But no, NOT in the same recipe.

Behold, the cake:

That, my friends, is a Chocolate Blackout Cake. Three layers of devil’s food cake filled and frosted with chocolate pudding and covered in more devil’s food cake crumbs. Get your fork and a tall glass of milk.

The original recipe was created in a Brooklyn bakery called Ebinger’s, and you can read a little history about it here. Google tells me there have been many attempts to recreate the recipe, and though I’ve only tried one and have no opinion as to its authenticity, I can heartily recommend it. Gale Gand shared her version in the latest issue of Food and Wine, and I found it on her own website as well. Compared to some other recipes for blackout cake, this one is streamlined, using the same chocolate custard for both the filling and the frosting. It’s rich, it’s moist, it’s cake AND pudding, for goodness’ sake!

I just thought you should know about it, in case you have a birthday coming up soon, or maybe you’re thinking about Valentine’s Day. Mr. Ten asked for chocolate cake for his birthday last week, and he was not disappointed.

But what of the tomato soup? It’s Friday, it’s cold (we even finally have snow on the ground), maybe you just want something simple for dinner. Grilled cheese (properly known as the Cheese Toastie) and tomato soup. I love a cheese toastie, but I never much liked tomato soup from a can. Too sweet for me, and don’t canned soups tend to have too much sodium and other unnecessary stuff? Somewhere along the line, I tried the tomato soup from New Recipes from Moosewood Restaurant, and will never go back. I don’t even consult the cookbook anymore. It takes about two minutes of effort, and it still relies on opening a can. And when I answer the what’s for dinner question with, “Grilled cheese and tomato soup,” I get a “Yay!” Sometimes you want a good review even if you didn’t put in a lot of effort.

Tomato Soup

serves 2-3 people (I have to double it)

Open a 28-oz. can of tomatoes (whole, diced, crushed–doesn’t matter). Heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Mince or press 1-2 cloves of garlic and add them to the oil. Add a couple shakes of mild paprika (if you like hot or smoked paprika, go for it). As soon as the garlic is fragrant, but not too brown, pour in the tomatoes. Stir and heat through. Blend until smooth with an immersion blender (easiest) or in a regular blender. Add salt and pepper to taste. If you like, stir in a few tablespoons of cream.