Recipe Testing

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Speaker 1 Have you ever wished you could visit the Village of Nothing Much? Well, this is your invitation. Join me, Catherine Nikolai, for a live virtual event on Wednesday, November 19th at 6 p.m.

Speaker 1 Pacific, 9 p.m. Eastern.
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Speaker 1 I'll share three handpicked bedtime stories, including one you've never heard on the podcast, brought to life with healing music from Ayah Ayal and sound designed by Bob.

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Speaker 1 Welcome to bedtime stories for everyone

Speaker 1 in which

Speaker 1 nothing much happens.

Speaker 1 You feel good

Speaker 1 and then you fall asleep.

Speaker 1 I'm Catherine Nicolai.

Speaker 1 I write and read all the stories you hear on Nothing Much Happens.

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Speaker 1 All you need to do

Speaker 1 in order for this to work

Speaker 1 is to listen and listen regularly.

Speaker 1 This is a form of brain training, so give it some time to take effect.

Speaker 1 Don't try to force sleep.

Speaker 1 Just listen to the sound of my voice.

Speaker 1 I'll tell the story twice

Speaker 1 and I'll go a little bit slower the second time through.

Speaker 1 If you wake later in the night, don't debate with yourself.

Speaker 1 Just press play again

Speaker 1 and you'll drift right back off.

Speaker 1 Our story tonight is called Recipe Testing.

Speaker 1 And it's a story about a quiet afternoon at home preparing for the holidays. It's also about leaves raked into piles in the backyard, cranberries and pastry flour,

Speaker 1 the incredible softness of a dog's ears.

Speaker 1 Soup pots and sage.

Speaker 1 And the comfortable feeling of your loved ones resting nearby as you cook.

Speaker 1 Now,

Speaker 1 it's time for one of the sweetest moments of the day.

Speaker 1 Get as comfortable as you can

Speaker 1 and let your whole body sink

Speaker 1 into your sheets.

Speaker 1 You are about to fall asleep,

Speaker 1 and you will sleep deeply all night.

Speaker 1 Breathe in through the nose,

Speaker 1 sigh from your mouth.

Speaker 1 Do one more like that. Breathe in

Speaker 1 and out.

Speaker 1 Good.

Speaker 1 Recipe Testing

Speaker 1 The kitchen counters were full of paper grocery sacks.

Speaker 1 A row of wobbly squashes leaned against a mixing bowl,

Speaker 1 and some rogue cranberries that had slipped their net,

Speaker 1 were scattered among recipe books and bunches of sage and rosemary.

Speaker 1 Surveying all of it and me as I unpacked the groceries

Speaker 1 was a regal but frowning orange cat.

Speaker 1 Marmalade came into my life a few years ago

Speaker 1 after I spotted Paw Prince she'd left in the snow on my driveway

Speaker 1 and persuaded her to come in and stay a while.

Speaker 1 Though she came from humble beginnings,

Speaker 1 she carried herself with a definite air

Speaker 1 of royalty,

Speaker 1 of genteel dignity,

Speaker 1 and I could see that all of this clutter

Speaker 1 in her favorite room of the house

Speaker 1 just

Speaker 1 would not do.

Speaker 1 If she could speak,

Speaker 1 I imagined she'd clear her throat

Speaker 1 and using the royal we

Speaker 1 pronounce

Speaker 1 we are not amused.

Speaker 1 I set down the bag of pastry flour

Speaker 1 I'd been lugging to the pantry

Speaker 1 and stepped over to her.

Speaker 1 We are a family of five

Speaker 1 two humans,

Speaker 1 two dogs, and one cat.

Speaker 1 But Marmalade and I

Speaker 1 belonged to each other

Speaker 1 in a special way.

Speaker 1 Each of us was alone

Speaker 1 before we found the other.

Speaker 1 And we made a family

Speaker 1 even when it was just the two of us.

Speaker 1 We were the original members of this band.

Speaker 1 So as I reached for her

Speaker 1 and she pressed her soft cheek into my hand,

Speaker 1 I figured if anyone could soothe her,

Speaker 1 nudge her out of a crabby mood, it was me.

Speaker 1 I came closer,

Speaker 1 offering my shoulder,

Speaker 1 and she climbed from the perch onto me.

Speaker 1 I had a way of holding her,

Speaker 1 snuggled in my arm,

Speaker 1 with her cheek pressed against mine,

Speaker 1 and her paw braced on my back,

Speaker 1 that we'd been replicating since she was a kitten.

Speaker 1 Instantly,

Speaker 1 she began to purr

Speaker 1 and I carried her through the living room

Speaker 1 to look out into the backyard.

Speaker 1 The trees were nearly bare

Speaker 1 and leaves were being raked into piles

Speaker 1 by the other human in our family.

Speaker 1 Well, he was trying to rake them.

Speaker 1 But Crum,

Speaker 1 our little brown dog, named for his resemblance to what gets shaken out of the bottom of a toaster,

Speaker 1 was jumping into the piles as soon as they were made.

Speaker 1 Where Marmee was reserved

Speaker 1 and maybe even a bit haughty,

Speaker 1 Crumb was gloriously goofy,

Speaker 1 excited by just about everything he encountered,

Speaker 1 a cyclone of scrabbling paws.

Speaker 1 Crumb watched as leaves were tumbled together in a heap near the birdbath.

Speaker 1 This pile was three or four feet tall

Speaker 1 and as big around as his kiddie pool.

Speaker 1 He hopped up onto the porch,

Speaker 1 and for a moment I thought he was done playing and wanted to come in.

Speaker 1 But he was just giving himself a longer runway.

Speaker 1 He backed up to the sliding doors,

Speaker 1 dipping his head

Speaker 1 and scratching at the deck boards,

Speaker 1 like a runner setting up in in the starting blocks of a race.

Speaker 1 Then,

Speaker 1 as if a flag had dropped,

Speaker 1 he raced forward,

Speaker 1 leaping off the edge of the deck,

Speaker 1 his body stretched out longer than I'd ever seen before,

Speaker 1 all four paws pointing and reaching

Speaker 1 as he flew into the pile of leaves.

Speaker 1 A cloud of them erupted into the air

Speaker 1 as he dropped into the depths.

Speaker 1 Marmalade watched the whole show

Speaker 1 with wide eyes

Speaker 1 and leaned closer to the window, waiting to see that he wasn't hurt.

Speaker 1 To Marmie,

Speaker 1 he might have been a bit of a brat,

Speaker 1 but he was still her little brother.

Speaker 1 I whispered to her that he was fine,

Speaker 1 having the time of his life, in fact,

Speaker 1 and pointed to some movement at the back of the flattened heap.

Speaker 1 A brown nose emerged,

Speaker 1 and behind it,

Speaker 1 a healthy and hail

Speaker 1 crumb.

Speaker 1 Maple and elm leaves stuck into his fur.

Speaker 1 Marmalade relaxed in my arms,

Speaker 1 and I carried her over to the sofa

Speaker 1 where the last member of our family lay,

Speaker 1 splayed out and snoring softly.

Speaker 1 Birdie,

Speaker 1 short for bluebird,

Speaker 1 was a rescued greyhound,

Speaker 1 a giant compared to the other two,

Speaker 1 but calmer and more content than them both.

Speaker 1 He took up two-thirds of the couch cushions,

Speaker 1 and Marm and I squeezed in beside him.

Speaker 1 He lifted his head to see what had woken him,

Speaker 1 then let out a little huff

Speaker 1 and settled it down onto my leg.

Speaker 1 Can you understand what it feels like

Speaker 1 if you've never had a dog

Speaker 1 when one lays their head on you?

Speaker 1 First,

Speaker 1 it is a humbling level of trust

Speaker 1 that they are showing you.

Speaker 1 Second, it's simply very adorable.

Speaker 1 And third, it means you better not plan on getting up any time soon.

Speaker 1 I had recipes to test for Thanksgiving.

Speaker 1 We were hosting this year.

Speaker 1 And I wanted to make sure my green bean casserole

Speaker 1 and sweet potatoes were top tier.

Speaker 1 But nothing was in the oven right now.

Speaker 1 I could stay for a bit.

Speaker 1 Marmalade settled onto my lap and began began to clean Bird's face.

Speaker 1 Cats' tongues are different than dogs.

Speaker 1 Theirs are built-in combs.

Speaker 1 They help them clear away fur with their sandpapery texture.

Speaker 1 And I giggled as she groomed around Bird's eyes.

Speaker 1 His lids lifted

Speaker 1 and stuck to her tongue for a moment.

Speaker 1 There was no movement from his irises.

Speaker 1 He kept right on snoring.

Speaker 1 Once she was satisfied that his face was properly tidied,

Speaker 1 she climbed across his body

Speaker 1 and stretched out on his side.

Speaker 1 I knew what was coming next.

Speaker 1 This was part of their regular routine.

Speaker 1 And sure enough,

Speaker 1 a few seconds later,

Speaker 1 she began to massage him

Speaker 1 with her front paws,

Speaker 1 kneading him with her toes.

Speaker 1 Time to make the biscuits, Marmee? I cooed at her.

Speaker 1 I always wondered what exactly Birdie made of this.

Speaker 1 Did it feel good?

Speaker 1 Did he even notice?

Speaker 1 I knew he was too good-natured to ever complain if it didn't.

Speaker 1 I reached for a throw pillow

Speaker 1 and like Indiana Jones, reaching for treasure, perched atop a booby trap, carefully swapped it for my leg,

Speaker 1 tucking it under the greyhound's head.

Speaker 1 His ear was flipped inside out,

Speaker 1 and I returned it to its factory setting,

Speaker 1 then draped it over his eyes like a sleep mask.

Speaker 1 I've never felt anything as soft

Speaker 1 as Birdie's ears.

Speaker 1 They're like velvet

Speaker 1 if velvet were also a feather.

Speaker 1 I stood and left them happy on the couch.

Speaker 1 Marmalade wasn't the only one who needed to make some biscuits.

Speaker 1 I washed my hands at the sink

Speaker 1 and tied on my apron.

Speaker 1 The house was quiet

Speaker 1 as I put the groceries away.

Speaker 1 Every now and then

Speaker 1 I'd hear a bark from crumb

Speaker 1 or a car passing on the street.

Speaker 1 One of my favorite things to do,

Speaker 1 one that fills my cup to the brim with contentment,

Speaker 1 is to cook something delicious

Speaker 1 while my family moves about nearby,

Speaker 1 like planets orbiting the same sun.

Speaker 1 I took a pot from the shelf, onions, celery, carrot from the fridge.

Speaker 1 I had other things to test and make, but first,

Speaker 1 soup.

Speaker 1 Recipe testing.

Speaker 1 The kitchen counters

Speaker 1 were full of paper grocery sacks.

Speaker 1 A row of wobbly squashes

Speaker 1 leaned against a mixing bowl,

Speaker 1 and some rogue cranberries

Speaker 1 that had slipped their net

Speaker 1 were scattered among recipe books

Speaker 1 and bunches of sage

Speaker 1 and rosemary.

Speaker 1 Surveying all of it

Speaker 1 and me

Speaker 1 as I unpacked the groceries

Speaker 1 was a regal

Speaker 1 but frowning

Speaker 1 orange cat.

Speaker 1 Marmalade came into my life

Speaker 1 a few years ago

Speaker 1 after I spotted paw prints she'd left in the snow on my driveway

Speaker 1 and persuaded her to come in

Speaker 1 and stay a while

Speaker 1 though she came from humble beginnings

Speaker 1 She carried herself with a definite air of royalty,

Speaker 1 of genteel dignity

Speaker 1 And I could see that

Speaker 1 all of this clutter

Speaker 1 in her favorite room of the house

Speaker 1 just

Speaker 1 would not do.

Speaker 1 If she could speak,

Speaker 1 I imagined she'd clear her throat

Speaker 1 and using the royal we

Speaker 1 pronounce

Speaker 1 we

Speaker 1 are not amused.

Speaker 1 I set down the bag of pastry flour

Speaker 1 I'd been lugging to the pantry

Speaker 1 and stepped over to her.

Speaker 1 We are a family of five

Speaker 1 two humans,

Speaker 1 two dogs and one cat

Speaker 1 But Marmalade and I belong to each other in a special way

Speaker 1 Each of was alone

Speaker 1 before we found the other.

Speaker 1 And we made a family,

Speaker 1 even when it was just the two of us.

Speaker 1 We were the original members of this band.

Speaker 1 So as I reached for her

Speaker 1 and she pressed her soft cheek into my hand.

Speaker 1 I figured if anyone could soothe her,

Speaker 1 nudge her

Speaker 1 out of a crabby mood,

Speaker 1 it was me.

Speaker 1 I came closer,

Speaker 1 offering my shoulder,

Speaker 1 and she climbed from the perch on to me.

Speaker 1 I had a way of holding her,

Speaker 1 snuggled into my arm,

Speaker 1 with her cheek pressed against mine,

Speaker 1 and her paw braced on my back

Speaker 1 that we'd been replicating since she was a kitten.

Speaker 1 Instantly, she began to purr,

Speaker 1 and I carried her through the living room

Speaker 1 to look out

Speaker 1 into the backyard.

Speaker 1 The trees were nearly bare,

Speaker 1 and leaves were being raked into piles

Speaker 1 by the other human in our family.

Speaker 1 Well,

Speaker 1 he was trying to rake them.

Speaker 1 But Crum,

Speaker 1 our little brown dog,

Speaker 1 named for his resemblance

Speaker 1 to what gets shaken out of the bottom of a toaster,

Speaker 1 was jumping into the piles

Speaker 1 as soon as they were made,

Speaker 1 where Marmee was reserved,

Speaker 1 maybe

Speaker 1 even

Speaker 1 a bit haughty,

Speaker 1 Crum

Speaker 1 was gloriously goofy,

Speaker 1 excited

Speaker 1 by just about everything he encountered.

Speaker 1 A cyclone of scrabbling paws.

Speaker 1 Crumb watched as leaves were tumbled together

Speaker 1 into a heap near the bird bath.

Speaker 1 This pile

Speaker 1 was three or four feet tall

Speaker 1 and as big around

Speaker 1 as his kiddie pool.

Speaker 1 He hopped onto the porch,

Speaker 1 and for a moment

Speaker 1 I thought he was done playing

Speaker 1 and wanted to come in

Speaker 1 But

Speaker 1 he was just giving himself a longer runway

Speaker 1 He backed up to the sliding doors

Speaker 1 dipping his head and scratching at the deck boards

Speaker 1 like a runner

Speaker 1 setting up in the starting blocks of a race.

Speaker 1 Then,

Speaker 1 as if a flag had dropped,

Speaker 1 he raced forward,

Speaker 1 leaping off the edge of the deck.

Speaker 1 His body stretched out

Speaker 1 longer than I'd ever seen before,

Speaker 1 all four paws pointing

Speaker 1 and reaching

Speaker 1 as he flew into the pile of leaves.

Speaker 1 A cloud of them erupted into the air

Speaker 1 as he dropped

Speaker 1 the depths.

Speaker 1 Marmalade watched the whole show

Speaker 1 with wide eyes

Speaker 1 and leaned closer to the window,

Speaker 1 waiting to see

Speaker 1 that he wasn't hurt.

Speaker 1 To Marmie,

Speaker 1 he might have been a bit of a brat,

Speaker 1 but

Speaker 1 he was still her little brother.

Speaker 1 I whispered to her

Speaker 1 that he was fine,

Speaker 1 having the time of his life, in fact,

Speaker 1 and pointed to some movement

Speaker 1 in the back of the flattened heap.

Speaker 1 A brown nose emerged

Speaker 1 and behind it

Speaker 1 a healthy and hail crumb

Speaker 1 maple and elm leaves stuck in his fur.

Speaker 1 Marmalade relaxed in my arms

Speaker 1 and I carried her over to the sofa

Speaker 1 where the last member of our family lay,

Speaker 1 splayed out and snoring softly.

Speaker 1 Birdie,

Speaker 1 short for bluebird,

Speaker 1 was a rescued greyhound,

Speaker 1 a giant compared to the other two,

Speaker 1 but calmer

Speaker 1 and more content than them both.

Speaker 1 He took up two-thirds of the couch cushions,

Speaker 1 and Marm and I

Speaker 1 squeezed in beside him.

Speaker 1 He lifted his head

Speaker 1 to see what had woken him,

Speaker 1 then

Speaker 1 let out a little huff

Speaker 1 and lay it down onto my leg.

Speaker 1 Can you understand

Speaker 1 what it feels like

Speaker 1 if you've never had a dog

Speaker 1 when one lays their head on you?

Speaker 1 First,

Speaker 1 It is a humbling level of trust

Speaker 1 they are showing you.

Speaker 1 Second,

Speaker 1 it's simply very adorable.

Speaker 1 And third,

Speaker 1 it means you better not

Speaker 1 plan on getting up

Speaker 1 anytime soon.

Speaker 1 I had recipes to test for Thanksgiving.

Speaker 1 We were hosting this year,

Speaker 1 and I wanted to make sure my green bean casserole and sweet potatoes were top tier.

Speaker 1 But nothing was in the oven right now.

Speaker 1 I could stay for a bit.

Speaker 1 Marmalade settled onto my lap

Speaker 1 and began to clean bird's face.

Speaker 1 Cats' tongues are different

Speaker 1 than dogs.

Speaker 1 They have built-in combs.

Speaker 1 They help them clear away fur

Speaker 1 with their sandpapery texture.

Speaker 1 And I giggled as she groomed around Bird's eyes.

Speaker 1 his lids lifted

Speaker 1 and stuck to her tongue for a moment.

Speaker 1 And there was no movement from his irises.

Speaker 1 He kept right on snoring.

Speaker 1 Once she was satisfied

Speaker 1 that his face was properly tidied,

Speaker 1 she climbed across his body

Speaker 1 and stretched out on his side.

Speaker 1 I knew what was coming next.

Speaker 1 This was part of their regular routine.

Speaker 1 Sure enough,

Speaker 1 a few seconds later,

Speaker 1 she began to massage him

Speaker 1 with her front paws,

Speaker 1 kneading him with her toes.

Speaker 1 Time to make the biscuits, Marmee? I gooed at her.

Speaker 1 I always wondered

Speaker 1 what exactly Birdie made of this.

Speaker 1 Did it feel good?

Speaker 1 Did he even notice?

Speaker 1 I knew he was too good natured to ever complain if it didn't.

Speaker 1 I reached for a throw pillow,

Speaker 1 and like Indiana Jones,

Speaker 1 plucking a treasure,

Speaker 1 perched atop a booby trap,

Speaker 1 carefully swapped it for my leg,

Speaker 1 tucking it under the greyhound's head.

Speaker 1 His ear was flipped inside out,

Speaker 1 and I returned it to its factory setting.

Speaker 1 Then draped it over his eyes like a sleep mask.

Speaker 1 I've never felt anything

Speaker 1 as soft as Birdie's ears.

Speaker 1 They are like velvet.

Speaker 1 If velvet were also a feather.

Speaker 1 I stood

Speaker 1 and left them happy on the couch.

Speaker 1 Marmalade wasn't the only one who needed to make some biscuits.

Speaker 1 I washed my hands at the sink

Speaker 1 and put on my apron.

Speaker 1 The house was quiet

Speaker 1 as I put the groceries away.

Speaker 1 Every now and then

Speaker 1 I'd hear a bark from Crum

Speaker 1 or a car

Speaker 1 passing on the street.

Speaker 1 One of my favorite things to do,

Speaker 1 one that fills my cup to the brim

Speaker 1 with contentment,

Speaker 1 is to cook something delicious

Speaker 1 while my family moves about nearby,

Speaker 1 like planets orbiting the same sun.

Speaker 1 I took a pot from the shelf,

Speaker 1 onions, celery, carrot carrot from the fridge.

Speaker 1 I had other things to test and make.

Speaker 1 But first,

Speaker 1 soup.

Speaker 1 Sweet dreams.