Not too long ago (say perhaps, last night) in a kitchen not very far away(some may even say my very own kitchen), a casserole was created.
It was a Creates casserole meant to be the best of the best, send to nourish a hungry family, sooth frazzled house wives and meet dietary guidelines to boot!
This casserole was created like all great and heroic creations. It took some planning, some time, and a lot of love (it was very... Frankenstein's monster.)
It boiled over while cooking and ruined the oven I had just cleaned the week before, it thrashed the pan, it oozed over the dish's edges, it was the blob! How could something meant for such good go so wrong so fast? It was the casserole anti-hero - Good and bag guy all in one. Sure it fed the family, but it gave me at least a half an hour of pan scrubbing, oven scouring and general under-my-breathe cursing.
What does this mean, dear reader? It means that even with the greatest of intentions things don't always turn out as we want them too. Does that mean we haven't done some good? That we didn't make a better choice in feeding our family than taking them out to eat or feeding them cup o'noodles? NO! It means we have some new experiences to put into our portfolio and say, "that was a great lesson learned". Next time, I make this casserole (which tasted Great, by the way), I will use a bigger pan, I will set that pan on a tin foil lined cookie sheet and I will remember to take a deep calming breathe if things go wrong again.
Because things going wrong in the kitchen aren't a reason to quit cooking or give up on this little adventure we are having. In fact, they are probably more valuable as learning experiences than our successes. Having said that, I think I have had enough learning experiences for the week. I would like dinner tonight to go smoothly. Perhaps we'll have grilled cheese.
