The View From Mrs. Sundberg's Window

Your skin crackles in the gold of the setting sun

October 14, 2010

Listened to the show Saturday and it was not bad. It had been one of those days outside where I mowed and raked and weeded and pruned and the kids helped out here and there stuffing leaves into plastic bags and hauling brush and whatnot. One of those days, those lovely gathering it up and putting it in its place days where the day slides into dusk and your skin crackles in the gold of the setting sun and you feel as if you've done something to care for your small corner of the world.

The world has so many corners. The kids are heading off to a far away one later this week, down in South America, a nine-day field trip of sorts for their Spanish class. They're going to do some work at a mission, and visit Lake Atitlan and tour a castle and so on. I'm a bit nervous about the whole thing because they're my kids, for God's sake. They're traveling to another part of the planet and I am feeling that feeling mothers feel when they let go of their kids and let the world take over. Which is how it is supposed to be. I know this, mind you. It's my job. Equip them to live without me and then send 'em packing.

I envy them a bit. They get to go to a foreign land, meet new people, experience a culture and days and nights different from here. They are going to think and feel and see and hear things that will, ultimately, change them. And the food. My gosh, they'll eat amazing things and hear stories told by the people who prepare their food and they'll fall asleep at night with "far away" meaning something new and come home with more to share than they'll have words for, and won't that be something.

Yes. They'll come home, back to this corner, our corner, small as it is, and familiar, to shower and rest and repack for the next adventure. They're coming along faster now, the goings-away.

And the returns? Sweeter than ever. So sweet.

Chocolate Truffle Cookies
Another batch of cookies is never a bad thing. Here's one for the chocolate lover, and make sure you save some for yourself.

4 squares (1 oz each) unsweetened chocolate

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided

1/3 cup butter

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup flour

2 T baking cocoa

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

Confectioner's sugar

Melt unsweetened chocolate, 1 cup chocolate chips, and butter. Cool. Beat sugar and eggs for

2 minutes in mixing bowl. Beat in vanilla and the chocolate mixture. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Beat into chocolate mixture. Stir in remaining chocolate chips.

Cover and chill about 3 hours. With lightly floured hands, roll into 1 inch balls and bake on ungreased sheets at 350 for 10-12 minutes, or until lightly puffed. Cool and dust with confectioner's sugar.

Makes 4 dozen cookies.

Enjoy!

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