Elsa Lanchester's Date Torte
Updated: 5 minutes ago
Halloween felt like the perfect time to celebrate Elsa Lanchester and her unforgettable role in The Bride of Frankenstein.
Elsa Lanchester was a brilliant character actress who is best remembered for her role in the 1935 classic Bride of Frankenstein. Her other films in the thriller or horror genre include The Spiral Staircase (1946), Bell Book and Candle (1958) and Murder By Death (1976). She was married to actor and director Charles Laughton and they co-starred together in ten films including the classics Witness for the Prosecution (1957), The Private Life of Henry the VIII (1933) and Rembrandt (1936).
Recipe
This recipe is from "The Stage Favourites Cook Book" by Elizabeth Craig published in 1923. It was unearthed for us by Jenny Hammerton of Silver Screen Suppers.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups castor sugar
6 egg yolks
4 tables spoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups of dates cut lengthwise
2 cups of shelled walnuts
6 egg whites
butter
cream
Directions
Beat 1 1/2 cups castor sugar together with 6 yolks of eggs; then sift in 4 tablespoons four and 1 heaping teaspoon of baking powder. Now add 2 cups of stoned dates, cut lengthwise and 2 cups shelled walnuts. Lastly stir in the beaten whites of 6 eggs and bake in a buttered mould in a slow oven until ready, then serve with whipped cream.
Here's Liz Locke's recipe for the DATE OF DEATH Cocktail:
Ingredients
2 oz gin
1 oz date syrup
1 oz lemon juice
2 dashes walnut bitters
1 egg white
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a shaker. Shake for thirty seconds, then add ice. Shake for another 30 seconds, then strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a twist of lemon.
Special Guest
Liz Locke is the founder of CinemaSips.com, a weekly guide to cocktail and movie pairings, as well as a frequent contributor to Moviejawn. Originally from western Pennsylvania, she now lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and very adorable rescue dog. When not writing or watching her favorite classic films, she can usually be found with a cocktail in one hand and a book in the other. Her debut novel, Follow the Sun, was published in 2023.
The Old Sport, Rosalie Kicks is the Editor in Chief of MovieJawn, a quarterly print publication and website established in 2015. She hails from Philadelphia where she dabbles in filmmaking experiments. When she isn't watching motion pictures she can be found toiling away in her laboratory dissecting films of Tinseltown's past for her podcast, Cinematic Crypt. Rosalie has served as the Nitrate Picture Show’s Social Media Correspondent and has a fondness for black and white pictures, but is always up for a technicolor treat. As a Bela Lugosi enthusiast, she believes that capes never went out of style.
Movie Jawn is selling a Spooky "Bride" tote! Click HERE to order it.
The tote bag artwork is by: Hugo Marmugi, MovieJawn's Art Director
Video
Final Result
A huge thank you to Liz and Rosalie for making the Date Torte! I didn't have time at the moment due to my wacky schedule. They both said the original recipe makes a LOT, so they suggest cutting it in half. Otherwise they both enjoyed it! The photo below is by Liz Locke.
There are tons of Elsa Lanchester films available on DVD, Streaming and Turner Classic Movies.
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Thank you for watching and stay tuned for more food, fun and film history.
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