Victories of the week

This week I finally mastered “the forward crawl”. 

Not bad for a chronic hydro-phobe, like me. (After seeing the film Titanic, it was weeks before I could cross a bridge, or take a bath.)

I have been going to the gym everyday for the past 4 months, and the daily practice has paid off.

And, I conquered the elusive, British classic that is the ‘Yorkshire Pudding.’ I had solid guidance from Delia Smith. On her website, she softly admonishes: “A classic Yorkshire pudding is not difficult to make provided you have the right recipe, the right size tin and the right oven temperature.”

In the end, it was all about trusting the heat (that seemed remarkably high to me), and distracting myself long enough for them to actually bake, undisturbed, for what felt like a very, very long time to me.

So, after a long winter of culinary mishaps, and countless soggy and misshapen hockey pucks, victory was at last mine! The D.E.B. and I did a little jig of joy about the kitchen, and I was ever so proud.

Practice and patience seem to be the keys to mastering most things.

Sunday Lunch

Yippeee! I survived the Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding adventure nearly unscathed. I pulled it off! And it was damned good if I may say so myself. So, score one for the Clipside! It can be done. A Yankee Dame can in fact produce a credible and edible Sunday Lunch, complete with all the trimmings. And, I actually enjoyed the meal myself. And only sustained two minor burns in the process! Which brings me to ask what is up with British ovens, or should I say "cookers"? I mean were they all designed to be potential fire hazards looking for a place to happen, or is it just mine? I peruse the recipes on BBC Good Food, and they will say "Pre-heat oven to Gas Mark 6." Which is of course as high as a British oven will go. And I think to myself, "You have got to be kidding." I mean, no one in the world cooks anything with the oven up as high as it will go. As a result, today, as I was making the roast, our fire alarm served double duty as a cooking timer. Thankfully, the only burning that occurred were injuries to my right hand and left forearm. 

Still, what victory comes without sacrifice?