Fourth of July Cake

Submitted by Laura Sage

"From a 1961 insert entitled "Good Housekeeping's recipes for summer living...when your dining room is all outdoors""

 

• Ready In: 2hrs
• Ingredients: 12
• Serves: 10

ingredients

• 2 cups sifted cake flour
• 3 teaspoons double-acting baking powder
• 3⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 3 medium egg whites
• 1 1⁄4 cups granulated sugar
• 1⁄2 cup soft shortening
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1⁄2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 cup milk
• white fudge frosting (search recipes)
• 1 1⁄2 pints fresh strawberries
• 25 blueberries

directions

1. A Fourth of July cake to bake, frost, take and serve, all in the same pan -- strawberries for red stripes, lush white frosting for white stripes, and blueberry stars studded on more frosting. The white cake was baked the day before. For the picnic's grand finale, unfurl your flag to celebrate the day and delight all tastes.
2. DAY BEFORE PICNIC.
3. Start heating oven to 375°F Grease, then flour bottom of 13x9x2-inch pan, or a covered bake pan of same size.
4. Onto waxed paper, sift flour with baking powder and salt.
5. In small bowl, with mixer at high speed, beat egg whites until foamy; then gradually add 1/4 cup sugar while beating, until mixture holds soft peaks; set aside.
6. In a large bowl, with mixer at medium speed, cream soft shortening with 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy -- 2 minutes. Then add the vanilla and almond extracts.
7. At low speed, add flour mixture alternately with milk until just blended. Scrape bowl, beaters; at same speed, blend in beaten egg whites just until smooth.
8. Bake 25 to 27 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan, on rack.
9. When cool, decorate cake, in pan, with White Fudge Frosting (search site) as follows: With frosting, in waxed-paper cones or pastry bag, and tube no. 45, make 6 lengthwise stripes, about 1/2-inch wide, equidistant from each other, across cake, starting 3/4-inch up from bottom edge, and ending 3/4-inch down from top. This leaves alternate unfrosted stripes. Also, in upper left-hand corner of cake, frost a 5" by 5" field for the stars. Then cover cake with foil and refrigerate.
10. EARLY ON PICNIC DAY.
11. Wash, hull, dry strawberries. Slice in half lengthwise, then lay between white stripes on cake, as pictured; also along top and bottom edges of cake, making 7 rows of strawberries in all.
12. Place 25 blueberries, well-drained, in field of frosting. Cover cake, then refrigerate.
13. JUST BEFORE LEAVING FOR PICNIC.
14. Pack pan of cake in insulated picnic carrier.
15. AT DESERT TIME.
16. Cut cake between rows of strawberries; serve from pan.