Robert E Lee’s Favorite Cake

I have a little information that I think is correct about Robert E. Lee’s favorite cake. This recipe is from my grandmother on my mother’s side and they were from the Richmond and Norfolk areas. The information I have is that his wife, Mary Custis Lee, provided him with this cake at his wish. Mary Custis was also the great-granddaughter of Martha Washington, who inherited the memories of General George Washington. Also, in fact, the recipe is supposed to be in the old book “Housekeeping in Old Virginia” by Marion Cabell Tyree edited in Richmond in the late 1870’s. I don’t have this book, just the recipe handwritten by my grandmother . Good luck.

Robert E. Lee’s Favorite Cake

• 10 eggs, separated
• 1 pound of sugar or 4 cups of sugar
• 1/2 pound of flour or 4 cups
• peel of 1 lemon
• juice of one lemon

Beat the egg yolks until thick. Sift the sugar and add to the eggs; Hit good. Add the lemon peel, lemon juice, and flour. Beat the whites of just 8 eggs and, when stiff, carefully mix them into the batter. Bake in 2 12-by-18-inch jello tins at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes. (You may need to adjust the size of these cake pans above. I use three 9-inch cake pans and decrease the cook time to about 5-10 minutes. Monitor the cook time closely.)

Filling

• Whites of 2 eggs
• 1 pound of sugar or 4 cups of sugar
• Juice and rinse of 1 orange

Beat the whites of 2 eggs until foamy. Add the sugar, orange zest and juice. Blend until smooth. Spread over cakes before they are perfectly cool. Put one on top of another.