Friday, April 11

a small miracle...

i must interrupt the quite frilling, ney, gripping adventures of 'Tif and the Rain Forest' to bring you breaking news from the shed...for some who know me quite well, it is perfectly acceptable if you wish to shed a tear of joy at my news. i will not keep you in the dark any longer...

i have cooked a risotto

not just any old risotto from a packet or a risotto made of left over moldy things lurking in the back of the fridge.
no, a risotto from a proper book containing proper recipes and using all organic ingredients...(i have left a little pause here, so you may recover your composure).
i believe it may have something to do with my newly 'made over' kitchen, (remember how dark it was) and quite possibly also from seeing Gladys out the window sending me good vibes.
this can be the only explanation for such a turn of events in my culinary disasters. now i realize i am not necessarily ever going to have such success again but at least on my grave stone it can be marked

"here lies Tif,
daughter,
wife,
mother,
crafter
and for one day,
a cook..."

so dear readers i did a lot of chopping, some dicing, and what seemed an eternity of stirring. this last bit explains why i did not record this moment for prosperity, my little arms were too weak at the time to lift the camera. i served up my 'offering' to the 'four hungry' children and one man, i felt a bowl of risotto looked a bit lonely so chopped a quick salad for on the side.
(is it shocking that in nearly 18 years of marriage and 16 years of motherhood, i have only just attempted to try such a dish?)
i feel if there is one thing i have learnt from my experience of cooking a risotto is that to avoid comments at the table like "is it suppose to be crunchy?" or "what's the gritty bits that keep getting stuck in my teeth?" one must cook it for longer, therefore i need to start working on strengthening my upper arms before my next attempt.
but we will not let those 'words' cast a dark shadow upon the small miracle that happened to me and my cooking one faithful evening at mossy shed...

she is wishing you a weekend full of sunshine and empty of mice ~ Tif

13 comments:

Gigibird said...

Can you buy risotto in a packet?

St Delia has a recipe for risotto you put in the oven but I have never made it as my husband would probably divorce me for giving him rice pudding for his dinner. Well done you
Kitchen looks lovely – I especially like your glass handles – what happened to your Habitat tablecloth curtains??

Anonymous said...

Way to go with the Risotto! I love cooking, but have never made it. In fact, as I think of it, I've never even had it, although, I admit, I've been curious. I'll have to try it someday.

Your new kitchen looks very nice, very 'you'. I like the bright, cheeriness of it! :) I can't wait 'til my house looks like 'me'. Someday... {sigh.}

Hear Me Roar! said...

Hilarious Tif, yet somehow inspiring. I can't stop laughing...

dottie angel said...

ah, you can buy any form of food in a packet Stateside, as far as i can tell :)

as to the tablecloth curtains, i had a change of heart...all a bit too frilly in the end, so i settled on a very 'restrained' version made from brown woodland barkcloth with a hint of teal, perfect to match the 'orla' wallpaper i feel...

alice said...

Love your kitchen! All that space...

:)

Anonymous said...

Isn't this one of the signs that the end of the world has started?

kat said...

way to go!
i made a risotto once. actually i put too much water into the pot, & told the family it was risotto.
;-)

Anonymous said...

Oh faaabulous risotto ... I think it is Italy's version of mashed potato comfort food. As to your ungrateful brood I should just put it down to their unappreciative response to food cooked al dente

"Cooking pasta to the "al dente" stage without over-cooking requires a certain amount of practice and skill, since both have a relatively brief midway stage between the under-cooked phase, where rice or dried pasta stays hard in the middle and where fresh pasta tastes "floury", and the over-cooked phase, where the dish lacks texture and is considered too soft."
Wikipedia

HA!

E

p.s. very much enjoying your travelogue

Anonymous said...

good for you. i've never made risotto either.

Amy Gethins Sullivan said...

Tif, In this dream kitchen, you will enjoy your self. I am sure all your food will somehow taste better. Your an artist, your surroundings inspire you. Enjoy!

MarmaladeRose said...

You make me smile! fi x

Suzanne said...

Give it another whirl...or maybe not. I will agree that risotto is a marathon event. How about you have the hubby take everyone OUT for risotto?

- Suzanne, the Farmer's Wife

Anonymous said...

I just have to tell you that I am LOVING your blog and your entire aesthetic. It is such a pleasure to read and view. I can't get enough!! You are amazing! I've been waiting so eagerly to see your kitchen redo (because my kitchen looks almost exactly like your "before" kitchen-ugh) but the picture is unavailable!! I'm still making my way through the blog, post by post, but if you have this picture anywhere, please would you repost, or let me know somehow (I don't usually comment, more of a lurker, so not sure how that works)? Thank you so much for sharing your inspiring work!