I saw this comment on a thread about G.W. cake, and this recipe provided was from Meta Given's Encyclopedia of Cooking, copyright 1953. The writer says it is close to the cakes she used to get in the Phila. area, except chocolate icing was the standard. Here it is in the writer's words:
" I am not sure this is exactly the cake we remember so well, but her goes:
2-1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1-1/4 teas. ginger
1-1/4 teas cinnamon
1/2 teas each: cloves, nutmeg and salt.
2 teas. Calumet or Clabber Girl baking powder OR 2-1/2 teas. Rumford baking powder.
2 eggs
3/4 c, brown sugar, packed
3/4 c. molasses
3/4 c. melted shortening
1/2 teas. baking soda
1 c. boiling water
Line bottom of 9 x 9 x 2 pan with waxed paper. Grease paper and sides of pan. Start oven at 350 10 minutes before baking. Sift flour, measure and sift 3 more times with next 6 ingredients. Beat eggs in 3 qt. mixing bowl with rotary beater (old cookbook). Beat in brown sugar, molasses and until very creamy. Remove and wash egg beater. Using wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture in 2 portions until well mixed. Add baking soda dissolved in boiling water. Beat with rotary beater until smooth. Pour into prepared pan. Bake 35 mniutes or until cake tests done. Coolon rack in pan x 5 minutes. Turn out onto rack, peel off paper carefully and invert. The recipe here says to serve warm with whipped cream but if this is "our cake", I imagine we would cool it and ice as desired. At Lochel's it is always iced with chocolate and then a spider web design is put on the top with white icing, and then a cherry is put in the middle of the top of the cake. "
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