And the seasons they go round and round...

I cannot believe that a) I started my blog just over a year ago and b) I turn 27 tomorrow. Eek - how did that happen? Sometimes I start freaking out about how quickly time passes and end up humming Joni Mitchell's Circle Game in a maudlin fashion wondering what I've done with my life. I end up having to remind myself that it's better to get old than die, which sounds morbid but is actually a very helpful thought when you're in the depths of birthday depression.

Unfortunately I can't bake either my blog or myself a celebratory cake as I'm in the middle of having my kitchen re-fitted. This is very exciting and I will definitely be show casing photos if it all goes to the plan. At the moment it's all very chaotic and we're eating cereal for dinner a lot. Roll on finished kitchen. However, I do have a birthday cake that I can share with you. In fact I gave you a sneak peek here, and now I can reveal the cake that I made for my big sister's 30th in June (phew at least I'm not 30 yet!).

When we were little my sister would always demand a birthday cheesecake with an especially high crust to cheese ratio. Yum. Given that this year was a special birthday, I decided to revert to the birthday cheesecake formula but with a particularly gluttonous replacement for the crust. You may remember that when I went to New York last year I developed a little thing for Junior's cheesecake baked within a chocolate fudge-cake. I told myself that no good could come of obtaining the recipe and tried to forget about it. However, knowing how much my sister likes cheesecake and, indeed, chocolate cake, I decided to be selfless and find the recipe. Which I did. Here. And indeed, no good came of it.

I think if anyone ever challenges you to make something truly perverse, don't bake biscuits shaped like handcuffs or breadsticks shapes like whips. Make this. Seriously, there is something strange and disturbing about making a three layer chocolate cake and then sandwidging a whole cheesecake in the middle. It just seems so wrong, so OTT, so decadent and at the same time, so very right. It is definitely a celebration cake and, because it's so rich it would feed a whole room of party guests. You could also use it for entertainment. I expect if you made everyone guess its hidden ingredient, they'd say a dancing girl rather than think you were mad enough to put a second desert within.

I would say that the chocolate sponge was a little too dry. If I ever made this again (my arteries are furring at the thought) I would just use a standard chocolate sponge recipe as I didn't think the extra steps added anything here. That said, as a birthday treat for your only sister you can't really go wrong.

Poor innocent cheesecake. So simple, so pure - yet to know it's chocolaty fate:

Hmmm this is a little odd - a cake rather than crumb base...

Ok, and a cake topping as well? Most unorthodox.

Another layer? Is it really necessary? This is surely the end of polite cake-eating society as we know it. Be warned, this is a level of decadence not seen since the fall of Rome...

Ta-dah! I've created a monster:

Well, wouldn't you look lumpy around the middle if you'd just eaten a whole cheesecake?

I would like to say a very, very big thanks to everyone who ever reads this blog - it really is a pleasure to read your comments and know you are there. Yay!