A lot of my posts end up mentioning food and I have touched on baking before but this one is all about the cakes mums baked in the 1950s in Britain.
All the cakes in our house were baked by my mum. ‘Shop cake’ was a luxury and was reserved for when visitors came to the house. Every week, usually on a Friday or Saturday, Mum would bake enough cakes, buns, scones and tarts to last a week. I can still remember the difference in taste and texture between day old Victoria sponge and a slice which was five or six days old. But food wasn’t wasted in those post-war days! Dry scones could be split and toasted. Sponge cake which was too dry to be enjoyed was used in trifle. Stale fruit cake was used in one of my favourites – Cabinet Pudding.
In Britain in the 1950s, we hadn’t heard of chocolate brownies or cup cakes – we had chocolate cake and fairy cakes. The word gateau hadn’t yet arrived – we had cake or pudding. We had apple tarts rather than apple pies and flapjacks not muesli bars. Cakes never had any sort of cream in them. This was because few houses here at that time had fridges. Sponge cakes had jam or butter icing in the middle. For special occasions both! Sugar was sprinkled on the top. Chocolate cake had melted chocolate spread on top.
Here are some of the things commonly made at the time. The photos are mostly modern – not many people took photographs of their weekly baking session – and as always, come courtesy of the Internet. (If anyone objects to me using one of their pictures, get in touch and I will remove it.)
What happened to butterfly cakes? I haven’t seen one in years!
Rock buns and jam tarts – two of the first things I baked as a child.
Sponge cake, chocolate cake, scones and fruit cake – regularly baked by my mum.
Maids of Honour – a pastry base, some jam with a sponge topping and a Swiss roll.
Here are some baked treats we used to have for dessert – the always known as pudding. Fruit tart – apple, rhubarb, gooseberry, blackberry etc, depending on what was in season, lemon meringue pie, treacle tart and fruit crumble with one of the fruits I’ve just mentioned.
Childhood Memories of growing up in the 1950s and 1960s. 
Your mum must have a lot baking andi get the feeling that they were delicious cakes.
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They were lovely! We were a long way from any shops so she made everything herself.
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Oh, happy memories! I haven’t seen a butterfly cake in ages either. We called the little fairy cakes “queen cakes” – don’t ask me why.
I remember sponge cakes as always having raspberry jam and fresh whipped cream in them, and a dusting of icing sugar on top. They were a treat – mainly for birthday parties in our house. The rest of the cream would have been used on meringues, and also eaten with jelly and icecream – other birthday party favourites. The traditional Kiwi pudding is, of course, the pavlova. But like meringues, pretty hard work without an electric beater!
One of my favourite puddings was baked jam roll – I haven’t seen one in years. And another was a “self-saucing” chocolate pudding. It went into the oven looking like a chocolate cake, and came out spongy with a crust, sitting in its own chocolate sauce.
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I love it when readers respond with their own memories! The jam roll pudding is one we knew as Jam Roly Poly and we always had it with custard. The chocolate one sounds delicious.
Meryl
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We mostly had pies…lemon, apple ,pumpkin and cakes on birthdays.. You had more variety…yummy looking… Diane
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A total nostalgia hit! My mother (teacher, 6 children) baked large quantities for a large family, and super-fast. Nothing fancy, all delicious. My mother-in-law (two children, home dressmaker) astonished me by baking items with triple layers and triple processes, like Louise cakes.
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Thanks for commenting! You’ve summed up exactly what I was trying to say about baking in those days – nothing fancy, all delicious.
Meryl
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For some reason I remember “Queen Cakes” as wee sponge cakes with either currants or sultanas folded through the batter, then into the paper cases..
I’m hoping you know the answer..
However…. this could just be down to what my Mum used to call them, hence.. I have done so too! Great reading that stirs the memories.. 😊🏴
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Sorry, I meant to include that my sister thinks they are called fairy cakes, this was the very reason that prompted me to ask question re Queen Cakes!
Just having one of those mornings!! 😊🏴
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My original question re Queen Cakes has somehow disappeared.
I’m not that great tech wise..
Anyway, I always call the wee sponge cakes in the paper cases with currants or sultanas folded through the batter “Queen Cakes”
They are plain on top, not decorated in any way.. My sister thought they are fairy cakes.. If she is correct then I don’t know how on earth I’ve called them Queen Cakes all my life.. and I’ll be 70 in November… Thanks for the nostalgia . 😊🏴
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My memory of Queen cakes is small sponge cakes in paper cases with some currants in. Fairy cakes were the same sort of cake with no currants but some icing on top and sometimes sprinkles we knew as hundreds and thousands. Very popular at kids’ birthday parties. Thanks for reading my blog!
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