When the March issue of Delicious arrived in the middle of Sydney’s wettest ever summer, the librarycook was in need of comfort food. And Delicious was here to help – all manner of recipes to warm the cockles of the heart – Chicken with Creamy Mustard Sauce, a Roast Cauliflower Biryani, Soba Noodles with Ginger Broth and Crunchy Ginger, Zucchini and Risoni Cacciatore, more focaccia recipes than the librarycook could poke a stick at, and a Charred Green and Gold Zucchini Salad with a Mint Bread Dressing. There was even something called “Soumaintrain Tartiflette” which for all the librarycook knew, could have been a character from Moulin Rouge. (Turns out, it’s a very, very gooey cheese bake – ideal for the winters of the high alps of the Savoy, but maybe not so good for the mugginess of this particular Sydney summer).
With all this goodness to choose from, which was the first recipe to tempt the librarycook’s tastebuds? Well, when the temperature dropped a little, it was the Chicken with the Creamy Mustard Sauce that was first out of the box. A recipe after the librarycook’s heart, it started with a few basic prep steps, and then a good half hour in the oven, which the librarycook devoted to the final two volumes of Benedict Jacka’s Alex Verus series, Forged, and Risen. If the reader is unfamiliar with this series, think gritty Harry Potter.
And the chicken? It was truly most excellent – and perhaps because it’s been so long since the librarycook has been anywhere further than Katoomba, it reminded her of one of those French bistro dishes that seem to make you feel truly Parisian.
And then, from France to India – if you can’t travel IRL, thought the librarycook, at least your kitchen can take you places. Not only was this a great addition to the librarycook’s repertoire, it also provided almost 80 minutes of reading time – now that’s a truly excellent C:R ratio*. And the biryani was really, really good.
*Cooking : Reading ratio. The librarycook lives for recipes that are heavy on the reading side.
