Sharing the Love

"Pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of His Son, Jesus Christ." ~ Moroni 7:48

"The trouble with the world and the trouble with you and me is that we don't love each other enough. And if we do, we don't bother to say it. If the world is to know love, it has to be in your heart and in mine. And the Lord can fill our hearts with love if we will just go to Him." ~Marjorie Pay Hinckley

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets.” ~Jesus Christ, Matthew 22:36

Don't you just love the scriptures???? Everything you need to know about living, and indeed, about dying, is held between their pages. It is no wonder they have remained on the top of all the best seller lists for all these years. I'm not sure if it is still so, but I do know that at one time, you could open a dresser drawer in any hotel room you might be staying in, and you would find a copy of the Bible inside. I wonder how many people have been comforted by the words inside . . . just when they needed them most? What an awesome thought . . .



I sit here each morning and before I even begin, I say a little prayer to my Father that whichever words I may choose to pen will be of help and comfort to some of you. Oh . . . I know that these few paragraphs in which I choose to write what is on my heart are not every one's cup of tea . . . and some, maybe even many of you, just choose to skim through them, and that's ok. Some of you just come here to see the food, and that's ok too, but for the one or two that come here and read my words all the way through and get something out of it . . . . it's worth it. It's worth every thought, every word, every point.

It's called sharing the love.



Sharing the love that I have in my heart for each one of you . . . for that tired mother in Hoboken who has just had a rough day with the kids and the husband and has just sat down for a few minutes to forget all that's been going on in her world . . . for the uninspired cook who is searching for a recipe for this, that or the other and thinks they just might find it here . . . for the broken hearted who need a bit of encouragement or inspiration . . . for the low who just need a bit of cheering up and a pick me up and something pretty to look at . . . for YOU . . . wherever you are and at whatever point you are at in your life . . . I share these little bits of my heart with YOU, and sometimes . . . sometimes you even share a piece of your heart back with me, and you leave a comment and it touches me in some small way, or it moves me to tears and I am filled with the spirit and I thank God for the opportunity He has given me to touch you and to be touched back . . . I thank God for YOU . . . each one of you, for you have blessed me in so many ways, even if you are just a number that shows up and adds to my links counter, even if you never send me a word back . . . I know you are there . . . and I thank God for each one of you.



For those of you who have lovingly taken the time to let me know I have made a difference, however small, who let me know that I have inspired you in some way to be a better person, or bake a better cake, or feel better about yourself . . . who have felt the love that I try to share with you on here each day and have been impressed or touched enough to want to share some of it back, I thank you from the very bottom of my heart . . . you touch me in ways you could never imagine, and my life has been blessed by your words and thoughts. Thank YOU . . . I may never be able to address each one of you individually, but please . . . know that you matter . . .

You matter to me, you matter to each other, you matter to the Father and you matter to His Son . . . what else could you possibly want or ask for . . .



Mmmm . . . chocolate cake . . . moist . . . decadent . . . to die for . . . I think I found the perfect one! Todd hates chocolate cake (I KNOW!!! It's pretty hard for me to believe too!) so this one's all for me . . . it's a hard job, but some one's got to do it . . . I think I read somewhere once that chocolate was actually quite good for you. That's what I'm counting on!

*Cola Cake*
Makes one 10 inch round deep cake

Imagine a cake that is so decadently moist and rich that you can't get enough of it . . . a cake that is a chocolate lover's dream come true. This would be it, and once again, it's from my big blue binder! It's actually a mixture of all the chocolate cakes I have loved through the years, all rolled up into one glorious concoction. I hope you like it as much as I do!

250g of butter, plus extra for buttering the pan
250g self raising flour
300g caster sugar
3 heaped TBS cocoa powder (not drinking chocolate), sifted
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
200ml cola drink
75 ml milk
2 large eggs, beaten
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

For the topping:
2 cups miniature marshmallows
2/3 of a large caramel filled chocolate bar, broken into squares
(I guess you'll just have to eat the rest)

For the Icing:
60g butter, softened
200g icing sugar, sifted
2 - 3 TBS of cocoa powder (not drinking chocolate) sifted
2 TBS cola drink

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Generously grease a loose bottomed 10 inch loose bottomed cake tin and set it aside.

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder together in a large bowl. Gently melt the butter and the cola drink together in a sauce pan without allowing to boil. Add this to the flour mixture along with the eggs, the milk and the vanilla. Mix together gently, but thoroughly. Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and then bake it in the heated oven for approximately 40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre of it comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle the marshmallows and chocolate pieces over the top. Return to the oven and bake for 5 minutes more until the marshmallows and chocolate have begin to melt. Remove from the oven and then swirl the melted chocolate and marshmallows together a bit on top of the cake. Let sit on a wire rack for 15 minutes while you make the frosting.

Beat all the icing ingredients together in a medium bowl until smooth, well blended and fluffy. Spread over the warm cake, and allow to set before removing the sides of the pan.

Serve to your most beloved. They will thank you and adore you forever.