# Surprising place to find a Mason jar cake recipe



## Horseyrider (Aug 8, 2010)

There's been much discussion as of late about the concept of canning breads or cakes. It makes sense to me that the product is too dense to get reliably safe results; so I thought I'd just see these types of recipes in message boards, church group cookbooks, and passed among friends who just didn't realize the safety concerns.

Guess where I just found one? The owner's manual and user guide for my new Nutrimill. :hrm:

I'm really surprised. I would think that, just for liability reasons if nothing else, that they would do a little bit of research before offering such things to the public. 

Here's the recipe for your perusal. I'm NOT recommending you make it; I'm only posting it as a tool for discussion. I see at the bottom that it says that you can also bake it in small greased bread pans, which seems like the ideal option to me. But anyhow, here it is:

Applesauce Mason Jar Cake

3 1/2 cups multi-grain flour (wheat, millet, rye, spelt, etc.)
2 cups raisins
2 cups nuts
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves
2 cups white sugar or brown, packed
1 cup butter (softened)
1 egg
2 cups thick applesauce

Sift a little flour over the raisins and nuts. Resift the remaining flour with the salt, baking soda, cinnamon and cloves. Sift flour mixture with sugar. Cream butter, adding sugar gradually until light. Beat in egg. Stir flour mixture gradually into the butter mixture until the batter is smooth. Ad raisins, nuts, and applesauce. Grease widemouth tapered mason jars and fill barely over half full. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes. As soon as baking is done, place sterile lid and ring on hot jar to preserve for later use. Can aldo be baked in small bread pans.

*******************************************************

You know, something that occurs as I type this is we always have the option of heating up other home canned things like green beans or potatoes just to be doubly sure to eliminate any possibility of botulism. But with this, I mean, who heats up cake and simmers it for awhile??? :shrug:

It stinks, because it's such a neat idea. *sigh*


----------



## fancy1 (Dec 15, 2010)

I have an "experiment" of sorts sitting out in storage now. After reading about canning cakes and breads for so long, I needed to try it. So, there are 4 jars of gingerbread left, aging, and so far so good.
Just made my favorite gingerbread recipe, LIGHTLY greased 1/2 pt jars, then filled them about half full. I put all the jars in the oven at once, all standing on a cookie sheet and let them bake as normal. When they were done, I immediately placed a sterile lid and ring on the very hot jars and let them cool. Use oven mitts, trust me! The lids did seal as they cooled. 
Now, as I've been concerned about just how well they'd keep, about every two months I open a jar. Yum! At least so far so good. 
Don't know how they'd do for long term, but shorter (say up to a year-ish), I can see that having a special treat handy might be a good thing. 

Now, I do have to follow with this - I like my gingerbread hot/warm with a little cream. After opening the jar, I do microwave it for a bit until it steams then add a little cold cream over the top. I don't know if the microwave helps/hurts it, kills any bad stuff, or just plain warms it up for me. But, it's been 8 months now and so far I'm still here. 

Fancy


----------



## rod&chas (Jan 17, 2011)

mmm sounds great...would you mind sharing your gingerbread recipe. I have found a few but none that turn out just how I think it should be.


----------



## judylou (Jun 19, 2009)

From the NCHFP canning FAQs:

Can I can bread or cake in a jar?

_These products are not recommended for canning; choose recipes that you can freeze. In fact, most of these products are not really "canned." The directions call for baking in the jar and then closing with a canning lid. Many recipes for quick breads and cakes are low-acid and have the potential for supporting the growth of a bacteria like Clostridium botulinum if it is present inside the closed jar. One university's research showed a high potential for problems. You will see these products made commercially; however, additives, preservatives and processing controls not available for home recipes are used. Canning jar manufacturers also don't endorse baking in their canning jars._

Since botulism has no odor, no taste, and no smell so it cannot be detected. Yet it is potentially lethal. Is this really worth the risk?


----------



## beaglebiz (Aug 5, 2008)

it says in the recipe "for later use"...probably meaning in the next day or two


----------



## Horseyrider (Aug 8, 2010)

If they mean to use in the next day or two, I'd vote for a little saran wrap and save a lid. And yes, as Judylou said, botulism has no odor, taste, or smell; so it isn't like a person could open a jar and think oops, I'm pitching this one on account of botulism. From what I remember, even one bite of botulism infected food can be deadly.

I was just really surprised to see this in the Nutrimill user manual. I would think the product liability in recommending questionable practices would be enough to make them stay away from such things. Since the idea of canning breads is so compelling, I would LOVE it if it was totally safe to do. 

From much reading on their site, I get the impression that the folks at the NCHFP are great people who love canning and just want to bring it to the public safely. I don't think they're trying to ruin anyone's fun or be that tight crabby home ec teacher we remember who wouldn't allow any personal expression through things we made. 

Dang, I wish it was different and that this was safe.


----------



## Lucy (May 15, 2006)

Botulism can grow that fast in a sealed jar. It can take only a couple days..... so, that theory won't hold up for Nutrimill . I agree, you would think the Nutrimill company would really want to be careful due to liability issues. 
This is the same reason the guideline is to reprocess within 24 hours. After that time you may not be able to destroy all the bacteria. It can grow that fast in a sealed jar.

Those of us who work at County Extension jobs do care, and love our jobs ! That is why I do this. If it wasn't fun, I wouldn't do it. I can see JudyLou is the same way.


----------



## suitcase_sally (Mar 20, 2006)

Has there ever been a case reported of finding botulism in canned cake? I did a search for "reported cases of botulsim in canned cake" and result? NADA.

Don't drive your car because there is a distinct possiblity of getting in a car wreck. Happens a thousand times everyday. There are over 6 million auto accidents a year with an average of 42,500 deaths.

Pick your poison.

http://www.car-accidents.com/pages/stats.html


----------



## judylou (Jun 19, 2009)

Well driving my car to get to work and to the store is a necessity, not a passing convenience. Having cake in a jar is hardly a necessity. At best it is nothing more than a quirky experiment that has been documented in lab testing as unsafe. So they are not really a valid comparison.

Whether there has ever been a reported case of death from it or not isn't the issue. Choose your poison sure, but do it with at least a modicum of common sense applied. 

Like Mama used to say "Just because your friends decide to play chicken on the railroad trestle does that mean you have to do it too?"


----------



## Lucy (May 15, 2006)

They found botulism in the cakes they tested in labs. Same for pumpkin butter. There is no recipe that is consistently safe for those things. 
The most recent cases of botulism I am aware of are from home canned beans. I have a friend that knows an elderly lady in the hospital with botulism from her beans.


----------



## PixieLou (May 1, 2010)

_Sally_ - I also ran a search. Apparently in July 2007, a 39 year old Wisconsin man contracted botulism through canned cake. The CDC report does not specify whether it was home canned cake or commercially canned cake.

In May 2008, a 21 year old Arizona woman contracted botulism from eating a baked potato. The baked potato was not canned.

And in May 2006, as 71 year old Illinois man contracted botulism from food that was prepared and consumed while visiting Poland.

So please do not can cake. And do not eat baked potatoes. And do not visit Poland.


http://www.cdc.gov/nationalsurveillance/PDFs/Botulism_CSTE_2006_website.pdf

http://www.cdc.gov/nationalsurveillance/PDFs/Botulism_CSTE_2007.pdf

http://www.cdc.gov/nationalsurveillance/PDFs/Botulism_CSTE_2008.pdf


----------



## Sonshine (Jul 27, 2007)

I'm not sure I would do this for long term storage, but I like the idea of doing it for something like Christmas gifts. My family doesn't live close by, so I wonder if I baked it in the jar and mailed it to them if it would be safe.


----------



## Horseyrider (Aug 8, 2010)

I have to agree that this is just a convenience, and as well as a really cute novelty. I can remember sliding out brown breads and rum cakes from cans when I was a kid, and slicing them up for dessert. Those were commercially canned, and they were great; so it makes some instinctive sense that home canned would be even more tasty. But wow, what a risk.

I'm really glad there are places like NCHFP that take the time to check out these current trends in canning with a little hard science. I know they're not trying to spoil my fun or make me feel like I'm doing something awful; they just want to present information to keep me and mine safe. There are so many places in our world where there are risks to life and limb; why not minimize the ones we can control?

I think it's telling that the numbers of people killed by botulism are so low. Apparently quite a few people get the message and listen. Kind of like playing golf in a thunderstorm, they've learned when to get in out of the rain....


----------



## Lucy (May 15, 2006)

Sonshine, I think we have already shown it is not safe. Not even for a few days in a sealed jar. Botulism can grow that fast. In just 2 days there can be enough to kill or paralyze a person.... 
So, do as you want, but decide if your family is worth that risk. Mine sure is not !
I would rather send cookies, jars of jelly, or something else.


----------



## Riverdale (Jan 20, 2008)

Don't care whether you can cake or not.

But I do have this question

Why can a cake?


----------



## Kmac15 (May 19, 2007)

Riverdale said:


> Don't care whether you can cake or not.
> 
> But I do have this question
> 
> Why can a cake?


I caned cake for my BIL while he was in Iraq...sent him 6 jars but admit the shipping about killed me.


----------

