Inaugural Baking - Snack Cake

I took my kitchen on a test run yesterday evening by making a simple snack cake (instead of coming up with something for dinner ... ahem). This recipe is really easy and pretty quick, and doesn't require anything more than the most basic of equipment and ingredients - an absolute must when everything that isn't basic is still packed in boxes! So this was a good first recipe to try in my new closet kitchen.

Basic Snack Cake
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup oil
1 tsp. vinegar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup cold water

Heat oven to 350. Grease bottom and side of 9-inch round pan or 8-inch square pan with shortening; lightly flour.

Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Mix oil, vinegar, and vanilla. Vigorously stir oil mixture and water into flour mixture about 1 minute or until well blended. Immediately pour into pan.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes. Serve warm or cool, with ice cream if desired.

Optional variations:
- Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Snack Cake: Add 1 tsp. cinnamon to dry ingredients. Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips just before pouring into pan (This is the kind I made).
- Chocolate Snack Cake: Add 1/4 cup cocoa to dry ingredients for chocolate snack cake.

As I went to photograph this, I was struck by how awful my lighting is. The kitchen is far from the window, and is poorly lit for photography purposes. Without using flash, every picture turned out really blurry and yucky. But then my husband saved the day by locating the box in which I had packed his birthday gift to me - a tripod! I was able to get some fairly clear pictures despite the terrible lighting. I already very much love my new tripod, and I will thoroughly enjoy using it to take my food pictures!