From 1922:
Confederate cake recalls wartime.
With the domestic arts developed to such a fine point of excellence today, one can appreciate the hardships of our ancestors, especially in the war between the states when food was scarce and very expensive.
Mrs. W.R. Lyman, of Bay St. Louis, whose mother was one of those heroic women of the times, sends a recipe appropriately called Confederate pound cake, in which, however, the ingredients varied considerably, since many of the ingredients were unavailable at the time.
Mrs. Lyman’s letter states these substitutes:
“My mother made the pound cake using peach leaves, a small cup of sour milk and a teaspoon of cooking soda made from burned corn cobs instead of the vanilla extract and the baking powder.”
Here is the recipe:
One pound of sifted cornmeal,
one pound of sugar,
one pound of butter (if lard is used, one-quarter pound),
eight eggs,
teaspoon of salt,
two teaspoons of baking powder,
one teaspoon extract vanilla.
Cream sugar, butter and egg yolks, adding cornmeal as in flour cake. Beat whites until stiff, then stir in well; add two heaping teaspoons of baking powder and one of vanilla. Bake in an even oven one hour. Test with straw. Cake pan should be well buttered and sprinkled with cornmeal to prevent sticking. Meal is often scalded and then creamed.