7:33 pm, Husband Making Dinner: A Short Love Story
This is a story about a rare breed of husband: the husband who can cook. It’s also a love story without the googly-eye, romantic drivel.
The evening begins as it always does. The doorbell gives off a series of staccato dingding-dongdongs! The dog barks, the little bell on her collar ringing shrilly in accompaniment – the house’s one-member welcoming committee; if only she could open the door. The man of the house, my Bin, arrives from work, walks in purposefully, heads straight for the kitchen. Already, the ingredients he’s asked for – tomatoes, basil leaves, crusty bread, and Parmesan – are reposing on the counter, sentinels waiting for their chief. A quick kiss on my cheek, a tight hug, hand wash, and he gets to work.
Tonight, my Bin is making a simple favorite of his, tomatoes and basil on toast. It’s simple because it requires just a few ingredients and only minimal heat is involved. I cut open the package of basil leaves, its licorice-clove scent fills nostrils and mind. My Bin grabs a handful of the leaves, takes a knife to them. “Just rip them, hon. A knife will bruise them,” I blurt out. “No, I want to use a knife,” he replies automatically, not looking up, not missing a beat. Earlier in our marriage I would’ve pressed on, insistent on my way but 12 years has taught me to let go. We each have our kitchen rituals. I look at the cut basil, it contrasts vibrantly with the glass bowl it’s been tossed in.
Short work is made of peeling two whole heads of garlic using – “your God-given tools, your hands” – I recall from some long-ago TV food show. My Bin throws the naked cloves – creamy ivory on black – into a skillet doused heavily with olive oil, a casual shower of coarse salt, and left to heat slowly. There’s no time to roast garlic so this is a quick recourse. In no time, the romance of garlic and oil permeates the air, a fragrance full of promise.
My Bin is slicing tomatoes, the sharp knife glides through the red flesh. I’m taking pictures of him, each snapshot seen through the digital screen is a mirror to the images in my mind, a mosaic of meals and memories past. I wasn’t versed in the ways of the kitchen until I got married, I was just a good eater. But my Bin grew up in the kitchen. He wooed me with food he’d cooked himself: paella; a creamy tuna pasta dish, the recipe of which was published in a national food magazine; and a multi-layer taco salad with a secret ingredient – a piquant sauce the color of carrots, its flavor rocketing through the vegetables it coated. While I’m the more organized of our couple, my cooking is limited to recipes, which effectively hinder flights of imagination. But my husband on the other hand, can cook on the fly, making do with whatever’s left in the refrigerator and pantry and setting them a-flight, his reliably precise palate the compass. He’s got a mind for flavors past and is inspired by what he sees while channel-surfing – “Lor! I gotta tell you what I saw on TV last night…” He makes a truly memorable carbonara (eggs only, no cream) and his salpicao is something Boo can eat for days.
Shreds of basil and tomato slices now huddle at the bottom of the bowl. More coarse salt and then pepper shower down to them from up top: crackcrack! go their mills. A wedge of aged Parmesan is grated and follows into the bowl. “Sugar, maybe?” I suggest. My Bin’s head leans to the side, considering. He’s the one cooking tonight. A mere spoonful is added to offset the tomatoes’acidity, coaxing out their inherent sweetness. Glug-glug goes the olive oil in agreement. A large rubber spatula is dispensed – it’s the magic wand that intersperses, intertwines the ingredients that run, tumble, chase after one another.
I imagine it might be a more scintillating story to say that my Bin swills wine while he cooks, a cutting figure in the kitchen evincing someone worldly, the business executive who handles corporate life and a cleaver with equal finesse. In truth, my Bin is a simple, straightforward man who prefers to drink water as he tends to the stove. And he likes to cook. I’d have it no other way.
Thick slices of crusty bread muffle the hiss of the butter-greased pan, and emerge from that heated kiss glistened-yellow with the occasional burn spot. The cooked garlic spread on top is its salve. My Bin piles the bread slices hill-high with the tomato-basil mixture, a motley of reds and greens speckled with yellow. Its lushness makes it collapse unto itself, littering the white plate. Another smattering of cheese and then the lot is laced with swirls of caramelized balsamic vinegar.
Dinner.
Table set, we sit. A separate dish has been cooked for Boo as she’s yet to become fond of tomatoes. “Thanks for cooking, hon,” I say simply as I set my camera down and look into his eyes. He flashes me a bright smile in return and reaches out a hand. I reach back and squeeze. Every wife should be lucky enough to have a husband who can cook.
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wow. my husband is also the “better cook”, so to speak, between the two of us. i rely mostly for recipes for my cooking, and i need all the help i can get when it’s time to season a dish. he, on the other hand, can whip up just about anything with whatever is available.
with our eldest, he’d cook fish with lots of malunggay for me, every week, if only to ensure i’ve had my fill of malunggay and liquids when we’re still pregnant.
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Hi Lori,
I love this piece. Heartfelt writing about food, cooking & a happy pairing.
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This piece reminds me of my husband diligently preparing beef shawarma for my midnight snack (everyday!)when I was pregnant. I wouldn’t want it any other way.
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Lori Reply:
July 6th, 2010 at 9:19 am
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Addie Reply:
July 6th, 2010 at 10:33 am
That is sooo sweet! =)
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ragamuffin girl Reply:
July 6th, 2010 at 10:05 pm
Is this Ango my cousin? If so, can her hubby S teach me how to make shawarma too? Hehe. Lori, I loved this piece. So simple, so from the heart.
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Ango Reply:
July 7th, 2010 at 11:49 am
Hi ragamuffin girl, yes this is your cousin ango. It’s actually HIS version of shawarma – toasted pita bread, tenderloin strips (sauteed in butter ah), onion, tomatoes, cabbage, grated cheese & yogurt sauce. As I write this, it sounds like a crossbreed taco/shawarma. Anyhow, sarap!
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I love this post! Absolutely ,love it, Lor! It made my heart go pit-a-pat with delight. Nothing like a “kilig” post to make a day more special. -happy sigh-
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Uhmmm, I love tomatoes! At the height of El Nino when big red juicy tomatoes were easily available I indulged myself almost daily with a side dish of baked halved plump tomatoes topped with good olive oil,balasamic vinegar,fresh herbs(basil, oregano,mint,parsley) from the garden, rock salt,freshly cracked pepper and cheese(mozzarella or kesong puti)and I was in heaven!
Lucky you!your Bin is so sweet!
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WOW!!
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This is actually romantic
You are lucky.
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One of the best love stories I’ve read. And yes, a husband who can cook! Don’t we all dream of that. :p
This kind of heartfelt story is the reason people come back to your blog.
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awww…sweet!
now if only i can convince my husband to learn how to cook too.
baby steps…first let him see that sizzling oil won’t kill him (sigh!)
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Lori Reply:
July 6th, 2010 at 9:18 am
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Lori,
Hands down, this is the BEST thing you have ever written on Dessert Comes First.
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GO BINDOY!!! GO!GO!GO!
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I love this post Lol! Nice of you to share a personal story with the DCF readers. (And I agree, there’s nothing like a man who can cook — or in my case, grill! *wink*)
Can’t wait to read more entries like this one.
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A husband that can cook. Priceless.
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I loved reading this post Lori! Thanks for sharing a personal part of your world with us all. And I love the photo of Bin…he looks so focused and earnest, preparing sustenance for those that he loves!
And I totally agree that it rocks to have a hubby that can cook!
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Wonderful post Lori!
So glad you’re writing again, I kinda miss your musings.
And yes, speaking as a guy who cooks for his wife, it does feel great to show your love through food you made yourself!
I hope dessert was just as good! (wink!)
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Lori, this has got to be one of my favorite posts of yours. (Despite the fact that it’s not about dessert!
) It speaks volumes about you and what you hold dear; yet, even though you wrote it as a deeply personal piece, it also reminds the rest of us about the simple pleasures that matter most in all our lives. Thank you for sharing this with your readers.
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i love this post
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Hi Lori, I’ve been your silent reader for a while now, but I must say that I really really love this post. Your hubby is so adorable <3
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Lori, I was there with you and Bin in your kitchen. All my senses were on high alert and I could see, smell, hear, touch and taste everything!
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aww, I so love this post. my husband loves to cook as well and when he’s here (he works overseas) he cooks everyday, not only for me but for my whole family and my mom just adores him for that.
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My husband is also the greater cook – being Kapampangan and all. I love those moments of seeing him concentrating, sweat and all, and me, distracting him and peppering him with kisses every now and then. His specialty is beef lap (Laoatian – long story!) and other Asian delights that are not available in restos. And wouldn’t you agree that men who cook are sexy? More power to you both, and to LOVE!!
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which is why i couldn’t resist my boyfriend, and i’ve been well-fed for almost six years now.
i sympathize with the need for recipes, being more inclined towards baking myself. foodie couples rock!
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Aww lovely. I wish i can find a guy that will cook and actually enjoy doing so!!! =) I love Bruschetta! mmm.
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I love this post Lori! I headed to the kitchen right after and had bruschetta for lunch. Now, if only I can find someone who’d cook for me
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It’s such a beautiful story, Lori. I love the way you write–the way you pay attention to details and your choice of words. Nevertheless, please continue writing. You inspire me to pursue cooking (and writing, for that matter). Lastly, I just want to say hands down to your husband and to all the men who cook for their wives.
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Hi Lori, you write so well! Thanks for loving my brother and taking care of him
. A great and simple guy whose secret to great cooking is his love for food 
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forgot to say…nice pictures!
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Oh Lori, I so love this post! I feel bad not having checked DCF in a while – I’ve transferred from one continent to another and only got our internet connection today! Of course, DCF was my first ‘stop’!
I am eternally grateful for having a husband as loving as yours and I believe, as good a cook as yours!
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I haven’t dropped in the past couple months due to a hectic schedule and am now backtracking. Wow. This was the nicest, yummiest, most heartwarming post ever! I totally know what you mean. My husband cooks too, way before I was cooking…blessed are women who have hubbies that cook
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Oh Lori, I so love this post! I feel bad not having checked DCF in a while – I’ve transferred from one continent to another and only got our internet connection today! Of course, DCF was my first ‘stop’!
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Wow, I didn’t know Bindoy had nice, feminine looking hands!
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been out of circulation lately and this is one of the first post that i read…its good to be back! great post! =)
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oh this is so sweet!!!! and i love it that Bin’s ring is showing as he cuts the ingredients!!!
Time to write a book, Lor!
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I love this post. Reminds me of my Angel who also cooks for me
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