Yep, it's true. I had a massive FAIL in the kitchen this morning. I was all set to bake up Nigella's Easter Nest cake. The oven was pre-heating, the ingredients were to hand, I was in my apron. I chopped the half-pound of dark chocolate, put it in a glass bowl, put the bowl in the microwave for two minutes, expecting that I'd have to put it on for longer but knowing that caution is the only way to deal with chocolate. I was about to prepare some of the other ingredients when I heard a massive BANG. I ran over to the microwave.

The bowl had exploded. Shattered. Half-melted chocolate everywhere, glass shards everywhere.

I was devastated. I had to run down and tell Mom. She kindly cleaned up the mess while I flailed around the kitchen, trying to figure out what we'd have for dessert after Easter dinner tonight. (I'd've cleaned up my own mess, btw, but she got in first--probably because I was flailing.) Mom threw a couple of suggestions at me, neither one of which sounded all that appetizing after the decadently rich chocolate cake I'd been planning. Finally, she gave me another suggestion, which I took. I baked up a fairly ordinary chocolate cake--Mom's go-to chocolate cake recipe--and Mom found a fantastic icing recipe. She iced it, I decorated it with Cadbury Mini Eggs (those candy-shelled ones), and ta-da! Not what I'd been hoping for, but not an utter disaster, after all.

Then Mom took a shower while I cooked cinnamon pancakes & maple bacon. And that was my Easter morning. But I've learned my lesson: next time I have to deal with that much chocolate, it's going into a double-boiler on the stovetop. Hmph!