WWI Ration War Cake - No Eggs, Butter, or Milk
Try this WWI Ration War Cake recipe, which requires no eggs, butter, or milk.
Try this WWI Ration War Cake recipe, which requires no eggs, butter, or milk.
- Carbohydrate 172.815593333333 g
- Cholesterol 4.20935438 mg
- Fat 8.44160425 g
- Fiber 5.72088333435853 g
- Protein 6.82281833333333 g
- Saturated Fat 3.24117681275 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (213g)
- Sodium 767.7945 mg
- Sugar 167.094709998975 g
- Trans Fat 0.739311986999999 g
- Calories 758 calories
Step-by-step
- This could be called a heavy fruitcake. Boil sugar, shortening, raisins, dates, salt and spices for 3 min. Remove from heat and let cool. When cool, add flour and baking soda that have veen sifted together; beat well. Pour into a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 45 min.
- This was a VERY popular recipe at the Oakland Navy yard during the era. And what I find amusing...it is a good recipe to make for camping trips today. There isnt much in it to spoil. You could even make this on your upcoming camping trip!
Operating without standard dairy and eggs requires relying on the moisture found naturally in dried fruit. Boiling the sugar, shortening, raisins, dates, salt, and spices together for three minutes hydrates the fruit thoroughly while melting the fat into a cohesive syrup. Sift the all-purpose flour and baking soda together before incorporating them to prevent pockets of leavening agent from forming in the dense batter. Pour the mixture into a greased 9x5-inch loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes.
Adjusting Yields and Proportions
Adapting this formula for different pan sizes requires maintaining precise ratios of liquid to dry components. Halving the batch allows the loaf to fit comfortably in a standard 7x3-inch loaf pan while reducing the baking time by approximately 10 to 12 minutes. Doubling the ingredients to fill a large bundt pan necessitates extending the oven time to roughly 55 minutes, ensuring the interior sets fully before removal. Weighing ingredients in grams provides better accuracy than volume measurements when scaling denser batters.
- Insert a wooden skewer into the exact center of the loaf; it should emerge clean without wet batter clinging to it.
- Press the top crust gently with a fingertip; the surface must spring back immediately rather than leaving an indentation.
- Listen closely to the loaf while still in the pan; heavy bubbling sounds indicate excess moisture requiring extra oven time.
