THE RIGATONI DRIBBLE BURN
or why I feel a kinship with the Nervous & Fearful Non-Cook
or why I feel a kinship with the Nervous & Fearful Non-Cook
Innocently, I (Evan -- picky grouchy non-cook person) was boiling pasta for a pan of macaroni and cheese-- to do this I follow the instructions of the very kind and generous Bill Stewart (Bill gave me a mac and cheese lesson early on in my NMNC adventure -- you can find an article about it HERE). Even though the timer had not gone off, I decided to test the pasta.
I fished a rigatoni out with the knife I’d just used to cut off a hunk of cheese and popped that rigatoni onto the cutting board. Then, I picked it up with my fingers – hot – and tipped it into my mouth. OUCH!! A dribble of scalding water came from the hollow of the rigatoni noodle and scalded its way right down the center of my chin. Everything was hectic. I did not follow the instructions in my childrens' Red the Fire Dog’s I Can Be Safe in the Kitchen learning and activity coloring book they each brought home from preschool. I did not cool a burn with cool water. Instead, I cursed the individual rigatoni that had harbored the scalding water that burned me, drained the rest of the pasta, and went on, in pain, with my mac and cheese concoction. By the time the mac and cheese was out of the oven, it was too late for fist aid and The Rigatoni Dribble Burn, an angry vertical line from the middle of my lower lip to the tip of my chin, had totally taken up residence. The Rigatoni Dribble Burn lasted for a long time. It made an angry red scab. Very noticeable. The people I met fell into two categories: those that pretended not to see The Rigatoni Dribble Burn, and those that said “What happened to Your Face?” It was Joan, of Joni’s in Montauk, Long Island who is a compatriot Mama and of course a professional food person, who somehow combined both reactions. At first she said nothing and we talked about the kids' upcoming field trip, but then she began to peer more closely, and finally with the most beautiful concern and caring, very much a hallmark of Joan: “What happened to your face?” I relayed the story. She studied The Rigatoni Dribble Burn, then reached out and touched my sleeve. Joan is a very sympathetic person. “It’s hard,” she said. It is definitely hard. And dangerous. Unlikely that you will come out of the kitchen completely unscathed!! And so I feel a kinship with the Nervous & Fearful Non-Cook... |