Because she hates when I just "wing it"

My Bubbe, z"l, used to make the most amazing food. My mother and I always tried to watch her and remember how she did it. I always fantasized about writing a book called: "A Little Bit of This, a Little Bit of That; Stories and Recipes From the Old Country."

I have clearly inherited this form of cooking. This has proven to be beneficial and annoying to my beloved. When I "score" in the kitchen, I can rarely repeat it to the letter, because, well, I winged it. But if a recipe fails to provide the taste buds with glee, well, I can't repeat it, either.

Tonight, however, I whipped up a (if I do say so myself) YUMMY roasted asparagus and barley salad. And I had a BRILLIANT idea. Before I put the entire dish in the fridge for tomorrow's lunch and let the memory of its creation slip through the sieve that is my memory, I took pen to paper, and wrote it down.

And I share it with you.

Roast some asparagus in a 500 degree oven - break off the bottom bits, rinse, drain, spread out on a cookie sheet, drizze olive oil, sprinkle salt, put in oven for 10 minutes, turn OFF heat, DO NOT OPEN DOOR for about 3 more minutes or so.

Try not to eat all of the asparagus as it cools...

AS asparagus is cooling, put one cup of RINSED barley in the rice cooker with 3 cups of water, turn on; take Malka downstairs to put clothes in dryer, take cute picture of her in basket with clothes, send to flickr.

Come back upstairs, and cut up asparagus that is now cool. Leave out on cutting board, give Malka dinner.

Check to make sure barley is still cooking, give Malka bath, put her to bed.

Pull out big mixing bowl, put asparagus in, add barley that has now cooked, drizzle olive oil, add salt, mix well. Pull out cube of basil from freezer, nuke for 30 seconds, add in, mix.

Dice up 1/2 a pear, add in about 3/4 a cup of raisins, salt, nutmeg and cumin, mix.

Serve yourself a bowl before putting the rest in the fridge, pat yourself on back for remembering to write it down.