Recently I had a lovely comment from a reader who had made what I have called my Appalachian Cake. She had gifted it to friends travelling to the UK for a seven-day hike around St Ives. There was also a second cake hidden in the pantry to give to friends going hiking in Slovenia later in the year. It was so lovely to think of this cake winging its way across the world to be consumed so far from its origins. It is one of the most lovely things about food and how it manages to connect us in myriad ways.
I wrote about the mountains that surround our home and my Appalachian Cake in my early Substack days when I had a lot fewer readers. I was so taken with the comment that I thought I would once again share the post and the recipe with you.
In the scheme of world mountains, Hartz Mountain is little more than an overgrown hill. Its peak at just over 1200 m barely rates a mention. Despite its diminutive size, the mountain is a prominent feature of our local landscape. Driving home, the mountain top can be seen nestled between two smaller peaks. It looks somewhat insignificant, distance and perspective making it seem much smaller than it really is. It’s not until a clear day in winter, when it is covered with snow that you realise it is indeed much taller than the surroundings.
Hartz Mountain is the main attraction of its namesake national park. It's one of 19 parks that make up the Tasmanian World Heritage area. A return walk to the peak will take about five hours, the reward at the top, sweeping views over the Huon Valley and beyond. Invariably, though, the peak is shrouded in cloud, with little or no visibility beyond the immediate path. Despite the lack of views, even in these conditions, the walk is worth it. You feel a little like an intrepid explorer battling the elements. Walking the track in snow and wind is, however, nowhere near as romantic as it sounds. Trudging along in deep snow is tiring, and if you add stinging sleet across your face (hopefully your only exposed bit), it takes away a lot of the fun.
The weather can change quickly on the mountain, from seemingly benign to dangerous, in a short period of time. This was the case in the unfortunate demise of Arthur and Sidney Geeves, members of the local founding family. A small family group consisting of the elderly Osbourne Geeves, his three sons Arthur, Richard and Osbourne, and their cousin Sidney had set out on a prospecting trip on 18 November 1897. For the first couple of days, the weather was fine, but then it began to rain.
We find them ploughing through the scrub, in the locality of Pine Creek, going west, then south west, sometimes scrambling over the rocky boundaries of the creek, clinging to roots and scrub to keep their feet, then again plunging into the bed of the stream, and moving ahead in this way as best they could ; then they camped in the pouring rain. J W Beattie, The Mercury Supplement, 15 December 1897
They spent several days traversing the country and, by the 26th, were hoping that they would make the Hartz Mountain huts and, then, by the middle of the following day, they would be back home in Geeveston. The 27th started reasonably enough, the weather was unpleasant, however, by mid-afternoon, it had turned, and before long, they were in the midst of a “raging, furious whirlwind of snow, floury sleet, and cutting hailstones”. The party continued on, hoping to reach the shelter of the huts. Arthur and Sidney were relieved of their loads as they dropped behind. Urging them on and partially dragging them, the other men tried to get the party to safety. Sidney has hauled over the threshold of the hut and, despite efforts to get him warm, was pronounced by elderly Mr Geeves to have perished. Arthur, who had become delirious and was hallucinating, passed by the hut and was found lying some 300 yards away in the snow. Despite getting him into the shelter, he also didn’t survive. Both were declared to have died from hypothermia.
Despite being one of the lesser visited national parks in Tasmania (Freycinet, Cradle Mountain and Mt Field being the big three), the facilities are great. There is plenty of walking information, a well-constructed day shelter for picnicking in inclement weather, well-maintained walking tracks, and it’s an easy day trip from Hobart. If a trek to the peak seems all too hard, there are other shorter, less arduous walks that still offer beautiful alpine vegetation, stunning views and mountain lakes. As the crow flies, the mountain is not that far away, but the drive takes about 40 minutes, leaving Geeveston and heading out through forestry-owned country. The last part of the road is unsealed but usually in fairly good condition. The vegetation and the temperature change as you drive towards the carpark, slowly increasing in elevation. It’s easy to pack a thermos and a snack and head out for half a day. Some days, during summer and the holidays, there are plenty of people enjoying the park. The same on snowy days. But often, you might only see one or two people, and it feels like it’s a million miles from anywhere.
One of my favourite snacks to take while walking is this cake. Cake might seem like a strange choice, but in essence, it has all the elements of an energy bar and tastes much better. I developed this recipe some years ago after reading about hikers walking the Appalachian Trail, a walk of some 3500 kilometres, passing through 14 states in the eastern US. Some walkers would have fruit cakes posted to stops along the trail, which they would pick up. It makes sense, a traditional fruit cake is sturdy and keeps well and is full of dried fruit and nuts, the ingredients of a traditional energy bar. Fruit cakes are no longer the popular choice they once were, but I’m hoping this recipe will change some minds. The fruit, nuts and seeds you can vary to suit your preferences. I’ve baked this in a slice tin so that you can more easily cut it into transportable bars, and it does cut down on the baking time as well. I hope you’ll give it a go.
Appalachian Cake
You need to start this cake the day before.
Makes 1, 23 x 33 cm cake
480 g sultanas
110 g raisins, roughly chopped
120 g dates, roughly chopped
140 g prunes, roughly chopped
275 g glacé fruit, chopped (I just use whatever I have, but I prefer a mix rather than just one kind. Try apricots, ginger, pineapple, figs or cherries)
250 g nuts, chopped (again, I use whatever I have, but I like almonds, Brazil nuts, pecans and macadamia nuts)
130 g seeds (pepitas, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, poppy seeds and hemp hearts all work well)
zest of 1 orange
2.5 cm piece of fresh ginger, grated
110 g caster sugar
60 ml orange juice
125 ml cold, strong tea
250 g butter, softened
110 g brown sugar
5 eggs
300 g plain flour
extra seeds for sprinkling
Combine the chopped fruit, nuts and seeds in a large bowl. Stir in the orange rind and grated ginger.
Put a large, heavy-based saucepan over a low heat. Sprinkle in the caster sugar and cook without stirring until it starts to melt. When the sugar begins to melt, start to stir and continue until the sugar is melted and has a golden brown colour.
Take the pan off the heat and pour in the orange juice. The sugar will seize, but return it to the heat and continue to stir until the sugar is liquid again. Take care not to boil the mixture.
Remove from the heat and stir in the cold tea. Pour the liquid over the fruit, nuts and seeds, and stir well, making sure the toffee mixture coats the fruit. Cover the bowl and leave overnight.
Preheat the oven to 130°C. Grease a large, deep slice tin and line the base and sides with a couple of layers of baking paper.
Add the butter and brown sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until the mixture is fluffy and lighter in colour. Add the eggs one at a time, making sure to mix well between each one. Tip in the fruit and nut mixture and mix gently to combine. Add the flour and mix until it is incorporated but take care not to over mix.
Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and scatter with the extra seeds. Bake for 90 minutes. Check after this time. The time your cake takes to bake will vary depending on the depth of the tin you have used. Bake further if necessary. When cooked, the cake should feel firm in the centre, and a skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean. Remove the cake from the oven. Cover the top in foil and leave to cool in the tin overnight.
Remove the cake from the tin and cut into bars. The cake will keep well for a couple of months stored in an airtight container in a cool place.
Next week: very welcome strawberries + a workhorse cake
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What a tale!