Finally after lying wide awake much too long I got out of bed. Almost five o'clock but I got dressed anyway, went to the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee. Sitting on the counter was the batch of crab apples I had picked a couple of days ago. Use them or lose them, said the little voice in my head.*
I put the apples in a colander, washed them. I got a saucepan and paring knife. I halved the apples, checking for bad places or unwelcome critters, dropped the pieces into the pan. Apples covered with water, the pan was placed on the kitchen range.
While waiting for the produce to cook I opened the laptop and somehow got absorbed in something, actually in writing a possible blog post. Presently my olfactory sense detected something weird and unwelcome. Dawn slowly crept into my awareness, I set the computer down and raced for the kitchen.
The next several minutes were spent trying to salvage some of the apples without digging too deeply into the blackened mess in the bottom of the vessel. What I saved were wrung through the colander to make applesauce. I added a bit of water and some sugar then placed this new saucepan on the fire to boil down the stuff.
Results
1. About three tablespoons of applesauce, strangely char-flavored.
2. A seriously blackened saucepan which any amount of scouring and product may never redeem.
3. The mess in the kitchen that is likely to be created when a man is left unsupervised in that venue.
4. About an hour of scrubbing and redding up that tired the old man sufficiently that he crawled back into bed at 6:35. Slept, too.
5. Odor awakened BBBH who later told me that searching for "What's burning?" cost her a good bit of effort and loss of sleep. This, of course, while I slept.
Cost
1. The crabapples
2. About half-cup of sugar.
3. Sufficient gas to effect the above tale.
4. And electricity to provide lighting at the ungodly hour of day, an hour I have seldom seen since I retired twenty-six years ago.
Benefits
1. The whole thing put me into a physical and mental state which demanded sleep.
2. The crab apples are no longer a concern.
3. Three or four tablespoons of maybe edible sauce.
4. Perhaps a parable or lesson in there, but not one I am likely to grasp anytime soon.
Good day!
*Drat that voice!
9 comments:
I have learned to ignore that voice when it comes to me at night.
Chuck, well, there are two kinds of people: quick studies and slow learners.
Oh dear. What to comment on - insomnia, mine works a bit differently I don't bother going to bed at all. Burning fruit because attention is elsewhere? Yes, on more than one occasion. Stainless steel pots just need soaking not scrubbing and are saved to be burned in another day. Little voice in my head? That's why I have insomnia.
Grace, we all have our coping techniques, I guess. Thanks for the pot-cleaning tip; will give it a shot.
I'm a member in good standing of the "I threw away a pot I ruined" club. Are you, now?
I agree with Grace...you gotta load the bottom of the pot with baking soda, a little bit of hot water and let that all sit for some time. If that doesn't work, then you can cut your losses and get a new one.
I do not laugh or condemn because I'm good for flooding the pond. I know better, but I set the hose down to grab that dead stick...or go check on the kitties....then I'm thinking "what is that sound???". Yep...the pond is overflowing into the yard. Do it all. the. time. Talk about slow-learners!
Well since we are talking about cleaning pots - I tend to burn raspberries on a regular basis - simmered till they are black and crisp - dish soap and super hot water is usually all it takes plus - for making those stainless pots (and just about everything else) clean and shiny - Bon Ami. I'll be cleaning the grout in the kitchen floor later today with it. Love my Bon Ami!
Jim, no I did not join the club on this occasion. I heard BBBH say, "I used that pan for 35 years and I knew I had better find a way.
Lin, with vinegar, baking soda, scouring pads, cleanser and a scraper. And lots of elbow grease. I attribute these things, your example and mine, to the fact that we have bought into the "multitasking" notion whereby we do more than one job at once, and often badly. Can anyone say "concentrate"?
Grace, the pan is clean! 'Twasn't easy, though. Mama always kept a box of Bon Ami. I remember the little chick "Hasn't scratched yet!"
Nice that you found something to cure insomnia.
Mom's old trick was to immerse the bottom of the pan in cold water and then remove the food from top. The top food will not retain the charred flavor. Usually works!
Post a Comment