Have Your Cake (and stay on budget, too!)

German Chocolate Tart- Rick's Dessert Diner, Sacramento CA

It's Summertime and the livin', unfortunately, is not easy for most people right now. Am I right?
Money is really tight for a lot of us and Summertime is all about getting out & having fun.  But what kind of fun is there to have when you're on a budget?
Well, one of the things we like to do is go out for dessert instead of dinner.
We have a simple meal at home, then head out to Rick's Dessert Diner for a yummy treat.
Dessert generally runs about 1/4 to 1/10 the cost of a dinner (depending on how fancy your dinners out are!) and you feel like you're getting something really special. Because it's DESSERT. And I don't know about you, but my husband would probably rather have cheesecake for dinner anyway:

Jude & his Spring cheesecake

Rick's Dessert Diner is located in Midtown and is a teeny little place with a kitschy 50's diner look- all pastels & checkerboard.  The pies & cakes are amazing! My favorite by far is the German Chocolate Tart, while my husband Jude prefers the cheesecake. Any cheesecake. The folks behind the counter are really friendly & don't seem overwhelmed even when the line is going out the door and the A/C is pretty much non-existent. 

Two pieces of cake + an iced tea & a coffee runs us about $16. I always feel satisfied when we eat there, and I never feel like our money has been wasted, the way I do after plunking down $50 for a mediocre dinner at some boring chain restaurant. 

And if you're like me and don't drink, it's also a good alternative to the usual Girl's Night Out.

Desserts are sinful in a good way, and the guilt you get from eating cake most certainly beats that Sunday morning walk of shame, ladies & gentlemen. You know who you are!

So anyway, if you're thinking you need some alone time with your significant other but you don't want to break the bank, look up your local dessert cafe. And if you're in the Greater Sacramento area, be sure to stop in at 2322 K Street and order a piece of Rick's towering red velvet cake. I dare you.

Whole grain, low fat, vegan chocolate cake!

Just because we're trying to live a healthy lifestyle doesn't mean we should have to miss out on all the yummy baked goods the world has to offer.  I don't know about you, but I LOVE to bake.
I bake a few times a week.  I must be lucky because none of us has suffered any real consequences, though now that I have turned 30, people keep assuring me that my metabolism is going to come to a complete halt and all those cupcakes & cookies I've been eating will come to haunt me.
So, I figured the smart thing to do would be to try to alter some of my recipes.
That way, we can enjoy our baked goods with limited amounts of guilt.

Today I altered a one-bowl vegan chocolate cake recipe that gets rave reviews.  Using the vegan recipe over another was a no-brainer. 
It already omits eggs so by leaving out the oil, it's cholesterol free.

The recipe:

Preheat oven to 350
lightly spray 8 inch round cake pan

Ingredients 

1 1/4 cups whole wheat 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 unsweetened applesauce 
1 tsp apple cider vinegar 


In large bowl, combine sugar, cocoa powder, salt & baking powder.  
Sift whole wheat flour TWICE before adding to dry ingredients (cake will be really dense if you don't do this)
Lightly stir all dry ingredients & create well. Add warm water, vanilla, applesauce & vinegar.
Combine but be careful to not over-mix- you want a little air in the batter.


Bake for aprox. 25 mins. DO NOT OVERBAKE. You know your oven, if it's a hot one, watch it.


Let cool for a couple of hours, then dust with powdered sugar or glaze.

I glazed mine but you're not getting my glaze recipe, haha. It's a secret and one of my only claims to fame.


I will tell you this though- if you accidentally over-bake your cake (it's easy if you're baking with whole grains for the first time) then pouring a glaze over it & letting the cake soak it up is a great, easy fix and no one will be any wiser.