As a learning specialist working in grades 4 and 5, I have the "intentions vs outcomes" conversation all too frequently. For example, a recent conversation with a fifth grader went something like this:
Me: "So, what happened?"
Student: "I just don't know. I just wanted to toss the ball across the circle to my friend. But, somehow, the ball launched from my hand at lightning speed and went through my friend's hands right to her eye. Which is why she is lying on the ground face down, with her hand over her eye, crying. It was an accident. I swear."
Me: "Uh huh. Ok. Remember when we talked about intentions and outcomes?"
Student: "Sort of."
Me: "Well, this situation fits nicely with that conversation."
Similarly, last night's meal falls under the intentions vs outcomes category also.
Menu:
Beef Barley Stew (#6)
Beth's Delectable Sourdough Bread
Intention: On a cold Sunday night, before another week of work begins, my aptly chosen recipe was Beef Barley Stew, to be matched with Beth's wonderfully baked bread. I imagined a comforting bowl of flavorful goodness to warm all the chilly bits of fingers, toes and nose while curled up on my favorite chair, which we affectionately refer to as Elijah's chair.
Outcome: Not so much.
It certainly looked pretty. But, unlike the welcome surprise dichotomy of aesthetics and flavor of the Blueberry Crisp, the Beef Stew lacked punch. Perhaps it is possible for a stew to stew just a bit too long. Perhaps I should've added more broth and less barley. Admittedly, I was repeatedly heavy handed with the barley throughout the cooking process. I'm not sure why. Truth is, the recipe seemed to act as a mere item on the menu, as opposed to anything I was actually reading, let alone following.
I made the stew vegetarian for the first hour of simmering. Mainly because my roommate, after reading Jonathan Safran Foer's new book Eating Animals, has began an evaluation of her relationship with meat. For fear that I would begin a similar relationship evaluation, no, despite her giving it to me, I have not read the book. Following this first simmer, I split the stew between two pots, added the veggies, and the beef to the main pot, and simmered away for another hour.
Nicely enough, Beth seemed to enjoy her portion. I spent most of my supper enjoying her bread and the end of the red wine from the night before. (Thanks, Schaeffer.) The stew left me with the incredibly articulate feeling of...eh. It was alright. Since I made enough to feed a small country, I will be eating it for lunch each day this week, but it didn't warm my heart and hands in the way I had so wanted it to. The self-fulfilling prophecy did not apply here, even as I set the bar incredibly high.
Oh well. I figure out of three hundred nouveau recipes, I should expect a hefty amount of nights when I am brought back to this conversation of intentions vs outcomes. If anything, it might help me to be a bit more understanding of my students.
Onward, I say! This week is packed with vegetarian recipes from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. The book was a gift from one of my dearest friends, Molly, when I moved into my first apartment quite some time ago. It is from Molly I also inherited my cracked wooden spoon when, as her family grew from three to four, she moved to a new place. Now her family is five, and over the years I've learned many kitchen wonders from her and tried so many new foods.
Your welcome.
ReplyDelete