What is "lane cake"

A Lane Cake, also known as a 'Prize Cake' or an 'Alabama Lane Cake' is a bourbon-laden baked cake traditional in the American South. According to food scholar Neil Ravenna, the inventor was Emma Rylander Lane, of Clayton, Alabama, who won first prize with it at the county fair in Columbus, Georgia. She called it Prize Cake when she self-published a cookbook, "A Few Good Things To Eat" in 1898. Her published recipe included raisins, pecans, and coconut, and called for the layers to be baked in pie tins lined with ungreased brown paper rather than in cake pans.

The Lane Cake is sometimes confused with the Lady Baltimore cake, which also is a liquor-laden fruit-filled cake, but of different pedigree.

Many variations of the Lane Cake now exist, with three or more layers of white sponge cake, separated by a filling that typically includes pecans, raisins and coconut soaked in a generous amount of bourbon, wine or brandy. It may be frosted on the top, on the sides, or both.

Lane Cake is often found in the South at receptions, holiday dinners, or wedding showers.