Chocolate Cake with Cream Cheese frosting

Wow, these past few days have been so jam packed there just hasn't been anytime until now to tell you about this super delicious cake I made the other day. I've been crazy busy playing with my new cellphone, drinking german beer out of beastly-sized pitchers and boots, watching bad take offs of sex and the city, cleaning up tennis ball vomit at 4am, going to a rad restaurant opening and feasting on endless shortbread and chocolate pudding and blood orange margaritas, and last but not least, making a pretty darn delicious chocolate cake!

This recipe (and frosting) comes from the Joy of Vegan Baking:

1-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cups veg oil (i used 1/3 cup of applesauce instead)
1 tablespoon white distilled vinegar
1 cup cold water

Preheat to 350 degrees and lightly oil either a bundt pan, some 9inch form of a pan, or muffin tins.

Combine the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cocoa in large bowl until thoroughly combined. In separate small bowl, combine vanilla, oil, vinegar and water. Add to dry bowl and mix only until just combined. Pour into your pan and bake for approx. 30 minutes -- if you're making cupcakes it would be closer to 15 minutes. Either way, when you insert a toothpick in the center and it comes out clean then you are ready to go! Make sure to cool it completely before icing it with:

Cream Cheese Brandy frosting:

Combine until creamy:

8 ounces of tofutti cream cheese
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup of confectioner's sugar, sifted
at least 2 teaspoons of brandy (ok maybe at least four)

I made mine in a boring 9"x9" pan, and there was a LOT of frosting. Not complaining, but if you're only going to be covering the top you could get away with making 3/4 of the recipe. Otherwise slobber it on there. A bit of confectionery sugar sprinkled on also looks nice, as does some fresh fruit. I opted to serve it with some raspberry sorbet and preston's favorite mexican sprinkle cookies.

Enjoy!

This is another fun and straight forward recipe so I've included some musica you can bop around to:


rolling stones - she's a rainbow


all girls summer fun band - later operator


headlights - cherry tulips


j church - she's so mean


camera obscura - razzle dazzle rose

not the best decorations but I was tired and wanted to eat it.