the best cake i ever ate

last week i finally met emily! a blogging friend that i've made  (even though our friends and family know each other, and even though we live in the same small valley we had never officially met). we've been emailing more and more lately and she's been very supportive of my sugar problem that i've got (remember this?).  anyways, long story short, last monday that cute little pregnant lady was on my doorstep and had brought me mounds of delicious vegetables from her garden. oh! they were fabulous and i protected them like gold. but the most amazing thing she left was a sugar free, dairy free, german chocolate cake for rodney's birthday.

seriously, she made me an entire cake! i was so flattered/embarrassed/excited all at the same time.  i've been sugar free for over 2 weeks now, and doing great. but the concept of holidays and birthdays was so sad to me. no cake? no ice cream? i felt as though the world would stop spinning. oh contraire mon frere! there are whole foods, healthy versions of your favorite treats available to make. just look up paleo, vegan or raw (and then insert favorite dessert). i even found smores last night!

ok, long story short (too late) i was hesitant to bake anything. and emily saved the day. i cut into it about an hour before the party so i could take a picture for the birthday album, and sneaked a small bite from the pan afterwards. ok, fine. i really just took out a piece early so i could try it before anyone else came over.  and honestly, it looked great. but i was prepared for disgustingness. the only "healthy" cake i ever made tasted like dried dirt.  "here goes" i thought, as i lifted the fork to my mouth. and OH MY GOODNESS! the flavor. the moistness. the coconut and nuts. pure, and absolute heaven.

and rodney was our first baby that really devoured his birthday cake. the girls just picked and licked and then ate most of the ice cream (and then threw up that night). it was all over him and he loved it! ( i added fresh unsweetened heavy whipped cream on top for him)

the best part though was sharing it with all of our family and then telling them what was in it.  now, i don't know if it tasted so good because i'm without refined sugar any more, but i don't care either. it was delicious, and it didn't spike my blood sugar and send me into an all night eating binge like regular cake does.  this is serious progress my friends.  the only bad part is there was too much left over the next day, and instead of sharing it with my friends, i ate the rest of it by.myself. two steps forward, one step back i guess.

 without further ado, you can find the recipe here:

Super Moist German Chocolate Cake

1 ½ cups whole wheat flour

3 T. sifted carob powder

1 t. baking soda

1 c. Sucanat

1/2 t. sea salt

5 T. coconut oil

1 T. apple cider vinegar

1 T. vanilla

1 cup cold water

Put your flour into mixing bowl, add carob, baking soda, sugar and salt and mix well.Make three deep holes in the dry mixture. Into one, pour the oil, into the next, pour the vinegar, into the next, pour the vanilla.Pour the water into the bowl, over all of this.Mix the wet and dry ingredients together until there aren't any more lumps and pour into a 9x9 inch baking pan.Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, test with fork.Can also be made into cupcakes, bake for 15 minutes.

Frosting:

1/2 c. coconut oil

3/4 c. organic cane sugar

1 1/2 c. shredded unsweetened coconut

1 cup chopped pecans

1/2 c. almond or rice milk

1 t. vanilla

Boil together all ingredients in a medium to large saucepan over medium high heat for 10 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden or plastic spoon. Pour then spread on cake while frosting is still warm. Let set up for a few minutes before serving. (Sets up faster if you cover it and place it in the fridge.)

Now i'm trying to figure out how to repay Emily. because honestly, i am in her debt for her generosity and kindess. Have you ever had people do really nice things for you? How do you repay them?