Cake Day

Cake on a cake stand. Eneida Nieves / Pexels / 2018 / CC0 1.0

The 26th of November is Cake Day.

In some years, this will also be Thanksgiving Day, so you get to celebrate two delicious holidays at once, and maybe set a new tradition with Thanksgiving cake instead of pie.

Do you prefer homemade cake, or one from a patisserie made by a professional pastry chef?

Some stores and bakeries may run discounts, special offers or promotions today, such as a free slice of cake with another purchase.

Sometimes the line between cake and sweetened breads can be a very fine one, especially when the sweetened breads start to be laden with fruit. In the past, cakes could be very similar to sweetened breads until cake tins came along. Cake tins, a relatively modern invention in culinary history, have dramatically impacted the evolution of cakes by enabling cooks to play with chemistry and physics in elaborate, risen cakes.

There are now many categories of cake. Fancy ones in English are called tortes or gateaux.

Do you like a simple cake, or a decadent one? Do you prefer your cake frosted or unfrosted? And speaking of which, do you ice a cake, or do you frost a cake?

It’s fashionable to disparage cake mixes, but in fact, they actually make very good cake, and it’s very, very hard for non-professional bakers to turn out scratch cakes as consistently good as mix cakes.

Today could be a good day to revisit a classic cake such as Angel Food Cake, Black Forest, Carrot Cake, Devil’s Food Cake, Pineapple Upside-Down Cake, Pound Cake, Red Velvet…. when is the last time you had any of those?

What is your favourite side to go with cake? Ice cream, whipped cream, custard sauce, a sweet warm sauce, fresh fruit…

#CakeDay #NationalCakeDay

Activities for today

Try making a scratch cake; or
make a cake from a mix;
have some ice cream cake;
have cake for breakfast!
treat yourself to a slice of a classic type of cake you haven’t had for a long time;
try a slice of a cake you’ve never had before;
have friends round for cake;
go shopping for cake tins;
Christmas is just around the corner — have you got your fruit for your Christmas cake yet?

History

The first print mention that CooksInfo is aware of for a Cake Day in November dates from 2002 in California:

“Nov. 26: National Cake Day. What flavor is a national cake?” — November is National Month Month. San Francisco, California: The San Francisco Examiner. Tuesday, 5 November 2002. Page 21 A, col. 4.

Cake and a cake slice on a plate. Kim van Vuuren / Pexels / 2016 / CC0 1.0

Sources

11 Ways to Celebrate National Cake Day. Egg Farmers of Ontario. 2 November 2020. Accessed October 2021 at https://www.getcracking.ca/recipes/article/national-cake-day

Celebrating National Cake Day at the Hotel Hershey. Hershey, PA: The Hershey Company. Accessed October 2021 at https://stories.hersheypa.com/celebrating-national-cake-day-at-the-hotel-hershey/

It’s National Cake Day! New Haven, Connecticut: WTNH-TV. 26 November 2018. Accessed October 2021 at https://www.wtnh.com/news/national/it-s-national-cake-day-/1618857613

Maheny, Brittany. Four ways to celebrate National Cake Day. Toronto, Canada: The Toronto Star. 26 November 2015. Accessed October 2021 at https://www.thestar.com/life/food_wine/2015/11/26/four-ways-to-celebrate-national-cake-day.html

Morris, Seren. National Cake Day Deals from Baked by Melissa, Susie Cakes and More. Newsweek Magazine. 26 November 2020. Accessed October 2020 at https://www.newsweek.com/national-cake-day-deals-baked-melissa-susie-cakes-1548726

Politowicz, Terry Ann. Let them (and us) eat cake for National Cake Day! New Jersey, U.S. : NJ Advance Media. 26 November 2018. Accessed October 2021 at https://www.nj.com/cooking/2018/11/let_them_er_us_eat_cake_for_national_cake_day.html