Historical background of cake with condensed milk. The most legendary cakes of the Soviet Union

Any festive celebration is impossible without a culinary masterpiece - a cake. Confectioners offer options for every taste, for the originals even options for a sweet present with a photo of the hero of the occasion are offered.

It is difficult to state where and by whom exactly the cake was invented. Some historians suggest that the prototype of the cake originated in Italy. According to linguists, translation from Italian, implies the word cake as something intricate, which is associated with a lot of decorations from ornaments, flower arrangements and inscriptions. For many, it doesn't matter. The main thing is that with the help of the Internet you can cook delicious desserts yourself by learning about cooking. pancake cake With curd cream and others, no less appetizing confectionery.

There is another theory of the origin of cakes. delicious oriental sweets always popular. Adherents of this trend found out that in ancient times this mysterious part of the world was popular for creating desserts based on honey, fresh milk and sesame seeds. The shape of these products is similar to modern cakes.

To date, in the world of dessert, France has become a trendsetter. In the cafes and coffee houses there, a cake appeared that conquered the whole world. For many centuries, French confectioners and culinary experts have dictated trends in terms of decorating and serving a sweet masterpiece. From this romantic land went famous titles desserts - caramel, cream, meringue, biscuit and jelly.

Regardless of who first invented the cake, each country has its own recipes and traditional features baking this dish. Cooking cakes is associated with curiosities and curious facts, some of which bothered the Guinness Book of Records.

Yes, the most tall cake Made in USA (Michigan). culinary product consisted of hundreds of tiers and rose above the table by more than 30 m. In the state of Alabama, USA, the heaviest cake was baked, with a total weight of more than 50 tons. One of the main parts of this masterpiece was ice cream, the shape resembled a representation of the state.

Peruvian culinary specialists are known for the longest cake, which was 246 m long and decorated with candied fruit and cream roses. This dish was divided into 50 thousand pieces and distributed to all the children of Peru who celebrated their birthday during this period.

Most a big cake in Russia was made on the birthday of the famous Moscow department store - GUM. The product was decorated with a large number of marzipans and jam. Invited experts recorded a height of 3 m and a weight of 3 tons.

In the days of Rus', there was no definition of a cake. They baked a wedding loaf, but it was not a full-fledged cake, but only a beautiful and festive cake.

The variety of desserts allows you to choose any to your taste, cook it yourself for the holiday or to pamper loved ones.

The history of cakes began more than two thousand years ago, and today not a single celebration takes place without this delicacy. Wedding for anniversaries, but, most importantly - for children's parties. Not a single child can imagine his birthday without a cake, blowing out candles, which are necessarily located in this delicacy. Historians are still arguing about the origin of the first cakes. We offer today to get acquainted with the assumptions of scientists, with the types of jewelry, and with the history of the most popular desserts.

The history of the origin of cakes

Today, no one can definitely name the country in which this delicacy first appeared. Each part of the world is famous for its culinary masterpieces, and people have always treated sweets with special trepidation. There is an assumption that the first cakes appeared thanks to gourmets of the East, and these were well-known oriental sweets that are made from honey, milk and sesame seeds. Many centuries ago, their shape resembled exactly those cakes and pastries that are known now. Their taste and aroma could drive even the most capricious gourmet crazy.

Others argue with this opinion, and present the history of the origin of cakes from their point of view. They say that the word itself has Italian roots, and in translation it means something refined, ornate, beautiful. Linguists associate this meaning of the word with cake decorations in the form of numerous flowers, ornaments and inscriptions.

But, one cannot but agree with the opinion that France is a trendsetter for desserts. It is on the territory of this country that there is a huge number of coffee houses where you can taste delicious dessert. Perhaps the French chefs and confectioners once prepared the first cake. It was from France that many recipes came to most countries, which are still popular today. There are many dishes in Russia that are considered native Russian, but they were once prepared by French chefs working for wealthy Russian families.

Russian desserts

If you look at the cuisine of Russia, which was several centuries ago, you can be surprised to note that we did not have such a variety of dishes that exists now. We drew on the experience of foreign chefs, modernized, and compiled our own recipes based on the knowledge gained. The same goes for sweet desserts. The history of cakes in Russia began with the preparation of loaves for weddings. These were not full-fledged cakes, but they were still baked for the occasion, and were the most delicious and elegant of all types of pies. The loaf for the bride has always had a round shape, which symbolized the sun, which means fertility, prosperity and health. They decorated the cake with curlicues, patterns, and figurines of the "bride and groom" were placed in the center.

record holders

Telling the story of cakes, you don't want to miss the moments when you got on the pages of the Guinness Book of Records.

The heaviest cake was baked by American chefs in Alabama. The giant weighed more than fifty tons, had many layers, one of the main ingredients was ice cream. The form of the culinary miracle was unusual - the state was depicted as it is on the map.

In the United States, they also prepared a record holder for growth. This cake was made by chefs from Michigan. The cake towered thirty meters above the table, consisted of a hundred layers.

In Peru, they managed to create a dessert that was 246 meters long. And this masterpiece became the longest cake in history. After it was put on public display, it was cut into small pieces and treated to the children of Peru, who celebrated their birthday this month.

Russia also managed to show off its talent, and the chefs were able to prepare the biggest birthday cake for GUM, Moscow's most famous department store. The giant was three meters high and weighed three tons.

Tiered cakes

But how could desserts of this size be made if not for the many layers? The story began in London, from there the recipe came to America, and from the USA to Russia. Historians claim that the many layers made it possible to create huge desserts for celebrations where a huge number of people gathered. They were brought into the hall on special carts, which further emphasized the moment of solemnity. Soon these culinary delights began to enjoy great popularity. Delicacies, consisting of several layers, are made for various celebrations, and decorate them in different ways. What cakes are the most in demand?

Cream

From the cream you can create real masterpieces. By the way, cream cakes were first made in France, because the confectioners of this country were able to create meringue, protein cream, creme brulee, caramel and other delicious fillings. For the first time, they began to use cream to decorate all kinds of cakes. Today, France dictates the fashion for the design of cakes, and their larger brothers.

chocolate petals

Cream cakes can be decorated with just grated chocolate, or you can create unique details. For example, more and more housewives, baking cakes on their own, decorate them with chocolate petals. You don't need to be a master to make them. You just need to melt a bar of chocolate in a water bath, dip real rose petals or other leaves you like into it. After hardening, the chocolate will well move away from the sheet, it will ideally repeat the shape and have all the veins.

Glaze

This is exactly the ingredient that in most cases was used to decorate cakes before the advent of creams. You can leave it white, and the dessert will look very delicate, ideal for a wedding. But if you decide to make a cake for a child, then you should make it festive, colorful. Can be used food colorings or you can make them yourself. Orange juice recolor the icing yellow, beets - in pink. At the same time, the taste of the glaze will change, it will become even tastier and healthier. And to make it easier to work with the glaze, and it lay more evenly on the cakes, you need to add softened butter to it.

A little trick

If you want the cake to retain its beauty after cutting, all kinds of roses and petals do not break, the pattern does not crack, you can first cut the cake and then decorate it. Before taking out the treats to the hall, put the pieces together, and you get a full-fledged dish.

If you don't have a special piping gun and want to create creamy roses or chocolate ruffles, use a regular one. plastic bag, place cream or melted chocolate in it. Before decorating, cut off a corner, and work.

Now it remains to choose a recipe. We offer to consider the history of cakes that conquered the whole world with their taste. Perhaps you will choose just one of them.

The history of the biscuit cake

Surely today there is not a single person left who has not tried a biscuit at least once. From it create cakes, pastries, rolls, cookies. Biscuit is ideally combined with all known creams, is a favorite delicacy of children. Served at five o'clock in the evening a cup of tea with a biscuit cake is a symbol of the English tea party. It was from England that the biscuit came to France, and from France it spread throughout the world. But where did it all start?

The word "biscuit" is French and means "twice baked". But it appeared in England, and this should not bother anyone, because in the Middle Ages the English spoke French better than their native language, and this was due to fashion. So, back to the biscuit. It appeared a very, very long time ago, no one can exactly name the date of its origin, because this delicacy was originally the main food on long-distance ships, and only sailors ate a biscuit. Why a biscuit? Yes, because butter is not added to the dough for it, and this is protection against the appearance of mold on the product, which was almost the main culprit of food spoilage for sailors. Going on a long journey by sea or around the world, which often happened in the Middle Ages, and was associated with the study of the world, all team members knew what to eat long time. This happened until the court of Queen Elizabeth decided to try the food of the sailors. He was amazed by the taste of the biscuit, and from that time the delicacy began to fall on the tables of the nobility. Soon the biscuit ceased to be food ordinary people, and the recipe for its preparation quickly diverged around the world.

In the seventeenth century, the recipe came to France, and from there to other countries. From the biscuit began to create cakes and pastries immediately after the expansion of the colonies of England.

Franz Sacher and the Austrian king

It was these people who became the founders of the history of the Sacher chocolate cake, which is now familiar to almost everyone. The recipe for its preparation is so simple, and the delicacy is so impressive with its palatability that this dessert is as popular as new types of cakes.

"Sacher" was first served at the table of the King of Austria. And this thing happened like this: the prince was supposed to receive guests, and told his cooks that this evening should be served unique dish which no one has ever tried before. The chefs were frightened, because the chief baker of the palace was very ill that day, and could not help. Only the young Franz Sacher decided to try his luck, and was not afraid of the possible wrath of the king. He baked the cakes, adding chocolate to them, and prepared the icing - also on chocolate base. The cake turned out to be completely chocolate, fragrant, and orange jam became a special highlight of the masterpiece.

Did the cake become famous because of the chef, or did the chef become famous because of his chocolate creation? It does not matter, because since then "Sacher" has become a favorite delicacy not only of the Austrian king, but also of many people around the world. Today, even the most sophisticated sweet tooth will give preference to "Sacher", choosing from a variety of sweet desserts.

"Napoleon"

There are several hypotheses about the origin of this delicacy. The first story of the Napoleon cake claims that it was prepared in Naples, which is why it bears such a name. But we tend to trust the second version, thanks to which the cake is considered a symbol of the victory of Russian troops over the mighty Napoleon.

The history of the Napoleon cake is as follows: the celebration of the centennial anniversary of the defeat of the Napoleonic army near Moscow was approaching. Were invited to compose the menu best chefs. The most famous people worked on the cake recipe famous confectioners serving in the homes of noble people. As a result, the "Napoleon" was baked, consisting of many cakes soaked in the most delicate cream. The shape was given a triangular one, so that associations with the famous Napoleonic cocked hat appeared. However, after the revolution, the masterpiece turned into an easy-to-prepare snack served in cheap taverns. His appearance became careless, and many housewives, when baking a cake, tried to cut it into pieces away from the eyes of the guests.

Now "Napoleon" is considered an ordinary cake, which is easy to prepare for home tea drinking. Each family has its own recipe for how to cook a delicious, tender "Napoleon".

This is such a complicated story of cakes. Today it seems to us that it is easy to bake them, but once the best minds worked on the recipes!

The cake belongs to those dishes, the age of which is not exactly known. Historians, with the support of linguists, believe that the first cakes appeared about 2000 years ago in Italy, since the word "cake" in Italian means something ornate, intricate and richly decorated, and was originally translated as "cake".

But there is a version that cakes could not appear anywhere else, except in Greece - on its territory, pies decorated with drawings and applications from ground and boiled grains were found. Others believe that only in the East, with their sweets known at all times, could there be complicated recipes cakes. Others adhere to a different theory of the origin of cakes. Everyone knows delicious sweets East, which can make even a sophisticated gourmet bow before their exquisite taste and captivating aroma. The followers of this idea found out that the ancient culinary specialists of the most mysterious part of the world prepared desserts using milk, honey and sesame seeds. Yes, and in shape they resembled those cakes that we used to see on our tables.
But be that as it may, today France is considered the trendsetter in the world of cakes, although not French, but German, Austrian and Russian cakes are widely known. It was French chefs and confectioners who for many centuries dictated the trends in serving and decorating this sweet masterpiece. It was in France that something appeared, without which modern cakes would be impossible - meringue, cream, caramel, jelly and biscuit. Cake recipes became more complicated all the time, as did baking dishes - earlier cakes were baked in ordinary pans, then the first round forms without a bottom appeared. The next discovery that served cakes well was the use of soda in baking, and later the invention of baking powder. And also there were mixers, blenders and others kitchen utensils, facilitating the mixing of ingredients and baking cakes.

french dessert

In Russia, the concept of cake for a long time did not exist, but there were wedding loaves - the most festive and elegant pies. Such loaves were called "bride's pies". "Bride's Pie" was made only in a round shape. This is also due to the fact that our ancestors put a certain meaning into this form. The circle symbolized the sun, which means well-being, health and fertility.
The wedding loaf was richly decorated with various braids, braids and curlicues. Sometimes figures were placed in its center, which denoted the newlyweds: the bride and groom. It was customary to serve the pie at the very end of the celebration; it served as a kind of sign for the guests.

wedding loaf

A similar custom of baking a wedding cake existed in Ancient Rome. In the early days of the formation of the Roman Empire, wedding bread was baked from barley or wheat flour, but they broke it right above the bride's head. The groom did this by distributing pieces of bread to the guests, symbolically sharing his happiness and good luck with them, and the groom collected the crumbs that remained on the bride's head, ate it himself and shared it with his beloved. The meaning of this tradition was the subordination of the young wife to her husband.
A similar tradition existed in Scotland, only there they baked bread from oat flour. There were references to it until the 19th century. In Northern Scotland, the bridesmaids facilitated this custom by placing a napkin on the head of the newlywed, and on it they placed a basket in which there was oatmeal bread. As a rule, such bread was more like thin flatbread than on bread, and even more so cake.
But the ceremony that preceded the tradition of breaking bread over the head of the bride looked really shocking. Around 100 BC, Roman guests threw cooked cakes at the bride! When a compromise was reached, and the bread began to be simply broken, a new symbol of the wedding tradition appeared - bread crumbs or “confarreatio”, which literally means “eating together”. Later, confarreatio turned into confetti, which is still thrown at the bride and groom at weddings around the world.
Wedding bread in one form or another existed in almost all cultures of the world. For example, in ancient China, the groom's family sent the bride four bread pies, they had to be tossed up and caught in a sheet held over their heads. When tossing each of the cakes, the bride recited verses about marriage, thus marking her departure from her parental home to her husband.
Tiered wedding cakes first appeared in London in the 17th century - they were so large that they were imported on a special cart. Naturally, this was the privilege of the rich sections of society.
A wedding cake

And the Russian national wedding feast has incredibly rich and complex traditions associated with wedding baking. In ancient pagan times, a loaf was considered sacred bread among the Slavs, not a single wedding was possible without it. The loaf was prepared in Rus' in compliance with many ritual rules.
So, the making of the dough - “restraint” - was entrusted only to a married woman, baking - to a man, slicing - to a child, and the distribution of slices of a loaf to those invited - to a matchmaker ("karawainik"). Moreover, this whole process was accompanied by the singing of special "loaf" songs performed by "loaf women". Before the consecration of the marriage began, the young were the first to touch the loaf with their faces and cry. Wedding loaves were decorated with complex pastry patterns and sprigs of viburnum, which has been credited with mystical properties since pagan times.

wedding loaf

In medieval England, the wedding cake, although called a cake, was not really a cake in the usual sense. As a rule, a pile of small sweet buns was formed in front of the bride and groom, and kissing over it, the newlyweds “doomed” themselves to a happy life with many children.
In the 1660s, during the reign of King Charles II, one french pastry chef visited London and was struck by how messy and unaesthetically stacked traditional English wedding cakes were. The image of a mountain of buns was played up, and the shapeless mountain turned into elegant cake, called croquembush. It's spectacular cream cake, a delicious combination of cream balls arranged in a pyramid, decorated with fresh or candied flowers and nuts, which is also popular with modern honeymooners, especially the French.

Croquembush

In England, the wedding cake until the 17th century remained rather modest, in the form of a cake with candied fruits and nuts. And only in the 19th century at the weddings of the European aristocracy began to be popular tiered cakes. It is believed that the multi-story wedding cake was invented in the 18th century by a London grocer. He really wanted to create something out of the ordinary, but he could not think of anything until he noticed the dome of St. Bride's Church in Fleet Street.
Since the 17th century in Europe, two cakes have been required at weddings - one for the bride, the other for the groom. The main difference between the bride's cake was that a glass ring was baked into it, it was believed that a girl who finds a ring in her piece will soon get married. The groom's cake was decorated more modestly than the bride's cake (by the way, then a tradition was already formed to make a wedding cake or a bride's cake white color, symbolizing purity and purity), but was much larger in size. Most often it was the usual fruit pie. The groom's cake was cut into pieces in advance, placed in white boxes, tied with a white or silver ribbon, or simply written with the initials of the newlyweds and folded near the exit. Guests, dispersing home, could take such boxes with them to pass on to those who could not attend the wedding celebration, or eat them themselves the next morning.
Nowadays, the tradition of the groom's cake is not obligatory, it is considered as an unnecessary expense, but if such a cake is baked, then they try to reflect the hobbies and interests of the newlywed in its decoration, for example, they bake it in the form of a computer, football field, sailboat, chessboard, etc. Now, for the groom, they often bake a chocolate cake than a fruit one, and place it on a separate table next to the main cake - the bride's cake, and only after that they cut it, put the pieces in boxes and give them to the guests. Sometimes the groom's cake is offered at the wedding as an alternative dessert.

groom cake

How are cakes different from pies? A cake is several layers of cakes soaked in cream, syrup or jam, with fillings (berries, fruits, milk cream or soufflé, chocolate). On top of the cakes are decorated with icing, cream or fruit, as well as various patterns or figures. Cakes are divided into sand, puff, waffle and biscuit.

Regardless of who invented the cake, and how his fate subsequently developed, each country has its own traditions and recipes for baking this dish. There are countless cake recipes. There are so many diverse, completely different cakes that countries do not even dispute the right of primacy in their invention. One, or even more, a unique cake is enough for each country. And there are 190 countries on Earth.

Tarte Tatin

In Hungary, guests will certainly be treated famous cake"Esterheis". In France* they love open fruit cakes Tarte Tatin. In Switzerland holiday tables unthinkable without carrot cake. And Sweden is proud of two cakes at once; "Apple * and" Swedish Air ", decorated with whipped cream. Another country of two cakes is Austria. "Cake from Linz" with redcurrant filling named after the city, is good because it can be stored for a very long time. But a cake with a Russian name There is no "Anna Pavlova" in Russia. They know how to cook it only in New Zealand. Our ballerina toured there in 1926. She impressed the New Zealanders so much that they came up with a cake as airy and light as Anna Pavlova herself.

A rather strange cake is offered to be tasted in Spain. It is called Tarta de bellota. Once a tourist from Russia asked the waiter what this cake was made of. Judging by the taste, it included honey and poppy seeds. However, there were no black poppy dots in the biscuit. The waiter said it was from pig food. The puzzled tourist asked for the recipe. It turned out that the waiter called acorns "feed for pigs".

Despite the name, you will not find nuts in the Italian biscuit "Nut". It is stuffed with white crushed beans. But in Switzerland in the famous cherry cakes put for piquancy nucleoli from cherry pits. Real nuts are rare in "branded" cakes. Unless in Portugal, almonds are added to absolutely all cakes.


cheese cake

But there is so unusual cakes that resemble those familiar to us only in form. For example, those in which there is no sugar at all. Liver cake. Or sandwich cake, which was invented long ago in Denmark: cakes baked from unsweetened yeast dough, are shifted with a filling of salted fish, red caviar, cheese and butter with spices. Unsweetened is popular in Italy cheese cake. It is airy and almost weightless. Because of this, it is called "lift me up". In Italian it sounds like "Tiramisu". Italians are generally great originals in the field of savory cakes. You order coffee and a piece of ice cream cake. It seems that you are not risking anything: ice cream is also ice cream in Italy. But you have to be careful: they can bring such a cake that your eyes will climb on your forehead! For example, with the taste of garlic or parmesan cheese. For the world's best ice cream cake "Gazat" you will have to go to the United Arab Emirates.

In the 19th century best cakes different countries could be tasted in Moscow. For example, in the coffee house of Alexander Bruno. Or at home, writing to the house of a foreign confectioner.

And, of course, you should start with the king of cakes.

NAPOLEON

Famous layer cake or a cake with a cream layer. Under the name "millefeuille" (millefeuille - "1000 layers") is known in France and Italy, in the UK it is called "vanilla slice" (vanilla slice), and in the USA and Russia as "Napoleon". His recipe appeared at the end of the 17th century.
When layers of history, time and dates are layered on this or that dish, it is difficult to reliably determine how a culinary masterpiece was once born and how it became popular. Napoleon is no exception. There are a lot of versions - from romantic and sentimental to philosophical and ordinary ...

They say that one evening, the loving emperor, sitting in his reception room near the fireplace, playfully whispered something in the ear of one of Josephine's ladies-in-waiting. Suddenly, a jealous wife appeared in the room, demanding an immediate answer: what is happening? Bonaparte was not at a loss, and the subconscious obligingly slipped him the answer: “I just came up with genius recipe cake and secretly share it with a reliable person. Napoleon had to randomly come up with the composition and method of baking the cake. Nearby was one of the marshals of France, who witnessed this story - they say that it was Davout who told the whole of Versailles about the amazing recipe that evening, and the court chef considered it his duty to serve the newborn cake to the table the very next day.

They also say that once, having got involved in a war with the Austrians, Napoleon, who found himself behind enemy lines, was unrestrained and irritable - the enemy surrounded the emperor's army, and the French were forced to retreat. But war is war, and dinner is on schedule, and Bonaparte's adjutant decided to ask when the food would be served. The emperor flared up, answered something sharp, then nevertheless ordered to set the table, but after a while he made a grandiose scandal to the cook Lagupierre about the chicken served for dinner - Napoleon did not eat chicken meat.

Fate sometimes makes amazing tricks - after a while, Marshal Desaix arrived in time to help the emperor. Having oriented in time and reorganized his units, Napoleon won the seemingly already lost battle near Marengo. One thing overshadowed the joy: Desaix, who saved Napoleon's army, died during the battle ... The emperor called Lagoupier and ordered to prepare a memorial dinner, emphasizing that the cook should forget about the hated chicken.

The culinary specialist faced the most difficult task: to feed hungry men, but to do without meat. After scratching the top of his head, he sent soldiers to pick mushrooms on the slopes of the Alps, told him what herbs to find, and sent several people to a nearby village for olive oil and… chickens. For dinner, magnificent green meat was served, the emperor took food with pleasure.

Upon his return to Versailles, Napoleon became the sole ruler of France, bathed in the rays of glory, was surrounded by a halo of heroism. Stormy secular and social life always had one exception: Bonaparte celebrated Christmas only with close people. On Christmas Eve of the frosty year 1800, the emperor called his cook: “On this holiday, Josephine de Beauharnais will be next to me. Dinner must be amazing. I don't care what you make, but be sure to include that green Marengo chicken on the menu and something great for dessert - ladies love sweets, it would be nice if you could impress Josephine.

Smiling, the cook retired to the kitchen.

For dinner, Napoleon was served green meat and a cake: on top of the delicacy was decorated powdered sugar, the cakes were generously smeared with cream, but the sides were left open, showing many layers. The emperor frowned and asked the cook what that meant. Lagoupier replied:

- Life is cyclical, events change each other, but repeat what has already happened ... We must always remember them - this is the main thing in life.
“Henri, do you mean Marengo?”
“Yes,” the chef nodded.

So Napoleon cake became a philosophical dish

In Russia, its appearance is associated with 1912, when the centenary of the victory over the Napoleonic troops was widely celebrated, and a number of new dishes were invented. "Napoleon" was originally a triangular-shaped cake by analogy with Bonaparte's cocked hat, and the best minds of confectioners who served at the homes of aristocrats worked on this miracle of cooking. Subsequently, the cake became a cake rectangular shape. At first he was very popular, but then they didn't come. better times- after the revolution, butter was replaced by margarine, and custard egg cream replaced cheap cream on flour. "Napoleon" lost its taste and appearance, began to crumble, spread so that it was cut with a hot knife to "solder" the edges. It no longer served as a table decoration and turned into an appetizer in cheap restaurants. But over time, "Napoleon" regained its lost positions and again began to appear on the tables in all its splendor. Many hosts have own recipe"Napoleon" and every housewife considers her own cake to be the most tender and delicious.

BIRD'S MILK

The phrase "bird's milk" is found in the myths and legends of many countries. This is an allegorical designation of something unattainable-beautiful.
If "Napoleon" became a cake made of brownies, then "Bird's Milk" has gone a more interesting way - it has become a cake made of sweets. This soufflé cake, covered with chocolate icing, today it has many types - creamy, coffee, chocolate, with two cakes and with one. But these are already variations on the theme of "Bird's Milk", and not "Bird's Milk" itself, which initially had one shortbread biscuit on the bottom, then a wide layer of milk-cream soufflé and chocolate icing on top. "Bird's milk" refers to perishable cakes.

They came up with it here, in Russia. The first experimental batches bird's milk” have been produced since 1968 at the Rot-Front factory. But because of sophisticated technology batches were small, prescription documentation by the Ministry Food Industry The USSR was not approved. In 1978, the head of the confectionery shop of the Moscow restaurant "Prague" Vladimir Guralnik led a group of culinary inventors (Margarita Golova and Nikolai Panfilov), who, based on the Ptichye Moloko sweets that appeared on sale, developed a recipe for the same cake. The application for the invention was filed in September 1980 and in 1982 the developers of the recipe were issued copyright certificate No. 925285, where the production method was registered. The innovation of Vladimir Guralnik was the use of agar-agar algae instead of gelatin for soufflé. Moreover, it took six months to find this gelatin substitute, which made the soufflé not so airy.

At first it was very affordable, but along with the rise in food prices, the cent of the cake also increased, and since it was prepared in small batches, the popularity of the cake in the USSR was huge - huge queues lined up behind it, buyers stood for hours by appointment, especially before the holidays .

PRAGUE

Despite the fact that "Prague" is a completely different cake, it must be brought here. The fact is that Vladimir Guralnik also invented it! As a student, he watched in 1955, he watched Czech confectioners who came to Moscow and shared their confectionery experience with Moscow culinary specialists. Vladimir Guralnik developed his own recipe for this cake from chocolate cakes and cream layer. True, and with this cake we got into a mess. What they bake for us in Moscow is a miserable imitation of the famous "Prague". For a real cake, you need to go, of course, to the city of the same name. The Czechs themselves in this cake, not sparing, add dark rum, impregnate cakes with four types butter cream, which are prepared on the basis of cognac and Chartreuse and Benedictine liqueurs, pour thick chocolate icing on top of the cake. The taste is extraordinary.
Vladimir Guralnik came to the restaurant "Prague" in October 1955 - immediately after its opening, dedicated to the tenth anniversary of the liberation of Prague. In those years, the restaurant specialized in Czech national dishes. Confectionary shop also focused on Czech cuisine. The Czech confectioner who arrived showed us how to make the Prague cake correctly. The recipe for this cake was sent across the country through the Trust of restaurants and canteens, which then oversaw the entire public catering (now this often turns against buyers: wanting to get the maximum profit, commercial structures produce a miserable likeness of the famous cake, more like a gingerbread). The Czechs themselves are in this cake , not sparing, they add dark rum, soak the cakes with four types of butter cream, which are prepared on the basis of cognac and Chartreuse and Benedictine liqueurs, pour the cake with thick chocolate icing on top.

The predecessor of "Prague" can also be called the "Sacher" cake, originally from Vienna, which, however, does without cream at all. The main secret melt-in-your-mouth chocolate cake - tangerine mass, which is added to the dough. Although, looking at the cake itself, you would never guess about its wonderful taste: outwardly it looks like "Prague".

In Soviet times, the cake was not patented due to the lack of experience of officials in issuing a patent recipes, but was designed according to GOST ( http://www.cookingclub.ru/recipes/lcomm/11573/0 ) and thus can be prepared for any confectionery factory.

Cake "Prague" consists of three cakes, impregnated with Prague cream, and poured with chocolate fondant on top. Cake layers are baked from biscuit dough with the addition of soft butter and cocoa powder. The cream consists of butter, chicken yolks, cocoa and condensed milk. After soaking the cake for a day in the refrigerator, the top cake and side surfaces are smeared with fruit and berry jam (usually apricot), covered with glossy chocolate fondant and decorated with cream or chocolate chips. In many recipes chocolate fudge due to the complexity of preparation, they are replaced with a simpler chocolate icing.

SAHER

This austrian cake very popular in Europe. It was invented and baked by the Austrian culinary specialist Franz Sacher, who from the age of fourteen worked in the kitchen of Metternich himself, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chancellor of the Austrian Empire. Initially, this cake was called "Black Peter" and consisted of chocolate cakes and tangerine jam, covered with chocolate icing. Franz Sacher was sixteen years old when he surprised the prince's guests with a new dessert, and it happened in 1832. Where he got the recipe from is unknown, but there is a version that, in fact, his sister Zachera came up with it. Chocolate cakes were then already known to the Austrian public and in cookbooks ah 1719, chocolate cakes were mentioned, but the addition of tangerine jam is a culinary invention. He most likely combined chocolate cakes and the recipe for the then-famous chocolate-coated apricot marmalade.

Upon graduation, Franz Sacher worked in the kitchens of other aristocrats, even at the court of the Russian Tsar. Culinary education, received in the kitchen of Metternich himself, truly opened all the doors. Sacher was the chef in the Pressburg Casino, then in Budapest, and everywhere his cake became famous. As a successful confectioner, the 32-year-old Sacher returned to Vienna in 1848 and opened his own wine and delicatessen shop.

The first legal dispute over cake occurred in 1934. During the harsh war years, one of the grandsons of Franz Sacher, deprived of a share in the inheritance, took revenge on his family by selling the original recipe and details of the technology to the oldest and most authoritative Viennese confectioner Demel. Since then, the Demeleus cake has had the corresponding inscription "Edward Sacher. Vienna" on the chocolate medal, while the family business has signed its medal "Hotel Sacher Vienna". From a legal point of view, the situation was far from simple. First, Demel acquired the rights to produce the Sachertorte from a family member. Secondly, the original recipe itself underwent a significant change after the end of the First World War: now in the Sacher confectionery the cake was cut horizontally and smeared with marmalade to make it more juicy, while the original Franz Sacher cake did not yet have this additional layer, and marmalade was placed only on the surface of the cake, before coating with icing. This gave Demel a certain advantage. However, another war delayed the trials, and the process resumed years later. Demel was ordered to replace the round chocolate medal on the cake with a triangular one, but there was still no final verdict on who had the rights to the inscription "Original Sacher Torte".

In 1992, after a long hiatus, the new owner of the Demel confectionery resumed the bickering. He claimed that Sacher's confectionery replaces one-sixth of the butter in the cake with regular margarine, which certainly does not follow Sacher's original recipe. As the other side answered this, "it is we, the owners, who determine how original cake. Eating habits have changed over time, and we are looking for ways to make our cake more digestible. We're going to court."

By the way, it is also interesting that the "Big Sacher Cookbook" published in 1975 publishes exactly that whole version of the cake in which the marmalade only apricots the cake, i.e., in fact, the Demel variant of Sacher's trot.
Now "Sacher" is prepared according to two recipes and each has its own lovers. Tangerine jam is often replaced with orange or apricot jam.

ESTERHAZY

Almond chocolate cake popular in Hungary, Germany and Austria. Named after Pal Antal Esterházy, Foreign Minister of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Who came up with this cake - history is not known, there is only a legend that it was first prepared by his court chef for the birthday of the minister's son. Esterharzie cake was especially loved by European aristocrats. His distinguishing feature- a cobweb pattern that is applied liquid chocolate on top of the cake. In the original recipe, dark chocolate was drawn on a white icing sugar, but now sometimes they do the opposite. Under the glaze are hidden five cakes baked from egg whites with the addition of almonds, flour and butter. Between the cakes - a gentle creamy cream with the addition of cognac.

BLACK FOREST

The original name of this cake is Black Forest cherry cake. It appeared, as the name suggests, in Germany. In 1915, confectioner Joseph Keller worked in trendy cafe of that time "Agner" in Bad Godenberg. Once he was visited by the idea to decorate with cherries traditional pastries and add cherry vodka to the cream. This recipe is very popular with visitors to the establishment. The cafe soon closed, and the master pastry chef published his recipe only in 1927, calling it "Black Forest Cherry Cake", and in the 30s it began to be prepared everywhere. This cake is not only very tasty, but also beautiful due to the combination of black chocolate cakes, snow-white whipped cream and red cherries. His biscuit cakes soaked in kirschwasser (tincture of cherries with pits), and cherry filling is laid between them.

Kyiv

The heyday of the popularity of the Kyiv cake fell on the days of the USSR. They came up with this air-nut cake at the Kyiv confectionery factory. The names of his "parents" are Konstantin Petrenko and Nadezhda Chernogor. It happened in 1956, when the girl was seventeen years old. At her own risk, she baked three pieces of new cakes, which immediately received the most rave reviews. Further, a special cream layer was invented for this cake, and it was a real triumph - a year later " Kyiv cake» received a bronze medal at the confectionery competition. Nadezhda Chernogor worked all her life in one place and always tasted every batch of baked "Kyiv Cakes" at work. The mother of “Kievsky” had occasion to cook non-standard cakes. One of them was baked for the 300th anniversary of the American Navy, it was made by special order. And also - a three-tiered one in honor of the 70th anniversary of Brezhnev: it consisted of 70 different pieces and weighed more than 5 kilograms.


During its more than fifty years of history, the cake has become one of the symbols of Kyiv. The cake consists of two air-nut meringue cakes with layers of cream. The surface is decorated various creams, the side surface is sprinkled with nut crumbs. The original cake recipe used cashew nuts, but now hazelnuts are most often used. By the way, the recipe has not changed in any way and is still kept in the strictest confidence. However, Kyiv housewives bake their own versions of “Kyiv Cake” and they turn out to be no less tasty.

Many curiosities and interesting facts associated with cakes. Some of them were even recorded and included in the Guinness Book of Records.

For example, the highest cake was made in the United States of America, Michigan. It towered over the table by more than thirty meters and consisted of a hundred tiers. The heaviest cake was also baked in the USA, only in the state of Alabama. This miracle weighed more than fifty tons. One of the main parts of this masterpiece was ice cream, and its shape resembled the image of the state on a geographical map.

Cake "Squid"
But the longest cake was made by Peruvian chefs. Its length was two hundred and forty-six meters. It was decorated with an abundance of candied fruit and cream roses. Then it was divided into fifteen thousand pieces and treated to all the children of Peru who celebrated their birthday this month.


Cake "Ashtray"
Russia also did not stay away from sweet records. Our confectioners made the largest cake for the birthday of the most famous department store in Moscow, GUM. The cake was decorated huge amount jam and marzipan. Its height, which was recorded by invited experts from the administration of the Guinness Book of Records, was three meters, and its weight was three tons.

The history of the cake

The cake belongs to those dishes, the age of which is not exactly known. Historians, with the support of linguists, believe that the first cakes appeared about 2000 years ago in Italy, since the word "cake" in Italian means something ornate, intricate and richly decorated.

There is also a version that cakes could not have appeared anywhere else except in Greece - on its territory, pies decorated with drawings and applications from ground and boiled grains were found. According to another version, it is believed that only in the East, with their sweets known at all times, complex cake recipes could appear that even a sophisticated gourmet can make bow before their exquisite taste and enchanting aroma. The followers of this idea found out that the ancient culinary specialists of the most mysterious part of the world prepared desserts using milk, honey and sesame seeds. Yes, and in shape they resembled those cakes that we used to see on our tables.

But be that as it may, today France is considered the trendsetter in the world of cakes, although not French, but German, Austrian and Russian cakes are widely known. It was French chefs and confectioners who for many centuries dictated the trends in serving and decorating this sweet masterpiece. It was in France that something without which modern cakes would be impossible appeared - meringue, cream, caramel, jelly and biscuit.

In Russia, the concept of a cake did not exist for a long time, but there were wedding loaves - the most festive and elegant pies. Such loaves were called "bride's pies". "Bride's Pie" was made only in a round shape. This is also due to the fact that our ancestors put a certain meaning into this form. The circle symbolized the sun, which means well-being, health and fertility. The wedding loaf was richly decorated with various braids, braids and curlicues. Sometimes figures were placed in its center, which denoted the newlyweds: the bride and groom. It was customary to serve the pie at the very end of the celebration; it served as a kind of sign for the guests.

Since the 17th century in Europe, two cakes have been required at weddings - one for the bride, the other for the groom. The main difference between the bride's cake was that a glass ring was baked into it, it was believed that a girl who finds a ring in her piece will soon get married. The groom's cake was decorated more modestly than the bride's cake (by the way, then a tradition was already formed to make a wedding cake or a white bride's cake, symbolizing purity and purity), but it was much larger in size. Most often it was an ordinary fruit pie. The groom's cake was cut into pieces in advance, placed in white boxes, tied with a white or silver ribbon, or simply written with the initials of the newlyweds and folded near the exit. Guests, dispersing home, could take such boxes with them to pass on to those who could not attend the wedding celebration, or eat them themselves the next morning.

In England, the cake remained rather modest until the 17th century, in the form of a cake with candied fruits and nuts. And only in the 18th century, multi-tiered cakes began to become popular at the weddings of the European aristocracy. The multi-story wedding cake is believed to have been invented by a London grocer. He really wanted to create something out of the ordinary, but he could not think of anything until he noticed the dome of St. Bride's Church in Fleet Street.

Record-breaking cakes

The longest cake was made by Peruvian chefs. Its length was two hundred and forty-six meters. It was decorated with an abundance of candied fruit and cream roses. Then it was divided into fifteen thousand pieces and treated to all the children of Peru who celebrated their birthday this month.

Russia also did not stay away from sweet records. The confectioners made the largest cake for the birthday of the most famous department store in Moscow, GUM. The cake was decorated with a huge amount of jam and marzipans. Its height, which was recorded by invited experts from the administration of the Guinness Book of Records, was three meters, and its weight was three tons.

Origin of cake names

Over time, preferences for cakes among residents of the whole world acquired their own traditions. So in Hungary, guests will certainly be treated to the famous Esterheis cake. In France, open Tarte Tatin fruit cakes are adored. In Switzerland, festive tables are inconceivable without carrot and cherry cake, in which they put cherry kernels for piquancy. Sweden is proud of two cakes at once - "Apple" and "Swedish air", decorated with whipped cream. Austria is the country of the "Linz Cake" with red currant filling - the cake is named after the city and is good because it can be stored for a very long time. There is no cake with the Russian name "Anna Pavlova" in Russia, they know how to cook it only in New Zealand. In 1926, a Russian ballerina toured there. She impressed the New Zealanders so much that they came up with a cake as airy and light as Anna Pavlova herself.
A rather strange cake is offered to be tasted in Spain. It is called Tarta de bellota. Once a tourist from Russia asked the waiter what this cake was made of. Judging by the taste, it included honey and poppy seeds. However, there were no black poppy dots in the biscuit. The waiter said it was from pig food. The puzzled tourist asked for the recipe. It turned out that the waiter called acorns "feed for pigs".
Despite the name, you will not find nuts in the Italian biscuit “Nutty”. It is stuffed with white crushed beans. Real nuts are rarely found in “branded” cakes, except that in Portugal almonds are added to absolutely all cakes.
Now let's dwell in more detail on the origin of the names of cakes. And, of course, you should start with the king of cakes.
NAPOLEON. The famous layer cake or cake with a cream layer. Under the name "millefeuille" (millefeuille - "1000 layers") is known in France and Italy, in the UK it is called "vanilla slice" (vanilla slice), and in the USA and Russia as "Napoleon". His recipe appeared at the end of the 17th century.
When layers of history, time and dates are layered on this or that dish, it is difficult to reliably determine how a culinary masterpiece was once born and how it became popular. Napoleon is no exception. There are a lot of versions - from romantic and sentimental to philosophical and ordinary ...
They say that when Napoleon became the sole ruler of France, he bathed in glory, was surrounded by a halo of heroism. Stormy secular and social life always had one exception: Bonaparte celebrated Christmas only with close people. On Christmas Eve of the frosty year 1800, the emperor called his cook: “On this holiday, Josephine de Beauharnais will be next to me. Dinner must be amazing. I don’t care what you cook, but be sure to include green Marengo chicken on the menu and something great for dessert - ladies love sweets, it would be nice if you could impress Josephine. Smiling, the cook retired to the kitchen. For dinner, Napoleon was served green meat and a cake: powdered sugar decorated the top of the delicacy, the cakes were richly smeared with cream, but the sides remained open, showing many layers. The emperor frowned and asked the cook what that meant. Lagoupier replied:
- Life is cyclical, events change each other, but repeat what has already happened ... We must always remember them - this is the main thing in life.
So the cake "Napoleon" became a philosophical dish.
In Russia, its appearance is associated with 1912, when the centenary of the victory over the Napoleonic troops was widely celebrated, and a number of new dishes were invented. "Napoleon" was originally a triangular-shaped cake by analogy with Bonaparte's cocked hat, and the best minds of confectioners who served at the homes of aristocrats worked on this miracle of cooking. Subsequently, the cake became a rectangular cake.
BIRD'S MILK. The phrase "bird's milk" is found in the myths and legends of many countries. This is an allegorical designation of something unattainable-beautiful.
If "Napoleon" became a cake made of brownies, then "Bird's milk" has come a more interesting way - it has become a cake made of sweets. This souffle cake covered with chocolate icing today has many types - creamy, coffee, chocolate, with two cakes and with one. They invented it in Russia. The first experimental batches of "bird's milk" have been produced since 1968 at the Rot-Front factory.
PRAGUE. Cake "Prague" consists of three cake layers soaked in "Prague" cream, and topped with chocolate fudge. Cake layers are baked from biscuit dough with the addition of soft butter and cocoa powder. The cream consists of butter, chicken yolks, cocoa and condensed milk. After soaking the cake for a day in the refrigerator, the top cake and side surfaces are smeared with fruit and berry jam (usually apricot), covered with glossy chocolate fondant and decorated with cream or chocolate chips. In many recipes, chocolate fudge is replaced with simpler chocolate icing due to the complexity of preparation. The Czechs themselves, without sparing, add dark rum to this cake, soak the cakes with four types of butter cream, which are prepared on the basis of cognac and Chartreuse and Benedictine liqueurs, and pour the cake with thick chocolate icing on top. The taste is extraordinary.
Kyiv. The heyday of the popularity of the Kyiv cake fell on the days of the USSR. They came up with this air-nut cake at the Kyiv confectionery factory. The names of his "parents" are Konstantin Petrenko and Nadezhda Chernogor. For this cake, a special creamy layer was invented, and it was a real triumph - a year later, "Kiev Cake" received a bronze medal at the confectionery competition. During its more than fifty years of history, the cake has become one of the symbols of Kyiv.

Today I wanted to bring you joy with the history of the main dessert to the table - I'll tell you about the CAKE !!! After reading this article, you will learn the history of the appearance of the cake, what cakes were like in past centuries, and you will also find out what was the first, a cake or pastries.

The history of the origin of cakes, according to historians, began two thousand years ago. Of course, the exact date remained unknown, but thanks to the cunning Greeks, the composition of the first cakes began to include FLOUR - archaeologists during excavations were small cakes, which included crumpled wheat grains. Surprisingly, the grains were first moistened and then boiled. The recipe for the first cakes included such products as honey, eggs, nuts, milk, various flavors. It is noteworthy that fruits were added after baking.

There are different versions in history as to where the cake was invented and who was the first chef who brought cakes to our table. Let's look at each of these versions separately.

So, Pharaoh Pepionkh lived in the East, who lived in Egypt in 2200 BC. So, this pharaoh, apparently, during his lifetime was a great sweetheart, that after the death of Pepionkh, something was put in his tomb that was served to his table as a dessert. This something could rightly be called a cake, and the oldest cake in the world!!!

But where did the word CAKE come from? According to linguists, cake in Italian means something intricate and ornate, which is associated with various cake decorations - from ornaments to flowers, from inscriptions to figurines. According to another version of historians, the first cake appeared in Italy. In favor of this version, there are such details. Firstly, we say "there is no arguing about tastes", and the Italians in such cases pronounce this proverb as "there is no arguing about cakes". Secondly, as I wrote above, the word CAKE has Italian origin. Thirdly, in Italy a confectioner is called TORTAIO - a cake maker.

In ancient times, when cakes were prepared, the dough was kneaded with yeast. Later, for the purpose of sourdough, they began to be used regular eggs. But the molds for baking cakes were simple - they were used as a form, an ordinary pan without a bottom, which had a round shape. Later, these pans were improved, a bottom appeared in them. So there was a form for baking, which is used in our time by housewives.

Another important improvement was the introduction of the use of baking soda or the so-called baking powder, which included baking soda. It is interesting that once in Europe the words bread and cake easily replaced each other, were close in meaning.

It is a pity that the name of the first chef who invented the cake did not enter the history. But on the other hand, we can say with confidence that French chefs introduced the fashion for the cake. In France, cakes appeared in cafes and small coffee houses and became available to customers. It is noteworthy that French chefs have dictated the fashion for cake decoration, table setting and much more for centuries.

Now let's determine what happened before, cake or pastries? According to William Pokhlebkin, a well-known author of cookbooks, the word cakes is: "the Russian name for confectionery products, which are either various cakes, cut into small equal rectangles, or specially prepared cookies with a creamy spread or filling.

Here is a story about a cake. Friends, tell us which cake you like first of all. And yet - what kind of cakes is customary to cook in your family. Cake recipes are welcome.