"Of the many bizarre vintage cakes no one eats anymore, these old-school, lettuce-based cake bars aren't even that absurd. The foundation of this vintage cake is pretty standard, made with flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, eggs, and oil. Like a lot of other vegetables hiding in unexpected places, you wouldn't guess it was the main ingredient based on taste alone."
"In this case, the lettuce works more as a binding ingredient than a flavor booster. One recipe from the 1981 cookbook "Cuisinart Food Processor Cooking" recommends beating shredded iceberg lettuce, raisins, and chopped walnuts into the standard cake batter, which is seasoned with cardamom, ginger, and vanilla. The moist cake is topped with a velvety lemon cream cheese icing before being sliced into bars."
"During the Great Depression, many households resorted to creative substitutes in their cooking, which later became comforting favorites passed down well into the end of the 20th century. For example, bakers would often substitute eggs and butter with mayonnaise. The beginning of the 1980s marked the start of yet another economic downturn period, which could have inspired home cooks to get more resourceful with ingredients - cue lettuce-infused cake and other quirky, budget-friendly creations."
Iceberg lettuce can be incorporated into cake bars to add moisture and act as a binding ingredient without imparting a strong, leafy flavor. A typical vintage recipe combines flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, eggs, and oil as the foundation, with shredded iceberg lettuce, raisins, and chopped walnuts mixed into the batter. Cardamom, ginger, and vanilla provide warm seasoning. The finished cake often receives a lemon cream cheese icing and is cut into bars. Historical context links such recipes to Depression-era and 1980s resourcefulness, when cooks used inexpensive or unconventional ingredients to stretch supplies.
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