Brook's Notes | Everyday Inspiration

When I was a kid, my grandmother, Margaret, always baked my sister and I our birthday cakes.  Every year, I would look forward to the four-tier, beautifully frosted masterpiece on the creamy milk glass cake stand.  When I had my son, my grandmother gave me her cake pans and the cake stand she had been using since her four boys were small.  Now, every year, I bake my kids’ cakes in the same pans, and use the same cake stand that my father grew up with.  I have even taken my grandmother's favorite recipes and added my own spin on them.  Everything I know about baking comes from her.  

This past year my daughter requested a fairy-garden party.  We picked nasturtiums from our neighborhood and used pearl sprinkles for decoration.  Each layer (her design) was a different color.  Being the perfectionist that I am, I really have to suppress my urge to control the process of decorating her cakes now that she wants to participate.  It is now really a joint effort and a job I cherish.  

My grandmother's favorite dairy-free chocolate cake (adapted from Hershey's classic recipe).  This version is moist, a bit denser than box cakes and so delicious.

    * 2 organic turbinado sugar
    * 1-3/4 cups organic whole wheat flour
    * 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
    * 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
    * 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
    * 1 teaspoon salt
    * 2 eggs
    * 1/2 c unsweetened soy milk
    * 1/2 c coconut milk
    * 1/2 cup vegetable oil
    * 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract- the best you can find because it makes all the difference
    * 1 cup boiling water


Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans (or in my case, the 4 cake pans from Grandma).  You can also bake in a sheet and frost right in the pan.  Combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl and mix well. Add eggs, soy milk, coconut milk, oil and vanilla and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be super thin so don't panic). Pour into prepared pans.  Bake 30 to 35 minutes.  Frost when cool with dairy free fudge frosting.  Yes, I have a recipe but I will give it to you later.

This makes a great cake to bring to a dinner party.  Your friends will be so impressed.  It is really easy to make compared to how incredible it tastes!  Good luck!

Meet Juniper, from Phoenix, Arizona.  She is our June Gift Certificate Winner!

Juniper answers our 6 questions.

• Why do you like Pacifica in 10 words or less: Fabulous vegan
  fragrances without a bunch of toxic junk included.
• If you were a tree or a flower you would be a...Juniper.
• Name one thing you did for the environment today: I walked to work. 
• What gets you out of bed in the mornings? The allure of fresh sencha tea.
• One thing you hope to achieve in the next year: Complete all of the half
  finished paintings I've hidden in the closet.
• Which one: the ocean, a mountain top, the desert, the city: The ocean
  - living in a desert city, escaping to the ocean is always paradise!

Thanks, Juniper, for being a great customer!

xo
Brook 

Okay - I don't usually talk about my shoes.  Well, only to my close
friends.  But I have just come across the Tom's wedges, thanks
to an eco-chic girl in Portland.  So sexy and kind of Frenchy with
a cool beach vibe.  And the best of all, for each pair you buy a
pair is given to a child in need.

xo Brook
www.tomsshoes.com 

I love the smell of driftwood, mostly it all smells the same - sort of
woody and salty with seaweed notes and the ocean imbued in every
fiber.  But sometimes I come across a piece that still retains some of
its original scent.  Today I came across a piece that smelled like cedar.

I love to imagine where it has been, how many miles it has traveled to get
to the beach, what kind of tree it was, and how did it wind up in the sea?
I like to think that each piece of driftwood tells a story, of waves ridden in wild surf miles from home, or drifting peacefully into the sun. 

xo Brook