I was trying to find something (anything) about this recipe fpr a Hawaiian Party Cake and there isn’t that much out there. I can find all sorts of cake decorating tips and tricks but only two websites with this style of cake. Is it authentic? Doubtful. I have a feeling that it came about as part of the Hawaii is an exotic place so add some pineapples. (Fun fact- most pineapples now come out of the Philippines, not Hawaii).
Salt pork is salt-cured pork. It is usually prepared from pork belly, or, more rarely, fastback. Salt pork typically resembles uncut side bacon, but is fattier, being made from the lowest part of the belly, saltier, as the cure is stronger and performed for longer, and never smoked.
Along with hardtack, salt pork was a standard ration for many militaries and navies throughout the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, seeing usage in the American Civil War, War of 1812, and the Napoleonic Wars, among others. Salt pork now finds use in traditional American cuisine, particularly Boston baked beans, pork, and beans, and to add its flavor to vegetables cooked in water, as with greens in soul food. It is also central to the flavoring of clam chowder. It generally is cut and cooked (blanched or rendered) before use.
Salt pork that contains a significant amount of meat, resembling standard side bacon, is known as “streak o’ lean”. It is traditionally popular in the Southeastern United States. As a stand-alone food product, it is typically boiled to remove much of the salt content and to partially cook the product, then fried until it starts to develop a crisp exterior. It may be eaten as one would eat bacon or used to season other dishes like traditional salt pork.
Have you ever had one of those days when you decide to Google a recipe before posting and the results come up with a slightly different name (in this case the majority of recipes are called Bienenstich) and is *just* different enough (Bienenstich aka German Bee Cake is apparently a yeast-based cake while this recipe uses baking powder).
I am going to be honest here- I have never heard of the Italian Love Cake until I found this recipe card in a random recipe box that I found at Amvets. Should we tell Candy Rinaldo that the card she so nicely wrote out ended up at the thrift? I did find some random websites that claimed that this cake was “made famous” by Mario Batali but this card appears to date before he made it famous. Who knows. It does look super-rich and sweet though.
The name of this recipe is so misleading- I expected for it to be an “ice cream cake”, not a chocolate cake with ice cream. This recipe can be tailored to your needs so easily. Want regular chocolate cake? Buy that mix. Need to go gluten-free? There is a mix for that. You can even make your own from scratch (see a list of cake recipes at the bottom of this post)
