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Read it and eat it: Enjoy Saturday Night Widows with a slice of Mocha Chocolate Icebox Cake

Becky Aikman's book about the adventures of six friends remaking their lives demands chocolate cake from Ina Garten.

Six marriages, six heartbreaks, one shared beginning. Saturday Night Widows is a rare book that will make you laugh, think, and remind yourself that despite the utter unpredictability and occasional tragedy of life, it is also precious, fragile, and often more joyous than we recognize. And for an emotional, inspirational story, there’s nothing better than chocolate.

Eat It.

Mocha Chocolate Icebox Cake
Recipe from Barefoot Contessa How Easy Is That? by Ina Garten
Serves 8

2 cups cold heavy cream
12 ounces Italian mascarpone cheese
½ cup sugar
¼ cup Kahlúa liqueur
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Pernigotti
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 (8-ounce) packages Tate’s Bake Shop chocolate chip cookies
Shaved semisweet chocolate, for garnish

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the heavy cream, mascarpone, sugar, Kahlúa, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and vanilla. Mix on low speed to combine and then slowly raise the speed, until it forms firm peaks.

2. To assemble the cake, arrange chocolate chip cookies flat in an 8-inch springform pan, covering the bottom as much as possible. (I break some cookies to fill in the spaces.) Spread a fifth of the mocha whipped cream evenly over the cookies. Place another layer of cookies on top, lying flat and touching, followed by another fifth of the cream. Continue layering cookies and cream until there are 5 layers of each, ending with a layer of cream. Smooth the top, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

3. Run a small sharp knife around the outside of the cake and remove the sides of the pan. Sprinkle the top with the chocolate, cut in wedges, and serve cold.

Tate’s Bake Shop cookies are 2 inches in diameter, thin, and crisp. You will have cookies left over from 3 packages, which never seems to be a problem here.

If you heat the block of chocolate in a microwave for 30 seconds, you will get larger shavings.