Entertaining with THE CHARLESTON SILVER LADY DAWN CORLEY CharlestonSilverLady@hotmail.com

Ivividly remember homemade layer cake resting on my grandmother’s glass candlewick-pattern, pedestal cake stand, with matching cake plates.

It was always a special treat when the silver cake knife and cake forks would come out. These, along with linen napkins, cut glass iced tea glasses and pitcher, set the scene for what was usually chocolate cake.

I can recall the smell of the cake as it baked, filling the house with the wonderful aroma of perfectly mixed ingredients. I remember watching as the flour and cocoa were sifted together, falling like snow into the pottery mixing bowl that held all of the ingredients needed to make three layers.

I watched as the butter and powdered sugar were mixed with cocoa and vanilla whipped into a soft mountain of delectable icing.

Cake stands are useful for their original purpose but can also be used in many other ways. They are a great centerpiece when stacked atop each other, larger ones on the bottom and covered with seasonal items such as pumpkins, candy canes or oranges spiked with cloves. Mixing silver and glass cake stands is a beautiful, colorless base that will allow your decorative additions to be featured to their best advantage.

I encourage you to take the time to make a special chocolate cake for your own loved ones. Whether for the holidays, as a special gift for an ailing friend, to celebrate a birthday or to offer as a condolence, not many things are as universally appealing as a homemade chocolate cake.

The recipe I am sharing comes from Mrs. Mae Lindler and was found in an old church cookbook. As I had lost my own family recipe, I was looking for one that might be close. This recipe is incredible—the best cake I have ever eaten.

Mrs. Mae Lindler’s Chocolate Cake

1/2 cup shortening 2 cups sugar 2 eggs 1 tsp. vanilla 2 ½ cups sifted flour 2 tsp.baking soda 1/4 tsp. baking powder 1 cup condensed milk pinch of salt 6 Tbsp. cocoa powder 1 cup hot water

Cream shortening and sugar, add eggs, Mix well. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder. Add 1 cup condensed milk.

Boil one cup of hot water dissolving cocoa powder in it. Add pinch salt. Add to batter. Mix well.

Divide between 3 cake pans which you have greased and floured...this is IMPORTANT as this is a very moist cake and it will stick if you don’t. Bake at 350º until done, 15-19 minutes. Cool on racks in pans before removing to cool completely.

ICING: I make a double recipe of this as I like to use a lot of icing for a deluxe presentation.

2½ cups powdered sugar, sifted 4 Tbsp. salted butter,softened 1 tsp. vanilla 2-4 Tbsp. cocoa, depending on how “chocolatety” you want it to taste. 1 small carton of whipping cream

Combine the sugar and cocoa. Mix in butter, vanilla. Add the whipping cream slowly until you get the smoothness needed for the icing to spread easily. Adding more cream makes the icing softer.

After the cakes have cooled, place a layer on your serving plate or cake stand. Add approximately 1 cup of icing between each layer using the remaining icing to cover the exterior of the cake.

This cake will be gone fast! My husband says Mrs. Lindler “could make dirt taste good.”