Wednesday, April 21, 2010

The Devil Is In The Cake

Okay so I am just sick of all of it. Since when did sugar become so evil? Since when did devils food cake actual have the real power to possess your body and make it do things it shouldn't do? Big Fat Sigh.

I ate the best piece of chocolate cake tonight and almost felt no twinge of guilt. Even with darkened past of my diabetic ancestors and my own blood sugar issues looming over me.

It was a cloudy and unseasonably cold day in Arizona today. The kind of day that demands a cozy treat and a cup of coffee. There I stood outside at the park hang out chatting with my dear friends and neighbors while our kids took advantage of the cool air. Talk rolled around to the different paths that would be taken in our foreseeable futures, the selling of our homes, the economy and the market. The clouds sighed as we paused in the cool breeze. I felt sad. Grey. I want to leave my neighborhood and I want to start our dream of a hobby farm, but these guys have been there for me for close to a decade.

It was just then that Kristy suggested cake. Okay, that sounds really good. Cake can almost solve anything or at least muffle the monsters within for a second. Hence the reason comfort food is called as such. We all agreed that it would be a wonderful idea and we would love to try her new Chocolate frosting recipe, which included melted chocolate chips butter and whole milk. We decided that we would hide it from he kids playing in the park, and the plan was set into motion.

I felt like I was doing something really naughty and with my blood sugar monitor on the fritz there was no electronic tattling box, proof of soaring numbers. ( I felt like I was cheating on it!) If I couldn't see it then it must not be real, right? I waited with an unnatural anticipation. Finally she returned with the most beautiful chocolate cake ever, but it's beauty lied within. The promise of a new recipe and knowing that my friend could bake.

I felt giddy and all the talk of short sale home failures and high mortgages vanished into the thick gray clouds above, mixing with their vapors far away from me my friends and the chocolate cake.

The slices she cut were huge and for my own sake I did request a smaller one. The first bite into the cake validated all my anticipation. It was by far the tasty cake I had ever had. The frosting was dark and cooled to perfection, not a typical butter cream but different, not to chocolaty but smooth. The cake itself was amazing, it was thick and moist at the same time. The kind of cake that sticks to your fork and you are left to collect every last crumb. I savored that moment with my friends. I shivered against the cold. We laughed as we quickly hid the plates in her car parked nearby when one of our children would approach.

I didn't feel too evil. My body didn't go into convulsive fits of rage. Is that wrong? The thought of sugar being the arch enemy and the feeder of all cancers only entered my mind one time. I swallowed my cake and dismissed it as fast as I could. We walked away happy, content if even for a moment. I made myself some decaf coffee and enjoyed the lingering moment.

I will write about how much sugar the average American consumes and the Agave Nectar scam tomorrow. For tonight I am going to dream of that cake. Get the recipe and make it sometime for some event and enjoy watching all my friends enjoy something delish and decadent. And then I will shamelessly enjoy the attention I am given for having baked such a wonderful piece of art.