Lep Cakes or Lebkuchen

I'm almost to tired to blog, made a regular batch with raisins and 1/2 of a batch without raisins, due to my husband thinking raisins are not fit for human consumption. Christmas just isn't Christmas without lep cakes but I hadn't made any for like 3 years I know. My oldest daughter requested them, she says I spoil the dog??
I started out by buying molasses which there were only like 6 jars left in the store which shows it's more popular this time of year, it's on the top shelf too, thanks Mary for the boost if you read this. (Super Center Wal Mart where I work) I reground the ground pecans I put in it because they just weren't fine enough. The nut grinder was my mothers, I have washed it yes but it works soooo much better than any of the new ones. The molasses just didn't seem as dark, we used to have molasses from my great uncle (Peggi's grandpa) I can vaguely remember going over there while they were squeezing the cane. Not sure if they did it with a something motorized or a mule but he grew the cane. They lived in a log cabin by a creek and the only way to reach it was over a footbridge or maybe that was the backyard, an artesian spring ran water through the kitchen sink all the time which was really cool. They moved "up the hill" to a more modern house later but the log cabin was like a child's paradise, I'm sure the adults didn't view it that way however. Anyway this sorghum isn't like what we used to have. I naturally started out with too small a bowl and had to get the biggest aluminum bowl I own. Mom used to make lep cakes on the kitchen table in a granite ware dishpan and I would stir. BTW this recipe isn't for you if you don't have some muscle. It says add flour but not too stiff. You notice there aren't any baking directions? I think 15 min @ 350 and then another 15 or 20 @ 300 is good, this made 3 9x13 pans and actually if I'd had them the next size larger would be good, you'll have to pat it out with your hands. 3/4 of a 5 lb sack of flour is what I added but that might be too much. Recipe reads if you can't read it....
1 pt. each mollasses, shortening, sugar, raisins, nuts, sour milk with 2 T soda, 1 t baking pow. 1 t salt, 1 t. nutmeg, 1 t cloves, 1 t cinn, 1 t allspice, Flour, but not too stiff. Recipe was copied by me when I was 20 and made my mom a recipe book out of her old old passed down recipe cards and I needed practice typing for college, like before computers if you can imagine? And yes I do have a harvest gold stove and range hood, I'm getting a black refrigerator and stove just as soon as these quit, already have the dishwasher.
Anyway I didn't add as much cloves and nutmeg as it called for and increased the cinnamon and allspice and the salt because that's the way everyone likes things, oh yeah, I had part of a box of raisins left so it probably had like 3 C of raisins in it instead of 2, and for shortening I used imperial margarine melted. If you notice I don't follow recipes very well? My mom was an excellent cook but my dad said he would like it if things just turned out the same twice because she was the queen of improvisation. Sometimes things didn't turn out but when they did it was heaven.
The icing is a simple powdered sugar icing, I'm like pretty sure Mom didn't put butter in hers or I didn't because I usually ended up being galley slave for these operations but I like a little butter in it. I melted it and then used like 3/4 of a bag of powdered sugar for 3 pans of cakes. Milk and vanilla finished the recipe till it was pourable but not a glaze, just a thin icing. For some reason these HAVE to have sprinkles on them like angel food cake? but I was out of red sprinkles so I added red food coloring to sugar, the green sprinkles are the cakes without raisins.
Don't tell anyone but I cut the edges off and am taking them to work tomorrow for the Christmas dinner. We don't have to bring anything and they might get eaten right away that way. They used to go in a granite ware refrigerator pan but have gone in Tupperware for years although it might be an antique by now too? We usually used waxed paper to separate the layers and they won't stick after drying a bit but I had no waxed paper, I had LOTS of saran wrap though so that works.
BTW I've had a piece of cheese and these today to eat. Not low calorie and the longer they sit the better, I've been obsessing about making them but procrastinated till the last minute. OCD and avoidant personality disorder make me a miserable person obsessing but then procrastinating quite a bit??!!
Enjoy!