Do your job!

Today I watched as McCain announced plans to suspend his campaign and get back to his primary job: being a United States Senator. Then I watched as Obama attempted to turn it into a political opportunity saying that the president must be able to multi-task and the presidential debate scheduled for Friday night should go on as planned. (Mind you, I "watched" all of this while cleaning my kitchen, mopping floors, and helping with homework lest you think that I was sitting on my couch eating bonbons while watching TV.) Anyway, last time I checked, BOTH of these candidates were employed by their states to make laws and there seem to be some fairly heavy issues going on at the moment in our capital that affect ALL of our lives. I really hope that this will haunt Obama. He ought to follow McCain's lead and get back to work!

Inspiration from Atlas Shrugged

On another completely different note I really believe that every right thinking person in the world should read "Atlas Shrugged." In light of what is occurring in our economy and with politics I have been mulling over what I read and learned in that book and believe Ayn Rand's philosophies about the free market and capitalism are right in every way! Read it; it is an accurate reflection of the events of our day and what we are headed for.

Posting Chocolate Cake and other goodies!

Last night I spent entirely too much time on the internet reading other people's blogs. I have decided that there are too many people out there that do not have enough to do.

I did decide to post some recipes and pictures of things that I have made (we will see hoe long this lasts!!) since this is what I do most of the time.

To begin I will include a picture of my new favorite cake: Dark chocolate cake with chocolate ganache. My entire family loves it and it only gets better as it sits over a few days. The original ganache recipe calls for liquor which would probably make it out of this world, but I have omitted it as the alcohol will not cook out. Another note on the ganache: After it cooled this time I put in my kitchenaid and whipped it until it was a lighter brown. Last week when I made it (yes, we also ate it last week!) I simply cooled the ganache and drizzled it on. Then I filled the middle and top with sliced strawberries. Yum!

Dark Chocolate Cake

2 cups boiling water
1 cup cocoa powder (I have not used anything fancy, good old Hershey's works great!)
1 cup softened butter
2 1/4 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla (I have been using my Mexican vanilla courtesy of Rob and Haley)
2 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease bundt pan. In medium bowl, pour boiling water over cocoa, and whisk until smooth. Let mixture cool. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at time, then stir in vanilla. Add the flour mixture alternately with the cocoa mixture. Spread batter into pan.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 40-50 minutes. Allow to cool.

Chocolate Ganache

1 cup heavy whipping cream
9 oz dark chocolate chips (or whatever chocolate suits your fancy)

1. Place the chocolate into a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, watching very carefully because if it boils for a few seconds, it will boil out of the pot. When the cream has come to a boil, pour over the chocolate, and whisk until smooth.
2. Allow the ganache to cool slightly before pouring over a cake. Start at the center of the cake and work outward. For a fluffy frosting or chocolate filling, allow it to cool until thick, then whip with a whisk until light and fluffy.

Enjoy! I have no made this cake several times and have only made very slight tweaks to it. It has turned out perfectly every time!