Happy

Our first Valentine's Day married. It feels like we've lived a lifetime in the two months since we said, "I do." 

For about a month, Mark was down for the count, terribly sick with mono.  He decided to really test the "in sickness and health" vow right off the bat.  I have never seen a human being more miserable than my husband during that time.  Imagine a man who is used to juggling a dozen tasks at a time all the time, suddenly finds himself completely incapacitated and unable to conjure the will to even stay awake.  I think the house started to feel like a prison for him.  A farmer, in that sense, is like a wild animal.  Keeping them caged for too long starts to frustrate them, dull their natural instincts and tame their vigor. 

But somehow, we made it to the other side.  And I find myself (at the risk of sounding disgustingly sappy) falling more and more in love with my husband daily.  I daresay, by the moment.

Mark's capacity for understanding and the ability to wade through the muddiest of messes never ceases to amaze me.  He is full of humor, energy, love and acceptance.  All of my dark moods, eye rolls, laziness and impatience rolls off of him and somehow he sees me as a beautiful, strong and capable woman.  He constantly surprises me, finds new ways to make me laugh, care for me and encourage me.  Whatever I did to deserve this man, I certainly did not do it in this life.

What surprises​ me the most about our marriage so far, is that the simplest things are what bring me the most pleasure.  The daily rituals build my anticipation - they are islands of tranquility in a turbulent sea.  When we share meals, when he peeks his head in the door mid-morning to drop off the paper and steal a kiss, when we burrow under the same blanket in the evening, dog at our feet, cat in our laps - those are the moments that define my life.  That define my happiness.  

That is why I picked this particular cake recipe to share with you today: simplicity.  This recipe was developed by a very clever baker during the Great Depression when eggs and butter were hard to come by.  I love how casually it comes together, how springy and moist the crumb is and how flavorful such a humble list of ingredients can be when combined.  Though it is often referred to as "Depression Cake," one bite of it will make you anything but sad.

Vegan Chocolate Cake ("Chocolate Happy Cake")
Makes 1 - 8" or 9" round or square cake

Ingredients

2 cups (212 g) unbleached pastry or all purpose flour
1/4 cup (21 g) cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup (198 g) sugar
1/3 vegetable oil
1 tbsp white vinegar
​1 cup hot water or hot, strong coffee

Method

Preheat a conventional oven to 350 F.  Line a round or square 8" or 9" cake pan with parchment paper and grease it.

Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda.  Whisk in the sugar.

Pour the oil, vinegar and hot water or coffee into the dry ingredients and whisk vigorously for about 30 seconds to combine everything into a smooth batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, place on the center rack of your oven and bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.  Start checking around the 20-25 minute mark.  If making cupcakes instead, check around the 18 minute mark.

Let the cake cool in the pan for about half an hour before removing from the pan.  This recipe will make about a dozen small cupcakes and can be doubled to make a layer cake.