Would death by chocolate really be that bad?

I stumbled upon a recipe lately that makes all other cakes look like dead dinosaur ass on a plate. For real. Ina Garten, a.k.a. Barefoot Contessa, is one of my biggest heroes on the face of this planet. She has to stand in line behind people like my grandmother and Cindy Sheehan, of course, but let's just say she's up there. I admire anyone who can take their love for something, profit from it without the slightest bit of formal education, and continue to be happy with it even after it becomes a job. This woman creates the most fantastic recipes that are so easy to carry out, no matter how daunting a project it might seem. I mean, I cooked French food. Me. A girl from Cohoes. Thanks to Ms. Ina herself, I was able to pull it off and make myself look like a culinary goddess. Anyway, so I'm addicted to her, her show and her cookbooks...it's like crack or something. Her story fascinates me. She actually worked in the White House back in the 70's and realized it wasn't what she wanted to do with the rest of her life because she longed for a job that was more creative...sound familiar? She bought a speciality food store with no knowledge of the business world and certainly no knowledge of the food industry. Despite all of this she managed to make a huge career out of it. I admire that. Maybe it's because I have no business getting involved in the retail world, at least on the ownership end, but I hear stories like this and I feel confident that I, too, can turn my life around in much the same way Ina did.

Back to the cake. One of Ina's good friends gave her this recipe years ago to try out. This particular recipe was an old family heirloom that Ina jazzed up a bit with her own little touches (she puts coffee in every chocolate creation). I made it for my dad's birthday back in July and it was, hands down, the best cake I've ever had. And I don't particularly like chocolate. Or coffee.

I guess I brag about this cake (I refer to it as the chocolate death cake) a bit too much because now I've promised to make it for just about everyone I know. A coworker of mine has this absolutely gorgeous antique cake pedestal with a cut glass cover that's been sitting around the office for over a year now and she told me I could have it if I filled it with cake before I took it home for the last time. How's that for a deal? I'm so exhausted this week I seriously just want to go home and die, but getting an antique glass...anything...makes going home and spending a few hours slaving over my oven worth while.