Yummy Vegan Chocolate Birthday Cake

This Friday is my twenty-mumble mumble birthday. So, what better way to celebrate than with a kick ass chocolate birthday cake? Since I've been training for the Disney Princess half marathon (I'll blog about that in my next post for all interested), I have been trying to cut dairy out of my diet as well. Not only is being vegan cruelty-free (duh!) but it gets rid of nasty bloat that milk and cheese cause. And who wants to be nasty and bloated? Not this girl.
After many grueling days of research and experimentation, I came across a wicked awesome recipe that I had to share! So here it is...drum roll please...the BEST vegan chocolate birthday cake recipe!!! ::applause:: ::cheers:: ::fainting:: ::thrown panties:: (courtesy of www.instructables.com)

Cake Ingredients

1 1/4 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup warm water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp distilled white or apple cider vinegar

Chocolate Glaze

1/2 cup sugar
4 tbsp margarine
2 tbsp soy milk
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In an 8X8 square pan/dish, mix together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt with a fork, making sure it is really blended together. Add the water, vanilla, oil, and vinegar, and again, mix together so that it's really blended together. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides if necessary.

Place in oven and bake for about 30 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean. Cool on a rack completely (2 hours).

For the glaze, in a small saucepan, bring sugar, margarine, milk, and cocoa to a boil. Stir frequently; then reduce heat to a simmer for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. It'll look gloppy, but it's just the bubbles! Remove from heat and stir for another 5 minutes.

Add vanilla, stir, and immediately pour onto cake. Glaze dries really quickly, so spread it immediately and add any sprinkles now. Let this cool for an 1 hour, if you can wait that long!

Purely optional, but chocolate cake always looks so...plain, so add some sprinkles if you like.


And there you have it ladies and gents. Don't feel intimidated or put off by vegan desserts. They are JUST as yummy, if not yummier, and your body (and the animals) will thank you! :)

Savannah's New Downtown Restaurant: Satisfied

As a vegetarian, I know how hard it is to find a delicious veggie burger that doesn't taste like the box the frozen patties came in. I've searched high and low for a beef-less beauty to satisfy my taste buds. And this past Sunday night, I found it! And ironically, my needs were satisfied at a new place called...you guessed it...Satisfied.
This new slice of heaven is located on Broughton Street, downtown, where Loco's used to be. I ordered their traditional burger (sub Garden patty please!) with lettuce, tomato, and spiced mayo. Sweet potato fries accompanied my extraordinary entree. I must admit that I didn't expect much. Having been let down so many times, I was only hoping for something edible.
The first bite almost brought tears to my eyes. It was flavorful, juicy, and toasted. I tried my best not to scarf it down. I wanted to savor every bite. Not only was it insanely delicious, the portion size was perfect, leaving me full but not miserable.
To add phenomenal to fantastic, the service was stellar. My server was attentive and friendly, despite being crazy busy.
This burger gets an impossible 5 out of 5 on my yummy scale. I'll definitely be back...probably tonight...