War Cake

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There is nothing quite like an old family recipe for the holidays. They may not quite conform to our modern dietary habits ( we rarely use lard in our house any more). But our grandmothers knew a thing or two about frugal eating that we would do well to take on board. This tremendous, versatile cake was the result of wartime rationing, when butter, milk, and eggs were rare commodities. The good new is that it tastes so delicious those things will never be missed.

Since we’re not big on fruitcake, we like to add some red and green cherries to this, during the festive season.

Easter Bunny Cake

Bunny CakeFor our family, it wouldn’t be Easter dinner if there weren’t a bunny cake.  Long after kids aren’t really kids any more, they aren’t willing to dispense with this cake, in all its ’50’s style glory.

It starts as two round cakes (8 or 9 inches in diameter). Make a carrot cake (traditional) or use a mix – any flavour will do.

One cake is cut into sections, with two ears, leaving the centre of the circle to make the bow tie.

The whole thing is iced with Italian Meringue Frosting, tinted appropriately. Each year there’s an argument about whether the bow tie should be pink, or mauve, or green, or yellow. Mauve or pink are easiest, since the pink frosting for the ears can be prepared, and then a little blue food colouring added as necessary.

The candies are Smarties(TM) but other small round candies such as M&Ms (TM) would work as well. The whiskers are made of shoelace-style red licorice. The fur is coconut, preferably the long-shredded variety.