I’m sitting here in my office, with a the beautiful mug filled with my favorite coffee, and I actually feel – content. I’m thinking about how insanely lucky I am to be able to do what I love as my job now. But then I’m reminded of how much work I’ve put into this space, and realize maybe it wasn’t all luck after all.
Sometimes I put a lot of pressure to show gratitude. I see people posting on Instagram with hashtag #blessed in their captions, and it makes me think that I’m not being grateful enough for what I have. But this is kind of silly for two reasons – 1. because you should never compare yourself to people on Instagram, and 2. because gratitude should come naturally from the heart, and not from peer pressure.
But there’s a certain type of gratitude that I wish I saw more of from others, and myself. And that is gratitude for YOURSELF. In my own case, I kept thinking about all of the outside factors that made my work possible, and totally neglected to thank myself for all the hard work I’ve put in. And I think that’s because many of us are taught that patting ourselves on the back is inherently wrong for some reason.
But I’m here to tell you (and me) today that it’s OKAY to be thankful for yourself. In fact, you SHOULD be! There’s a quote that says everyone is fighting a hard battle, but have you ever stopped to thank yourself for fighting that good fight? We’ve all faced hardships, difficulties, struggles – some of us may be going through these things right now. But today I invite you to APPRECIATE the fact that you’ve kept going. You’ve worked so hard to get where you are today, and you deserve true gratitude for what you’ve accomplished. Your troubles may or may not be over, but you’ve made it this far, haven’t you? So stop and THANK YOURSELF for achieving all you’ve achieved, even if they’re small victories. And if you ever think that you’re not deserving or worthy of gratitude, let me affirm that YOU ARE WORTHY.
Vegan Apple Cake
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 1/3 Cup Coconut Oil melted
- 1 1/2 Cups Natural Applesauce
Dry Ingredients
- 2 Cups Spelt or Whole Wheat Flour
- 3/4 Cup Coconut Sugar
- 1/4 Tsp Salt
- 1 1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
- 1 1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
Vanilla Cashew Cream
- 1 Cup Cashews soaked overnight
- ⅔ Cup Almond Milk or other plant milk
- ½ Tsp Vanilla
- 2 Tbs Coconut Oil melted
- 2 Tbs Maple Syrup
Garnishes
- Sliced Almonds
- Coconut Sugar
Instructions
Apple Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a small bowl, mix wet ingredients - melted coconut oil and applesauce. Mix to combine fully.
- In a larger bowl, mix dry ingredients - flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Mix to combine fully.
- Fold wet ingredients into the dry, stirring until everything is just mixed.
- Pour batter into a baking pan (I used a bundt pan) lined with vegetable spray or coconut oil.
- Bake in the oven for 40 minutes.
- When done, remove from oven and let cool.
Vanilla Cashew Cream
- In a blender, combine soaked cashews, almond milk, vanilla, coconut oil, and maple syrup. Blend on high until everything is smooth and creamy.
- The cream can be used instantly, but it will be very thin. To thicken, stick the cashew cream in the refrigerator for 30-45 minutes.
- Then, pour over the cake, garnishing with sliced almonds (if desired).
- Enjoy!
Notes
Quote of Day:
Almost proving what I said about society not willing to let you thank yourself – I couldn’t find a single quote about self-gratitude. So instead, I humbly submit these words:
You is kind. You is smart. You is important.
26 Comments
Karlie
December 13, 2016 at 11:37 amoh my gosh this looks incredible!! Can’t wait to try it! Also, yes you are killing it keep it up!! xx
Sarah
December 13, 2016 at 3:19 pmThanks Karlie!! :D
Christine@ Yum and in Love
December 13, 2016 at 2:02 pmYES. You can be humble and still be grateful for yourself and the hard work you’ve put in. It is helpful to look back and think “Thanks, past me.” and encourage your present self to keep it up. Also, this Vegan Apple cake looks incredible. I’m not vegan but there’s a lot of food allergies in my family and I’m in charge of dessert for Christmas dinner!
Sarah
December 13, 2016 at 3:21 pmYes, absolutely!! Sometimes I forget to thank past me but you’re right, it really is so helpful to do so!! And I hope you love this cake! :)
Sarah @ Making Thyme for Health
December 13, 2016 at 11:14 pmI l ove the message behind this post. It’s such a great reminder! And this cake is stunning. I want to face plant right into the center and eat my way out, hehe. ;)
Sarah
December 14, 2016 at 8:42 amHaha thanks Sarah! :)
Veronika
December 14, 2016 at 10:44 amSo beautifully said, Sarah :) Totally agree with what you’re saying.
It’s sad that it’s such a foreign thing for us to be proud of ourselves more often. We’re being bombarded with things we could improve from every corner and I know I’m guilty of ignoring my achievements, always chasing the next thing.
Sarah
December 14, 2016 at 3:41 pmI definitely am guilty of the same thing. But here’s to new opportunities for us to be kind to ourselves! :)
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit
December 14, 2016 at 12:48 pmAhhh I don’t know what I love more here this stunning cake or your beautiful poignant intro <33 It is such a wonderful powerful thing when you truly FEEL gratitude. Not when you think it or force it or feel like you should feel it but when it just hits you–that's the real stuff. And yes, being grateful for ourselves is such a good reminder! Heck I'm even grateful for the struggles because without them I wouldn't be who I am or where I am. And this cake–gorgeous!! Your photos blow me away every damn time <3
Sarah
December 14, 2016 at 3:42 pmAww thank you so much Natalie! I’m so grateful for my struggles as well, because without them I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing today!! Sending hugs <3
Jess | Urban Alchemy
December 14, 2016 at 2:24 pmVegan cake and self-love stuff… girl, you are speaking my language!! SO much to talk about! I’ll shoot you an email. xo <3
Sarah
December 14, 2016 at 3:42 pmCan’t wait to talk, Jess!! :D
Ruby
December 14, 2016 at 9:39 pmI have been a silent follower of yours for a while now, but I just have to finally come out and say how stunning this cake is and how much I love your reflection on gratitude! Beautiful words xo
Sarah
December 15, 2016 at 12:08 amThank you so much for leaving a note, Ruby, it means a lot to me :) I’m really glad you liked this post :D
Tuulia Talvio
December 15, 2016 at 2:38 amThis cake is simply stunning! I love how the cashew cream looks so decadent in these photos :)
Sarah
December 15, 2016 at 8:56 amThank you so much Tuulia!! :)
traci | Vanilla And Bean
December 15, 2016 at 12:16 pmThank you for sharing this, Sarah. It’s true… but isn’t that our culture? We look without instead of withIN? You have worked so hard.. and I get it. But for me, the word blessed sounds like someone bestowed a special something to MEEEE!! I much prefer using the word grateful sans blessed. IDK. This cake is fabulous! I love using apple sauce in baked goods as a replacement for eggs. It does a great job and adds so much to a good cake. Delicious work my dear! xo
Sarah
December 15, 2016 at 8:55 pmThe word “blessed” definitely has different connotations than the word grateful. I prefer gratitude too :) Thanks Traci <3
Kathy
December 16, 2016 at 12:31 pmyum. This looks like breakfast tomorrow morning. I have a whole treeful of apples begging for this cake!
Sarah
December 16, 2016 at 1:26 pmI hope you like it, Kathy!! :D
Jessie Snyder
December 20, 2016 at 3:30 pmSo sweet Sarah – I am so happy for you! Way to go cultivating this passion into a full time gig. I’m cheering you on friend! xo
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 7:43 amThank you so much Jessie!! Sending huge hugs <3
Inci @Bellasapron.com
December 22, 2016 at 9:39 pmThis looks really good! I have a lot of vegan friends that I will try and make this for over break.
Sarah
December 23, 2016 at 8:20 amI hope you like it, Inci!! :D
Cherifa Dubois
October 5, 2018 at 4:56 pmI made it last week and added some diced apple in the batter .
It was a success :-)
Thank you for sharing the recipes
Sarah
October 5, 2018 at 6:52 pmOooh diced apples sound so good in this. I’ll have to try that myself!! Thanks so much for leaving a note :)