Since I've gotten used to using a coffee maker with a built-in water filter... going back to instant is just a shock to the system. (If I had a decent hot pot, I might be okay, but microwaved water always acts weird. Typically, I use my coffee maker for making large quantities of hot water, too.)

I've started making a lot of extra rice whenever I do make it and then putting together a container of the filling in the fridge with whatever filling I decide on. Leftover teriyaki chicken or rotisserie chicken and some kind of veggie tend to win out. ^_^

It's an adaptation of a black forest cake for the actual cake, then filled the 4 layers (2 layers, each cut in half) with a kind of jelly made of pureed maraschino cherries in juice, cordial cherries, and some cornstarch, plus whipped cream near the edges. Then I frosted with chocolate frosting and that texture? Chopped pecans coated in melted chocolate chips, the last bit of the frosting, and chocolate syrup to get the right consistency. I've seen a lot of people online try to make a version of that cake, but no one seemed to be getting the consistency anywhere close to right... so I improvised. Thankfully, it turned out well. ^_^