Lunch Box Chronicles: Day One-Hundred Seventy-Five (Terrific Truffles-But Stop Already)

Stop Already!  The kids have been obsessed this holiday season with baking.  My girth does not appreciate it.

On Saturday evening we picked up Spencer at the airport after he returned from Duluth, MN.  He and his cousin Charlie served as human couriers each way to help Grandma travel safely between their homes in NYC and Duluth, MN.  It's an incredible right of passage to have these teenage boys become the guardian over their 87 year old grandmother as she travels to visit her kids and grandkids.

In less than a decade, the roles of child and grandma, have morphed into something neither the grandchildren nor the grandparent could have imagined.  Besides adoring these boys, Grandma used to bathe, babysit, read and sing to them.

Now, what seems as nothing more than in a blink of an eye, the little boys have transformed into young men, aware, caring, and capable of taking on the role as guardian to help Grandma safely maneuver her trips through the Big Blue Sky.  And Grandma has transformed from a fierce individual ready to take on any travel itinerary to a fragile sometimes disoriented woman in her prime, who understands love, but sometimes loses track of the daily flow. Despite some confusion as she bustles through busy LaGuardia, Grandma has a certain calmness knowing that there is a trusting young man by her side to help her along her journey.

On the ride home from the airport, I mentioned that I planned on doing some baking.  Spencer chimed in somewhat disappointed.  "Mom, you plan to use the kitchen?"  I answered, "Yes, why?"  "Umm, well, I was planning to make truffles.  It's in the cookbook from the Duluth Grill where Auntie Carol works.  She got me the cookbook."

Both Tim and I smiled, "Truffles?"   What I wanted to say was "Stop Already!"  All this decadent food is, well, too decadent.  But, what could I say?  "The kitchen is yours kid."  As Grandma trusts him to courier her through her travels, I trust him to take on another challenge in the kitchen.

It was a two day and very messy project.  But the outcome was nothing less than devilish.  Here is a lovely photo.  We can't provide the recipe here, but suggest you buy the Duluth Grill Cookbook for this recipe and many more from the award winning restaurant.