We are down to the dregs of the chocolate box, those last few dipped morsels that were strategically overlooked while there were caramels and truffles to choose from. They are the last of the Christmas chocolates, the ones nobody wanted. They’ve been nestled in their assigned compartments for as long as it has taken for the memory of the good ones to fade. They are the jellies and the fruit cream filled ones, the undesirables.
The caramels are always the first to go. There is always a mad clamor for the square ones, dark or light – they can be counted on to be delicious. You’ve got to be on your toes if you’re harvesting caramels, the desired fruit, they are easy to spot and conveniently placed at the corners of the box. If you’re quick you can score a couple with a perfected slight of hand (speaking from experience) during the first pass of the chocolate box.
The nuts are usually a close second – who doesn’t enjoy a dipped hazelnut or two – or a cashew encased in chocolate? Even the crushed peanut cups are preferable to questionable, unidentifiable, offerings.
Those who enjoy a chocolate maraschino cherry are usually in luck during a second pass of the box. Maraschino cherries have had their day, it takes a mature palate to really savor their flavor. Mint patties have become common – junior mints have flooded their market – but they are a safe bet when you are faced with a quick decision. A sure thing in chocolate selection is preferable to a yucky surprise.
This is the moment, in the journey of a box of chocolates, that someone asks for the map. Choices are getting sketchy, mystery chocolates are all that remain. Mocha and coffee creams are acceptable choices and are often camouflaged. They’ve been overlooked and picked over. And then only the jellies and fruit creams remain. Suddenly everyone has had their fill of chocolate and the lid gets placed back on the box.
The box makes its way into a cupboard as Christmas gets packed away, and there it sits until one night someone gets a craving…. and now even those overlooked, undesirable, sketchy chocolates look delicious. It’s inching toward the end of January and I could really go for a mystery jelly coated in chocolate – couldn’t you?