Looking back, I should have known better

I really should have. Somewhere along the way, though, my desire for a decadent, chocolate-y treat overwhelmed my rational senses and assured me that yes, you can just "microwave and enjoy". That should have been my first clue. Instead, hell-bent on a scrumptious, swift snack, I blew right past the key point of this new recipe - the fact that it tells you how to make a CAKE in a CUP in the MICROWAVE.

I am referring to the now infamous "Most Dangerous Cake Recipe In The World", which I received via email earlier this year. Complete with pictures touting its ooey goodness, I kept the email for future reference, and recently unearthed it while cleaning out my inbox. Short on time, but yearning for some chocolate relief, I printed it out and headed home.

"You're never more than 5 minutes away from a fresh, warm chocolate cake" the email taunted, making this recipe the "Most Dangerous" one in the world. If only I had known that the danger lurked not in the ready availability of cake from here on out, but to the lump of steaming lava the recipe produced, I may not have proceeded forward so carelessly.

After mixing the ingredients as instructed, I sat my cup in the microwave and waited for the magic to unfold. Set the timer to three minutes and anxiously danced in front of the door as the mug slowly made its rounds inside the nuker.

Upon opening the door, I (carefully, with gloves) snatched my steaming mug out of the microwave and inspected the results.

Hmm... not a prize-winning cake by any means, but it was made in a mug! in a microwave, for goodness sakes! Do you want deliciousness or attractiveness?! (DELICIOUSNESS!) You can't get it all in a 3 minute recipe, folks! No need to be picky! So, I carefully ran my knife along the edges and turned out my spoils onto my plate.

Well, from the looks of it, spoils might not have been such a bad choice of words. It seems as if the optional chocolate chips all decided to migrate towards the bottom of the mug, and OH MY! What is that smell?!?

Well, I'm not 100% sure, but I believe that may be the stench of burnt semi-sweet chocolate chips which has wafted up from my decadent creation and permanently lodged itself in my nose. Yum-O.

The smell almost prevented me from even trying a bite of this 'dessert', but I braved a taste from the top side. A mistake that I lived to regret. The consistency was that of play-dough that had been left out most of the afternoon, then heated for 3 minutes in the microwave with some questionable chocolate chips. The taste was bland, at best, but I couldn't get over the scorched chips or chewy texture.

I may, however, have my standards set a little high. Chris came by, surveyed the wreckage, and proclaimed that it "looked pretty good", and I didn't even have to pin him down to get him to try a bite, after which he concluded that "it was pretty okay. Kind of like a box cake mix, but not bad. Could use some icing." Yep, icing. That's what this cake needs.

Have any of you succumbed to the siren's call of a similar dessert short cut? If so, how did you fare? Surely I'm not the only one to try and fail as a short-order (micro) chef.