(Although, is there really such a thing as too much chocolate?)

I’ve listed this recipe before, but never by itself, and such an incredible creation surely deserves its own post. I wish I could claim credit for this cake’s genius, but it’s actually a recipe I discovered on AllRecipes several years ago. It’s been my go-to ever since.

I swear on my life that this is honestly the best cake I’ve ever had, ever ever ever. It’s insanely rich, chocolatey, moist and incredibly dense, yet still manages to keep a cakey taste and texture. Plus, it’s one of the only baked goods in which I like the cake part as much as, if not more than, the frosting part. And for me, that’s really saying something.

The best, most unexpected part? It’s a doctored cake mix. I know. I can’t decide whether I should hang my head in shame for never having found a homemade recipe that’s even remotely on par, or jump for joy at the fact that this is oven-ready in literally five minutes.

By the way, don’t even try to calculate the nutrition information. You’ve been warned.

Too Much Chocolate Cake

From www.allrecipes.com

Yields two 9″ cake rounds

Ingredients:

• 18 ounce box of devil’s food cake mix
• 6 ounce box chocolate pudding mix
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup sour cream (8 oz container)
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 12 ounce package of mini chocolate chips*

1. Preheat oven to 350*F. Grease two 9″ cake pans.
2. In a large bowl, use a stand or hand mixer to combine the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, oil, sour cream and warm water until all clumps are gone. Fold in mini chocolate chips.
3. Evenly distribute batter between cake pans, then bake for about 55 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean.
4. Allow to cool completely before removing from pans and frosting.

*Mini chocolate chips stay suspended in the batter MUCH better, so that you don’t end up with all of them sinking to the bottom.

Oh, and for the record, this cake can also be made with different mixes and flavors- vanilla cake with vanilla pudding and peanut butter chips for a gorgeous vanilla peanut butter cake; yellow cake with butterscotch pudding and butterscotch chips for the butterscotch lover; white cake with coconut pudding and white chocolate for a pure white cake. The possibilities are endless.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got an important party to go to. Graduations are a big deal…or they would be, if this wasn’t my third in 3.5 years…

I made my first treats of the holiday season today. This makes me insanely and weirdly happy.

My NGI class is having a party tomorrow evening, so in addition to two of my signature desserts (Super Charge Me cookies and a decadent chocolate cake), I also made a batch of these incredible butterscotch haystacks. I know that haystack recipes are a dime a dozen, but I’ve tried a lot and these are my favorite. A friend of mine passed it on to me in high school, and I love that it doesn’t contain mini marshmallows or peanut butter like most combinations.

It’s just you, your butterscotch, and a little toffee crunch. Enjoy!

Butterscotch Haystacks

Ingredients:

• 5 oz package of chow mein noodles*
• 11 oz package of butterscotch morsels
• 8 oz package Heath baking bits, or 6 Heath bars, chopped

1. Line a baking sheet with wax paper.
2. In a microwave-safe bowl, heat the butterscotch chips until melted- about 3 minutes on 50% power should do the trick, but stir after every minute.
3. In a large bowl, toss together the chow mein noodles and Heath bits. Pour in the melted butterscotch and use a rubber spatula to stir until everything is evenly coated.
4. Working quickly, use a soup spoon to drop “stacks” of the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Try to push in the edges so that no noodles stick out too far.
5. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes, or until the haystacks are solid. Store in an airtight container.

*You can find chow mein noodles in the ethnic aisle of most supermarkets.