Poem: "Garden Bread"
Aug. 19th, 2021 05:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithThis poem came out of the August 17, 2021 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by prompts from ng_moonmoth and Shirley Barrette. It also fills the "Baking / Cooking" square in my 7-1-21 card for the Winterfest in July Bingo. This poem has been sponsored by ng_moonmoth. It belongs to the Shiv thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.
Warning: This poem features delicious and beautiful craft foods, which are fairly straightforward to make, but may still frustrate less-crafty folks.
"Garden Bread"
[Tuesday, October 20, 2015]
Tolli thumped his hand
on the couch and said,
"Shiv, come join us!
There's a new show
that I think you'll like."
Shiv sat down just as
Simon levered himself
out of his wheelchair
and onto the couch.
"What show?" Shiv said.
"Adam and Steve in
the Garden of Eden,"
said Tolli. "It's slow food."
"Works for me," Shiv said,
snuggling into his place.
The music was low and
pleasant, the stage kitchen
quite cleverly designed.
Adam was a tall black guy,
while Steve was shorter
and white with dark hair.
It was only when Shiv saw
the two of them together as
an interracial gay couple that
the name of the show rang
a bell -- he'd seen it on
signs waved by bigots.
God made Adam and Eve,
not Adam and Steve.
"Today we're going to make
garden focaccia bread,"
Adam announced.
"We'll talk about and
show examples using
several recipes," Steve said,
"so don't worry about trying
to catch all the details, just
enjoy the show. The credits
will include links where you'll
find all recipes and instructions."
They went through the steps
for making basic focaccia, then
mentioned variations including
whole wheat, sourdough,
gluten-free, and vegan.
Well, most focaccia was
vegan, but it was nice of
them to specify a version.
"They have white bread and
whole-wheat bread," Simon said.
"I wonder if you could use something
to make a dark brown one instead."
"What, like ethnic crayons?"
Shiv said, tilting his head.
"I don't see why not."
He pulled out his phone,
and so did Simon, keeping
some attention on the show.
It was slow food, though,
so they didn't miss much.
"I found a recipe for
pumpernickel focaccia,"
said Simon. "It looks good."
"What about turmeric rosemary?"
Tolli said. "It has a tawny tone."
Shiv hadn't even seen Tolli
picking up his phone. "Yeah,
that looks cool," he said.
"Did you find anything?"
Simon asked him.
"Beet focaccia,"
Shiv said, grinning.
"It can be anything
from coppery pink
to pretty bright purple."
"That sounds interesting --
oh, they're chopping things,"
Simon said, looking at the screen.
Adam and Steve had gathered
a bunch of different vegetables
that they were cutting into bits.
As Shiv watched, they piled up
the ingredients by color and shape.
Then they started making mosaics
on top of the flattened, oiled dough.
Green onions and asparagus
made stems. Parsley and
other herbs made leaves,
some with their own stems.
Tomatoes, peppers, onions,
and other things made flowers.
It was surprisingly beautiful.
"We should make this the next time
Heron comes over," said Tolli.
"He's always cooking for us,
we should return the favor."
"Works for me," Shiv said.
"It doesn't look hard to do."
"We should practice this first,"
Simon said dryly. "Just in case."
Onscreen, Adam and Steve were
showing off their spectacular results.
"They have some suggested designs
on the website, ranked from easy
to challenging," Simon said,
looking down at his phone.
Shiv glanced at them.
"Yeah, I can use those."
Then the show shifted
to its second segment.
Adam and Steve brought in
a bunch of novice cooks.
"Cooking is a set of skills,"
said Steve. "Everybody has
to learn them, so don't feel
discouraged if you haven't yet."
"Today we're going to practice
knife skills, just like we used
to cut up the vegetables for
our garden bread," said Adam.
He and Steve demonstrated
how to slice, julienne, dice,
and mince various foods.
It took some coaching to get
the anxious novices moving
with more confidence, but Adam
and Steve were good teachers.
"Okay, folks, it's time for you
to explore the Garden of Eden,"
Steve said with a flourish.
The camera panned to
a sort of pantry set up so
it looked like a combination
of a garden and a forest.
Fruit hung from all the trees,
vegetables sprouted everywhere,
and there were even eggs in a nest.
"Gather some ingredients and make
whatever you want," Adam said.
"The more you use the skills that
we just taught you, the higher
you'll score. Impress us!"
"Everything's edible, right?"
said one nervous woman.
"Everything but the containers
and other props," said Steve.
"If it looks like food, it's food."
Shiv was fascinated, because
there were a lot of things that
he didn't recognize out there,
including some of the fruits.
"No running and no rushing,"
Adam called after them as
the cooks scampered away.
"Never rush in the kitchen,"
Steve added. "Take your time,
so you can enjoy yourself
and nobody gets hurt."
The woman was picking flowers,
though, and grabbing handfuls
of herbs from a rack set up
to look like rows in a garden.
Shiv had bought edible flowers
for salads a few times, but they
weren't cheap and a carton
only held a small amount.
The cook was filling up
a whole pint container.
Other novices grabbed
fruits and vegetables,
mostly recognizable ones.
They found a barn-shaped cooler
that held packages of tofu and
a few different meat products,
choosing the firm tofu.
"The show's not vegan?"
Shiv said. "Even counting
the Garden of Eden theme?"
"They use mostly produce,
but a few animal products,"
said Tolli. "Most recipes do
include meatless versions."
Most of the cooks seemed
to be making salad or stir-fry.
The last was filling jars with
a beautiful array of quick-pickles.
Adam and Steve found something nice
to say about everyone's effort, even
the guy who burned his rice.
They also offered tips on
how to improve in the future,
except for one person.
The winner was the woman
who made a flower salad.
It had mixed salad greens
with assorted herbs and
handfuls of flower petals.
The result was a startling mix
of colors, like edible confetti.
"That would work," Shiv said
under his breath. "That would
really work. I could make that."
"Go for it," Tolli encouraged.
"I'd be happy to try some."
"I'm not normally a salad fan,
I mean, I could maybe go for
the other guy's chopped salad,
but the flower thing just looks
so pretty," said Shiv. "It's like
those Pointillist paintings."
"That and the garden bread
would make quite a feast,"
Simon said. "I'd enjoy it."
"Too bad it's October,"
Tolli said. "We'd have
more options in the spring."
"People grow produce in
greenhouses, even flowers
and herbs," said Shiv. "I'll
fool around with whatever I
can find now, then have more
to look forward to come spring."
"That's the spirit," Tolli said,
patting him on the shoulder.
It felt warm and familiar, and
Shiv leaned into the touch.
Even after the show ended,
he didn't bother to get up.
Tolli and Simon didn't mind.
* * *
Notes:
This poem's notes are long, so they appear separately.
ng_moonmoth and Shirley Barrette. It also fills the "Baking / Cooking" square in my 7-1-21 card for the Winterfest in July Bingo. This poem has been sponsored by ng_moonmoth. It belongs to the Shiv thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.Warning: This poem features delicious and beautiful craft foods, which are fairly straightforward to make, but may still frustrate less-crafty folks.
"Garden Bread"
[Tuesday, October 20, 2015]
Tolli thumped his hand
on the couch and said,
"Shiv, come join us!
There's a new show
that I think you'll like."
Shiv sat down just as
Simon levered himself
out of his wheelchair
and onto the couch.
"What show?" Shiv said.
"Adam and Steve in
the Garden of Eden,"
said Tolli. "It's slow food."
"Works for me," Shiv said,
snuggling into his place.
The music was low and
pleasant, the stage kitchen
quite cleverly designed.
Adam was a tall black guy,
while Steve was shorter
and white with dark hair.
It was only when Shiv saw
the two of them together as
an interracial gay couple that
the name of the show rang
a bell -- he'd seen it on
signs waved by bigots.
God made Adam and Eve,
not Adam and Steve.
"Today we're going to make
garden focaccia bread,"
Adam announced.
"We'll talk about and
show examples using
several recipes," Steve said,
"so don't worry about trying
to catch all the details, just
enjoy the show. The credits
will include links where you'll
find all recipes and instructions."
They went through the steps
for making basic focaccia, then
mentioned variations including
whole wheat, sourdough,
gluten-free, and vegan.
Well, most focaccia was
vegan, but it was nice of
them to specify a version.
"They have white bread and
whole-wheat bread," Simon said.
"I wonder if you could use something
to make a dark brown one instead."
"What, like ethnic crayons?"
Shiv said, tilting his head.
"I don't see why not."
He pulled out his phone,
and so did Simon, keeping
some attention on the show.
It was slow food, though,
so they didn't miss much.
"I found a recipe for
pumpernickel focaccia,"
said Simon. "It looks good."
"What about turmeric rosemary?"
Tolli said. "It has a tawny tone."
Shiv hadn't even seen Tolli
picking up his phone. "Yeah,
that looks cool," he said.
"Did you find anything?"
Simon asked him.
"Beet focaccia,"
Shiv said, grinning.
"It can be anything
from coppery pink
to pretty bright purple."
"That sounds interesting --
oh, they're chopping things,"
Simon said, looking at the screen.
Adam and Steve had gathered
a bunch of different vegetables
that they were cutting into bits.
As Shiv watched, they piled up
the ingredients by color and shape.
Then they started making mosaics
on top of the flattened, oiled dough.
Green onions and asparagus
made stems. Parsley and
other herbs made leaves,
some with their own stems.
Tomatoes, peppers, onions,
and other things made flowers.
It was surprisingly beautiful.
"We should make this the next time
Heron comes over," said Tolli.
"He's always cooking for us,
we should return the favor."
"Works for me," Shiv said.
"It doesn't look hard to do."
"We should practice this first,"
Simon said dryly. "Just in case."
Onscreen, Adam and Steve were
showing off their spectacular results.
"They have some suggested designs
on the website, ranked from easy
to challenging," Simon said,
looking down at his phone.
Shiv glanced at them.
"Yeah, I can use those."
Then the show shifted
to its second segment.
Adam and Steve brought in
a bunch of novice cooks.
"Cooking is a set of skills,"
said Steve. "Everybody has
to learn them, so don't feel
discouraged if you haven't yet."
"Today we're going to practice
knife skills, just like we used
to cut up the vegetables for
our garden bread," said Adam.
He and Steve demonstrated
how to slice, julienne, dice,
and mince various foods.
It took some coaching to get
the anxious novices moving
with more confidence, but Adam
and Steve were good teachers.
"Okay, folks, it's time for you
to explore the Garden of Eden,"
Steve said with a flourish.
The camera panned to
a sort of pantry set up so
it looked like a combination
of a garden and a forest.
Fruit hung from all the trees,
vegetables sprouted everywhere,
and there were even eggs in a nest.
"Gather some ingredients and make
whatever you want," Adam said.
"The more you use the skills that
we just taught you, the higher
you'll score. Impress us!"
"Everything's edible, right?"
said one nervous woman.
"Everything but the containers
and other props," said Steve.
"If it looks like food, it's food."
Shiv was fascinated, because
there were a lot of things that
he didn't recognize out there,
including some of the fruits.
"No running and no rushing,"
Adam called after them as
the cooks scampered away.
"Never rush in the kitchen,"
Steve added. "Take your time,
so you can enjoy yourself
and nobody gets hurt."
The woman was picking flowers,
though, and grabbing handfuls
of herbs from a rack set up
to look like rows in a garden.
Shiv had bought edible flowers
for salads a few times, but they
weren't cheap and a carton
only held a small amount.
The cook was filling up
a whole pint container.
Other novices grabbed
fruits and vegetables,
mostly recognizable ones.
They found a barn-shaped cooler
that held packages of tofu and
a few different meat products,
choosing the firm tofu.
"The show's not vegan?"
Shiv said. "Even counting
the Garden of Eden theme?"
"They use mostly produce,
but a few animal products,"
said Tolli. "Most recipes do
include meatless versions."
Most of the cooks seemed
to be making salad or stir-fry.
The last was filling jars with
a beautiful array of quick-pickles.
Adam and Steve found something nice
to say about everyone's effort, even
the guy who burned his rice.
They also offered tips on
how to improve in the future,
except for one person.
The winner was the woman
who made a flower salad.
It had mixed salad greens
with assorted herbs and
handfuls of flower petals.
The result was a startling mix
of colors, like edible confetti.
"That would work," Shiv said
under his breath. "That would
really work. I could make that."
"Go for it," Tolli encouraged.
"I'd be happy to try some."
"I'm not normally a salad fan,
I mean, I could maybe go for
the other guy's chopped salad,
but the flower thing just looks
so pretty," said Shiv. "It's like
those Pointillist paintings."
"That and the garden bread
would make quite a feast,"
Simon said. "I'd enjoy it."
"Too bad it's October,"
Tolli said. "We'd have
more options in the spring."
"People grow produce in
greenhouses, even flowers
and herbs," said Shiv. "I'll
fool around with whatever I
can find now, then have more
to look forward to come spring."
"That's the spirit," Tolli said,
patting him on the shoulder.
It felt warm and familiar, and
Shiv leaned into the touch.
Even after the show ended,
he didn't bother to get up.
Tolli and Simon didn't mind.
* * *
Notes:
This poem's notes are long, so they appear separately.
(no subject)
Date: 2021-08-20 01:51 am (UTC)Yes ...
Date: 2021-08-20 05:19 am (UTC)Re: Yes ...
Date: 2021-09-01 05:11 am (UTC)