PICK OF THE ARCHIVES (reprinted from Fall 2005 Generations ) by Judy Sherman
How many of you have a bundt pan in your kitchen? In case you don’t recognize the name, it’s the heavy aluminum cake pan with curved sides and a hole in the middle. You may have a new-fangled non-stick modern imitation, perhaps made of heat-resistant silicone rubber. Did you know that the classic bundt pan originated over fifty years ago in Minneapolis at the instigation of local Hadassah members Rose Joshua and Fanny Schanfield?
As Fanny Schanfield tells the story, at a Hadassah luncheon in the early 1950s Rose Joshua lamented the lack of substance in the light, fluffy, American-style cakes that women in those days were proud to bake. Why couldn’t someone bake the proper, rich, substantial cakes she remembered from her European childhood? Rose had her mother’s kugelhopf cake pan, but such a pan was not available in America.
Mrs. Joshua’s husband approached H. David Dahlquist, the proprietor of the Nordic Ware aluminum bakeware company, and young Hadassah members Fanny and Rose met with him to show him the prototype for the pan. Some months later a dozen pans were delivered to Hadassah member Mary Juster’s porch. These pans were “seconds”, and it was suggested that Hadassah sell them to members for $4.00 apiece.
Six-pointed star-shaped aluminum bundt pan celebrating the 60th anniversary of Nordic Ware’s bundt pan.
Rose, Fanny and other Hadassah women experimented with the pans. In that day of cake mixes, the pans were not easy to use. They needed to be tempered and well-greased, and the cakes needed to be rich, heavy and sturdy. It was all too easy for the cake to stick to the pan or collapse into a heap of delicious crumbs. Recipes were developed by the Hadassah ladies, and the bundt cake became a classic.
Hadassah members sold the original consignment of pans, and asked for more. The cakes were (and still are) a hit at meetings, buffets, brunches and parties. Bundt pan sales became a regular fund-raiser for the chapter. The Nordic Ware Company had its first big commercial success. In the 1960s Dahlquist asked the Pillsbury Company to develop a cake mix especially for a bundt pan. Teflon-coated pans were developed that were easier to use.
The well-baked bundt cake stays fresh and tasty and travels well to bring to events from picnics to shiva calls. Recipes were developed that used cake mixes (remember “pudding cake” and “monkey ball bread” made with “Poppin fresh” dough, butter and cinnamon). and the cakes appeared at church suppers too. Every serious cook needs a bundt pan as part of her kitchen equipment.
When this writer came to Minneapolis as a young bride my husband’s aunt Mary Juster presented me with a bundt pan, and I bought several others to give to friends for shower gifts. I still own the pan and use it when I feel like making a really special cake.
H. David Dahlquist died in January, 2005. His obituary notices included the story of the bundt pan, still made by Nordic Ware. Recently Fanny Schanfield presented the Jewish Historical Society with an “original” bundt pan, and her story of how the pan was developed. We are delighted to have this homey, historical artifact as part of our collection.
