Kunzle Cakes

[treeve]

I wonder just how many members remember Kunzle Cakes.
The pack was of six cakes, and we were five, and being the house of equality, the extra cake was delegated in strict rota. The cakes were bought from the bakers up Arcade Steps (right side going up). Cups, of thick dark chocolate, filled with crushed nuts, or light sponges, preserves, and topped with jellies, and cream (a very light mousse) and fruit sweets, chocolate squares, or icing. There was a banana cake, a chocolate cake, a whipped praline ... they were so scrummy.
A real treat. For some reason Christian Kunzle stopped producing them. He had come from Switzerland c1920, had worked for Westminster, and later began his bakery in Birmingham. In our house Kunzle Cakes was one of the experiences that embedded itself in our consciousness. The cups were of various shapes, diamonds, squares, oval ... In all honesty, I have never tasted anything remotely like them since. That Kunzle moment began in c1950. We could get them up until the 1970s. Anyone else with any memories?

 

[missp]

I`ve not heard of these cakes Treeve, but they do sound scrummy. I googled Kunzle and quite a bit of info came up. Mum always bought our cakes, or fancies as they were known as from Eddys Bakery in Newlyn. We used to have them for Sunday tea.

 

[treeve]

Thinking about the flavours ... lemon, strawberry, chocolate, lime, orange, nut. I think that is right, not banana.

 

[symons55]

I remember Kunzle Cakes, corrr I can almost taste them now, think I'll get something to eat...................

 

[treeve]

@missp - later we ('my wife and I') used to go to Eddy's, there was a particular pastry they made, was it a crumbly? Just musing about cakes ...

PS, If anyone searches online, be careful. There are some copy sites with some lethal code in them, takes you to a scam scan site and takes over your computer; luckily I have F-Secure. I also take the precaution of using Google caches on many searches, much safer for little bunny wunnies.

 

[treeve]

Whilst drooling over cakes, @symons55, another cake we got was what was the excess cake mix, in a puff pastry base and top and an icing sugar top (something sticky to keep the pastry on the cake), Nelson Squares; I believe they can still be found, but the last one I hade tasted as if it had been found in the road. At the time we had the Kunzle Cakes we got the Nelson Squares from that bakery in Arcade Steps.

 

[missp]

We have F-secure as well

 

[symons55]

We have F-secure as well, gets around dunnit. @Treeve can't remember Nelson cakes.

 

[treeve]

Nelson Squares
They started out apparently during WWII. Bread and bits of cake. Put the lot onto a mixing bowl, blend it with black treacle, sandwich in between two layers of puff pastry. Bake it for the pastry time. I have heard it said that outside of Cornwall it was only the base was the pastry. I have also heard it said that rum was the local additive of choice. The cake was very moist and scrummy, plenty of 'figgies' - raisins. The ones that I remember were actual cake mix. One o they and thee don' want no dinner ... fill ee up som'in ansom. They were three inch squares.

 

[tabtab13]

There was a bakers up the top of Causewayhead (think it was The Oven Door) who would do doughnuts filled with orange jam and then instead of icing on the top, there would be chocolate - I loved those.

Also like a nice slice of Black Forest Gateau - the proper stuff mind, it MUST have Kirsch in it. Lavender's would make them to order and we used to have one at Christmas.