A Harte Appetite: Mark your calendar for Calendar Cake

"April is the cruellest month," T.S. Eliot lamented in "The Waste Land." I don't know if he had today's date in mind -- April 15, the deadline for filing your income tax -- but in years past on this date the Academy of American Poets would distribute thousands of copies of "The Waste Land" to post offices around the country for the commiseration of taxpayers rushing to mail their returns.

It's a shame that the 15th so dominates our calendars this month because there are so many other dates worth observing during April.

For example, there's National Peach Cobbler Day (April 13), National Blueberry Pie Day (April 28) and National Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Day (April 20), not to mention National Pretzel Day (April 26), National Chocolate Mousse Day (April 3), and National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day (April 2).

In fact, every day of the month has been designated a day to honor something you can eat. April 15 itself, for instance, is National Glazed Ham Day -- a much better way to mark the date, if you ask me, since it doesn't conjure up images of a Form 1040. (Though, I suppose, it could serve as a reminder that a lot of our tax dollars are spent on pork.)

Indeed, there's hardly a food that doesn't have its own day sometime during the year. Some, like the chocolate chip cookie, even get a whole week (the second week in March) and some, like ice cream, get an entire month (July). A few get a day, a week and a month. Thus, May 28 is National Hamburger Day, the second week in May is National Hamburger Week, and the entire month of May is National Hamburger Month. Personally, I prefer Aug. 13. That's National Filet Mignon Day.

Ingredients frequently get calendric honors. For example, beans are singled out in January, garlic in April and cranberries in November. But whole dishes or other concoctions also get their due. Thus, there's National Baked Alaska Day (Feb. 1), National Banana Cream Pie Day (March 2), National Devil's Food Cake Day (May 19) and even National Cherry Popsicle Day (Aug. 26).

So no matter how depressing the day otherwise, there's always an official culinary reason to celebrate. My favorite day? That would be May 11, Eat What You Want Day. Frankly, I observe it year-round.

Calendar Cake

This is the perfect dessert for any culinary occasion. Adapted from "The Great Big Butter Cookbook," I call it Calendar Cake because it's filled with dates.

2 1/4 cups cake flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/16 teaspoon pepper

1 1/2 sticks butter

1 3/4 cups sugar, divided

1 1/2 cups brown sugar, divided

2 teaspoons vanilla, divided

5 eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1 1/2 cups chopped dates

1/2 cup orange juice

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1/4 cup walnuts

2 egg whites

1 1/2 teaspoons light corn syrup

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon water

3 ounces cream cheese

Sift together flour, baking powder and soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and pepper. Cream butter, 1 cup granulated sugar and 3/4 cup brown sugar until fluffy. Add vanilla and beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in dry ingredients alternately with buttermilk. Divide batter between two greased and floured 9-inch cake pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until tester comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pans.

Cook dates and orange juice over medium heat, stirring until thick and dates are tender. Add zest, cool, and stir in walnuts. Beat together egg whites, remaining 3/4 cup granulated and 3/4 cup brown sugar, corn syrup, cream of tartar, water and a dash of salt. Beat seven minutes over boiling water. Remove from heat, add remaining teaspoon vanilla and cool to lukewarm. Beat cream cheese until smooth and fold into frosting. Spread date filling between cake layers and frost.

Tom Harte's book, "Stirring Words," is available at local bookstores. A Harte Appetite airs Fridays 8:49 a.m. on KRCU, 90.9 FM. Contact Tom at semissourian.com or at the Southeast Missourian, P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63702-0699.