As Eliza listed off items, Phoenix ran through the kitchen to gather what she had. Someone was making her food! She hated dealing with food, and would rather not deal with it all, hence part of her rather small size. She was rarely hungry, but she lived with people who were hungry all the time, and Eliza was offering to make a batch big enough for everyone! She wouldn't have to make lunch!
She brought out salt, pepper, mustard, spring onion, lemon grass, and a green mix of dandelion leaves, chickweed, hawkbit, wild garlic, watercress, and various lettuces. Thanks to Aries' great desire for plant material, she and the kids were out and about as soon as new growth began. Many of the greens they ate were weeds that were abundant in the city all year, except for the coldest part of the winter.
She fetched a large bowl, a serving fork/spoon tongs, knives, and a cutting board. She stood back, and watched Eliza at work.
It was obvious the woman liked to deal with food. Phoenix guessed that she was good at it, she had been able to come up with the ingredients on the top of her head, after all. Phoenix never would have been able to do that. Her mystery meals, made from cans that were not labeled and therefore thrown away, were barely edible sometimes. Her food combinations were not quite what one would call talented. A boxed meal was the best kind for her cook, it had a better chance of coming out the way it was supposed to.
Eliza mixed and chopped and sprinkled and the phrase from only a few minutes earlier of cooking and cleaning and doing what she could around the lair took on a different meaning. It had never crossed Phoenix's mind that doing such things were anything but chores. They were for her. While her house was clean, it was something she made everyone do, only partly to teach the skill to her children. She did not like the act of homemaking, she only liked the product once it was finished. Necessity made her a single mother, and all that entailed, but much of the learning on how to do the more cozy aspects of the job were hard won on her part, and not part of a natural talent.
With a huge smile, she came around the other side of the table. "We usually just eat it straight out of the can," she said. "I never thought to do something else with it."
As Phoenix laid out the ingredients, Eliza started to clean and prep them. She was slightly taken aback by the quantity of foodstuffs she was given but she had offered to prepare enough for everyone. Even the mix of greens would last till the next day if they didn't finish it all. She was used to making large meals by now and didn't find it daunting. In fact she fell into the rhythm so easily that she was able to ask for and receive additional items without pausing the movement of her blade.
After preparing the bulk of the salads' base of greens she made a simple dressing of lemon grass, garlic, salt, vinegar and oil. Setting it to the side to marinate as she started to address the cans of salmon. She shook her head in bemusement at Phoenix's comment. "Well, that is one way to do it. But a bit of a waste I think." She continued to open, drain and lightly rinse the fish as she talked. "I mean if you like it that way it's fine but I would rather turn it into salmon cakes with a nice bread crumb crust or even a casserole with some fresh green beans. No reason you couldn't do the same. Granted, you will have to substitute some of the more exotic spices I might normally use but the big advantage you have is freshness. I'm horrible at keeping anything more complicated than a cactus alive. You seem to have a green thumb and that will bring tons of flavor to a dish even if the ingredients themselves are fairly basic." She finished placing all the fish in a separate bowl and set it aside.
Eliza grabbed a small spoon from the drawer she had observed her host pulling utensils out. She went to her dressing and dipped in to retrieve a taste. It was ok, but needed a little something. She rinsed the spoon before depositing it in the dressing and pushing the bowl toward Phoenix. "Here, taste this. I'm gonna work on the salmon. You can either put a teaspoon of honey in or a pinch more salt. This will be going on the greens and you know your family's preferences."
Eliza was silent for a few moments as she chopped onions, watercress, the rest of the lemon grass and some additional garlic. She mixed the fish and vegetables together lightly, keeping the flaky meat as intact as possible. She thinned the mustard down with some oil so that it was the consistency of a thick sauce rather than a paste and added salt and pepper before pouring it over the salmon mix. She tossed and tasted it, adding a dash of seasoning here and there till she was happy with the balance.
She retrieved the dressing from the healer and drizzled it over the salad greens in the large bowl and tossed. "Annndd… We're done!" She said with a flare and presenting the dishes. "Best way to serve it is to let everyone take whatever balance of green and meat they like." She smiled, feeling satisfied at a job accomplished, before addressing the Phoenix. "Will the children be home soon or should we dig in on our own?"
Phoenix watched with an open mouthed smile. Eliza breezed through making of the meal in a way that Phoenix and her kids never could. None of them were great cooks, they could make an edible meal with what was available, but not on the level that Eliza was doing. Salmon cakes or a casserole? How did one even make salmon cakes or a casserole?
She took the spoon from as Eliza passed by her, and looked at the mixture nestled in it. She slurped it in her mouth, and could not taste that it needed anything. Honey? Salt? Her eyes darted back and forth nervously. In anxious desperation, she picked up the salt, and added a pinch to the dish.
Before she knew it, Eliza presented the feast with the flourish of a cook on a show. It took her a moment to register the ferret's question. She blinked stupidly before shaking her head. "I am not sure when the kids will be back," she admitted. "It depends on how their trip is going." She looked at the table as if the food had just appeared. She blinked again, and then gestured to the table. "Please, eat.," she did to her guest.
As if summoned by the command to eat, voices began to drift up from the open garden window.
"Hurry up, Medusa," said Aries.
"You hurry up," the snake replied, "I'm carrying an entire transmission! You just have a box of parts!"
"It's a big box," Aries countered, almost in a whine.
"Hold the door open, Aries," Arcos' voice drifted up the stairs from the bottom floor. "You're the only one with a free hand."
Phoenix smiled sheepishly at Eliza. "Looks like the kids are home." She gestured to the table again. "Better eat, or there might not be anything left for you to eat."
Eliza looked towards the window smiling before turning her attention back to her friend. "It does sound like they may be in the middle of something. Plus," she laughed and patted her soft midsection. "now that my stomach's awake I feel like better put something in there before it turns on me!"
She grabbed a bowl, filling it with a generous helping of greens and a modest amount of the salmon mix. She had always been taught to be as demure as possible when accepting hospitality from someone else. It was so ingrained in her that she still did many things in the company of others that she wouldn't when alone. For instance, at this moment she would rather have mostly salmon, almost as if her body was recognizing a source of proteins and vitamins that it had been denied for ages. However she knew that this has been a happy windfall for the family and would not interfere with their enjoyment of it. Especially since she had been told how much Acros was reveling in the find.
The vegetables on the other hand, had no such guilt attached to them. Phoenix was a gardener and would be able to replenish her supply. Besides, Eliza hadn't had such a mix in a long time either and it was appetizing, not to mention it would fill her more. With her portion obtained she seated herself at the table but did not start on her meal.
Eliza folded her hands in her lap, lacing the fingers together, and bowed her head while closing her eyes. She offered a short blessing on the food and gratitude for her safe arrival as well as a plea that the day would be a continued success. All of this was done inside her head but with no less emotion or feeling than if she had been on a pulpit. To the outside observer it would only seem as if she had been placed on pause for a few moments.
After a whispered 'Amen' she rejoined the world around her.
The ferret took up her fork and folded the two salads together, making sure they were evenly distributed before stabbing her fork into the middle, prepared to enjoy her first mouthful. Before her laden utensil had traveled half the distance to her mouth she noticed Phoenix looking at her and returned it to her plate. 'What? Did I forget something?" She laughed a little nervously, afraid she had made some sort of faux pa. "If you really would rather wait for them to join us, I can hold off. I'm pretty sure my plate will be safe." She smiled at the healer, ignoring her angry stomach as it twisted in protest at the denial of food.
The Phoenix did not have the eyes, ears, or nose of a mutant, but her powers of observation had been paralleled by very few people she had met in the last 20 years. She saw the disparage between Eliza's salmon and greens, and with all of her recent research on mustilids, she knew now that they were carnivores. Even with the human DNA in her system, Phoenix suspected that Eliza was more carnivore than the salad showed. The description that Eliza had given her about her rat chasing and eating episode pointed to a strong protein desired diet.
She watched Eliza lace her fingers, bow her head, and whisper "Amen". She recognized the gesture immediately, although she hasn't seen it in almost 20 years. Her own upbringing when visiting her devout Catholic grandmere had etched the vision in her psyche. So, Eliza VonHertz was a religious person. It had been a long time since she had seen anyone do anything so openly spiritual. A few of the Gray Cats still had the remnants of a religious life, she knew, but she hadn't seen any of them display it, even in this small manner. She knew psychologically that having a spiritual life was healthy, but she wasn't sure how much fire and brimstone was involved in those studies, or in Eliza's short blessing.
Phoenix went over to the bowl of salmon mixture and stabbed the serving spoon in it. She took a huge helping, and carried it over to Eliza's plate, and plopped it on Eliza's already mixed plate. "No, we don't have to wait for them," she jerked her head toward the stairs, her long, loose hair shaking slightly. She smiled smugly, "Eat up."
She began to make her own plate, a small amount of both mixtures, blended them as she'd seen Eliza done. She sat across from her at the table, and gently stabbed some with her fork. Placing it in her mouth, she closed her eyes and chewed slowly. It tasted so decadent! And to think she was going to simply eat it out of the can.
Eliza looked her now heaping plate and felt a twinge of defiance and annoyance at her meal being manipulated without her permission. But upon glancing at Phoenix's face and feeling her presence, the ferret quickly backed down. It was apparent that she been out-mothered and any battle of wills would be a losing endeavor on her part.
"If you insist." She said with a shrug, a hint of amusement slipped into her tone. While Phoenix made her plate, Eliza retrieved her fork and enjoyed her original mouthful. It was not a bad effort, she was right about the fresh ingredients making a difference, they more than made up for the lack of diversity in the flavors.
When the healer seated herself Eliza made a point to take a heaping forkful of salmon next. She had to admit that it appeased her cravings much more than the leafy vegetable base. She glanced at her friend to gauge her reaction and was happy to notice that she was enjoying the food. Eliza smiled as she reblended her plate. After a couple more mouthfuls the leading edge of her hunger had been dulled and she tackled the meal at a slower pace.
"Thanks for the lunch, its hitting the spot." Eliza smiled and wiped a bit of dressing from the corner of her mouth. "Next time I come I'll bring my recipe box. I haven't used some of these greens before, but I think they would pair well with some of my regular dishes."
She took another bite and chewed slowly, just enjoying the pleasant company. "Granted, I'm no top chef but I do fairly ok." Eliza smiled and winked. "Someday I'll make you desert, now that I can do WELL."