Crumbs

I love crumbs, and I hate crumbs.

I love to take the crumbs off of any serving platter and just get a taste of whatever decadence was being served.  It’s my way of justifying “just having a taste” without being really bad and committing to a forkful.  I’ve been known, too, to create crumbs of my own – picking off the edges of a brownie or inching my finger along split top of banana bread, turning a San Andreas crevasse from a mere crack.

And, you know, when you bake a cake and there is that little layer of gooey cake residue that sticks to the pan after you flip it onto your cooling rack?  Well, okay, that’s not really crumbs, that’s  cake goo, but if you wipe your finger along the pan, it’s so rich with cake batter and non-stick spray goodness, I’ll put it in the “crumb” category. 

I hate crumbs too.  Crumbs, while still tasty and unique, don’t give you a full taste of the entire dish.  If you have the “crumbs” of a cheesecake, you’re likely just getting the buttery graham crust, but you’re missing the essence of the cheesecake – the moist cream cheese sweetened with sugar and liqueur, enhanced with egg yolk, and sometimes infused with chocolate or berries.  You miss what it’s all about.  

Sometimes telling yourself having “just the crumbs” is good enough.  After awhile of only getting to enjoy the crumbs, you start to wonder about the whole pie – especially when you’ve had a taste of the whole pie, it’s hard to go back to “just the crumbs”.

Moving forward, I’m going to enjoy the crumbs – but only after I’ve cut myself a slice!