chocolate brick cake.

Lately it seems like everything has been going wrong. I emerge from a struggle, mostly not victorious, only to plunge headfirst into yet another one. It's almost as if I'm swimming an inelegant butterfly stroke in a rowdy sea of problems. I dive into the water and emerge moments later only to be dragged by the ankles underwater again by invisible hands. My arms ache so much from trying to resist; it's tremendously tiring. I can hear the cries of encouragement from the direction of dry land but you know, when you sink too deep you can't hear them anymore.

Instead all I can hear is sea of dark silence, waters surrounding and pressing urgently against my ears. But it's calming, strangely. I find solace in this newfound environment, in fact I don't want to leave it. The thought of being rescued only to risk the possibility of drowning yet again is so repelling I give up moving so as to sink even deeper into the throes of this welcoming blackness. I would even swim further towards the bottom, if I wasn't already there.

But as much as I want to integrate into this nothingness, I know it's not my place. At some point I would need to go up for oxygen and face the light of reality. As it is right now though, it's a long journey up. I will break the water surface eventually, but for now, where I am now is where I need to be.

If you were wondering how the above is in any way related to this cake, it's because this cake here didn't quite turn out the way I envisaged it. The glaze turned out drippier than I expected and the chocolate chips couldn't obediently stick to the sides, instead sliding down and piling into an unglamorous heap at the bottom. To make matters worse I was short of one chocolate "brick" so it detracted from the overall appearance of the cake as well. I believe my brother has something to do with it.

No it's not a tragedy, I agree. Compared to some of my creations in the past this problem isn't grave enough to warrant wallowing in depression. It's just that after the series of failures recently I hoped to seek comfort something in the one thing I do best. But I guess this plan didn't work out.

If I were to do it all over again I would choose to use a ganache instead of a glaze. But I don't plan on editing the following recipe, if you could call it one. I made the mistake of using a glaze, so I shall reflect it as such. Sometimes I feel that I need to learn how to just accept mistakes squarely in the eye, recognize them and move on.

Chocolate Brick Cake

This "recipe" is more of an idea than a recipe per se so the quantities of the components reflected are arbitrary. I advise you to exercise your own judgement to determine how much glaze you need. (Although I recommend that you use a ganache recipe.)

chocolate cake recipe (my favorite) here

For the chocolate glaze:
9 ounces milk or dark chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream

For decorating:
mini Nestle crunch bars

Bake the cake in a loaf pan and let it cool completely before frosting and decorating.

Make the chocolate glaze: Bring the cream to a simmer in a saucepan and pour over the chopped chocolate. Let the mixture stand for 3 minutes before stirring to combine. Cool completely before using. Refrigerate to thicken if needed.

Decorate the cake: Glaze the outside of the cake. Line the sides of the cake with the chocolate bars regularly to resemble a brick wall. Drizzle more glaze on top of the cake if desired.

Refrigerate cake for at least 3 hours for the glaze to firm up.