As Marie Antoinette once famously quipped, “Let them eat cake." And we are!
Cakes truly are one of the world'sgreatest gifts. Mankind has enjoyed these baked wonders in some form or another for thousands of years. The world's oldest cake recipe dates back more than 4,000 years and was found in an ancient Mesopotamian tablet; the ingredients for it included flour, honey, and curdled milk (yum!). The ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans all enjoyed snacking on sweetened cake-like treats containing honey,fruits, andnuts.
During the Middle Ages, early bakers mastered a variety of densefruitcake-like creations. As time went on, these OG pastry chefs also improved their craft, learning how to make their cakes lighter and fluffier with the addition of butter and eggs (and, eventually, baking soda and baking powder). Today, cakes come in an infinite variety of flavors, shapes, and forms — the only thing uniting them being that they (almost) always contain flour, a sweetener, a fat source (butter, oil, or shortening), eggs, and a leavening agent (baking powder, baking soda, or yeast).
Which cake reigns supreme is, of course, a matter of personal taste. Some of us love the soft, buttery moistness each bite of cake offers. Others enjoy the smooth, silky sweetness of frosting and icing. But the one thing we can all agree on is that when it comes to rich, decadent desserts that make you go "mmmmm," there's nothing like a great slice of cake.
The most popular types of cakes around the globe
Here's a layer-by-layer look at the types of cakes people around the world just can't stop devouring.
The United States of cake
Americans down a remarkable19.5 billion poundsof cake and pastries each year.
And, much like the rest of the world,researchshows that more than half of Americans love a good chocolate cake — especially if it's frosted or has incredible icing. However, chocolate cake isn't actually the most popular cake in the U.S. That honor goes to these five beloved (and delicious) cake varieties:
Our favorite types of cake
Disclaimer: The rankings shown above are those of other people and do not necessarily reflect the cake preferences of this writer. Here's what I think are the best cakes in all the land.
