February 13, 2007

When Harry Met Betty The history of cake has been long and varied, and many have interesting histories. Some are misleadingly named. However, few have had as mysterious and interesting a history as one of the 20th century's most famous cakes, the Chiffon. From the always wonderful Rake Magazine.

I still haven't completely formed an opinion on cross-posting things to Metafilter, but there are topics which seem like they fit a particular community better. However, this one I wanted to share with everybody, so apologies to those who visit both sites.

  • A great tale, thanks. And glad to add Rake to my bookmarks!
  • That is a fascinating story. Thanks for posting it here, wander. Both the chiffon cake described and the original German Chocolate Cake called for a batter made with yolks, then carefully folded back into the stiff-but-not-too-stiffly beaten whites. This is a pain in the ass, and, I believe, unnecessary with modern ("Modern" in the post-World-War-II sense) high-speed mixers. I'd dig out my copy of Levy-Berenbaum's The Cake Bible to check, but it's not handy.
  • "...lie down on the kitchen floor to avoid fatigue: “Let your arms, hands, and head fall limp.” Excuse me, the floor is calling.