Criss Cross Chocolate Icing Limoges Cake Box

Thick chocolate icing covers this round cake, finished with a criss cross pattern across the top like a baker's lattice. It is a hand-painted porcelain Limoges box made in Limoges, France, and it looks good enough to slice.

Frosted in Cocoa Lattice

A criss cross design is one of the simplest and most satisfying ways to finish a cake, and here it is captured in porcelain with the same neat lines a pastry chef would pipe by hand. The deep chocolate color makes it a rich, warm piece among lighter dessert boxes.

The Dessert Course Shelf

• Hand-painted porcelain from Limoges, France
• A centerpiece for a cake, pastry or sweets collection
• Pairs with tarts, cake slices and candy boxes

Baked for Birthdays

Bakers, chocolate fans and anyone who has ever stayed up late frosting a cake will smile at this one. It suits a birthday, a bakery opening, a culinary school graduation, or a thank you for the friend who always brings dessert. In the kitchen it looks at home on a windowsill or open shelf, and in the dining room it fits on a buffet next to real cake stands.

Little porcelain boxes became popular in 18th century France for holding snuff, pills and beauty patches, and the tradition has grown to include playful subjects like this one.