valentine's day

So, my boyfriend's fave cake is apparently Black Forest cake. He's only ever had it in restaurants but it is a chocolate cake with a Kirsch Cherry feeling and whipped cream between the layers. Although I've made a lot of cakes, I've never made this one. The week before V-Day, I did a lot of researching to find the best recipe to use so I could surprise him with a homemade version...well apparently this kind of cake is made with "sponge cake" as opposed to the typical "butter cake." Not a fan of "sponge cake." It dries out super fast and next thing you know I was peeling wax paper off each layer, piece by piece. (not how i imagined the process would go)! However, I think made with a regular Devil's Food recipe, it would come together quite nicely.

The best part of the cake making process was learning how to make chocolate curls from the Pioneer Woman blog. The Black Forest cake recipe can be found here, which I wouldn't make the same way again...

My Valentine made me a wonderful filet mignon dinner with Gorgonzola garlic butter, french bread, salad and champagne. Yum. Plus romantic red roses and chocolates - it made for a pretty great little evening.