There’s a long tradition of baking and eating cake in the U.S. Navy. In our newest exhibition, Navy Cakes: A Slice of History, we explore the delicious treats prepared onboard Intrepid and Growler and showcase the hard work of the sailors who created them.
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Preparing a cake on board an aircraft carrier or a submarine isn’t quite the same as baking one at home. The men responsible for creating these desserts had to scale recipes to feed entire crews and gather hundreds of pounds of ingredients all while working in tight quarters. See just how much work went into producing of one of these cakes here.
Want to experience the Navy cake served aboard Intrepid but don’t have an entire aircraft carrier to feed? Here is a scaled down recipe of the Navy’s easy chocolate cake recipe, scaled down to fit in a 9 x 13 inch pan (23 x 33 cm). Bon appétit!
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| Chocolate Cake for 25 People |
| Ingredient |
Weight
|
Measure |
Metric |
| Flour |
1 pound 1 1/2 ounces
|
5 cups |
7.9 kg |
| Sugar |
1 pound 1 ounces
|
2 1/2 cups |
7.7 kg |
| Cocoa |
1 3/4 ounces
|
7 tbsp |
50 g |
| Baking Soda |
1/2 ounces
|
1 tbsp |
14 g |
| Salt |
|
1 1/8 tsp (1 tsp, 1 pinch) |
6.2 g |
| Salad Oil (Vegetable Oil) |
|
1 cup |
237 mL |
| Vinegar |
|
3 tbsp |
44 mL |
| Vanilla |
|
2 1/4 tsp |
11 mL |
| Water |
|
2 1/2 cups |
591 mL |
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Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
2. Sift together dry ingredients in the bowl of a mixer.
3. Make three wells in dry ingredients. Into one well, pour salad oil. Into second well, pour vinegar. Into third well, pour vanilla.
4. Pour cold water over all ingredients in mixer bowl. 5. Mix, on low speed, until all ingredients are thoroughly blended.
6. Pour batter into a greased 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 cm) baking pan.
7. Bake at 350°F (177°C) for 55 to 65 minutes.
Visit Navy Cakes: A Slice of History, now open to the public.
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