There are times I forget, I’m still young. I forget what it feels like to drive with no destination, to have a day without worry, or to simply enjoy the small wonders of life. I feel like I spend so much time fretting about what is going to come next that I forget to live in the now. I end up with a restless feeling; a feeling that leads me to seek out more, to want to explore, run and be free.
This cake is a celebration cake.
I’ve lived in the state of Illinois my entire life. I’ve lived all over the state but never once ventured out it’s borders. I’ve always dreamed of living among mountains or watching a tide come in as part of a daily routine. I’ve never had the opportunity (or more so, never convinced myself I could).
A lot has changed in the past few months. I’ve gotten engaged, started working towards my own business, and come to terms that the current path I’m on is not one I love. I feel like even though I’ve grown a lot, I’m beginning to remember more and more that I’m still young. Now is the time to explore and venture forth.
So here it is: I happened to stumble across a job that I thought would be perfect for M. I told him, he applied and was offered (and accepted) the position. All of this in one week’s time. It’s crazy but that tends to be how we live.
Next month M’s packing up the jeep and driving 2,000 miles to start fresh and in May, I’ll be joining him. We’re headed out of our comfort zones and moving to Sacramento, California.
I couldn’t be more excited.
M is going to be working for an awesome company and as for me, I still have some exciting news up my sleeve (and no, it’s not a baby or a cookbook)!
So, if you live in the area or are a California enthusiast, I’d love to hear your suggestions of places I need to visit. I’m already making a list for all the places in San Francisco as well as heading to Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, and hopefully up north to Oregon and Washington.
Oh, and this cake? It’s awesome. It’s a riff off my maple pumpkin bread, so it’s not quite traditional cake but I promise you will love it just as much.
- 2½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoons ginger
- 1¼ cup maple syrup
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup walnut oil or melted butter
- 1¾ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ cup crushed pecans, optional
- 1 recipe for cream cheese frosting
- cinnamon and toasted pecans to top, if desired
- Preheat oven to 350˚ and prepare two 9″ cake pans by lightly greasing with oil and dusting with flour.
- Combine whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, pumpkin, oil, and maple syrup. Pour in to dry ingredients and stir until well combine. Fold in pecans if desired. Pour batter evenly in to the two pans, smoothing out to each edge.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cake springs back when pressed. Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove cake from pan and continue to cool.
- When cake is cool, make frosting and frost cake. Sprinkle with cinnamon and pecans.
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