BARRISTER BITES By: Angelia Morie Nystrom
The University of Tennessee
TOASTED ALMONDS, FIRE AND DOUBLE OVENS My mom always said, “Be careful what you wish for.” In the last Barrister Bites, I lamented the fact that, for 20 years, I was met every night with one question: “What are you making for dinner?” I was so proud that Trace not only accepted a job in the snack bar at the Knoxville Racquet Club (where he expertly made burgers, salads, quesadillas, and other fast-food delicacies) but that he also was often cooking dinner for the family. Hugh apparently read the column (or someone spilled the beans about it) and wanted in on the action. On the Sunday night before the GKAISA City Championship Swim Meet (which included 2,000 swimmers and of which I was in charge), Hugh decided that HE was going to prepare dinner. He found some sort of baked chicken dish and broccoli salad on the internet and decided that would be the evening’s fare. I was busy and hungry, so I was thrilled. Unbeknownst to me, the broccoli salad required toasted almonds. Hugh put them in a roasting pan on broil and continued to work on the other items. During that time, he received a phone call. If you know Hugh well, you know that he can be hyper-focused but that he can be easily distracted by things like telephone calls. He took the call outside (so as not to bother me). This meant that he forgot about the almonds. When Hugh realized that he had forgot about the toasting almonds, he ran back into the kitchen. In case you did not know, almonds combust. I was upstairs and did not realize anything was wrong until I heard the fire alarm going “FIRE. FIRE.” And Hugh shouting expletives, which I will not publish. Apparently, when Hugh opened the oven door, flames shot out. I heard the commotion and ran down the stairs when I heard Hugh yell, “Trace, get the fire extinguisher!!” They were able to extinguish the flames, but the controls on the oven were melted, and soot and fire extinguisher foam covered our kitchen. Hugh was surprised that I was not mad. I had wanted a husband that cooks… and he was trying. And I got something else that I had wanted: new double ovens. When we moved into our house and remodeled our kitchen in 2005, I wanted double ovens. However, the appliance salesman told me that would be wasteful in a family of 3 and that I would be better served with a wall oven and a convection microwave. He was wrong. I have always regretted not getting double ovens. I love to cook, and I love to entertain. November 2021
There have been multiple instances in which two ovens would have made things so much easier. After the Great Fire Fiasco, we headed to Friedman’s to look at appliances. There were lots of really nice ones, but I had my eyes on what had eluded me 16 years ago. Although it took almost a month (and lots of eating out), I got my double ovens… Wolf M-Series ovens with red knobs that match my kitchen! When they arrived, I read over the Owner’s Manual with the same attention to detail that I use when reading the Internal Revenue Code. The ovens also came with a cookbook that featured dishes made using all 10 cooking settings. I knew that I needed to try one of them as the first meal. I chose Pork Tenderloin and Roasted Cauliflower, which was prepared on convection mode. With convection mode, I had the benefit of cooking both dishes at the same time so that the whole meal came out of the oven together. This recipe also benefitted from the oven not needing to be preheated, which meant that we had food that much sooner. To prepare, I placed a 1 lb pork tenderloin on a large plate and patted it dry with a paper towel. I then combined 2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary, 2 tsp chopped fresh thyme, 1 tsp freshly ground pepper, 1 clove of chopped garlic and 2 TBS olive oil in a small bowl and then rubbed it on the tenderloin. The tenderloin was placed on a baking tray and set aside. I then broke 1 lb cauliflower into florets and halved them. I tossed the cauliflower with 1 TBS olive oil and ½ tsp kosher salt and placed it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. I set the oven on convection at 400° and placed both dishes in the oven. When the pork reached an internal temperature of 160°, I removed both dishes from the oven, allowed the pork to rest for 5 minutes and then served both dishes together. They were amazing. Since we had the ovens installed, my grocery bill has increased, and my dining-out bill has gone down considerably. I cook something in those ovens almost every night. And the food just tastes better. My mom was right. You do need to be careful what you wish for. I wished for a husband that would cook and ended up with a kitchen fire. But I also wished for double ovens—which I now have. It’s safe to say that I no longer wish for a husband that cooks.
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