Sue's Diner: Independence Day Cake

This week's recipe is very patriotic to me and not just because it's mentioned in the fifth installment of Before The Blood. 

It's because I actually do like it. After I wrote the passage in italics, I, too, wanted to taste Independence Cake. So Timothy, and then Rebekah, modified the recipe for the modern kitchen. And it's actually really good!

Munsonville Inn would also sell a frosted loaf, popular in Thornton, known as Independence Cake, and Bryony longed to try this food from a land so far away.

 More than once, she and Susan read the advertisement in the window, boasting it was "flavored with wine and brandy," as well as "rich with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, mace, and citron," and "heavily speckled with currants and raisons."

Here is an actual nineteenth century recipe we found online:

"Twenty pounds of flour, fifteen pounds of sugar, ten pounds of butter, four dozen of eggs, one quart of wine, one quart of brandy, one ounce of nutmegs, three ounces each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, two pounds of citron, five pounds each of currants and raisins, and one quart of yeast. Frost it, and dress it with box and rose leaf."

It's now my favorite Fourth of July recipe (however, no one else in my family likes it). 

Still, you can try our modified recipe on the Sue's Diner page on the BryonySeries website.

But try the recipe this week. It will be gone some time next week. A new recipe will take it's place. 

If you have any troubleshooting questions or comments, email us at bryonyseries@gmail.com. 

Here is a non-Victorian version with sprinkles - because Timothy likes sprinkles, he said. I love the color combination.

Below that is a more traditional version.

By the way, Sue's Diner is only real in the BryonySeries world. But didn't Timothy do a great job making the page look like a real menu at a vintage diner?

Here is the full diner page: bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner.

All proceeds from "Memories in the Kitchen: Bites and Nibbles From 'Bryony'" benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Will and Grundy Counties at bbbswillgrundy.org

For more BryonySeries recipes, check out our three cookbooks at our bryonyseries.com/merchandise.

And scroll for more photos!

Sue's Diner: Independence Day Cake

This week's recipe is very patriotic to me and not just because it's mentioned in the fifth installment of Before The Blood. 

It's because I actually do like it. After I wrote the passage in italics, I, too, wanted to taste Independence Cake. So Timothy, and then Rebekah, modified the recipe for the modern kitchen. And it's actually really good!

Munsonville Inn would also sell a frosted loaf, popular in Thornton, known as Independence Cake, and Bryony longed to try this food from a land so far away.

 More than once, she and Susan read the advertisement in the window, boasting it was "flavored with wine and brandy," as well as "rich with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, mace, and citron," and "heavily speckled with currants and raisons."

Here is an actual nineteenth century recipe we found online:

"Twenty pounds of flour, fifteen pounds of sugar, ten pounds of butter, four dozen of eggs, one quart of wine, one quart of brandy, one ounce of nutmegs, three ounces each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, two pounds of citron, five pounds each of currants and raisins, and one quart of yeast. Frost it, and dress it with box and rose leaf."

It's now my favorite Fourth of July recipe (however, no one else in my family likes it). 

Still, you can try our modified recipe on the Sue's Diner page on the BryonySeries website.

But try the recipe this week. It will be gone some time next week. A new recipe will take it's place. 

If you have any troubleshooting questions or comments, email us at bryonyseries@gmail.com. 

Here is a non-Victorian version with sprinkles - because Timothy likes sprinkles, he said. I love the color combination.

Below that is a more traditional version.

By the way, Sue's Diner is only real in the BryonySeries world. But didn't Timothy do a great job making the page look like a real menu at a vintage diner?

Here is the full diner page: bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner.

And enjoy the photos!

All proceeds from "Memories in the Kitchen: Bites and Nibbles From 'Bryony'" benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Will and Grundy Counties at bbbswillgrundy.org.

Order the cookbook at bryonyseries.com.

Sue's Diner: Independence Day Cake

This week's recipe is very patriotic to me and not just because it's mentioned in the fifth installment of Before The Blood. 

It's because I actually do like it. After I wrote the passage in italics, I, too, wanted to taste Independence Cake. So Timothy, and then Rebekah, modified the recipe for the modern kitchen. And it's actually really good!

Munsonville Inn would also sell a frosted loaf, popular in Thornton, known as Independence Cake, and Bryony longed to try this food from a land so far away.

 More than once, she and Susan read the advertisement in the window, boasting it was "flavored with wine and brandy," as well as "rich with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, mace, and citron," and "heavily speckled with currants and raisons."

Here is an actual nineteenth century recipe we found online:

"Twenty pounds of flour, fifteen pounds of sugar, ten pounds of butter, four dozen of eggs, one quart of wine, one quart of brandy, one ounce of nutmegs, three ounces each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, two pounds of citron, five pounds each of currants and raisins, and one quart of yeast. Frost it, and dress it with box and rose leaf."

It's now my favorite Fourth of July recipe (however, no one else in my family likes it). 

Still, you can try our modified recipe on the Sue's Diner page on the BryonySeries website.

But try the recipe this week. It will be gone some time next week. A new recipe will take it's place. 

If you have any troubleshooting questions or comments, email us at bryonyseries@gmail.com. 

Here is a non-Victorian version with sprinkles - because Timothy likes sprinkles, he said. I love the color combination.

Below that is a more traditional version.

By the way, Sue's Diner is only real in the BryonySeries world. But didn't Timothy do a great job making the page look like a real menu at a vintage diner?

Here is the full diner page: bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner. You can't really order, of course (wouldn't it be great if you could?).

Sue's Diner: Independence Day Cake

This week's recipe was mentioned in the fifth installment of Before The Blood.

Munsonville Inn would also sell a frosted loaf, popular in Thornton, known as Independence Cake, and Bryony longed to try this food from a land so far away.

 More than once, she and Susan read the advertisement in the window, boasting it was "flavored with wine and brandy," as well as "rich with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, mace, and citron," and "heavily speckled with currants and raisons."

Here is an actual nineteenth century recipe we found online:

"Twenty pounds of flour, fifteen pounds of sugar, ten pounds of butter, four dozen of eggs, one quart of wine, one quart of brandy, one ounce of nutmegs, three ounces each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, two pounds of citron, five pounds each of currants and raisins, and one quart of yeast. Frost it, and dress it with box and rose leaf."

It's now my favorite Fourth of July recipe (however, no one else in my family likes it). 

Still, you can try our modified recipe on the Sue's Diner page on the BryonySeries website.

But try the recipe this week. It will be gone some time next week. A new recipe will take it's place. 

Here is a non-Victorian version with sprinkles - because Timothy likes sprinkles, he said. I love the color combination.

Below that is a more traditional version.

By the way, Sue's Diner is only real in the BryonySeries world. But didn't Timothy do a great job making the page look like a real menu at a vintage diner?

Here is the full diner page: bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner. You can't really order, of course (wouldn't it be great if you could?).

Sue's Diner: Independence Day Cake

 This week's recipe was mentioned in the fifth installment of Before The Blood.

Munsonville Inn would also sell a frosted loaf, popular in Thornton, known as Independence Cake, and Bryony longed to try this food from a land so far away.

 More than once, she and Susan read the advertisement in the window, boasting it was "flavored with wine and brandy," as well as "rich with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, mace, and citron," and "heavily speckled with currants and raisons."

Here is an actual nineteenth century recipe we found online:

"Twenty pounds of flour, fifteen pounds of sugar, ten pounds of butter, four dozen of eggs, one quart of wine, one quart of brandy, one ounce of nutmegs, three ounces each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, two pounds of citron, five pounds each of currants and raisins, and one quart of yeast. Frost it, and dress it with box and rose leaf."

It's now my favorite Fourth of July recipe (however, no one else in my family likes it). 

Still, you can try our modified recipe on the Sue's Diner page on the BryonySeries website.

But try the recipe this week. It will be gone some time next week. A new recipe will take it's place. 

Below is a more traditional version. Below that is a non-Victorian version with sprinkles - because Timothy likes sprinkles, he said. I love the color combination.

By the way, Sue's Diner is only real in the BryonySeries world. But didn't Timothy do a great job making the page look like a real menu at a vintage diner?

Here is the full diner page: bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner. You can't really order, of course (wouldn't it be great if you could?).

For more BryonySeries recipes, check out our three cookbooks at our BryonySeries bryonyseries.com/general-store.

Sue's Diner: Independence Day Cake

 This week's recipe was mentioned in the fifth installment of Before The Blood.

Munsonville Inn would also sell a frosted loaf, popular in Thornton, known as Independence Cake, and Bryony longed to try this food from a land so far away.

 More than once, she and Susan read the advertisement in the window, boasting it was "flavored with wine and brandy," as well as "rich with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, mace, and citron," and "heavily speckled with currants and raisons."

Here is an actual nineteenth century recipe we found online:

"Twenty pounds of flour, fifteen pounds of sugar, ten pounds of butter, four dozen of eggs, one quart of wine, one quart of brandy, one ounce of nutmegs, three ounces each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, two pounds of citron, five pounds each of currants and raisins, and one quart of yeast. Frost it, and dress it with box and rose leaf."

It's now my favorite Fourth of July recipe (however, no one else in my family likes it). 

With several of us getting COVID shots tomorrow, we probably won't be making it this year.

Still, you can try our modified recipe on the Sue's Diner page on the BryonySeries website.

But try the recipe this week. It will be gone some time next week. A new recipe will take it's place. 

Photos of the Independence Cake are from a previous year. This cake also freezes well.

By the way, Sue's Diner is only real in the BryonySeries world. But didn't Timothy do a great job making the page look like a real menu at a vintage diner?

Here is the full diner page: bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner. You can't really order, of course (wouldn't it be great if you could?).

This chicken salad and homemade crackers recipe also appears in the BryonySeries cookbook Memories in the Kitchen: Bites and Nibbles from "Bryony," which is a permanent fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Will and Grundy Counties.

For more BryonySeries recipes, check out our three cookbooks at our BryonySeries bryonyseries.com/general-store.

Our Two Traditional Fourth of July Desserts

For the Fourth of July, dessert is always a throwback to an earlier time.

One dessert is a throwback to an earlier time in our family's history.

The other is throwback to an earlier time in the world and the BryonySeries but relatively new in our family's history.

The first, ice cream pie, was invented by me nearly thirty years ago (should have patented it) when I was aimlessly walking up and down the aisles of a supermarket looking for ideas for a Father's Day dessert for my first husband.

He was a newly diagnosed diabetic, loved sweets, and now couldn't have them without getting very sick.

I wound up buying a chocolate crumb pie crust (six grams of carbohydrates per serving) and filling it with sugar-free caramel ice cream, and then topping with with ground pecans before refreezing.

He liked it, and it became a staple dessert for him throughout the years were were married. The kids, of course, wanted some, too, so we started making different variations, if only to keep them from sneaking slices of the sugar-free variety.

At some point, it became our traditional Fourth of July dessert, which Rebekah faithfully makes every year.

This year, she ground up chocolate sandwich cookies for the crust, filled it with a raspberry chocolate ice cream, and then grated unsweetened dark chocolate for the topping.

The second dessert is Independence Day cake, which Timothy and Rebekah modified from a 19th Century description of the cake, a treat Bryony Marseilles couldn't wait to try on the Fourth of July, 1892, in the fifth installment of Before the Blood.

Munsonville Inn would also sell a frosted loaf, popular in Thornton, known as Independence Cake, and Bryony longed to try this food from a land so far away.

More than once, she and Susan read the advertisement in the window, boasting it was "flavored with wine and brandy," as well as "rich with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, mace, and citron," and "heavily speckled with currants and raisins."

By the time I finished editing the book, I wanted to try Independence Cake, too. So, thanks to these adult kids, I did.

And now, Independence Cake is part of our Fourth of July celebrations, too.

Sue's Diner: Independence Day Cake

So several experiments and recipe modifications later (THANK YOU Rebekah and Timothy Baran), We now have all kinds of Independence Day cake sitting in our refrigerator.

I featured in the cake in Before the Blood last year. Since then, I've wanted to try it.

I found this recipe online: "Twenty pounds of flour, fifteen pounds of sugar, ten pounds of butter, four dozen of eggs, one quart of wine, one quart of brandy, one ounce of nutmegs, three ounces each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, two pounds of citron, five pounds each of currants and raisins, and one quart of yeast. Frost it, and dress it with box and rose leaf."

Obviously way more than I needed.

So Rebekah modified it. She substituted milk for the wine and brandy (because no one in the house drinks, we didn't want to waste the money on cake), used extra raisins instead of the currants, and lemon extract for the citron (close enough, and we already had the extract).

You can try out the recipe at https://www.bryonyseries.com/sue-s-diner. It is a heavy cake but good.

Here are some photos. What do you think?