Lemon Chiffon Cake Day is observed annually on March 29th.
For a nice refreshing spring dessert, chiffon cake is a very light cake made with vegetable oil, eggs, sugar, flour, baking powder and flavorings. A fluffy texture is made by beating egg whites until stiff and folding them into the cake batter before baking. Chiffon cakes tend to be lower in saturated fat than butter cakes, potentially making them healthier than their butter-heavy counterparts.
The recipe for the chiffon cake was a closely guarded secret for years. In the 1920s angel food cake was quite popular, but Henry Baker thought he could make a lighter, richer cake. The insurance salesman turned caterer tinkered with ingredients until in 1927 he came upon the perfect combination of ingredients and methods to produce the airy richness he was looking for.
Keeping the recipe to himself, he offered his services to the Brown Derby Restaurant in Los Angeles which catered to Hollywood’s elite. Until 1947, Baker was the only person to bake chiffon cakes. Then he sold the recipe to Betty Crocker for an undisclosed amount and the rest is baking history.
Many believe Chiffon cake is the ‘original’ wedding cake filling. A chiffon cake is a very light cake made with vegetable oil, eggs, sugar, flour, baking powder, and flavorings. It is a combination of both batter and foam type cakes. The lack of butter means that chiffon cakes lack much of the rich flavor of butter cakes, and hence they are typically served accompanied with flavorful sauces or other accompaniments, such as chocolate or fruit fillings.
Food Facts:
- Chiffon cakes tend to be lower in saturated fat than butter cakes, potentially making them healthier than their butter-heavy counterparts.
- California and Arizona produce 95% of the entire U.S. lemon crop.
- During the European Renaissance, fashionable ladies used lemon juice as a way to redden their lips.
- Lemon trees bloom and produce fruit year-round. Each tree can produce between 500 and 600 pounds of lemons in a year.
- Cooking Tip: To get the most lemon flavor in a recipe, use the rind instead of the juice. It contains the lemon oils.
- Lemons are hybrids; first cultivated in the middle ages, it is a mix of wild limes and citrons.
- Generally, Lemons grown in more arid areas have more acid in them while those grown in wetter climates are sweeter,less acidic.
- Lemonade was a favorite of Chinese emperors long before its modern popularity in Western culture.
- Due to its high acidity, lemon juice is often used as a cleaning agent.
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