Emily Dickinson is recognized as one of the greatest poets that ever lived, yet her life remains a mystery. Emily lived from 1830-1886. She spent nearly her entire life in Amherst, Massachusetts. She wrote hundreds of poems and letters exploring themes of death, faith, emotions, and truth. 

As she got older, she became reclusive and eccentric, and parts of her life are still mysteries. Although Dickinson spent most of her adult life isolated from the world, she maintained close relationships with her brother and sister. Her brother, Austin, with his wife and three children, lived next door to her in The Evergreens property. Dickinson was close friends with Austin’s wife, Susan, regularly exchanging letters with her sister-in-law. And Dickinson's sister, Lavinia, also a spinster, lived with her at the Dickinsons’ family home. 

Throughout her life, Dickinson was a major gardener. She grew hundreds of flowers on her family’s property, planted vegetables, and cared for apple, cherry, and pear trees. She also oversaw the family’s greenhouse, which contained jasmine, gardenias, carnations, and ferns, and she often referred to plants in her poetry. Poetry and gardening weren’t Emily Dickinson’s only talents. She was also an incredibly talented baker who boasted that hers was the only bread her father would eat. 

The mega black cake recipe, shared this week, sized for gift giving, is a modern adaptation of one created by Emily Dickinson. The 19th-century poet learned to cook with her mother's guidance, it is said and came to be quite good at it. The fruits used here are natural, and the brandy syrup gives the fruitcake a moist, mellow kick. The brandy can be a Cognac-type by itself or a combination of flavors, including amaretto or hazelnut liqueur. Your taste buds can guide you here. This makes about 20 cups of batter. An average loaf pan holds between four and five cups of batter so that this recipe will make about four large loaf cakes, or five or six 9-inch rounds. Or, in a 12-by-2-inch round pan, perhaps two. Or one large 13-by-18-by-2 1/2-inch pan. You get the idea; you can bake it in any size and shape.

Emily seems to have been most at home in the kitchen, as evidenced by letters and documents from her family estate. She took great pride in making delicate cakes, cookies, and candies, both for her family and as gifts for friends. Emily found the kitchen to be a creatively nourishing place, where inspiration would strike at a moment’s notice. Often, she would draft poems on wrappers and other kitchen papers. Her poem, “The Things That Can Never Come Back, was first composed on the back of a friend’s recipe for Coconut Cake. 

Emily especially loved to bake and was quite accomplished in the art of making bread and desserts. Her Rye and Indian round bread won second prize at the 1856 Amherst Cattle Show (to be fair, her younger sister Lavinia was one of the judges). When the Dickinson family’s housekeeper quit, Emily took it upon herself to bake the family’s daily bread. She kept up the responsibility, even after a replacement was hired because her father preferred the flavor of her bread to all others. Emily was also known for standing at her window and lowering baskets of treats to the neighborhood children, like cakes and gingerbread. In fact, in her lifetime she may have been better known for her baked goods than her poetry. Emily’s poetic talent was not fully recognized till after her death.

Contact Ashley at ashley@tippgazette.com.

 

Emily Dickinson’s Coconut Cake 

INGREDIENTS

2 cups flour

1 tsp cream of tartar + 1/2 tsp baking soda OR 1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

2 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

1 cup shredded coconut

 

DIRECTIONS

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl sift together the flour and cream of tartar + baking soda OR baking powder. Use your antique sifter to get in the "Emily Dickinson" mood. 

In a medium mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together till the mixture is light and fluffy, and the sugar is well incorporated into the butter. Try it by hand, the old fashioned way, like Emily Dickinson would have. But you can do it much faster with an electric mixer.

Mix in the eggs, then the milk.

Add liquid ingredients to dry and stir till just incorporated. A thick batter will form. Do not overmix.

Fold in the shredded coconut. If your shredded coconut is dry (not fresh), rehydrate it with a little warm water and drain well before mixing it into the batter. Again, don't overmix.

Spread the batter into a small loaf pan.

Bake the cake for 50-60 minutes on the middle rack of your oven till cooked through and golden brown around the edges. Test with a skewer or toothpick for doneness in a few places, if the toothpick comes out clean (no wet batter sticking to it), it's done.

The cake is not overly sweet. If you want to sweeten it up, use a bit more sugar, or use sweetened coconut instead of regular coconut. Enjoy!

 

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Emily Dickinson’s Black Cake

SERVINGS: 60

Yield: (makes 4 large loaf cakes or 5 or 6 nine-inch rounds)

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE SYRUP

·         3 cups sugar

·         2 cups water

·         1 cup brandy, or more as needed

FOR THE FRUIT

·         1 3/4 pounds raisins

·         8 ounces dried currants

·         8 ounces dried apricots, cut into pieces the size of raisins

·         8 ounces pitted dried prunes, cut into pieces the size of raisins

·         2 ounces dried pears, cut into pieces the size of raisins

·         4 ounces pitted dates, cut into pieces the size of raisins

·         1/2 cup brandy

FOR THE CAKE

·         3 1/4 cups unbleached flour

·         4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

·         1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

·         1 1/2 teaspoons salt

·         1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

·         1 1/4 teaspoons ground cloves

·         1 1/4 teaspoons ground mace

·         1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg

·         1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

·         1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

·         48 tablespoons (6 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

·         3 cups sugar

·         13 large eggs, at room temperature

·         1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

·         3/4 cup molasses

 

DIRECTIONS

For the syrup: Combine the sugar and water in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat; cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Let cool, then transfer to a lidded container. Stir in the cup of brandy, or more (to your taste). Cover and refrigerate.

For the fruit: Toss together the raisins, currants, apricots, prunes, pears and dates with 1/2 cup brandy in a large bowl, until evenly moistened. Let stand for at least 1 hour, and preferably overnight.

For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the pans with cooking oil spray, then line them with parchment paper.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, mace, nutmeg, cardamom and ginger in a mixing bowl.

Beat the butter in the very large bowl (5-quart) of a stand mixer on medium speed, until creamy. Gradually add the sugar, beating until the mixture is light in color and texture. Add the eggs 3 at a time (adding 4 in the last addition), beating well each time, and stopping to scrape down the bowl, as needed. On medium speed, add the vanilla extract and pour in the molasses. The batter may look curdled, but that's okay.

Transfer to a very large mixing bowl. Gradually add the flour mixture, stirring with a wooden spoon just until no trace of dry ingredients remains.

Drain the macerating fruit, reserving its liquid. Fold the fruit into the batter, taking care not to over-mix. If the batter becomes to stiff to stir, feel free to use your clean hands as mixing tools.

Divide among batter the pans, filling each one about two-thirds full. Smooth the tops. Bake until the top of the cakes are firm to the touch at the center. (Nine-inch rounds will take 30 to 35 minutes; check doneness often). The cakes will be very dark on top and slightly sunken. Let the cake cool in the pans.

Use a skewer to poke holes in the cake at 1-inch intervals. Add the reserved macerating liquid to your brandy syrup. Begin brushing or pouring the brandy syrup evenly over each cake, allowing a few minutes' soaking-in time before applying more. If the cakes seem moist enough, it might not be necessary to use all the syrup.

Wrap the cakes (in their pans) well in plastic wrap, or slide each one into its own large zip-top bag. Let stand for at least 1 hour in a cool place, and preferably up to a day or two before serving.

When ready to serve, run a round-edged knife around the edges of the cakes to loosen them from the sides of the pans. Invert onto a serving platter and discard the parchment paper before slicing.