Balance of Food

Aaron McGruder, creator of "The Boondocks," defines the "Luther" as one full pound burger patty, covered in cheese, grilled onions, and 5 strips of bacon, sandwiched between two full Krispy Kreme donuts. The basics of the Luther involve a bacon cheeseburger and Krispy Kreme donuts for the bun. But McGruder’s view of it sounds more dangerous than any other version I’ve seen. The Luther came up in the TV episode "The Itis" that aired last night on Adult Swim on the Cartoon Network. The premise of the episode is that Grandpa gets to run a soul food restaurant filled with artery-clogging recipes. To give you a good visual, imagine a menu with “sausage and waffle and fried chicken breakfast lasagna” and "bacon-wrapped chitlin-stuffed catfish." As Huey says in the episode, "Granddad, you can’t serve this kind of food to people. It’ll cause death." The premise of the restaurant is that beds are placed next to the tables so the patrons can nap after dinner. (The “Itis” is the sleepy feeling you get after you’ve had a huge meal.) I do have relatives in the South that have eaten some of this soul food. But as they describe the food in the episode (trust me, I spared you the really intense dishes), I am enthralled and disgusted at the same time. The rebroadcast of this episode airs Saturday at 11p/ET and 2a/ET.