30 Vintage Cakes Like Grandma Used To Make (2024)

Home Recipes Cooking Style Baking

Updated: Apr. 10, 2024

From fluffy angel food to charming butter pecan, vintage cakes are making a comeback. Bake your way through this collection of classic recipes and make your grandma proud. Make sure you have the right cake supplies to set your dessert up for sweet success!

1/30

Old-Fashioned Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

A pleasingly moist cake, this treat is the one I requested that my mom make each year for my birthday. It’s dotted with sweet carrots and a hint of cinnamon. The fluffy buttery frosting is scrumptious with chopped walnuts stirred in. One piece of this carrot cake with cream cheese frosting is never enough—it’s better than all the other carrot cakes I’ve tried! —Kim Orr, West Grove, Pennsylvania

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Psst!These are the secret ingredients Grandma used to make her cake taste so great.

2/30

Honey Berry Sheet Cake

I adapted a traditional honey cake recipe for this dessert. I wanted something that would show off all our amazing local honey as well as tasty summer berries. This also works perfectly as a Fourth of July cake, with the blueberries in the top corner and the raspberries in stripes—you wouldn’t need as many blueberries, but you would need more raspberries. —Elisabeth Larsen, Pleasant Grove, Utah

3/30

Pecan Pound Cake

This pecan pound cake always turns out great. It’s wonderful with a steaming cup of coffee on a chilly winter day. —Fleta West, Hayes, Virginia

4/30

Icebox Cake

You don’t have to bake to serve a wonderful dessert! This icebox cake is made from chocolate wafers and whipping cream. It is so delicious.—Cindy Hawkins, New York, New York. If you’re looking for more recipes, then you must try these vintage chocolate desserts.

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Glazed Lemon Chiffon Cake

This fluffy cake is a real treat drizzled with the sweet-tart lemon glaze. —Rebecca Baird, Salt Lake City, Utah

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Italian Cream Cheese Cake

Buttermilk makes every bite of this awesome Italian cream cheese cake recipe moist and flavorful. I rely on this recipe year-round. —Joyce Lutz, Centerview, Missouri

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Classic Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

This pineapple upside-down cake is a classic recipe that never goes out of style! It’s delicious with the traditional pineapple, but try it with peaches or a combination of cranberries and orange. —Bernardine Melton, Paola, Kansas. Love upside-down cakes? Be sure to check our favorite cranberry duff.

8/30

Hummingbird Cake

This impressive hummingbird cake is my dad’s favorite, so I always make it for his birthday. It makes a memorable dessert for any celebration and is lovely with a summer meal. —Nancy Zimmerman, Cape May Court House, New Jersey

9/30

Spiced Devil's Food Cake

One of my mom's friends gave her this recipe when I was a child, and it has been a family favorite ever since. When your chocolate sweet tooth acts up, this really hits the spot! —Linda Yeamans, Ashland, Oregon

10/30

Oklahoma Coconut Poke Cake

Coconut is the star of this cake. You get a double dose, once with the mixture that soaks into the cake and second with the coconut sprinkled on top. Don’t worry though, it’s a nice flavor treat—not too much coconut. —Taste of Home Test Kitchen

11/30

7UP Pound Cake

My grandmother gave me my first cake recipe—a pound cake using 7UP—which her grandmother had given to her. On top of being delicious, this cake represents family tradition, connection and love. —Marsha Davis, Desert Hot Springs, California

12/30

Moist Lazy Daisy Cake

We always called this Mama's never-fail recipe. I guess the same holds true for me since I've won contests with this lazy daisy cake. The tasty dessert always brings back fond memories of Mama. —Carrie Bartlett, Gallatin, Tennessee

13/30

Southern Lane Cake

I just love this southern-style dessert, and so do dinner guests. With pecans, cherries and raisins in the filling and topping, this version reminds me of a fruitcake—only so much better! —Mabel Parvi, Ridgefield, Washington

14/30

Lingonberry-Cardamom Cake

Our family is Scandinavian, and we love using almonds, cardamom and lingonberries in desserts, as in this cardamom cake. If lingonberry jam is difficult to obtain, you can use pureed cranberry sauce with a little lemon juice to get a similar sweet-tart flavor. Whipped cream is a perfect topping for this Scandinavian-inspired dessert. —Barbara Kvale, Cologne, Minnesota

15/30

Gran's Apple Cake

My grandmother occasionally brought over this wonderful cake warm from the oven. The spicy apple flavor combined with the sweet cream cheese frosting made this recipe one that we treasured. Even though I've lightened it up, it's still a family favorite. —Lauris Conrad, Turlock, California

16/30

Gooey Butter Cake

A friend gave me a quick version of this gooey butter cake recipe using a cake mix, but I prefer baking from scratch, so I came up with my own. My family can’t get enough! The middle will sink a little; this is normal. This dessert is delicious served warm or cold. —Cheri Foster, Vail, Arizona

17/30

Best Red Velvet Cake

It's just not Christmas at our house until this festive cake appears. This is different from other red velvet cake recipes I’ve had; the icing is as light as snow. —Kathryn Davison, Charlotte, North Carolina

18/30

Traditional Sponge Cake

This light sponge cake makes a fitting finale to any meal.—Arlene Murphy, Beverly Hills, Florida

19/30

Grandma's Tandy Kake

My grandmother made this for all our family gatherings. Everyone loves it now I make it for every party we attend or host. —John Morgan III, Lebanon, Pennsylvania

20/30

Walnut Blitz Torte

This pretty torte is very popular at family gatherings. The cake layers are baked with the frosting—crunchy, sweet meringue—already in place, and then assembled with a layer of luscious custard in the center. Whenever I make it, everyone always asks me for the recipe. —Suzan Stacey, Parsonsfield, ME

21/30

Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

As a mother of three sons, sweets are a staple in my kitchen! I buy ripe fruit on sale and freeze it to make this cake. My banana cake with cream cheese frosting is a favorite among loved ones at my family picnics and dinners. —Bonnie Krause, Irvona, Pennsylvania

22/30

German Apple Cake

With the long, cold winters we have here, this German apple cake recipe has warmed many a kitchen. The cake is perfect for breakfast, dessert or an evening snack. I've often made it for parties, and I've always received compliments on it. —Grace Reynolds, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

23/30

Classic Tres Leches Cake

Tres leches means "three milks." This cake gets its name because it uses three kinds of milk—evaporated, condensed and cream. This tres leches cake's light and airy texture has made it a classic in Mexican kitchens for generations. —Taste of Home Test Kitchen

24/30

Layered Yellow Cake with Chocolate Buttercream

This yellow cake will become your go-to recipe for birthdays, but the tender cake with flavorful chocolate buttercream is truly perfect for any occasion. —Taste of Home Test Kitchen, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

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Apple Brandy Pecan Cake

My favorite apple cake is made with a shot of brandy and drizzled with caramel to set off the wonderful flavors. If alcohol is a no-go, use orange juice instead of apple brandy. If you’d rather follow a chocolate route, add mini chocolate chips to the cake and use chocolate ice cream topping for the drizzle. —Nancy Heishman, Las Vegas, Nevada

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Best Angel Food Cake

For our daughter's wedding, a friend made this lovely, airy angel food cake from a recipe she's used for decades. It really is one of the best angel food cake recipes I've found. Serve slices plain or dress them up with fresh fruit. —Marilyn Niemeyer, Doon, Iowa

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Coconut Chiffon Cake

Toasted coconut adds visual appeal to this tall and impressive cake. With an airy texture and heavenly coconut-ginger flavor,it's a lovely end to meals throughout the year.

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Old-Fashioned Rhubarb Cake

My great-aunt gave me this rhubarb cake recipe. It’s especially delicious when rhubarb is in season, and tastes even better with the old-fashioned milk topping. But you’ll love it even with frozen rhubarb and “modern-day” whipped topping! —Marilyn hom*ola, Hazel, South Dakota

29/30

Sandy's Chocolate Cake

Years ago, I drove 4-1/2 hours to a cake contest, holding my entry on my lap the whole way. But it paid off. One bite and you'll see why this velvety beauty was named the best chocolate cake recipe and won first prize. —Sandra Johnson, Tioga, Pennsylvania

Next: Learn about the king cake!

30/30

Glazed Spiced Rum Pound Cakes

My recipe makes two loaf-sized treats, perfect for sharing. The spiced rum flavor really comes through in both the cake and the glaze. —Christine Russell, Littleton, New Hampshire

Originally Published: August 29, 2018