Birthday Month (and my easy "Wacky Cake" recipe)

Birthdays here are a simple affair.  My kids get a homemade cake of their choice, plus either a handmade gift, a consumable gift, an experience gift, or food.  In the past, I've made sweaters and embroidered bookmarks, I've bought multicoloured bath bombs and bars of soap that smelled like Turkish delight, we've gone on day trips and raced each other on public transport, and I've made pizza from scratch.

Most recently, I made a feast.  The birthday boy had so many ideas, I told him to write them all down and he brought me a list -- chocolate cake with vanilla icing (and a chart for how to divvy it up -- he wanted 1/4 of the cake to himself), vanilla cupcakes, sandwiches (PBJs, of course), homemade sushi, and orange juice with bits.  I had him sign it just in case he wanted to add something and then tried to pull the ol' "I told you and you forgot!" trick, and the night before his birthday he was upset that he'd forgotten to add chia pudding and vegetarian jelly (jello to you yanks).  Just as well, because our wee refrigerator was full and I was already up late baking the birthday treats.  (As a consolation, birthday boy got to taste test some cupcakes the night before, even though it was past his bedtime.)

The next morning, we had cake for breakfast.  This is another tradition.  We left two cupcakes outside the front door of our favourite neighbours' flat and later that evening, they came up with a bag of popcorn for the kids.  <3

I have a tried and true recipe for cake that also works for cupcakes.  It's my version of Wacky Cake, the egg-less and dairy-free cake people used to bake when there were rations during WWII.  It doesn't "taste vegan" or "taste like a ration recipe" and I've fed it to people who've thought it must be high in calories because it's so rich.

Preheat oven to 175°C/350°F
Mix together in baking pan (8"x8" was recommended for the original recipe):

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 3/4 cups sugar (I have reduced this by up to 1/2, esp if I am going to do the sugar syrup trick or have lots of layers with icing)
• 1/4 cups cocoa powder (replace with more flour if you want a different flavour cake)
• 3/4 tsp baking soda (I have seen as much as 1 tsp in some recipes)
• 1/2 tsp salt (I usually skip this)
• (any spices you might want to add, like cinnamon, clove, ginger, etc. or zest (I made a grapefruit cake once))

Then make 3 craters in the mix and fill them with (1 of each):

• 1 tsp vanilla extract + any other flavours you might want (or more vanilla if you want a really vanilla-heavy cake)
• 1 tsp vinegar (I just add a wee glug and don't bother measuring)
• 5 tbsp neutral flavoured vegetable oil (I use rapeseed, but in the past have used sunflower, olive oil, etc.)

Then pour over 1 cup water (or juice, milk/plant milk, etc. (I used grapefruit juice when I made that grapefruit cake), but water is all you need), mix until just a few streaks of flour remain, immediately put in oven.  Bake for ~30 minutes until a knife or toothpick inserted comes out clean (a few crumbs okay).  Can keep at room temp for a few days if tightly wrapped.  Dust with confectioner's sugar before serving.

Recipe notes:  You can double the recipe -- just use a larger cake tin or bake for longer (if the middle is still gooey, cover in foil and bake for another 15 minutes).  If you make cupcakes, make the batter in a bowl and then scoop into cupcake tins and just bake them for 15-20 minutes.
The recipe is very forgiving.  You can also reduce or cut out the fat entirely (it can get a little more dry this way, but you can prick the cake and pour a few tbsp of sugar syrup mixed with citrus juice (boil/reduce the juice to concentrate the flavour) over the top of the cake, which makes it taste really fancy and also makes it extra moist.  You can use self-raising flour instead of flour and baking soda (although sometimes I still add a little pinch of baking soda anyway).

The icing is just fondant sugar, glycerine, vanilla extract, and a little bit of water (I add a tsp or so at a time).  That way it stays moist and spreadable like frosting, but doesn't harden like icing often can.

3 of my kids have birthdays within a month, so I've got 2 more cakes ahead of me.  One of my kids is a train spotter and has asked for a daytripper ticket so he can hit all the tracks on Strathclyde that he hasn't been on yet, and the other is currently working on a list of foods for another feast!