With Chocolate and Strawberries, Who Needs Diamonds?

I met Bekah in college when she needed a ride to church and she, through a mutual friend, heard that I had extra seats in my reliable, adorable Honda CRV (I love my car, can you tell?). Bekah and I quickly became friends, but it wasn't until she began dating one of the guys in my friend-group, Ben, that we really got to know each other. She is definitely the spunkiest, friendliest, Spanish-speaking, God-fearing, Pennsylvania girl I have ever met.

Also, I must say: just the other week, Ben got down on one knee and asked Bekah to marry him.

*Congratulations, Ben and Bekah, you two are perfect for each other.*

I say all that in order to introduce my Strawberry Chocolate Cobbler that Bekah and I made, and quite possibly perfected. We usually go to her sister's late-night get-together on Tuesdays, but it was cancelled one week, so we thought strawberries and chocolate sounded like the perfect substitute. I would say it might be better than being in love, but I have a feeling Bekah would disagree. However, it is the perfect combination of textures and flavors: a moist cake layer that almost feels like a brownie, chocolate-saturated strawberries, and a hot fudge-like chocolate layer on the bottom. Bekah and I agreed: when served with vanilla ice cream, it is absolutely divine.

Strawberry Chocolate Cobbler

Ingredients

5 tablespoons butter

1 cup sugar, divided

1 cup self-rising flour (1 cup AP flour+1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder+1/2 teaspoon salt)

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, plus 3 tablespoons

1/2 cup whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 pint washed, hulled, and sliced fresh strawberries, divided

1 cup boiling water

Vanilla ice cream for serving (really, it just makes the dish, you really will want the ice cream)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Put the butter in an 8 by 8-inch baking dish and put the dish in the oven until butter is melted, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the baking dish from the oven and set aside. In a medium bowl combine 2/3 cup of the sugar, the flour, and 2 tablespoons cocoa. Add the milk and vanilla, whisking until smooth. Pour over the melted butter in the baking dish. In a separate medium bowl, combine the remaining 1/3 cup of sugar, remaining 3 tablespoons of cocoa, half of the strawberries; sprinkle evenly over the sugar mixture. Slowly pour boiling water over top of the cobbler. Bake until top of the cobbler looks set, about 40 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream and sprinkled with the other half of the strawberries.

Adapted from Paula Dean's Chocolate Pecan Toffee Cobbler

(http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/chocolate-pecan-cobbler-recipe/index.html)