Snapshots of a Small-Town Life

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI or the movie 'Supersize Me', which is briefly referred to. Also, Bridgewater and Greyston County are fictional locations and the original characters that inhabit them are also fictional. Any resemblance they may bear to actual places is purely coincidental. The recipe is mine and actually works really well. You can also make it with a bit of chilli instead of the herbs.

Rating: K

Chapter 10

Jenny took one last look, then put the photo back in its envelope.

"I never knew JJ broke his arm." She sounded almost offended.

"Well pumpkin, that's what happens when you're the youngest. All kinds of things happen before you're born that you never find out about until later. That's why photos are such a good idea." Jenny still didn't look convinced, and Sara smiled. "Look at it this way. Rose goes off to college at the end of summer, and after that all kinds of stuff is going to happen here and she won't even know about it."

"Yeah, but you'll email her."

"Only about the really important stuff. You'll see: she'll come home and be asking all kinds of questions: when did Abby start dating, when did you cut your hair, when did we paint the living-room. She'll be totally lost."

In spite of herself, Jenny smiled a little. "No she won't."

"You'll see. If you don't believe me, then talk to your dad; he's the youngest in his family, and he has six older brothers and sisters."

Jenny's smile widened at that: she had obviously forgotten that she wasn't the only youngest child in her family.

Sara turned back to the box. "Let's see if we can find some photos of you, huh?"

"Yes." Jenny sounded pleased at that.

"Hmmmm." Sara leafed through an envelope. "Oh, here we go. This is you, me and Abby making cookies."

"Let me see. Awww, I'm so cute." She was indeed cute, about four years old, standing on a stool to reach the table and dressed in an apron far too large for her.

"You know, when I met your dad I didn't even know how to cook."

"Really?" Jenny couldn't quite believe this. She knew some dads couldn't cook – her best friend's dad was like that, he burned everything – but her mom could do anything, even stuff other moms couldn't do, like fixing car engines.

"Really," Sara told her. "I remember your dad trying to teach me…"

"C'mon Sara, you have to learn sometime."

Nick was standing in their now-clean kitchen, trying to convince her to let him teach her how to make a mixed-vegetable pasta sauce.

"But you're such a great cook honey." She smiled sweetly at him. "You don't need me butting in."

"Oh? And I suppose you think I'm gonna be fixing dinner for us every night for the rest of our lives?" he teased.

"Of course not. But there's always pizza, takeout… you know, all that good stuff."

"We are not raising our children on a diet of takeout," he told her. "Didn't yousee Supersize Me?"

"Hey, let's get the first one born before we start talking about 'children', plural," she suggested, although they both wanted a large family. Nick because he had had a happy childhood with numerous siblings, and Sara because she had had an unhappy one without them.

"Whatever, and don't change the subject." She stuck her tongue out at that. "Look," he tried, changing tactics, "I don't see what you're so worried about. Cooking is just like chemistry."

"Really?" she replied, sceptical, but interested in spite of herself.

"Sure. It's a question of learning the properties of the different elements involved, understanding the variables – like how one chilli pepper can be hotter than another – and then exploring the different ways of combining them to achieve the desired result."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." He was enthusiastic now, warming to his theme. "Like this dish. A good base for pasta sauces is tomato and onion. Then we add zucchini and red pepper. Mushrooms are good too, but we don't have any. A little salt – not too much – and vegetable stock to draw out the flavour, and garlic, oregano and basil. Here," he had been chopping as he spoke, "have a sniff of the herbs. Then we can taste as we go along to make sure we get it right. That way you'll get a better idea of how they all go together."

"Chemistry you can eat? You know, I kinda like that idea."