Trust

This week's Cake Day was kind of a big deal. I have much to celebrate: my first paper was accepted! And Thursday marked the end of what has been a very stressful few months at work that included an international conference, a committee meeting, and 4 publications. Thursday night, in fact, I slept through the night (9 hours!) and did not dream about science for the first time since May. It was glorious. So my running buddy and a couple other friends came over for Mexican and Cake Night!

This week's recipe was for Fresh Tomato Cake. I should preface this with the fact that I was nervous about this recipe all week. The Robinson family apparently loves tomatoes, and actually I do too. Not the cardboard ones you often get from the grocery store, but the home grown or fresh from the Farmer's Market tomatoes that are red and juicy and beautiful, and as I recently learned, in peak season in August. Just sliced right up with a little salt, cut into big chucks in a salad, or chopped into fresh, chunky, spicy, homemade salsa. But tomato cake? I'd never heard of such a thing, and it definitely raised some eyebrows. All week, the conversations with the numerous people who are quickly finding out about my cake project went something like this:

"So what cake are you making this week?"
"Fresh Tomato Cake."
"TOMATO CAKE?!?!?"
"I know, I know. I'm nervous about it. But I trust Dr. Robinson."

My trust wavered a little, however, as Maureen and I prepared the cake while the boys made salsa and guacamole. I regarded the mixed batter, the baked cakes, and all I kept saying was, "I don't know about this cake, guys."

The frosting eased my nerves a little. It was the most delicious cream cheese frosting ever! So at the very least, we could gather around the table with a bowl of frosting and spoons and just go for it. But with Maureen's encouragement, we frosted, layered, and frosted some more. The result was quite pretty, actually.

The moment of taste truth was quite dramatic. We all sat around with our plates and forks glancing nervously at each other. Finally, someone said, "Ok, ready?" and we all took a bite. Silence. And then a somewhat collective sigh of relief. It was actually really good! Different than any other cake I've had before; somewhat like carrot cake but with a fresher taste attributed to the tomatoes. I never should have doubted. Tim and Maureen took a big piece home, and the rest will go into work tomorrow... if I don't eat it all today, that is.

It was a perfect celebration: tacos, salsa, guacamole, margaritas, and tomato cake, which actually complemented all the tomatoes used in our Mexican feast quite well. Needless to say, we were all incredibly full. But it was definitely worth it. And worth the extra work out I'll do today to burn off all those calories...