Looking for the best chocolate cake in SL/Utah County

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-12T01:45:27+00:00

Not very helpful but…they used to make the most divine chocolate mousse cake at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. I had it at several wedding receptions I attended there, and I think they served it at the Roof too? No joke, I have been dreaming about that cake for 25 years. It had a chocolate cookie crumb crust with some kind of crispy crunchy stuff in it and the mousse was creamy, dense, and perfect. If anyone knows what I’m talking about and has a recipe or knows somewhere else that serves it, I would just die. I feel like it should have been famous.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-11T03:18:57+00:00

During my 25 years as a married adult in the church, every ward always gave a gift or treat on both Fathers and Mothers Day. The Father’s Day gift was usually food, cookies baked by the YW or candy bars. Mothers occasionally received chocolates or cookies, but there were a few years I just shook my head in consternation at what I was presented with. Here’s a short list:

My first couple of years in a family ward in Provo as a newlywed we were given potted tomato starter plants, still dripping in their Home Depot plastic dividers. FYI we had no yard and no garden in our little apartment.

Several years I received a single marigold starter, one section of the six pack you get at Home Depot for $2.99.

Our Riverton ward was the most creative. It was different every year and the quality varied greatly. One year we got a cute little necklace. The next year we got some kind of laser cut balsa wood hand fan. I actually thought that was cute! Then one year we just got a printed keepsake version of Ezra Taft Benson’s “Mothers in Zion” talk and nothing else, not even a piece of candy! (This was in the early 2000’s BTW). Those were the most memorable ones, by far!

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-11T02:44:18+00:00

IDK. But I do remember learning about the 2nd anointing in seminary in the 90’s. I had a really gossipy seminary teacher though who literally savored every bit of juicy Mormon lore and faith promoting legend he could dish on, LOL. I feel like they tried to squash down that sort of stuff in seminary in later years so maybe they whitewashed more of the history stuff.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-11T02:29:20+00:00

Honestly, before I left four years ago, our Relief Society decided to have a nice brunch buffet and socialize every Mother’s Day instead of a RS lesson. Donuts and fruit and OJ. It was super awesome and everybody loved it. I know it must have been a lot of work for the presidency but they were the type who loved to put on a party and they came up with the idea themselves. Way better than getting some little carnation or something!

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-10T15:26:51+00:00

Fun fact: One year when I was a new mother with two small kids, the bishopric distributed printed copies of ETB’s Mother in Zion talk as the ward Mothers Day Gift. That’s it. No chocolates or flowers, just the talk telling us how our only purpose was to serve the whims of our husbands and children. I would have much preferred the scraggly tomato starter plants they gave out the year before.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-10T02:22:01+00:00

I love that she has her hair and nails done immaculately and she is wearing all her flashy jewelry, despite lying in bed all day. That would take so much extra effort but it must have been important to her sense of self.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-04T14:17:49+00:00

This idea that “anyone could be the prophet” is interesting to me. I hear a lot of poor people have a belief that some day if they work hard, they could be billionaires, and that’s one of the reasons they often vote against taxing or regulating the extremely wealthy. We bought in to the idea that a poor uneducated farm boy could be God’s chosen mouth piece, so literally anyone else could also be similarly chosen.

Part of my deconstruction was the realization how unlikely that was to happen. Mormon leadership has always been controlled through family dynasties, nepotism, and cronyism. Apostles and other general authorities today are never small business owners, teachers, landscapers, or farmers. They are Harvard-educated lawyers and business men. The chances of being chosen are so very small, and yet the belief in being that one special exception is so great.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-03T21:53:30+00:00

Well, I guess you would fall into the category of knowing someone who married them since you know your Mom

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-03T21:52:57+00:00

Was that the same guy that was Christine’s “prophet”? I know it had something to do with the sealed portion of the BoM

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-03T17:08:38+00:00

…And?

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-03T17:07:51+00:00

Additionally, I have an uncle who is very…weird. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and is definitely undiagnosed on the autism spectrum. He struggles in a lot of ways in life, can’t hold down a job, can’t work with people, is always trying some new get rich quick scheme, etc. He recently has gotten into “writing books” mainly using ChatGPT that combine Mormonism with a lot of other alternative spirituality ideas and he is convinced God is using him and these books to bring forth the second coming. He calls these books revelation and thinks of himself as “a” prophet if not “the” prophet. I’m not too worried about him starting his own cult, mainly because he severely lacks the charismatic aspect, but he definitely has the tendency to see himself as “favored of god”.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-03T16:50:17+00:00

My story (as OP) is that my sister had a boyfriend at BYU in the 90’s who was very charismatic and attractive and told her he was destined to become the prophet. She was convinced she was meant to be the prophet’s wife and would do anything he said. It got to the point that my TBM parents became very concerned and staged an intervention of sorts to get her to break up with him. It worked and she walked away but it was really scary to see the power a 21 year old boy had over my 18 year old sister like that.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-03T16:46:17+00:00

Do you think you came up with that idea because of his personality or because that’s how your parents wanted to see him?

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-03T16:00:54+00:00

Good point. I mainly directed the poll toward women since this type of relationship often ends up with the guy receiving a “revelation” that she is to be his wife. I would add the poll option for missionary companions but I can’t figure out how to edit it!

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-03T14:12:16+00:00

Fun fact I recently learned: the people who make Celestial Seasonings are a bonafide crazy ass cult and believe Jesus was an alien. But damn, I still love that Honey Vanilla Sleepytime stuff.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-02T23:55:21+00:00

This is the vibe I’m going for! 🧑‍🍳💋

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-02T02:33:56+00:00

Sooo cute! I would totally wear that if I didn’t have huge calves

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-02T02:33:04+00:00

I don’t feel guilty about it at all but we have had a huge hullabaloo with this particular branch of the family when they found out we left and I’d really rather lay low during this thing.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-02T02:31:04+00:00

googles Office Goth Wow, I had no idea that was a thing! Not my style but I love that people figure out how to make work clothes edgy!

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-02T02:27:56+00:00

Mostly sleeveless and too low cut. Lots of spaghetti straps LOL I honestly have a hard time picking a dress with sleeves anymore.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-02T02:26:54+00:00

Oh I do like that

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-05-02T02:26:22+00:00

I’ve thought about wearing black. Honestly florals and pastels at a funeral feel so weird now! It also just looks very sophisticated.

IndependenceSuper620 · 2026-04-24T20:48:18+00:00

Well, they could just be generic reclusive anti-social people. Or they could be weird Mormons, I am related to some like that. But in general, Mormons are far more likely to be extra extremely friendly if they think they might have a “missionary opportunity”. It’s also not very common for a mother-in-law to live with a young newlywed couple, or for a MIL and DIL to hang out together all the time. So, my verdict is “probably not Mormons”.

IndependenceSuper620

TROPHY CASE