Great Grandma’s Fudge Cake
Everything tastes better when
grandma bakes it…
I have very few memories of my great-grandmother. I am one of the few, that are blessed to have met and known several of my great-grandparents. What I mostly remember about her was she was strong, had a few wonderful recipes that have been handed down for generations, and she had no middle name.
Okay, maybe the lack of a middle name shouldn’t be something that impresses me so easily. Yet, in my mid-thirties I think it adds a level of mystery to her life. Why did her parents’ not grace her with a middle name? Is it because Edith was such a strong name that it stood alone? Could they not agree on a name? These questions have perplexed me for years.
Aside from the lack of middle name oditiy, my great-grandmother was a wonderful cook. She excelled in all things kitchen related from dinner recipes to baking delish desserts. She didn’t just hone her culinary skills for herself, she passed those skills on to others as well. She taught her daughter in law, my grandmother, most of what she knows in the kitchen and we’ve all been blessed by the scrumptious things my grandmother learned to make because of this woman. That is really saying a lot too, because my grandfather always teased my grandmother could burn boiling water before she was taught how to cook by my great-grandmother.
Honestly, most of these recipes that make me remember my great grandmother, I actually remember my grandmother making. As she did she’d remind me they were my great grandmother’s specialties and that I actually remember more than my great-grandma making them. The two recipes that stick out most to me are her bing cherry salad that I will share in a later blog, and her Fudge Cake that is the most delicious chocolatey sheet cake I’ve ever had the honor of eating.
Each bite of this cake always tasted so decadent to me growing up and to this day every other cake pales in comparison. I hope you’ll give my family recipe a try for yourself, so you too can indulge in this luscious treat.
Great Grandma’s Fudge Cake
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup shortening (or vegetable oil)
- 1 Stick oleo (or margarine)
- 1/4 cup cocoa
- 1 cup water
- 2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 1. tsp vanilla
- 6 TBSP half and half
- 1 stick butter (oleo)
- 2 TBSP cocoa
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- Optional: finely chopped pecans
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and grease 15″x10″x1″ sheet pan.
- In a saucepan mix together 1/2 cup shortening, 1 stick oleo, 1/4 cup cocoa, and 1 cup water. Bring mixture to a boil. Allow to boil for one minute, then cool in the refrigerator.
- In a separate bowl, mix flour and sugar. Combine dry mixture with the cooled mixture from step 1. Beat until well blended in a large mixer bowl.
- Mix buttermilk, eggs, baking soda, and vanilla with other ingredients.
- Pour mixture into a greased pan and bake until done, approximately 25 minutes.
- For icing, bring to boil half and half, butter, and remaining cocoa, stirring often. Add 4 cups of powdered sugar and a splash of vanilla and beat well.
- Spread icing on HOT cake.
- Optional: sprinkle with finely chopped pecans.
- Allow to cool and enjoy.
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