Rough & Ready Bakes

Old and lost recipes

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Chocolate Tart Recipe from 1787

on October 06, 2026

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Rough & Ready Bakes: Learning to bake by hunting through old newspapers, vintage cookbooks, and forgotten recipe clippings to rediscover baked goods of the past.

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Mahogany Cake recipe from 1916

I discovered this soft, moist mahogany cake in Mary Jane's Cook Book published in 1916.

Chocolate Molasses Cake recipe from 1941

This Chocolate Molasses Cake recipe is from a newspaper dated June 9, 1941*. It’s rich and very moist, with a fudgy molasses flavour. It can be enjoyed topped with whipped cream, icing sugar, or served plain.

German Chocolate Cake recipe from 1958

This German Chocolate Cake recipe appeared in the Jackson Advocate on May 10, 1958.

Ginger Sponge Recipe from 1932

This ginger cake is a surprisingly light cake that has an almost sticky texture and boasts a warm hit of ginger. It recipe appeared in ‘The Commonsense Cookery Book’ — Complied by The Public School Cookery Teachers’ Association of New South Wales — Published in 1932*.

Fudge Cake recipe from 1936

This rich, chocolaty Fudge Cake recipe was discovered in a newspaper dated April 25, 1936. The cake is vintage, but the icing is a modern take on a classic fudge cake frosting. The extra little kick from the espresso powder and the Dutch-processed cocoa powder makes for the perfect blend of new and old.

Erimine Frosting recipe from 1961

Ermine frosting is an old-fashioned frosting that used to be the traditional frosting for red velvet cakes before cream cheese frosting staked its claim. Sometimes referred to as "flour buttercream" or "boiled milk frosting", ermine is smooth, fluffy, and perfect for rich cakes like chocolate, red velvet, or golden vanilla cakes. It's the preferred icing anyone who finds modern buttercream frostings too sweet.