Oh, Look, More Gelatin!
Like everything else in the 1950s, desserts experienced a boom in the post-war economy. Suddenly, we all had access to butter, chocolate, and sugar again, as well as the modern invention of canned fruits and jello. It’s no surprise that we got a little carried away during this time of abundance. Check out this list below and see how many you’ve tried.
1. Chiffon Pie
This light and airy no-bake pie is the perfect post-dinner dessert on a hot summer day. Usually made with fruits such as lemon or pumpkin. This pie usually involves folding a meringue into a fruit curd thickened with unflavored gelatin. The best part? You can pop it into your icebox and it’ll be ready in a jiffy!
2. Bavarian Torte
You may be asking us, “What’s the difference between a torte and a cake?” Great question! A torte doesn’t usually include any flour, instead being filled with jam, mousse, and whipped toppings. This typically makes it denser and heavier than your traditional cake. There are many types of tortes, but a Bavarian torte is a stacked dessert, usually filled with cream cheese, custard, or chocolate ganache.
3. Cherry Angel Food Cake
A twist on the classic angel food cake, this spongy cake incorporates a cup of maraschino cherries into the mixture. You can even go a little overboard with the cherries and make a little cherry-flavored frosting. Pop a little whipped cream on top of that and you’ve made a delicious (and healthy?) dessert.
4. Coca-Cola Cake
A tasty cake with unknown origins, the Coca-Cola Cake found its way onto the tables and into the hearts of many southern Americans during the 1950s. The ingredients, you ask? Buttermilk, Coca-Cola, and marshmallows. It sounds a little crazy, but the result is a moist, dense, and very sugary cake.
Photo By: Kaboompics.com on Pexels
5. Baked Alaska
Baked Alaska is a dessert made up of cake, ice cream, and meringue. It’s common to see Baked Alaska in older cartoons, as chefs would occasionally set the dessert on fire to brown the meringue. The goal is to carmelize the meringue but not melt the ice cream inside.
Ralph Daily from Birmingham, United States on Wikimedia
6. Arkansas Possum Pie
We swear there are no possums in this pie. In fact, possum pie got its name because it “plays possum” by hiding its many layers under a very thick top layer of whipped cream. Rarely seen outside of Arkansas, possum pie is made with vanilla pudding, cream cheese, and chocolate custard or sour cream. No oven required!
7. Pineapple Upside Down Cake
While this dessert actually showed up post-WWI, it was still a familiar dessert in the 1950s. Easy enough to make, as it requires the baker to pour cake batter over pineapple, brown sugar, and butter. Once fully cooked, the cake is flipped so it’s pineapple-side up, giving the dessert its famous name.
Kimberly Vardeman from Lubbock, TX, USA on Wikimedia
8. Apple Brown Betty
Part of the crumble family, Betties are typically baked fruit with topping dishes. The difference between a Betty and the rest of the crumbles and cobblers is that you typically layer the breadcrumbs with the fruit instead of sprinkling the breadcrumbs on top.
9. Gelatine
The 50s went absolutely crazy for gelatin, but the history of this particular food actually dates all the way back to the 18th century. We won’t tell you what it was made of, but it’s easy enough to find. Today, gelatin, or Jell-O for us North Americans, is used to make decorative molds, as a mix with marshmallows or fruit, and alcohol for the party-heavy university students.
10. Oh Henry! Bars
This popular candy bar made its appearance in 1920 and contains peanuts, caramel, and fudge covered in chocolate. The homemade Oh Henry! squares don’t always contain caramel and peanuts, but do incorporate oatmeal and peanut butter into the mixture. Depending on the ingredients you use, this yummy home-cooked dessert can be equated to a granola bar.
11. Saratoga Torte
This Australian recipe uses Sao biscuits (or water crackers) as its base. Like the Bavarian torte, the filling is meringue-based. Topped with whipped cream and some grated chocolate, and you have a nifty little dish that is easy and delicious.
12. Creme de Menthe Cream Puff Tree
This holiday-themed dessert is a modern take on the French croquembouche, which is a tower of cream puffs held together by caramel. Typically decorated as a Christmas tree, the tower is usually topped with a liquor-filled green drizzle and maraschino cherries.
13. Texas Trash Pie
This southern favorite is very much the leftovers dessert. It’s a combination of chocolate chips, pretzels, graham crackers, coconut, pecans, and butter in a pie dish, with sweetened condensed milk and caramel bits. You can substitute nearly anything in this recipe, and it's a great way to use up whatever is left in your baking cupboard.
14. Sad Cake
A sad cake is an extremely simple recipe that looks similar to a blondie. All it calls for is Bisquick, eggs, and brown sugar. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes, and you have a delicious after-dinner delicacy.
15. Chocolate Chess Pie
Another southern dessert on this list, a chocolate chess pie, features a fudge-like filling, similar to that of a brownie. Likely named for the activity southern gentlemen played after dinner, this dessert uses sugar, cocoa powder, eggs, evaporated milk, butter, and vanilla extract.
16. Macaroon Cherry Pie
Not actually made with macaroons, this pie features a delicious cherry filling with toppings of coconut and almonds. The filling is made of sugar, cornstarch, cherry juice, cinnamon, and, of course, the cherries themselves. Pair with vanilla ice cream for an extra yummy treat.
17. Strawberry Sonker
Similar to a cobbler, the strawberry sonker is a southern dessert that can use any type of fruit that’s available to you. There’s no standard way to make a sonker, so you can use biscuits, pie dough, or a crumble topping— truly whatever is available to you. The result is a messy-looking dish of fruit, sugar, and carbs. Don’t worry about how it looks, worry about how it tastes!
18. Meringue Shells With Lemon Curd
Also known as “pie bites,” these treats have a crunchy meringue exterior with a lemon-filled interior. To build this dessert, place your meringue on a plate and spoon some curd on top. Finish with whipped cream, powdered sugar, or berries.
19. Marmalade Roll
A marmalade roll is a sponge cake spread, rolled up with jam or marmalade inside. Pour your butter and brown sugar on top and bake for about 20 minutes. You’ll get a wonderful combination of sweetness with a hint of zesty citrus or tart fruit.
20. Bread And Butter Pudding
Known as the “poor man’s pudding,” this tasty dessert exists as a means to use up whatever stale bread is left over in the house. Layer your bread with butter and cover it in an egg custard mixture with nutmeg, vanilla, and cinnamon.
KEEP ON READING
No Oven No Problem: 20 Impressive No-Bake Desserts
20 Foods With Shocking Origins You'd Never Believe
