Matcha-do About Nothing

I was at a bit of a loss this morning- all this time to bake and cook, but no one to be my guinea pig. The kitchen is my oyster, but I've no one to gift the string of pearls. I stared crestfallenly at my mixing bowls, sighing the sigh of Britney without her adoring fans, Paris without her Paparazzi.

And then, somewhere between seeking solace in the warmth of my oven mitts and despondently caressing the oven handles, wondering what the hell I was doing in this little Japanese village, I had an epiphany - If the sayings of old are words to live by, and in Rome do as the Romans do, then one naturally concludes that in Japan, make Green Tea and Red Bean desserts. This was the opportune moment, given my husband's antipathy towards asian sweets. Like a phoenix reborn out of the ashes, I rode the wings of my new found inspiration.

2 hours later, as I triumphantly returned the cake mould to the fridge for the final setting, the phone rang; it was Nathan with unfortunate news. The poor thing had hurt his knee so badly whilst skiing, he could barely walk. Needless to say, the injury rang the death knell on his heli adventure and he would have to return home. I have to admit, this news evoked mixed feelings in me; On one hand, I sympathised with Nathan's disappointment; this was a once-in-a-lifetime adventure and something he had so looked forward to. It made me sad that he was sad. On the other hand, as his wife who loves him and cares very much for his welfare, I much prefer him lying in bed with a torn ligament than hurtling down steep mountain ridges at break-neck speed.

So that was that; all the weeks of planning, hours of training, monies expended, technicoloured dreams of Sub-Arctic glory, gone in a proverbial puff of smoke.

I sat down and mulled over our telephone conversation over a cup of coffee, then remembered my 3-layered creation sitting in the fridge, awaiting its unveiling. I'm sure there is an adage out there that mentions a husband and wife sharing everything in their lives, including anti-climaxes. For there it was, thrice hand-whipped cream, bain marie melted gelatin, carefully layered sponge, red bean and matcha infused mousse looking disappointingly dissimilar to the original.

http://www.nordljus.co.uk/en/matcha-double-bill-imbb-17

I suppose it was much ado about nothing, but hey, at least it tastes good.