twenty years...

My husband and I are celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary today.. :)

On our wedding day.. August 21, 1993

He stole my heart pretty much from Our First Date...
he's my lover, my best friend,
my co-pilot in this parenting stint,
my workout partner,
my travel companion
and the keeper of my heart. 

He truly is my prince from a far away land who swept me off my feet. 

I'm so lucky to be living happily ever after with this man.

Today on our 20th wedding anniverary.

I love you. xo

My apologies for the repetition to those of you who saw these same photos and sentiments on facebook or instagram earlier today.. 

The Graduates.. wherein I brag about my kids!

The school year FINALLY ended for us yesterday. Phew! And what an eventful end it was. BOTH girls graduated their respective schools in the last two days!

Here is where I exercise my bragging rights to the full extent of my freedom to do so. You have been warned! ;) ...

Our youngest daughter, Anna, graduated from middle school (8th grade) on Monday night and will be starting high school in September. I can't believe my baby is going to high school! She finished her middle school career with a Presidential Award for Educational Excellence having earned high academic achievement measured with GPA of 3.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale (90 or above on a 100 scale) for her entire middle school years (6th-8th) and having also achieved high scores on state and national standard achievement tests. She also earned High Honors in Literature and Process Writing this year. Separate from her academic achievements, Anna earned her Girl Scout Silver Award this year having completed a long term community service project of improving the visitation rooms in a local DYFS [Division of Youth and Family Services] office where children in the foster care program are now able to reconnect with their parents in cheerful, inviting rooms that are uplifting and conducive to healthy interaction and playtime. We're so proud of her!

Our oldest daughter, Maria, graduated from high school last night.. I cannot believe we are the parents of an 18 year old high school graduate! Where did the time go? I didn't think I was going to get emotional at her graduation, but at one point my husband whispered to me that he just saw her yawn and when I looked at her, she did look kind of sleepy (I think the heat was getting to everyone--it was pretty hot sitting out there in the football field wearing those graduation gowns!). I was instantly flooded with memories of her as a baby falling asleep in my arms or sleeping alongside me in bed as a toddler and I couldn't stop the tears from welling in my eyes. I was simultaneously overwhelmed by the quick passage of time and at the same time filled with so much pride in the intelligent, conscientious, responsible, compassionate and beautiful young woman she has become.

Like her younger sister, Maria also graduated with excellent academic standing. She was a member of the high school's University Program since freshman year, a member of the National Honor Society and graduated in the top 10% of her class with a GPA above 4.2. Her senior research project was on the sexual exploitation of women in the media, a suitable subject for her as it combined her passion for photography and other visual arts with an important social issue. She was also active in several clubs, community service projects and a member of the swim team for one year and the girls volleyball team all four years. In September she'll be attending Rutgers University (my Alma Mater), possibly double majoring in photo journalism and women's and gender studies. Naturally, we are very proud of her.

Now for some photos!

Anna and her friends dressed up for the 8th grade semi-formal dance. Anna is in the black and white dress at the bottom right.

8th grade semi-formal

Maria and Nick going to senior prom. Don't they look great? These two have known each other since kindergarten and started dating halfway through their freshman year in high school. He'll be going to an art school in NYC in September where he plans to study graphic design. Interestingly, Maria and Nick were named female and male 'Best Artist' in their high school this year--Maria for her talent in photography and Nick for his talent in all fine arts, painting is forte. He even received 1st place in a private art show in our community last spring. Anyway, they had a really nice time at the prom. Maria said the sweetest part of the night was that Nick willingly danced with her all night even though he doesn't like to dance. Aw.. very sweet.

Maria & Nick
Senior Prom

I don't have any photos of Anna on her 8th grade graduation - my husband has them on his computer. But she wore the same pretty white sundress for her sister's graduation last night, so I figure that works! My best friend from childhood (from when we were 4 years old!), who is also Maria's godmother, came to Maria's graduation last night. Her presence really made the day special. Here are all of us girls walking to the graduation site:

Me, Anna, Maria and her godmother Angela

Here's a photo of my two Class of 2013 graduates.. high school and 8th grade:

Maria and Anna

Finally, the proud parents... 

My husband and me

Certainly an eventful time in our household! May the academic achievements, personal growth and simple enjoyment of life continue for everyone! xo 

100 Things I Love

Hello friends. How are you?

Considering this is my second post in March and it's already the middle of the month, I think it would be fair to say I've lost my blogging stride. Booooo! Although, it could also be argued that I didn't really have much of a stride before this either. :P  I don't know what my problem is, but I just can't seem to get myself together enough to blog! It's not even that I don't have topics about which I'd like to post, because I do! There's books I want to tell you about, several half written reviews in draft, recipes I could write about, cookbooks I could write about, photos to share and so on. I have a list of blog post ideas! The good news is that I'm sitting here right now typing this post, so hopefully it will actually make it to published status and I can pick up the pace around here. I hope so, because I miss you all. And speaking of all of you... I finally bumped over to 200 followers (google). I know there are even more of you who follow or subscribe to my blog in other ways, too. I just want you all to know that I appreciate each and every one of you who take the time out of your busy life to stop by and read what I have to say. It would be pretty lonely here without you.. so thanks. :)

In my last post, I shared My 100 Day Happiness Project with nine tasks that I'd like to take on between March 1 and June 9 to help boost my personal happiness. So far I have done none of them. You can laugh. I did when I just typed that. But it's okay, because I know I'm going to do them. Next week. Ha ha! I'm kidding. I'm putting things in motion for all of them to happen very soon. I thought my new fitness goal was going to be to bump up my regular runs from 3.2 miles to 5 miles.. which I still might do, I suppose. It's just that I haven't felt much like running lately so that kind of stinks. I'm trying to think of a different fitness goal in the meantime. Or maybe I'll get re-inspired to run with spring right around the corner. We'll see.

Speaking of the Happiness Project business, I saw on Mari's blog that she and her friend Lisa from Lit and Life posted lists of 100 Things they love last week. I love reading lists like that! It's a fun way to kind of get to know someone better, don't you think? I decided to make a list, too--you knew I couldn't resist the list making part, right? I have to say it was a very good exercise in self-reflection. There's an awful lot of food on my list... hmm.. that explains things. *sigh*

Check out my list below. I hope you have fun reading through it and that I inspire you to make your own. If you do, let me know--I'd love to read it. :)

100 Things I Love 

naps 
cycling 
working out 
 gardening 
homegrown tomatoes 
fresh basil 
 ice cream 
kettle popcorn 
really good pizza 
 campfires 

 pumpkins 
romance 
books 
instagram 
blogging 
 meeting people and making new friends 
snowy days 
sunny days 
tulips 
peonies 

 lilacs 
rose gardens 
the scent of boxwood 
memories of my oma 
u-pick farms 
cross stitch stuff 
cuddling my husband, kids, pets. 
 sexy music 
my idevices! 
 coming home 

 hand written letters 
kittens (cats, too) 
cooking my family's favorite foods 
a romantic diner - at home or out 
 living healthfully 
 National Parks 
waterfalls 
fresh corn 
 reading 
 cooking magazines 

 libraries 
bookstores 
cooking things from scratch 
BLTs 
crumb cake 
 Hayao Miyazaki films 
coffee 
 a good conversation with a friend 
singing along to the radio in the car 
vanilla anything 

 good quality chocolate [Belgian is my favorite] 
 Christmas cookies 
 fairy lights 
backyard patios 
backyard vegetable gardens 
visiting other people's backyard vegetable gardens 
quilts 
 art projects
 epic movies with elaborate cinematography and costumes 
 happy endings 

 just-baked bread 
love stories 
exploring books on goodreads 
hiking 
hearing 'i love you' 
climbing into bed at the end of the day 
 new york city 
whimsical, romantic movies like Amélie [french film] 
Paris
 traveling 

 taking photos 
 used book sales 
vintage postcards 
my husband playing guitar 
chai tea 
vegetables roasted with garlic and olive oil 
 omelets 
 berries 
 lemons & limes 
Indian food

 kissing 
 sex 
a day at the beach 
stretching 
Thanksgiving dinner 
bird watching 
 making lists 
the scent of hearth fires in the air 
the feel of the sun on my face 
sushi

 baby animals 
little roadside farm stands 
laughing 
the Olympics 
the beauty and majesty of our planet 
diversity 
kindness 
tolerance
 acceptance 
peace among people and nations                        


the end. :)

march 13, 2013

a rosy day

Happy Valentine's Day to you.. whether you spend it celebrating love with your one and only in a fancy way, a simple way at home, out with your friends or even home alone with a good book (I vote for a romance novel!), I hope your heart is filled with love today and every day of the year. xo

Heart-healthy produce in today's
organic co-op box! 

Speaking of affairs of the heart, today is as good a day as any to ask yourself if you're taking care of your heart. I don't mean in the romantic way, but in the healthful way. Eat your vegetables, eat some fruit, eat whole grains*, beans, legumes, nuts, seeds and lean protein. Then get moving! If you don't have a regular exercise routine in your life.. GET ONE. No more excuses.. love yourself and just do it!

*Choose whole grains in their whole forms whenever possible to keep the GI or glycemic index low. Include grains such as quinoa, oats, farro (spelt), barley, millet, amaranth, buckwheat, wild rice, brown rice and corn in your regular diet. I'm working on this myself. :)

Okay, lecture over.

Today is a rosy kind of day in our home. My husband gave me a beautiful bouquet of a dozen red roses this morning and is surprising me with a special dinner out tonight. Aww so sweet.

After he and the girls left the house for work and school, I started to put the roses in a vase.. when they all started falling apart! The rose petals were literally falling off the stems with the slightest touch. I tried my best not to handle them so much, but alas, two roses were destroyed and the rest were more like rosebuds at that point. I thought about calling my husband to let him know, but I didn't want him to feel bad about it and buy me new ones! 

So I made the best of this gift of love that was falling apart at the seams. I arranged what I could in the vase and scattered some of the rose petals on the table.

I put some rose petals on the window sill in the kitchen.

I scattered more petals in the foyer... 

...and up the stairs.

marking a path of rose petals to my daughters' rooms.

.. And a few leading to the master bedroom...

..  to our bed. Ooo la la!

I think these rose petals made our home more beautiful and full of love than if the roses had remained intact! 

Then I started thinking how these rose petals tell good lessons about love.

Love is delicate.

Handle love with care.

If the love you're in starts to fall apart or change shape, don't rush to discard it.

Work with it.. compromise..

Find beauty and joy in what you've got.

Be creative. Have fun. Love your partner as best you can.

Happy Valentine's Day.  xo

With Sadness

It is with sadness that I write this post to tell you that my dear elderly father-in-law, who has been under my and my husband's care for the last six years, has passed away this morning at 87 years old. Having suffered a severe stroke over a decade ago that left him in need of assistance with his daily life, my husband and I took him into our home and under our care when my mother-in-law passed away in late 2006. We expanded our home to include a bedroom and bathroom for him on the first floor [more about my father-in-law in our home here] and then three years later he suffered another minor stroke that left him more dependent than ever where he could no longer be left alone without supervision. My husband and I have been his full time caregiver pretty much every day, around the clock for the last six years. It has been very challenging to provide this kind of around the clock care for an elderly parent-- requiring personal and familial sacrifices and more patience than you can fathom. In that same breath, however, I will say that it has been an honor to have shared the role of care giver to this man who has lived his entire life with immense kindness, generosity and unconditional love towards other people--especially those lucky enough to be counted among his loved ones. He will be greatly missed.

A Mom Meme

I'm a day late, but I wish all of the moms out there a very Happy Mother's Day ... I hope you all had a wonderful day yesterday and were spoiled with hugs, kisses and favors from your families. I was! I went camping over the weekend with my younger daughter and her girl scout troop which was really fun, even though the sleeping was kind of rough. We got home just before 2 pm yesterday at which time I was showered with flowers and gifts, followed by a nice long nap and Thai for dinner! :)

A few years ago, I saw this Mom Meme on someone's blog--I'm pretty sure it was at Amy's-- and thought it was such a fun idea for a Mother's Day post. Well, I finally remembered to do it this year. I asked my girls the questions over weekend and expected to be humored with a bunch of short one or two word answers. Which for the most part, I did get from my youngest, but both girls surprised me at how much they really pay attention to me. The answers from my teenager were thoughtful and well... touching. I didn't expect such thorough and insightful answers and I honestly hadn't realized how well she really knew me. Not just as her mom, but as a woman.

So here are the questions I asked my daughters A (age 12) and M (age 16) about me.

1. What is something your mom always says to you:
A: "Don't leave your hairbrush on the table!"
M: A lot of things I guess! She says she loves me, that I look pretty, "good job sweetie!" when I do well on a test or accomplish something.

2. What makes your mom happy?
A: When everyone's nice to her.
M: Spending time with Daddy, spending time with A and me (when we're not fighting or when A is being a pita). Reading, cooking (sometimes), good food, traveling, talking to friends across the world, exercising.

3. What makes your mom sad?
A: Funerals.
M: Various movies, TV shows, books, short videos, thinking about life before she was married to Daddy, random things (PMS), etc.

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
A: When she dances.

M: She dances. And some things she says make me laugh, especially when she thinks she knows what's going on with my modern day high school life (she actually usually does).

5. What was your mom like as a child?
A: She was blond.
M: Shy, insecure, emotionally unstable (cried a lot). But really cute, and most likely very bright.

6. How old is your mom?
A: 42
M: 42... or 43. Uhh...

7. How tall is your mom?
A: 5' something. Taller than me.
M: 5'6"

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
A: Read.
M: See number 2.

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
A: She goes to the gym.
M: How would I know? Uh, probably read, computer surf, watch Lolo {my elderly father-in-law} , bond with Gigi {one of our cats}, I don't know what else. Be naked.

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
A: Writing a cookbook.
M: Doing something good for someone else. Or writing an autobiography.

11. What is your mom really good at?
A: Cooking.
M: Making me better, making me happy, taking care of other people, being healthy, exercising, setting goals, meeting goals, writing, drawing cute people, cooking, baking, socializing, navigating, being pretty, knowing what's best for herself, picking out things for a house (e.g. paint colors, cabinets, floors, tile, appliances, light fixtures, doorknobs, windows, doors, molding, furniture, decorations), running, biking, math, teaching math, driving, cuddling, hugging, raising kids, camping, keeping the family in a good place literally and figuratively.

12. What is your mom NOT very good at?
A: Singing. And dancing.
M: Being bad at things.

13. What does your mom do for her job?
A: Takes care of my family.
M: Takes amazing care of everyone in the house, especially [Lolo].

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
A: Ice cream.
M: Ice cream.

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
A: How well she takes care of our family.
M: Everything. There isn't one thing about her that doesn't make me proud. I am proud of how brave and strong she is, how she is so healthy and lively. I am proud of how I can talk to her about anything (not many people can do that).

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
A: Ruby from "Max and Ruby."
M: Mrs. Incredible.

17. What do you and your mom do together?
A: Talk.
M: Talk, shop, take pictures, cuddle (sometimes), watch movies, play video games (sometimes).

18. How are you and your mom the same?
A: We both like to read.
M: We both like to do a lot of the same things. I think we're both pretty brave. We think similarly and have a similar voice. I think that our views on parenting are the same (even though I'm not a parent). We generally have the same taste in music, movies, books, clothes (kind of), and aesthetic things. Oh yeah we cry a lot. And procrastinate.

19. How are you and your mom different?
A: I don't know!!!
M: I don't exercise as much as she does. :) I can't cook or bake. We're actually not that different at all.

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
A: She tells me.
M: I just know. The little everyday things tell me that she loves me (e.g. packing lunch, giving me freedom, hugging me, telling me she loves me, surprising me). And also some extraordinary things.

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
A: The gym.
M: She wants to go to Paris and Hawaii. She wants to go places with her husband. And family (maybe). Her current favorite place is probably anywhere with Daddy or the Y. Or outside somewhere.


In conclusion, she's the best mum ever.


Tears in my eyes.

My daughters are more aware of the things I do for myself, for our family and for others than I thought .... they listen to my dreams... and apparently, I look ridiculous when I dance. ;)

I am reminded how thankful I am for my daughters who would not be half as amazing as they are without their dad. We're a great parenting team and it shows in our children. xo

Sweet 16

Once upon a time I gave birth to a sweet baby girl.

We blinked a couple of times and then PoOf!

Sixteen years later, she's a beautiful young woman.

Happy Sweet 16 to my beautiful girl.

She chose this Old-Fashioned Caramel Layer Cake for her birthday cake this year. The recipe is from the December 1999 issue of Cooking Light magazine that I've made a couple of times over the years. It's a simple, but delicious vanilla cake coated with an oh so sweet caramel frosting. You can find the recipe online HERE.

Prepare yourself for a sugar rush!

Happy Valentine's Day xo

Wishing you a day of love and laughter and of course,

 . . .  a happily ever after! xo

Weekend of Celebrations

This past weekend was one fun and special celebration after another!

First, my husband and I celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary on Saturday, August 21, 2010! Wow, time sure flies when you're having fun! Or to use the words of my husband, it doesn't feel like a day over eighteen years! LOL Kidding. Um, right, honey? You were kidding, right? Aww, yeah. He was kidding. ^_^

So how did we spend our day celebrating? We did our usual Saturday morning bike ride up through the reservation in the morning, I took a really long nap on the sofa in the afternoon while he watched football (soccer), and then later we went out to dinner for Thai food ... alone! We had a really nice time eating our favorite foods and talking {without interruption!} or having to clean up the dishes! All thanks to our teenage daughter who held down the fort at home watching over her younger sister and her grandfather. ^_^

Speaking of anniversaries... and biking... Sunday was the one year anniversary for me and my road bike. Okay, so this is kind of a dorky thing to acknowledge or even remember, I admit it. But I've been having fun keeping track of my rides in a log, plus I have an odometer on my cyclocomputer on my bike. It currently says 561 miles and according to my records, I rode 74 miles before my husband installed the cyclocomputer last fall, which means I've ridden nearly 635 miles in the last year! So cool!

That's equivalent to the approximate distance from my town in NJ to places like Myrtle Beach, SC... or Lexington, KY ... or Dayton, OH ... or Detroit, MI ... or even further than Quebec, QC, Canada! So if you live near one of those places I could have ridden my bike all the way to you.

Of course, it would have taken me a year to get there. LOL! ^_^

Here is a photo of me fixing the first of three flat tires I got this summer.

At least I discovered this one before I got very far and didn't have to change it on the side of a busy road. My husband secretly took the picture back in June when he came out of the house to go to work thinking I was at least halfway through my ride already, only to find me sitting in the driveway, my eyes full of tears, fixing the flat. Apparently he thought I was pretty cute all teary eyed tackling the flat all by myself without having come in to ask for his help. And maybe for the fact that I was following instructions how to change a bike flat from a YouTube video on my iPhone that I kept pausing and playing as I got through each step, since I kind of forgot some of the steps. I seem to recall it was a particularly emotional day for me that day, but hey, some days a girl's just gotta cry over spilt milk or flat tires or whatever, right? ^_^

This is me on my bike in the driveway taken by my daughter: Much happier.

I digress. I can't think of a better way to celebrate this little one year milestone with my biking career than to have had a really awesome ride on Saturday. We tried a slightly new route on our normal loop through the local wildlife reservation that included a different hill to climb. I was worried that morning that I wouldn't be able to do it without stopping, but I did it!!! The climb wasn't quite as steep as I thought it would have been based on my perspective from the car or from having ridden it downhill with my friend Ellen last week, but it was long. Every time I climbed my way around a bend, I anticipated the top, but ended up feeling "uh oh" every time there was more climbing to do, thinking to myself, "Can I do it?" Finally, there was one last bend to the top and I was really happy that I did it all in one swoop without having to stop. Phew!

Checking our stats on my cyclocomputer at the end of our ride, I was super charged to learn that we averaged 15.1 mph for the ride, which is really good considering it is a mountain loop. Prior to this ride, we were averaging 14.5 mph for the nearly same loop. I really pushed myself and worked hard on this ride, but what a great improvement! I hope this is my new pace!

Finally, yesterday my husband and I had another evening out alone to attend a friend's wedding. The groom is in my husband's triweekly soccer gang. This was the first time I met the bride. The ceremony was lovely and the reception was a lot of fun. With all that eating and dancing, how could it not? The bride and groom looked so happy together and it was clear they were having such a great time at the reception. In ways that I can't quite pinpoint, their wedding reminded me a lot of our wedding almost exactly seventeen years ago. Or maybe it's just because this wedding took place on the same weekend as ours did all those years ago, that it made me reflect so much about our own. No matter the case, it was wonderful to be a part of this couple's special day and I relished the warm feelings and memories it brought me about our special day.

Special thanks to my dear friend Claudia who took me dress shopping two weeks ago, finding me a sexy evening dress that I love for $50 that was originally $168. Score! Plus she lent me her sassy black strappy heels and sparkly, artsy earrings and matching necklace.

Somehow, the evening escaped us without a full length photo, but here we are at the wedding last night:

This weekend of celebrations was another valuable reminder that Life is good.

I hope you had a great weekend, too. Anything exciting going on?

German Chocolate Ganache Cake

Remember the iCake I made for my husband for his birthday last year? If you missed it, click over ... it was one of a kind. It was a lot fun to make, but what a labor of love rolling and cutting all that fondant to make the Apps!

This year, I made him his favorite cake-- a German Chocolate Cake, but with a twist. Normally, German Chocolate Cake is made with layers of chocolate cake that are filled and coated with coconut pecan frosting. This sophisticated version that I made today still has two layers of chocolate cake with a coconut pecan filling, but instead of having the coconut pecan frosting coating the outside of the cake ... the cake is drenched in chocolate ganache. Ooo la la.

The cake, coconut pecan filling and the chocolate ganache are all made from scratch, so this cake turned out to be more labor intensive than the iCake! But he's so worth it. ;)

Happy Birthday to my sexy, smart and fun husband.

I love you.

Recipe adapted from the Martha Stewart Living recipe for Inside-Out German Chocolate Cake.

German Chocolate Ganache Cake
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Coconut-Pecan Filling
1 fourteen ounce can sweetened condensed milk
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
2 cups shredded coconut

Chocolate Ganache
12 oz. package semisweet chocolate chips
2 cups heavy cream

To prepare the cake:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Place butter, chocolate chips and cocoa powder in a heatproof bowl and set bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water.


Stir the ingredients frequently as mixture melts.

Stir until smooth and remove from heat.


At this point, you may want to dip a spoon into the chocolate and butter mixture to taste. You know... a girl's gotta make sure her ingredients are top quality and oooh mmmmm so good, right?

Cut parchment to fit two 9" round baking pans.

Butter the bottom of the baking pans, insert the parchment circle and butter the top of the parchment paper as well.

Sift flour and salt in a small bowl.


Combine sugar and egg in a large bowl.


Beat until smooth.

Add vanilla extract and melted chocolate mixture to the sugar mixture.

Isn't that pretty? It looks like splattered paint. That you can eat.

Mix on low speed of your electric mixer.

I love this part!
Look at the pretty swirls...

mmmm doesn't that look yummy?


This is the part at which you ask yourself how I managed to hold the mixer in one hand and focus and shoot the camera in the other hand.

Add the flour mixture to the batter.

Stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until combined.


Pour batter into prepared pans and bake for 20 minutes or until the cake tests done.

Let cakes cool completely before removing cakes from pans.


Set cakes on wire racks until filling is prepared.


To prepare filling:

Chop pecans and measure 1 1/2 cups.


Combine condensed milk, vanilla extract and butter in a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring frequently until butter is melted.


While milk mixture cooks, place egg yolks in a small bowl and beat with a whisk until smooth.

Continuously whisk the egg yolks as you slowly add a small amount of the milk mixture (about 1 cup). If you don't whisk constantly, the hot milk mixture will cook the egg yolks, solidifying them, which you do not want. Eww.

Now add the egg yolk and milk mixture into the pan with the remaining milk mixture and continue to cook for 5 more minutes, stirring constantly


Remove mixture from heat and gently stir in the chopped pecans and coconut.


You may want to taste the filling at this point. You know... for quality control. You need to make sure it tastes perfect.

Let filling stand to cool. Store in refrigerator if not assembling cake right away.

Place one cake layer on a piece of 9" cake cardboard. If you don't have one, make one from a cut up cardboard box covered with parchment paper like so:




Spread filling evenly over top of the cake.

Carefully transfer second cake layer on top of filling and press gently.

Set aside until ganache is ready. Store in refrigerator if you're not preparing the ganache right away.


To prepare the ganache:

Place chocolate chips in a heat proof bowl.


Note: Do you see how the chocolate in the photo has that dull, white or chalky looking hue to it? This just means that the chocolate has been exposed to a shift in temperatures. For example, if you store your chocolate in a cabinet along an outside wall of your house, believe it or not, the seasonal shift in the temperatures outside your house are enough to make the chocolate develop this change in color. Be assured that the taste of the chocolate is not affected and it is perfectly fine for eating, baking and candy making. When heated or melted, the chocolate will regain a smooth, dark hue.

Heat 2 cups of heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium hight heat until it boils. Watch it carefully so it doesn't boil over.

Pour cream over chocolate chips and let stand for 10 minutes.


Gently fold and stir the chocolate and cream to fully melt the chocolate chips.

The cream may curdle a bit when combined with the cold or room temperature chocolate and look like this:
See the white lumps?

If that happens, simply use a whisk to whisk mixture until smooth.
Voila! Smooth chocolate ganache!

More taste testing would not be frowned upon at this stage.

Place cake on a wire rack over a rimmed cookie sheet.

Slowly pour some of the ganache over the cake, allowing the excess to drip over the sides, coating the cake completely.

Let the ganache set for several minutes and then repeat with more of the ganache to fully coat the cake.

Transfer the cake to a large serving plate.


The cake is dense and rich, so can serve up 12-15 people a 1 inch slice.

We've been eating the cake since Saturday evening and everyone loves it. It is rich, but not sickeningly sweet. The cake layers are a similar density of brownies, but are not fudgey like brownies, but have the more subtle chocolate flavor of German chocolate cake.

The ganache is amazing.

Ooo la la.

The end.

Enjoy! :)

I have about 1 cup of ganache left over, maybe more, that I've been storing in my refrigerator. I'm thinking of using it for a special Valentine's Day dessert, but I'm not sure how just yet. So help me out...

What would you do with a cup of leftover, decadent ganache?