Easy Chocolate Cake

I recently reviewed and scanned several recipe journals that belonged to my maternal Great Grandmother Hazel Wilson Bolger. This recipe is from a journal that appears to be part of a recipe exchange group. Several of my grandmothers, great aunts, and distant cousins wrote recipes in this journal.

This particular entry was written by my Grandmother Eileen Smith, May 5, 1945. This was just two days before Victory in Europe Day, the end of WWII. Many of the recipes do not include instructions for temperature or time. So, make your best educated guess... and watch carefully! I have not had time to try all the recipes, but when I do, I'll provide feedback on instructions.

Easy Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

Sift together the following 4 ingredients

1 3/4 C. flour

1 1/4 C. sugar

4 T. cocoa

pinch of salt

1 1/2 C. sour cream

2 eggs, beaten

2 t. soda dissolved in 1/4 C. boiling water

1 t. vanilla

Instructions

Combine beaten eggs and sour cream.

Add to dry ingredients. Beat well.

Add soda and vanilla.

Recipe Credit: Eileen Smith

Grandma Smith's Orange Cookies

These cookies are a Smith family favorite and once again could be found stored in an aluminum cake pan on Grandma Smith's porch. I think these are my sister Allison's favorite cookies and I always think of her or grandma when I hear "orange cookies". My mom has another version which I will post sometime as well.

Grandma's Orange Cookies

Ingredients
1 1/2 C. sugar
1 C. soft butter
1 egg
1 tsp. lemon flavor
1 tsp. vanilla flavor

Liquid mix
1 T. vinegar
Add buttermilk to make 1 C. liquid

Dry mix
3 1/2 C. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Juice of one orange

Instructions
Combine and mix the first 5 ingredients. Set aside.
Mix together vinegar and butter milk. Set aside.
Mix together flour, soda, powder, and salt.

Add the liquid mix and dry mix to the sugar mix alternating each a little at a time.
Add the orange juice.

Drop by spoonfuls onto a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until just a little bit brown. Touch the top, as soon as it doesn't dent, they're done.

Frosting
Mix together to following ingredients in order.
1 lb. powdered sugar
1 stick melted butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. lemon flavoring
orange juice

Add the orange juice to make stiff enough to spread and smooth on the cookies.

It's my understanding that there is a special procedure for storage. It includes an aluminum cake pan and wax paper. Carefully layer cookies and wax paper in the pan and store in the freezer.

Recipe credit: Eileen Kinnick Smith (1918-1999)

Cinnamon Rolls

This recipe comes from my Grandma Eileen Smith, whose mother Dorothy Sorenson Kinnick immigrated from Denmark in 1904. It's written a bit differently, because it's based on an oral description of the recipe. Basically, grandma told me the recipe and I wrote it down. Grandma would have fresh rolls in an aluminum pan sitting out on the "porch" when we would visit. If you want to make half the dough into plain rolls as the recipe indicates, you'll need to improvise as further instructions are not provided. One of the classic "Danish" pastries.

Cinnamon Rolls

1 1/2 C. scalded milk
1 stick of butter
2/3 C. sugar
Stir until butter melts.
Add 1 C. cold water and 3 pkgs. of dry yeast
Stir in and let it stand until bubbly (15 minutes).
Add 3 eggs (beaten with a fork) and 2 tsp. salt.
Add 5 C. flour.
Beat well and add about 2 more Cups flour.
Put it on a floured board and cover with a tupperwear bowl and let it rest 10 minutes.

Kneed 2-3 minutes.

Put it into a greased bowl and let it rise about an hour.

Flatten 1/2 the dough on a floured surface.

Spread flattened dough with butter.
Mix 1/2 C. sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon, sprinkle on top.

Roll up and cut with a piece of thread.

If you make it all into cinnamon rolls, you'll need to double the filling for the other half of dough. I usually make half of it into plain rolls and half into cinnamon rolls.

Depending upon how thick you cut them and how close you put them in the pan. The recipe says 1/2 recipe in a 9x13 pan, but they are really thick and hard to get done in the middle so I usually make them half that big.

Bake at 350 degrees, 15-20 minutes.

Recipe Credit: Eileen Kinnick Smith (1918-1999)