The "One of My Favorite Kakes" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Just got back from the grocery store and was trying to find a place to hide .... or I mean .... place the Tastykakes that I just bought at the store.  Hey, when I can get them at half price I always buy them.  As a matter of fact, just before the Thanksgiving holiday a few months ago, I found them at 5 packs for $10.  Only catch was you had to buy at least 5 or they were $3.00 a box.  So, I bought the 5 packs and hid .... or I mean .... placed some of them above the tallest cabinet in our kitchen.  You see, my side is smaller than I am and can't see on top of that cabinet.  Probably would make a great place to keep this package I just bought I thought, so I got a chair and stretched on my toes to find the best place to store them.  Then I saw it!  Holy Cow!!  There's another box already there!  Reached for it and realized the outdated box must have been one from the group of 5 I bought a few months ago.  

Tastykake Company near Philadelphia

So, I now have two boxes of creme-filled chocolate Tastykakes sitting on the island in the kitchen.  One with chocolate icing and one with white icing.  So, I decided I better hide .... or I mean .... place these Tastykakes somewhere safe, or they will be forgotten again.  And, what good are Tastykakes if you can't eat them.  My favorites are: Butterscotch Krimpets, Chocolate Cupkakes, Coffee Cake Cupcakes and Peanut Butter Kandy Kakes.  For those who live near me in  Lancaster, PA, you probably know that the Tastykake bakery is in Germantown, near Philadelphia.  

Early horse drawn wagon used to deliver Tastykakes.

This year they are celebrating a century of making one of my favorite treats by making a limited edition Birthday Kake Cupkake that is made of confetti cake with chocolate icing and rainbow sprinkles.  The bakery recently celebrated their 100th by giving away free samples to charities and first responders throughout the city of Philadelphia.  They also plan to distribute more Tastykakes through the USO which is the organization dedicated to lifting up the spirits of our servicemen and women.  It was on February 25th, 1914 that Phillip Baur from Pittsburg and Herbert Morris from Boston started their business with $50,000 they got from family and friends.  

One of the trucks used to deliver Tastykakes that has a Phillies logo.

On their first day of production they made 100 cakes, quite a few shy of the 5 million pastries they now produce in a day in their modern facility at the city's Navy Yard.  A few years ago the company was struggling and eventually merged with Georgia-based Flowers Food Inc. to be able to continue it's production.  Tastykake has been a longtime sponsor of my beloved Phillies.  Harry Kalas would often announce during a game that a box of Tastykakes had been delivered to the booth.  Tastykakes were part of his memorial service in 2009 when mouners were treated to them.  As for me, I think it is time to open the outdated box so I can make sure they are still edible before offering any to my wife.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.