Food mishaps in the kitchen are a part of the cooking process. That’s just the reality when cooking or experimenting with the culinary arts.
Food mishaps in the kitchen are a part of the cooking process. That’s just the reality when experimenting with the culinary arts.
Cooking fiascos tend to occur when the situation calls for an impressive, polished meal, so anticipate the possibility of a fluke especially when trying a new recipe.
Last Friday was my boyfriend’s birthday. My plan of attack was to surprise him with dinner at Purple Chopstix on Richland Ave, and have a to-die-for chocolate dessert — made by yours truly — waiting at home afterwards.
After scouring the piles of food magazines in my apartment, I chose a bake-free, salted chocolate tart. The six-ingredient recipe was right up my alley.
Nothing beats a homemade dessert. Making a dessert from scratch shows the extra length you are willing to go, and it’s another recipe that can be added to your cooking repertoire.
But that dessert was cursed as soon as I walked out of my apartment door. The too-easy-to-be-true tart revealed its ugly side. Kroger didn’t carry half of my ingredients, so I had to improvise. Instead of hazelnuts: almond extract and roasted almonds. Instead of heavy cream: whipped cream.
The actual construction of the tart went swimmingly, and it had four hours to properly set while we were at dinner. However, I didn’t take into account the number of times the refrigerator door would be opened on a Friday night.
Dinner at Purple Chopstix was tasty as usual. Their high-quality tofu satisfied my craving while the raita atop the yellow curry added a lightness to the curry’s multitude of dense ingredients.
When my boyfriend and I arrived back at my apartment, I was ready to surprise him with a birthday song and a killer tart. But as soon as my knife sliced into the seemingly perfect dessert, the glistening chocolate tart transformed into an oozing chocolate puddle. The tart failed to solidify.
Luckily, he eats anything and the birthday tart disaster did not faze him one bit. I only wished I had marshmallows, since the tart resembled chocolate fondue.
In the long run, don't fret over a cooking disaster. It happens to even the best cooks of the world. Learn from the mistakes, and it might even give you a great story to tell.
Cassie Fait is a senior studying journalism and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. What’s your cooking horror story? Email her at cf301411@ohio.edu
