My relationship with my mother was defined from the very moment I was in her womb. A bit contentious. When she was six months pregnant, she flipped her car. Then I decided I didn’t want to come out and stayed put two weeks past the due date. I also had one foot twisted behind my ear, floating in breech position. There was no way I was coming out the natural way, so she had a c-section. I also decided I didn’t want to nurse, and bit a nurse’s finger, HARD, in my refusal to do so.

I am an only child, and that definitely puts a different spin on the whole parent-child dynamic. Yeah, sure, I’m spoiled. But I also don’t have siblings to share the blame. Noone else is around for my mother to worry about. So she worries about me. EXCLUSIVELY. And she parents me. EXCLUSIVELY.

She is the largest influence in my life. And she is my best friend…well, when she isn’t driving me crazy and I’m not driving her crazy. We are both water signs, a sensitive mixture with her fiery temper and my outright stubbornness. But we get along wonderfully for the most part. There is noone I’d rather go on a road trip with. There is noone I’d rather slather affection on. There is noone I’d rather lay bare my difficulties to. Mom is a sweet muffin.

She is a quirky mixture of many qualities. She has always been a get-’er-done type, kicking me in the butt about this or that thing. But she can also be quite bohemian. She has an art school background and lived in Palo Alto in the sixties. She went to jazz clubs, usually the only white woman there. When she was younger, she had an off-the-wall sense of humor and loved to have fun. I’m sure she has stories she hasn’t told anyone yet.

Mom still has her joie de vivre, in a more muted sense.  She is quieter and a bit more conservative now. She is a homebody and likes her routine, her projects. We celebrated her birthday this past Saturday, a rather important one. A daughter doesn’t reveal her mother’s age on the internet. But my mom will never look her age. She is beautiful.

She originally wanted a chocolate torte. Then she changed her mind, remembering a simple chocolate cake I used to make. It’s summertime, and the general mood lately has been simplicity. No fancy chocolate torte.

I’ve made this cake since my Moosewood cookbook phase as a teen. I haven’t made it in years, but it’s really good. And easy. And vegan! I got the recipe from Moosewood Restaurant New Classics. And as I am a stickler about making people go to the source, go to the source. Deep Chocolate Vegan Cake, pg. 424. The cool thing about this cake is that you swirl apple cider vinegar into the batter before it goes into the oven.

But I will reveal how I topped it. Simple-pimple. Melt chocolate chips with tablespoon or two of water over low heat. Add a drop or two of raspberry extract. An impromptu frosting!

I also made homemade whipped cream. Whip a cup of heavy cream with ¼ cup of sugar. Add an extract of your choosing, though vanilla is classic. I added in some raspberries too.

Happy Birthday Mom. I love you.