Philosophizing About Food With Francine: Marble Cake with Berries

by Francine Black

Marble cake with berries and a dollop of homemade vanilla bean ice cream.

We may thank a Ms. Hannah Glasse of England and her cookbook, “The Art of Cookery Made Plain And Easy,” written in 1747, for giving us the template for pound cakes.

In an era when there were no standardized measuring cups and spoons for creating cakes, and no baking powder for creating a rise, she offered a recipe easily duplicated by home bakers. Ingredients could be purchased by pound weight at the local store and she made it quite simple to remember as well: 1 lb. Flour, 1lb. Butter, 1 lb. Sugar and 1 lb. Eggs.

The rise in the cake was provided by strong arms whipping egg whites to a frothy frenzy and gently folded into creamed butter, sugar, and flour. If there were a bit of brandy or rose water about, well that could be added in as well.

A one-hour bake and that’s all it took for a beautiful dense cake to appear on the Sunday dessert table.

The earliest marbling was created by stirring rich spices into half the batter. Today we seem to prefer the chocolate marbling.

Not only that, but with our modern precise measuring, we’ve streamlined the ingredient list to create a lighter cake that still owes its rise to whipped egg whites while retaining the rich flavor of it’s ancestors.

I’m not sure if it’s quite the most polite thing to do, but I love to dunk morsels of it in a hot cafe au lait. The kids prefer it with a cold glass of milk.

High in the mountains above Bally, where the dense groves of treetops seem to touch the sky, is Francine Black, Boyertown’s own version of chef Julia Child. Her daily activities reflect the things she most values: family and friends, music, and lovingly prepared food.

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