Recreating Christine’s carrot cake.
I visited Christine Hammill’s cemetery on a warm May day after a long drive through the California Redwoods. I’d heard about a mysterious carrot cake recipe through social media comments over a two year span. Then one day a neighbor of the cemetery sent me a photo of a gravestone in Ferndale with a recipe carved on it. The woman who sent the photo also added, “Just wait until you see the back of the gravestone.” I couldn’t imagine anything more interesting than a recipe on a gravestone as is, so I made plans to visit Christine.
Christine’s carrot cake gravestone is situated in the picturesque Ferndale, California, a charming Victorian Village nestled between the California Redwoods and the famed Lost Coast. Driving through the charming town you’ll quickly spot its blend of old-fashioned Americana and contemporary eccentricity. When I visited, the local theater was featuring “Kinky Boots” for locals and northern California vacationers as well as California flags and rows of charming houses.
Christine and her husband Richard’s gravestones were located in Ferndale Cemetery. I then learned what they meant about looking at the full gravestone. On the front side of Richard’s grave, one finds the humorous inscription, “I should have listened to my wife.” Opposite this, Christine’s gravestone carries the response, “Yeah, look where we ended up.”
In the process of delving into Christine’s grave, I also made a delightful discovery – that she is very much alive, as is her husband, Richard. The couple currently reside in Ferndale, not far from where their prepared gravestones stand. The idea for the epitaphs were crafted by Richard, a creative marketing professional.
Christine is one of two recipe gravestones (that I know of) still belonging to the living. The tradition of individuals erecting gravestones or tombstones before their death is a modern phenomenon that has gained traction in recent times. While the practice is not widespread, it reflects evolving attitudes toward death, personal expression, and a desire to have a say in one’s final resting place. It allows for one to personalize their memorial as they’d like, have control over their legacy, and make the death duties easier for their families in the future.
Christine’s gravestone is particularly noteworthy is the inscription of her family recipe on the opposite side– “A Good Carrot Cake.” The recipe has wonderfully detailed instructions (considering the space limitations of a gravestone) and ingredients that were new to my understanding of a carrot cake, including pineapple and chopped nuts. The cake is rich and perfectly by its mouth watering cream cheese frosting.
The memorial stands as a beautiful tribute to this couple, memorializing their humor and a delicious family recipe for years to come.
“A Good Carrot Cake”
2 cups of flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped nuts
4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups oil
2 cups grated carrots
1 (8 1/2 oz) crushed pineapple, drained
Soft together flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir in oil, pineapple, carrot, nuts, flour, and mixture. Turn into 3 greased and floured 9 inch round cake pans.
Bake at 350 F for 35-40 minutes. Cool in pans for 10 minutes, remove to wire racks, cool well.
Vanilla cream cheese frosting;
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 (8oz) cream cheese
1 pound powdered sugar, sifted
Mix butter, cream cheese, vanilla, then add sugar. Frost between layers, top and sides.