April 9, 2011
When I was ten years old my uncle caught me sitting beside the couch with a jar of Crisco and the sugar bowl. I was taking Crisco out by the spoonful and rolling it in the sugar before popping the tasty morsel into my mouth. His immediate response: "Do your parents know you do that? You're gonna die of a clogged artery." His prophesy of death petrified me and I gave up one of the hydrogenated world's best treats.
Well, Kazakhstan is a magical land where childhood dreams come true. At my Kazakh tutor's house, there is a beautiful oiled butter mixture that regularly makes an appearance at the lunch table. (That is butter that has been whipped in oil.) For three months, I've watched them take tablespoons of this oiled-butter and lump it on a breadcrumb then dip it in sugar. Genius!! This is even better than Crisco! Straight butter, rolled in oil, and dipped in sugar. Why didn't I think of that in my years of recklessness?! Each week I watch and one part of me gets a little grossed out while the other part of me is tempted to pick up a bread scrap alongside the best of them.
Seven months in, I decided the time has come. I dipped my bread in the butter-oil and took a double dose of sugar. Delicious! This is really what everyone wants to do back home, but their conscience (or their doctor) won't let them.
No fears, I'm still taking care of myself, but you can only say "no" to so many things on the table before you're just being rude. So for two years, I'm giving in to my childhood dream. As my father told me: "When in Rome…"
Why didn't we think of that? Best dessert ever!
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