One of the best cake recipes ever

Yes, here I am. I'm sure the one or two of you who actually read this blog were losing sleep these past few months wondering what I've been up to all this time.  No? You say you've had better things to do with your time that waste it stalking this crazy little blog?  

Well, lots has been going on around here. Namely a trip to my hometown of Los Angeles at the beginning of the summer. Perhaps I'll write about that little adventure soon.  I will say this, vegan and vegetarian restaurants abound in the LA area. I was a happy girl for sure!

Today I want to share an amazing cake recipe I came across a few days ago on Chef Chloe's website.  Who's Chef Chloe you say?? Ok, if you're vegan or even vegetarian and you don't know who she is, you seriously need to consider turning in your "Vclub" card.  Just kidding..  But seriously. Chef Chloe' Coscarelli was the first vegan to win a competition on the Food Network last year on Cupcake Wars. Check it out here. Just scroll down the page until you get to the video.
Chloe' was so sweet and adorable even in the face of those catty traditional bakers.  I loved it!

So anyway, fast forward a year later to an amazing cake on Chef Chloe's site. Lemon Olive Oil Cake. Olive oil in a cake you say? Believe me, it was so moist, so decadent.  You don't have to be vegan to appreciate it.
I made a few adjustments for my version, including a mango-papaya syrup in place of the powdered sugar.

I have several friends who don't do regular wheat very well, so I substituted white spelt flour for the all-purpose flour in Chloe's version.  I also used agave' nectar instead of the maple syrup she calls for.  I have another friend who doesn't do other sugars well.   I was feeling a bit sassy, so I added a few pinches of turmeric as well, for more color and a slight(ok, minimal) nutrition boost..

I highly recommend you give it a try and let me know what you think.  It reminded me a lot of the lemon cakes I ate as a kid, only sooo much more sophisticated.  :-)