No one ever called Smith Island Cake a health food. But now Health magazine is giving the official state dessert a negative dietary superlative that may be outsized even for this multi-layer chocolate creation.
Health says the cake is Maryland's contribution to the Nation's 50 Fattiest Foods.
Its 26 grams of fat make it worse than bacon wrapped meatloaf in Alabama (17 grams of fat) but not as bad as Eskimo Ice Cream made from frozen animal fat in Alaska (91 grams of fat).
The cake is named for the only inhabited island in the Chesapeake Bay and, as the magazine notes, "became so popular the governor signed the cake into law." That was in 2008.
And indeed it is popular, says Kristen Smith, manager and a baker at Smith Island Baking Co., which in its first year of business shipped 3,000 cakes – to all 50 states.
Smith said she recent got married and served the cake at the wedding to friend and family, and there wasn't much left over, she said.
"We never said it was a low-fat dessert," she said. "It's not only made with a lot love, but a lot of butter."
Since the baking company's version is homemade, she couldn't give an exact calorie or fat count.
Health didn't say where it got its sample, but the article points out that the cake, made of nine or 10 layers of yellow cake slathered in chocolate icing, has enough fat per serving for an entire day.
But no one said you have to eat cheese or cake every day, not even the governor.
"I suppose one of the perks to being governor is the ability to eat the state food and call it official business," said Shaun Adamec, a spokesman. "Governor O'Malley does enjoy some occasional Smith Island Cake - everything in moderation."
Compared to these triple threats, the cake doesn't look so decadent:
+In Tennessee, home to Ruby Tuesday's, there is the Triple Prime Bacon Cheddar Burger, with 115 grams of fat.
+In Michigan, you can order a BLT with over a pound of bacon at Tony's 1-75 that will give you 192 grams of fat.
+In New York, there is something called the garbage plate, with involves potatoes, beans, meat and sauce. Its estimated fat content is 203 grams.
+In West Virginia, where 31 percent of the adult population is obese, there is a place called Hillbilly Hotdogs, where you can score a 10-pound burger. It's the list topper at 800 grams of fat – an entire day's worth of fat for 22 people, not counting the cheese.
Photo courtesy of Health magazine/Jane Thomas