For the Love of Dirt: FOR the LOVE of TEA...."Caraway Seed Cake"

Saturday, June 14, 2025

FOR the LOVE of TEA...."Caraway Seed Cake"

"I must drink lots of tea or I cannot work. Tea unleashes the potential that slumbers in the depths of my soul.." - Leo Tolstoy

CARAWAY SEED TEA CAKE (grandmother's recipe)

This cake was also the favourite of William Wordsworth(the poet), and, apparently, his sister, Dorothy. It first appeared in the 1700's quickly becoming a staple for tea in later years. Largely forgotten these days; plain cake, kind of like a fragrant pound cake.

"Afternoon tea should be provided, with thin bread and butter, fancy pastries, Cake......." - Isabella Beeton "Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management" (1861)

Pinch salt 2 ½ cups flour

¾ cup butter 3 tsp baking powder

1 ¼ cups sugar ½ cup citron peel (optional)

½ cup milk ¼ cup grated orange peel

Dash almond extract 1 Tbsp caraway seeds

Dash vanilla extract

Beat all ingredients together, quite vigorously . Don't be shy to mix it really well....

(The Caraway seed name come from the Arabic" al-karwiya", and dates back to Egypt and Mesopotamia where caraway seeds were used to calm the digestive system.)

When you feel it is smooth, plop batter into a greased, parchment lined loaf tin.

"A party without cake, is just a meeting.." -Julia Childs

Bake at 320 degrees for about an hour.

Check with a sharp knife to see if it is done.

Long ago, this cake was made to celebrate the end of the planting of spring wheat in the fields. My mother used to make this all the time, and we'd sit on the back steps with tea and warm slices of this cake.

" 'But I don't mind some seed cake if you have any!' (Balin) "Lots!" said Bilbo, scuttling off to the pantry to find two beautiful round seed cakes which he had baked...." -Tolkien ( The Hobbit)