Once I tried to cook carrots, because I like mushy carrots. That did not go well. I’m not a big fan of the crunchy variety of vegetables so I stopped buying the orange pokies for a long time.
Until I came across another delicious recipe to try.
Grilled carrots wrapped in bacon. Time for these vegetables to redeem themselves.
That week at the grocery store I bought extra long carrots. They seemed unappealing and standoffish in their hardness, but I reveled in the fact that soon they would be smothered in cinnamon, buttered, and wrapped in delicious meat.
I waited until the weekend so my husband could fire up his grill. He likes carrots no matter the crunchiness, but he indulges my mushy pleasures. We dressed the carrots to meaty perfection, painted them with seasoning and butter, and let them sizzle on the fire.
The recipe called for a grilling time of around 30 minutes. Now, granted it didn’t say the carrots would get soft, but I figured under the hot flames anything would turn to mush. How could this go wrong?
After the allotted time my husband checked on the bacon and it was crisped to perfection. He pulled off the carrots, blew on one and took a bite. “Nice,” he said.
They smelled great. I took the next bite, but the unwelcome taste of chalky hard carrots greeted my tongue. I spit it out to try to get the raunchy taste from my mouth. The dogs thanked me. “This isn’t nice.”
My husband shrugged. “That’s what you get for being picky.”
So while he munched away on his bacon-wrapped carrots, for my half I savored just the bacon and made the doggies’ day with the rest.
Two for two now carrots outwitted me. The orange vegetables were starting to make my baby ninja cooking skills look bad.
Round three: Months later I did some sleuthing and learned you have to boil carrots before cooking in order to get the softness. I bought peeled baby carrots and brought them to a boil on the stove. The recipe I followed said it would only take about 5 minutes for the orange vegetable to soften. Well, I checked at that time—no joy. *Almost an hour later* After pouring another round of water in, they were finally ready.
It was actually my husband who discovered them. I’d been waiting, getting distracted by social media, and didn’t notice all the water had evaporated out. He walked in and turned off the vent fan; that was my alert he might have turned off the stove. I thought my carrots were getting their brains boiled out and he was messing with my food. “Did you turn off my carrots?”
“Yes, because they are burning.” He pointed through the lid at the dry pan. “What are you trying to do?”
“Mushify them,” I said, as he turned off the stove and moved the pan. I poked them with my spatula. It appeared I had accomplished my goal.
For lunch that day I enjoyed a delicious snack drizzled in brown sugar. Finally, I had conquered the carrots.
Sometimes you start something, and not all the cards are on the table showing what you need. Experience reveals her hand and brings out more information to use, more approaches to try. When you don’t get something right the first time, it doesn’t have to be the last approach. Attempt a different angle. Garner a new perspective from your mishaps. Don’t be defeated by the carrots in your life and continue to pursue your goal.
Keep going, dear readers.