Sarah Josepha Hale's Election Cake

History

Election Cake is a large, yeasted fruitcake traditionally baked in New England to celebrate Election Day, particularly in Connecticut during the 18th and early 19th centuries. These massive cakes, often weighing 10-20 pounds, were made with expensive ingredients like raisins, spices, and spirits, reflecting communal celebration when citizens gathered to vote. Women baked them for town meetings and political gatherings, making them symbols of civic participation. Sarah Josepha Hale's 1841 recipe helped preserve this tradition in print as the custom declined. Modern versions occasionally appear as heritage bakes, though the tradition largely faded after the Civil War when election customs changed.

Sources

• Sarah Josepha Hale, The Good Housekeeper, 1841
• Amelia Simmons, American Cookery, 1796
• Keith Stavely and Kathleen Fitzgerald, America's Founding Food: The Story of New England Cooking, 2004
• Sandra Oliver, Food in Colonial and Federal America, 2005
• William Woys Weaver, A Quaker Woman's Cookbook: The Domestic Cookery of Elizabeth Ellicott Lea, 1982
• Connecticut Historical Society archives on Election Day customs