Martha Washington's Great Cake

George Washington didn't have much of a sweet tooth, or many teeth at all, but he did enjoy fruit and alcoholic beverages. His favorite dessert contained both, and was served on special occasions and always on January 6th for Epiphany, which was also George and Martha's wedding anniversary. It's called Great Cake, which may be because the Washingtons liked it so well, or it may be because it's enormous. Martha Washington's recipe called for 40 eggs (separated) and four pounds of butter, as well as proportionate amounts of flour, sugar, fruit, and other ingredients, like brandy and wine.

While Great Cake is Martha Washington's recipe, it was made by enslaved people, and took hours to bake, not to mention all the time it would take to whip all those eggs whites into a meringue. If you have a really large cake pan and plenty of time, you may want to follow Washington's recipe, or if you prefer a normal-sized cake, you can follow an adapted recipe from Mount Vernon.


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