Spaghetti alle Vongole

No matter how careful we all are, we can all have mishaps. Don't worry dear reader, I have not injured myself. I always thought that if I did anything foolish it would be when outside somewhere, but no, it was a mistake in the kitchen that generated the mishap.

However, before I explain what happened, I need to tell my long suffering reader that my better half has just retaken an exam. It was rather heart warming that she choose to come here to study and do her revision as she felt there fewer distractions, and it was a calm relaxed atmosphere. I also think that keeping her supplied with tea and chocolate helped as well.

Therefore when she had resat the exam, she was doing it to made up the eight marks to get the highest grade, I decided to get something that she really liked to cook for her. So I took her to the fishmonger in Newcastle and suggested a couple of dishes she enjoy. The final dishes were Spaghetti alle Vongole and Chilli prawns. Both quick and easy to cook and as we were heading out the following day after the meal, I wanted to ensure that it was something she would love.

I was using razor clams for the Spaghetti dish and I checked they were all fresh and healthy. With everything else prepared, cooking was to be simplicity itself. As anyone who knows, shellfish don't take long to cook and if you over cook them they become rubbery. So I got the timing spot on and the Spaghetti alle Vongole was ready to serve. As the meat comes free from razor clams when cooked, the shells can be removed as you serve. However I also needed to put the griddle on to heat while we ate so I could cook the giant king prawns once the first course was done. While I would have preferred to serve both together, there is just no space to do this.

This lack of space is also why I put the empty pan back on the stove with the wooden spoons I had used to serve the dish with. But I had not turned the heat off of that ring.

As we were eating I could smell something charring and I did go and check the griddle in case it was that, but I thought it must be my imagination. I could not see a problem there. Then smoke started to fill the room, that is when I went back and noticed the pan that was cooking and charring the wooden spoons. Straight under the tap it went. It is a good job that I use decent pans otherwise I would have lost that one. I had however cremated two wooden spoons.

I do have smoke alarms fitted in the house, and until that point they had remained silent. I already had the situation under control when they activated. It took opening the doors and windows to clear the smoke to silence these. Well they were tested and work well, if ever there is a fire there is no danger of sleeping through that din.

It has taken many hours of soaking and scrubbing to fully clean the pan but that is no longer blacked and shines almost like new again.

The meal was a success and we went out and had a great evening in the pub we had had Sunday lunch at previously.

I am not sure what the moral of this tale is. But let it serve as a warning to keep me away from the kitchen, sometimes.