Election Cake

Your Civic Duty Never Tasted So Good.

A dense, fragrant, bread-like cake recipe, dotted with boozy dried currants, mixed raisins, and warmed with spices.  The history of election cake reveals an American tradition that has been mostly lost to time.

Regardless of your political affiliation, reward yourself (and your right to vote!), with a hearty slice of this history-rich confection.

A bundt-shaped pan works best for this cake recipe.  However, don’t fret over a bundt-pan with intricate shapes and details, a rather traditional one will work best with this cake’s texture.  I happened to lean on a rustic bundt pan that has been in my family longer than me and no longer holds perfectly to its original form.  So, I serve the cake upside down.  I like the way the exposed part of the cake bakes in the pan; it swells and creates deep grooves and cracks, offering the perfect pockets in which to drizzle the lemon glaze.

A little bit of election cake history

In early American life, this cake would have been referred to as “great cake,” reminiscent of a familiar English confection made in a similar fashion.

Later, it would be called “muster cake,” a treat originally created by colonial women to feed the American farmers ordered for military training by the British (known as “mustering”).

As life in America evolved, so did this familiar-at-the-time cake recipe, and soon enough it was a celebratory component of Election Day.  Election Day was quite the holiday in early New England, second only to Thanksgiving, complete with church sermons and a festive home full of friends and family.  As a our Puritan ancestors were denied the joys of Christmas and Easter, the festivities of Election Day helped compensate for the loss.

Eventually the cakes were brought to polling sites for the men who voted, as many had traveled a distance, and the cakes offered sustenance and celebration.

While households had their own versions of this delectable cake, the first published recipe was recorded in 1796 by Amelia Simmons in her second edition cookbook, “American Cookery,” and called for… wait for it…. thirty quarts of flour, ten pounds of butter, three dozen eggs, a pint of wine!… and the list goes on, see for yourself below.  This large cake would have been baked with the intention of feeding many on Election Day.

Time would prove that this dense cake would be most popularly referred to as “Hartford Election Cake.”

Connecticut was a colony that had the right to elect its own Governor, and that was certainly something worth celebrating!  It was customary in Connecticut to enjoy this fine cake while waiting for the election results – often served as a reward for voting “the right way,” or in other words, for a particular party.  This tradition carried on well into the 19th century.

A properly made election cake could leave quite the social impression, too.  Housewives secured their prominence as socialites and hostesses based on the quality of their cakes – no pressure, ladies.  In 1886, Connecticut historian J. Hammond Trumbell referenced it this way:

Election Day (the first Thursday in May), the reddest letter in our calendar, brightened the whole year. Good housekeepers were expected to have finished their spring cleaning long before, election cakes are rising to make ready for the oven – and few homes were too poor to offer this refreshment to visitors.

The storied history doesn’t stop there.  Since women were not allowed to vote before 1920, election cake became part of a woman’s weapon of persuasion, an attempt to sway the men at the polling sites to vote according to her political interests.

Over time, election cakes waned in popularity.  Perhaps it was due to dissatisfaction in politics, or maybe the increase in population – and with it, new traditions.  Or, both.  In any event, I am enamored with its story.

As a woman who is proud to exercise my right to vote, I’m quite happy to bake an election cake – especially since I won’t have to work 10 pounds of butter to feed the townspeople or persuade the townsmen; instead, I can justly reward myself, my family, and my right to vote, with a hearty slice of American baked history.

I’d love to hear from you!

Scroll down and leave me a comment below, I’d love to hear from you!  If you give this cake a go, don’t forget to share it with me on Instagram, I’d love to see your creation!  Make sure to tag me @chasingtheseasons so that I don’t miss it!

Disclosure:  As a way of supporting Chasing the Seasons, I may receive monetary compensation for my endorsement, recommendation, and/or link to any product(s).  That support allows me to continue to share my recipes with you.  I only recommend products that I love and/or personally use or are similar to the products I use – all at no additional cost to you.   I sincerely appreciate all the love that has been given to this little blog of mine.  Thank you.

Election Cake

A historic bread-like cake, filled with boozy dried fruit, warm spices and served on Election Day.

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Course: Dessert

Keyword: Election Day

Servings: 1 Cake

Author: Chasing the Seasons

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup mixed raisins golden and dark
• 1 cup dried currants
• 1/2 cup American bourbon ex. Basil Hayden's
• 2/3 cup warm water
• 2 tsp active dry yeast
• 1/4 tsp granulated sugar
• 5 cups flour, plus more for preparing the pan all-purpose, unbleached
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/2 tsp ground mace
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 8 oz. butter, room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan or 2 sticks
• 2 cups packed brown sugar
• 1 cup buttermilk* see notes for substitutes
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten, room temperature

Lemon Glaze:

• 1 cup confectioner's (powdered) sugar
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tbsp whole milk, plus more for thinning as desired

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Prepare a bundt pan by greasing it with a thin layer of butter and an even dusting of flour, shaking out the excess. Alternatively, use a baking spray, if desired. Set aside.
• Add the raisins and currants to a medium bowl. Add the bourbon and gently stir to combine. Let the mixture stand for at least 30 minutes, allowing the raisins and currants to soften and plump. Set aside.
• In the meantime, in a stand mixer or large bowl to use with electric beaters, add the warm water, yeast and granulated sugar. Briefly stir by hand and let it sit to activate for 10 minutes until thick and frothy. (If the yeast does not activate, the cake will not rise).
• In a large separate bowl, add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, mace, cloves and nutmeg. Mix with a fork to combine and set aside.
• Add only half of the flour mixture to the yeast in the stand mixer bowl. Mix by hand first to help get it started and roughly combined. Add the butter and mix on low speed until well incorporated, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula, as needed.
• Add the brown sugar, buttermilk, vanilla, and the raisin and bourbon mixture. Mix on low again until well combined, scraping down the sides again, as needed.
• Add the eggs and mix until just combined, don't overmix. Add the remaining flour, mix briefly by hand again to help get it started, then mix on low-medium speed until well combined, about 1 minute.
• Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan. Cover with a tea towel and set in a warm, draft-free, spot to rise for 1 hour, noting that the batter will not double in size, but will only rise slightly.
• In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350 F. (177 C) Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted into the cake comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool for just a few minutes before transferring the cake itself onto the rack. Allow the cake to cool completely before adding the glaze.
• While the cake cools, prepare the lemon glaze. In a medium bowl, add the confectioner's sugar, lemon juice, and milk. Mix well until there are no lumps and the mixture is smooth. Add a little more milk, if a thinner consistency is desired. Drizzle over the top of the cake.

Notes

* Don't have buttermilk on hand, use these  pro tips (for 1 cup buttermilk):

• 1 tablespoon white vinegar + enough milk to measure 1 cup
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice + enough milk to measure 1 cup

Feel free to substitute raisins and currants for more traditional dried fruit like chopped dried figs or plums, or use other dried fruit of choice.

Consider adding a dusting of powdered sugar, in addition to (or in stead of) the lemon glaze.

The glaze can be adjusted to suit your taste.  Add more or less lemon, or more or less sugar, and adjust the consistency.

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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