… without actually making a chocolate cake, did you? However, since it is just the two of us at home, we really don’t need a whole cake (we would eat the whole thing!). So I made half of a chocolate cake recipe (and used dark chocolate cocoa powder) and made two small cakes, one for us and one to share with a friend:

Instead of just making a chocolate buttercream, I made a chocolate honey ganache, borrowed from another chocolate cake recipe I made over the summer (recipe here – this cake is AMAZING too!).

I put the cakes on a cooling rack over a cookie sheet and carefully sliced the very tops off, so I’d have a really flat top. And then I poured the ganache over the cakes. The cookie sheet collects the excess (and you can save it for another day, and trust me, you won’t want to waste a drop) and keeps the mess off the counters.

Once the cakes were completely enrobed, they went into the refrigerator, still on their cooling rack/cookie sheet contraption, for a few hours to chill and allow the ganache to firm up and get a nice shine.

I can’t wait to dig into this one. Happy Chocolate Cake Day everyone!