In the Kitchen

Collage courtesy of said girlfriend.
Can't believe she bothered to grab photos of me...crushing garlic. Zzzzz.

We use garlic in everything. I eat it raw anyway. SO. You should have heard how loudly I shrieked when the girlfriend told me to crush garlic with a heavy knife. I was all like..."I'll cut myself and the bleeding won't stop!" Whine. Whine. Whine. I bet you it took all she had not to smack me. By now, I'm proud to announce that I can crush garlic very well. Hurhurhur.

The one thing I enjoy is this little pocket of buzz in the late afternoon as we prepare dinner. The boys would be sprawled on the couches or doing their homework at the table, reading their books or fiddling with the gadgets. The girlfriend would be hovering about efficiently inspecting the pots on the boil, tasting and adding a pinch of this and that to whichever pot she deems necessary. It's precious time spent with the girlfriend, and I'm so glad to be offered a peek into their highly private family life, and share their home these few weeks.

Today, part of my duties included peeling away the tough fibres at the sides of the sugar snaps before stir-frying them. After being bitten and cut by the sugar snaps last week when only fingers were used, I got smarter and decided to use a knife. It was a breeze. Way easier than using fingers. When I do it right, the sharp edge wouldn't cut into the palm. Found a small vegetable knife that wasn't so sharp. It was fun. Like washing dishes, I suppose. The mind thinks of nothing but doing the task at hand.

Now, while I wouldn't have graduated from any respectable culinary school, the girlfriend has definitely trained me to be a better kitchen helper. This week, I'm much more confident with the knives and the gadgets. Whatever chopped or sliced pieces of items look like what they're supposed to look like after being cut up. At the very least, I can handle a knife properly instead of holding it like I'm trying to stab someone. WHEEEEEE.