Pour. Cover. Wait. Chocolate Cake.

Mix it, pour it into a skillet, cover the lid. About half an hour later, you've got a moist, tender chocolate cake. No oven. Two large eggs into a bowl. Half a cup of sugar. And a teaspoon of vanilla. Whisk until it lightens up. Half a cup of milk. And a quarter cup of vegetable oil go in next. And whisk again. Oil instead of butter keeps the cake soft for days, not just the first hour. For the dry side, about a cup of flour. Two teaspoons of baking powder. And a quarter cup of unsweetened cocoa. Make sure it's actually unsweetened, not the hot chocolate mix. Sift it all together. Cocoa clumps worse than flour. And you can't whisk those clumps out later without overworking the batter. Whisk just until the streaks disappear, then stop. Overmix and the cake turns dense and rubbery. The batter should ribbon off the spatula in slow folds. Smooth, but not stiff. For the pan, a heavy-bottomed skillet about 10 inches across. If your nonstick is in good shape, you can pour the batter straight in. If you're not sure about it, parchment round on the bottom. Either way, grease the pan with butter. Pour the batter in. Stop at about a third of the way up. The cake nearly triples under the lid. Higher than that, and it either climbs into the lid or stays raw in the middle. Smooth the top and scrape any batter off the sides so nothing burns on the rim. Heat low. The lowest setting your stove has. Lid on. For the first 10 minutes, don't lift it. After 10 minutes, the underside of the lid will be covered in droplets. Lift it quickly, wipe it dry with a paper towel, and put it right back. Meanwhile, half a cup of chopped walnuts. Optional, but worth it for the texture. Now the soak. Two tablespoons of sugar. And a third of a cup of milk in a small saucepan. Warm it over medium. Just until the sugar dissolves and you see small bubbles around the edge, not the middle. Don't let it boil. You just want the sugar dissolved, not the milk cooked. Off the heat once it's smooth. For the glaze, chop one chocolate bar. Milk or dark, your call. Into small pieces. Smaller pieces melt more evenly. Set the bowl over a pot with an inch of simmering water and stir gently as it melts. Don't rush it with high heat or the microwave. Overheated chocolate turns grainy and dull, and there's no coming back from that. Pull it off the heat when it's almost there. The residual warmth finishes the rest. Stir in a tablespoon of vegetable oil. That oil is what gives the glaze its shine, and keeps it pourable instead of seizing the moment it hits a cool surface. Let it cool for a minute or two. Warm, not hot, or it runs straight off the cake. Back to the cake. Color won't help you here. It's already dark, so don't wait for it to brown. What matters is the top. It should be dry and matte, not tacky to the touch. And a toothpick into the center should come out clean. Off the heat. While the cake is still hot, prick it all over with a fork. That's what lets the soak get in instead of pooling on top. Spoon the milk mixture over in slow passes. Give each pour a second to absorb before the next. Pour the glaze across the center and let it find the edges. Nudge it with a spatula if it needs help. Some will run down the sides. Skillet cake, not a wedding cake. Cut as many pieces as you want right in the pan. Plastic or silicone, never metal. Even a good nonstick coating won't forgive that. Scatter the walnuts over the top. Or skip them, also fine. And there it is. Moist, tender, somehow baked entirely on a stovetop. Soaked through in the middle, glossy on top, soft enough that a spoon works as well as a fork. Four things to remember. Low heat, the right skillet, lid on, and a light hand with the batter. Everything else is forgiving.