Ooey Gooey Caramel Apple Blackout Cake, and Happy Blorgthday! and a Giveaway!

This is it, folks! It's desserts for breakfast's one year blorgthday! (blog-iversary?) Woohoo! Even though the blog itself has been live for longer than one year, I posted my first recipe around this time one year ago, which marked the beginning of this wild food-blogging adventure that I've been on.  As you may know, I'm a huge believer in celebrating birthdays in a big way, and so that's exactly what I'm gonna do for the blog, starting with exciting news, a delicious cake, and a fun giveaway in this post!

So first off, the exciting news: desserts for breakfast is now www.dessertsforbreakfast.com!  That's right--the ".blogspot.com" training wheels have now come off, so please make sure to update your bookmarks.  Your feed should transition automatically, but please double check and let me know if you experience any problems.  (And if you aren't subscribed, well--why aren't you?! --> subscribe at the top of that right hand sidebar.)

Now, onto dessert.  Birthdays, of course, necessitate cakes, and I really wanted to pay homage to my first recipe post ever: vegan chocolate pumpkin cupcakes.  I've also been itching to use the bushels of apples that have been populating every corner of every farmers' market, and so here it is--my way of saying "happy birthday" to this blog: ooey gooey caramel apple blackout cake.  (and yes, it's vegan, too!--I've included both vegan and non-vegan options in the recipe.)

Now, originally this cake was to be named the "caramel apple whole wheat chocolate cake," but the moment I turned the cake out of its pan and saw the caramel juices run down its sides and soak into the deep, dark, rich chocolate cake underneath, I knew that the only way to describe this cake was "ooey gooey."  And let me tell you, even though it might not look like the prettiest cake ever, what it lacks in good looks, it makes up for in incredible yum.  The chocolate cake is dense and textured from the whole wheat, and it's perfect for soaking up all of the juices and caramel sauce from the apples on top.  The caramel itself has a generous sprinkling of coarse sea salt in it, and it makes the dark cake underneath the perfect sweetness for devouring and never getting tired of.  (yes, it's quite dangerous for just that reason.)  Digging your fork into this cake is like eating ultra-moist and robust chocolate pudding with baked apples and just enough cinnamon spice inside.  And did I mention it might actually be, um, (somewhat) good for you?  After all, it has fruit and whole wheat in it!  *smiles innocently*

Lastly, for my blog's blorgthday, I wanted to do something to thank all of you wonderful readers and new foodie friends out there who have helped make this year amazing.  Before I started this blog, I was being torn apart at the seams in two directions.  On one side, I had my studies, which I absolutely love, but at the same time, I felt this incredible need and hunger coming from inside to express my creativity through food and photography (though not food photography--that came later).  Without a proper and regular outlet for my food and artistic interests, I was just constantly unhappy and unfocused and questioning what the right path for me was.  After all, every artist needs an audience, no?

So I am so, so incredibly thankful for this community that you all have provided me in my small corner of the world wide internets.  It's been wonderful to have a space I can come to and be able to actually share my creations and passions.  Food photography, even, has allowed me to blend both of my artistic interests into one.  I've had so much fun "meeting" all of you virtually (and in person for some!), and finding like-minded, food- and sugar- and art-obsessed people has been such a godsend.

All that said, here's a little giveaway that I put together to celebrate the blorgthday!  One of my favorite quotes that I try to live by comes from my academic great-great?-grandfather (that would be my advisor's advisor's advisor's advisor): "Life consists of the little things: the important matter is to see them largely."  This lesson is so perfect and applicable when it comes to food, so I've put together a small collection of a few of my favorite little things that make me happy to pass on to you!

I am giving away to one awesomely lucky winner three things:

1. a set of 4 mini latte bowls from anthropologie {because they're so adorable, and I love to use them for, like, everything!)
2. a 12" stainless steel balloon whisk from Sur la Table {because I'm known around these parts as the whipping queen--I insist on whipping all creams and most meringues by hand because it builds the bubbles properly and because it, you know, builds character. :-P There's also something about the rhythmic clack-clacking from whisking that is just so therapeutic for me.}
3. a set of 6 custom 4x6" prints--of your choice!--from the desserts for breakfast archives {because if I can't send you actual desserts, this will be the next best thing!}

The giveaway is now closed. Thanks for participating, and please check back soon for the announcement of the winner!  To enter this giveaway, all you have to do is leave a comment with your name, a way for me to get in touch with you (anonymous entries will be disqualified), and the answer to this question:

What is one little thing in your daily life that makes you happy?

I'll also give you an extra entry in the drawing if you tweet about this post, but in your tweet, you must mention me (@shihbakes) and include a link to this giveaway (http://bit.ly/dfbbirthday1) so that I can track all of your entries!  You have until 23:59 PST, Sunday, October 3, 2010 to enter. I'll pick the winner at random that night and make the announcement in next week's post, so be sure to check back then!  This contest is open everywhere except where prohibited, but please note that I am not responsible for any import duties or taxes beyond shipping that may be charged by your country if you are overseas.  This giveaway is in no way affiliated or sponsored by anthropologie or Sur la Table.


So, thank you all so, so much for your loyal readership and friendship!  And, this is definitely *not* the end to all of the excitement--I have plenty of things planned for October and the coming months, so here's looking forward to another year of sugar highs and nom-licious desserts!


Read on for recipe....

Ooey Gooey Caramel Apple Blackout Cake (vegan)
makes one 7" cake (double the recipe for a 10" cake)
2 large tart apples (e.g., Granny Smith)
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbspn water
2 Tbspn Earth Balance spread (or butter)
coarse sea salt
1 cup almond milk (or soy milk, or milk)
1 tspn apple cider vinegar
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder (you may substitute 2 Tbspn black cocoa + 3 Tbspn Dutch-processed for this if desired)
1 tspn cinnamon
1 tspn baking powder
1 tspn baking soda
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 tspn vanilla extract

1. Grease and flour the bottom and sides of a 7" round cake pan (with at least 2" tall sides). Line the bottom with a piece of parchment paper and grease again.
2. Peel, core, and slice the apples into chunks about 1/8-1/4" thick. Set aside.
3. In a light-colored saucepan (preferably with tall sides), combine the sugar and water. Stir to make sure the sugar is completely damp.
4. Over high heat, cook the sugar, without stirring but swirling the pan, until it reaches a light golden caramel color. Remove from heat immediately and stir in the butter until the caramel is smooth. Be careful--the mixture will sputter!
5. Pour the caramel into the bottom of the prepared cake pan and sprinkle generously with coarse sea salt. Then, line the bottom with apple chunks, packing them in as tight as possible.
6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. If desired, line the outside of the cake pan with bake-even strips.
7. In the mixer bowl, combine the almond milk and cider vinegar, stirring briefly. Let sit for a few minutes until the milk is curdled.
8. Meanwhile, sift together the whole wheat flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda in a separate bowl.
9. Once the milk is curdled, add the sugar, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract to the mixer bowl and beat until frothy.
10. Add the dry ingredients to the wet in two stages, beating thoroughly between each addition. After the final addition, beat the batter until smooth but do not overmix.
11. Pour the batter over the the apples in the prepared pan and tap the cake pan gently against the counter to allow the batter to settle.
12. Bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes, until set and the top of the cake springs back when gently touched. (If you use the toothpick test, be forewarned that the toothpick won't come out completely clean when the cake is done.)
13. Remove the cake from the oven and let cool on a cooling rack for ten minutes. Then, turn the cake out of the pan. (Don't forget to do this, as inverting the cake will allow the caramel to soak down into the cake!)  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Tip: the cake tastes best when  you let it sit for a few hours (at room temperature) before enjoying so as to give the cake time to absorb all of the caramel juices. You can briefly re-heat it so it'll be warm if desired.

Enjoy!