Valentine's edition

Insert excuse-y, self-deprecating comment here about how long it's been since I posted anything here. Okay, moving on.

I've made it clear that I like themed menus, especially at holidays. Valentine's Day, of course, lends itself well to this kind of silliness.

With vegetarians in the house, I don't do the traditional steak and potato type of thing. I go more with color than anything else, so...Red Beans and Rice. Not sexy, necessarily, but fits the theme and makes my family happy. (My daughter is obsessed with rice. It's weird.)

For dessert, though, I like to get a little crazy. I stared at Pinterest for a few days, looking for inspiration, but nothing jumped out at me, except maybe the thought of red velvet cake in general. I went with a trifle (because I am no good at all at decorating cakes or cupcakes, and I'm great at whipping cream).

Keep in mind that this is a WORKING MOM's blog, so this recipe fits well into the semi-homemade category. By the way, calling it a recipe is putting it strongly. Here's what I did.

Delegated the cake-making to a teenager. Two teenagers, actually. They had a great time and took pictures (which I do not have permission to share). Use a mix. (Duncan Hines was the brand I selected, because it was on sale.)

Whipped the cream - 1/2 pint, with 1/8 cup of sugar and a splash of vanilla - in the Kitchenaid mixer. (I insist on doing this part from scratch. I hate Cool Whip.)

Opened a can of cherry pie filling.

Made instant vanilla pudding (if I were on a school break, I would have whipped up some homemade pastry cream, but it's been a LONG week at school already. Pudding it is.).

Tore up that cake. Into bite-sized pieces.

Layer it all in a glass bowl. Cake, pudding, cherry pie filling, whipped cream, then repeat until you're out of everything. Try to end on a whipped cream layer. I sprinkled all that with a little hot cocoa mix powder.

My son called it love in a bowl.