"While cakes had been around for centuries, chocolate did not become widely available until the middle of the 19th century, when new industrial processing methods made it more affordable, and led to the introduction of products like cocoa powder. Not long after that, the first chocolate cake recipes began appearing in American cookbooks, and the grandparent of them all was mahogany cake."
"One of the fluffy velvet cakes of the era was angel's food cake. After the addition of chocolate to cakes became more popular, devil's food cake was created as a deliberate foil to angel's food. Originally, the color itself was more of the point, and early versions of devil's food cake used molasses instead of chocolate. However, chocolate powder and then baking chocolate were found to be"
Mahogany cake emerged in the mid-19th century as the earliest known chocolate cake after industrial processing made chocolate and cocoa powder more affordable. Mahogany cake belonged to the Victorian category of velvet cakes that used vinegar or buttermilk with baking soda to produce a lighter, softer texture. The reaction between acidic ingredients and baking soda created more lift than older recipes and could release red pigments in natural cacao when cocoa was added. That pigment reaction contributed to the names and colors of mahogany and red velvet cakes. Devil's food cake evolved as a darker counterpart to angel's food and as a variation of mahogany cake.
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