hot dog fest in backyard with the kids. You could add some nuts, caramel, coffee, strawberries, bananas, marshmallows, or coconut to the mix (or as a decorative touch on top), or simply enjoy this sweet treat exactly as it appears in the recipe above.

No matter how you slice it, this is one fun, lovely summertime pie that keeps you from spending too much time in the kitchen this season while still delivering impressive, very inviting looking results - and that is definitely a culinary good thing!

1950s chocolate marshmallow pie recipe is sure to satisfy any sugar craving! :)

✯ Day 159 of Vintage 365 ✯

 

Just as white sauce is one those fundamental recipes of cooking that can be altered, dressed up and played around with to just about no culinary end, so too do certain types of pies have ton of potential when it comes to the many things you do to further enhance their appeal.

Today’s recipe – which hails the May 1957 copy of household magazine – is delightful chocolate marshmallow pie that sounds fantastic on its own….however, I can’t help but think of a wide range of ways you could jazz it up further. Such as:

-Add some mint extract or fresh mint leaves and serving it ice cold on the toastiest days of summer.

-Swirling a big handful of raspberries through the pie filling before it sets, then make a raspberry, mixed berry or lemon coulis to drizzle over top.

-Throw in a tablespoon or two of fresh or candied orange peel and garnish each slice with a few strips of additional peel.

-Use white chocolate in instead of milk, add in chunks of walnuts (or other favourite nut) and dark 70% chocolate once the filling as cold a bit, but not set entirely (to help prevent the dark chocolate from melting too).

-Toss in a cupful of your favourite crisp rice (or cornflake) cereal and some dried cherries or cranberries for a crisp, cherry hit with each bite.

-Channel a classic banana slip by adding halved maraschino cherries to the batter, placing a smattering of bananas over the top, and serving each slice with a big dollop of whip cream.

-Instead of white marshmallows, try the coloured fruit variety, layer some freshly sliced strawberries on top and drizzle with a little honey when ready to serve.

These are just seven possible twists that spring to mind, I bet you can think of others, too (by all means feel free to share them in the comment section, if you do).

{Click here for a larger version of this terrifically tasty sounding vintage chocolate marshmallow pie recipe. Image by way of Charm and Poise on Flickr.}

I think this delicious sounding, simple-as-painting-your-nails marshmallow chocolate pie would be a great dessert to bring out after a backyard barbeque, as a different spin on a springtime birthday cake (if it’s for adults only, you could always drop in a spoonful of your favourite liquor – just think how heavenly this would be with Bailey’s Irish Cream!), or a terrific week day dessert where time is of the essence, but you still want something that’s bound to impress.

It’s great to have versatile, classic recipes like this great chocolate pie in your culinary arsenal, and when they hail from the 1950s, that’s another point in their favour, in my (vintage cook) books!