My Chocolate Truffle Egg Cake experience . . .

My cake vs. Martha's.

Yes, Martha's is prettier. Yes, the eggs on hers actually look like eggs, as opposed to something crapped out by a smurf. But, after spending FOUR HOURS on this cake on Saturday night, my cake holds a special place in my heart.

It wasn't the cake itself, which was simple to bake, or even the whipped ganache frosting, which came out perfect. That was hour one. It wasn't even the poured ganache that went over the top, going into hour two. It was those damn truffle eggs.

I must not be any kind of candy maker; maybe it has to be in your blood, like your mom eats a Wonka bar with a golden ticket inside when she's pregnant with you, and you're born being able to perfectly temper couverture, or something. Anyway, my truffle egg experience was messy, irritating, and took forever. By 10:30 at night, when I took the picture of the finished cake, I was not having any charitible thoughts about Ms. Stewart; hopped up on sugar, having had no dinner apart from the chocolate things I had had to sample throughout the night, I was tired, wired, and I wished I was a drinker.

The good news is, it tasted like sin on a plate, and I had fun cutting it on Sunday:

Between the five of us, half the cake is gone.

The other half is going to be applied directly to my thighs, with a piece saved for throwing at the tv the next time Martha comes on.

Recipe Fridays!

Rich Chocolate Cake with Ganache Frosting and Truffle-Egg Nest
from Martha Stewart Living

Ingredients
Serves 8
Vegetable-oil cooking spray
1/2 cup cocoa powder, plus more for dusting
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
3/4 cup water
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Whipped Ganache Frosting
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1 pound bar of milk chocolate
Truffle Eggs

Directions

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat two 3-inch-high, 7-inch-round cake pans with cooking spray; line bottoms with parchment paper. Coat parchment with cooking spray, and dust with cocoa powder, tapping out excess.

2.Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa and espresso powders and water; whisk until dissolved. Whisk in sugar until smooth. Remove from heat, and whisk in eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla. Add flour, baking soda, and salt; whisk until combined.

3.Divide batter among prepared pans. Bake until a cake tester inserted into centers comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Let cool 20 minutes. Unmold, and remove parchment; let cool.

4.Trim tops of cake layers level. Place 1 layer, cut side up, on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Spread with 1/2 cup ganache frosting. Place remaining layer, cut side down, on top.
Coat top and sides with remaining cup frosting. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

5.Put semisweet chocolate, cream, and corn syrup into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, and stir until smooth. Let cool 5 minutes. Pour over cake, and then refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

6.Using a chef's knife, scrape milk chocolate bar at a 90-degree angle, forming enough curls and shards to measure 1 1/2 cups. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet, and refrigerate until ready to use.

7.Transfer cake to serving dish; form a nest with chocolate shavings on top, and fill with truffle eggs.

Truffle Eggs

Ingredients
Makes 25
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (preferably 61 percent cacao), finely chopped
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 to 3 pounds white chocolate
Sky-blue gel-paste food coloring
Teal luster dust (optional)

Directions

1.Put bittersweet chocolate and cream into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until smooth; remove from heat. Stir in butter.

2.Pour into a loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until very cold and set but still pliable, about 2 hours.

3.Using a 1 1/4-inch ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, scoop balls of ganache, transferring them to baking sheets lined with parchment paper as you work. Refrigerate 10 minutes.

4.Using your hands, roll each ball into an egg shape. Place in freezer until very firm, about 1 hour.

5.Meanwhile, put 1 1/2 pounds white chocolate into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until smooth; remove from heat. Divide between 2 medium bowls. Add food coloring to 1 bowl until desired blue shade. Add a few drops of food coloring to other bowl, and swirl lightly with a toothpick.

6.Working with one at a time, dip half of the eggs in blue chocolate, then dip remaining eggs in swirled chocolate, letting excess chocolate drip back into bowl. As you work, transfer eggs to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper; refrigerate until set, about 1 hour. Truffles can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 2 weeks.

7.For sparkly truffles, brush luster dust onto blue eggs to coat if desired

An Easter-time request . . .

As Easter gets closer, lots of people are going top go into pet shops and see the cutest little bundles of fluff they've ever seen. They will be laying in groups, running and jumping about, grooming each other and making pieces of hay and lettuce disappear between incredibly precious little mouths. Parents will feel their children tug on their arms, crying, "Mommy! Mommy, look! It's the Easter bunny!" "Mommy, it's just like my stuffed bunny at home, except for real!" The parents will relent when they see the low prices of these tiny creatures, many taken from breeding mills when far too young and barely weaned, sold for as low as $10 or $15 each. They will take them home, and expect to have a cute little toy whose nose twitches.

Imagine the shock when they suddenly realize:

a) This creature is not a doll

b) It chews everything it can reach in order to file its teeth and process information about the object, ie: taste, texture, smell, etc.

c) It can be very anxious and high strung, especially around loud noises, new stimulus, being picked up and handled roughly, etc.

d) It poops and pees a lot (as a healthy rabbit should), and will not always have the tidiest litter habits if not trained properly.

These bunnies, brought home on a whim by people expecting a sedate, cute bundle of fur or a toy for their children, face a dreadful fate each year after the Easter novelty has worn off: if lucky, they are abandoned at shelters in droves, and if unlucky, they are simply released into the wild to a terror-filled existence.

People, if you find yourself gazing adoringly at that cute little bunny in the pet shop window, please be smart and get informed before you consider actually adding a rabbit to your family:

Binky Bunny Info

The House Rabbit Society

Rabbits are wonderful, loving animals, but they are not as easy and low-maintenance as owning a cat. They are not stuffed animals, and I recommend you educate yourself before bringing one home to you, your children, or your other pets.

If you do decide you want a rabbit, I highly recommend you get a bunny who needs a home, from a shelter.

List of some shelters, by state

Red Door Animal Shelter in Chicago, where I got my Viola

Read Birdchick's blog on the subject

I will always be glad I made the decision to get a rabbit in 2000; Alfalfa was my little sweetheart, in spite of the fact that she chewed and pooped on my world;) She left a hole in my heart when she passed away last year, and I went to Red Door a few months later and found Viola. I cannot live without rabbits in my life now: they are Advanced Pet-Ownership, but they are worth it!

Viola, in one of her more sedate moments

Isn't this mine? Alfalfa, near the end of her life, still chewing on everything;)