THAT LITTLE OLD DATE

December 21, 2025

Jason Bonnicksen

THAT LITTLE OLD DATE

365 DAYS OF THANKSLIVING — DAY 21

“BLECHHHH! Jeez-o-petes, that’s gross!” One nibble was all it took, and I quickly expelled that morsel outta my mouth. “Something’s not right. Why does this taste so bad?” I questioned with a bit of pause.

Truly, I was confounded; because, in my mind, those heavenly desserts are supposed to be decadent, delicious and downright delightful. But instead, it was worse than a platter of Lutefisk that’d been sitting on my grandma’s table since 1906.

“Honey, something’s not right. You take a taste!” I didn’t give her much of a choice as I practically shoved one right in her face. At best, I thought maybe my taste buds were just off. But nope, I was right. Her reaction said it all with volumes of disgust.

In less than one second, she’d spat out. “Oh, that is bad,” she replied. What’d ya put in it?” Without a quip, I responded: “I duh-no; I followed the recipe. It’s a chocolate crinkle cookie, for goodness’ sake.”

Audibly, I listed the ingredients: sugar, Ghirardelli chocolate; vegetable oil, farm-fresh eggs, vanilla, flour, salt, baking powder, and powdered sugar. Those ingredients mixed together shouldn’t taste like fish. It took me a hot minute, but in time I wondered, “Could it be the oil?”

I looked at the bottle. “It contains Omega-3’s,” I uttered aloud. “That’s kinda odd. A marketing gimmick perhaps? But why would canola oil contain Omega-3, knowing those are often found in fish?”

That just seemed wrong. I then took another look, turning the bottle just a bit. That’s when I saw it; that little old date on the side was long past gone.

We may not give them much thought, but food processors set their expiration dates for good reason. I just hadn’t paid attention, but that tiny bottle expired in November 2024. Yup, that was 13 months ago. That wasn’t just a little bit past, but a year beyond its recommended date, saying "TOSS IT IN THE TRASH." No wonder it was rancid and tasted like fish. (In hindsight, motor oil might’ve tasted better, LOL.)

Earlier I joked about lutefisk; but there was a reason my ancestors preserved their fresh caught cod the way they did. By filleting the fish and hanging in the frigid, Norwegian air, the fillets were petrified, and in essence, preserved for long periods of time.

The problem, for them, became the means in which to make it edible again. Some bright genius thought, “Let’s soak in poison, then rinse it out; and then we’ll steam it till it looks like larvae and drown it with butter.... Who’ll ever know?”

My Viking ancestors didn’t need the FDA or expiration dates; but as for you and me, if we don’t wanna get sick, following those guidelines might not be so bad. Afterall, no one wants their Christmas Chocolate Crinkles to taste like lutefisk, because, well, that stuff’s not edible even for Satan himself. Wisdom demands prudence, in the kitchen, and in life:

“Doesn’t wisdom call out? Doesn’t understanding make her voice heard?... Listen to my instruction and be wise. Don’t ignore it. Joyful are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home!”

Proverbs 8:12, 33–34, NLT

Heavenly Father, thank you for the little things like expiration dates. Some products are probably safe to go past, but others, not so much. Give us all wisdom when preparing a dish, so that we don’t cause our chocolate cookies to taste like fish.

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