*Doing Everything Wrong*

 ...is my favourite stage direction (it's from Aristophanes' 5th century BC comedy The Frogs, and describes the actions of the god Dionysus on a visit in the Underworld - but it remains entirely relatable).

I think this week's food is cursed. I have barely been able to get anything green in supermarkets (bear in mind I go several times a week and am not above supplementing my parents' shop with something light if I'm struggling for my own shopping). I timetabled a soup that turns out to take 2 hours to make (with steps every 20 minutes or so; I do not have 2 hours at all this week, so I'm having quick cold sandwiches in perfect soup weather - why didn't I make it on Saturday in the midst of my kitchen pottering?). I made a quick and easy glazed sausages recipe from the Little Library Christmas, failing to notice the glaze recipe was for 60 chipolatas (I had 10), until I'd poured most of it onto the soss.

And tonight, I've made an absolutely hideous risotto. Risotto! Our foundational easy and comforting CK dish! What I'm saying is, when Kate posted yesterday about doing four things wrong in one recipe, including almost missing the chilli out of her chilli, I thought yes. Yes, that is where we are. Keeping our heads down, not complaining too much about the mess of everything. And quietly losing the plot...

 

Looks aren't the only thing that's wrong with it. Let me tell you:

• It's a fennel sausage, radicchio and red wine risotto. For some reason I also bought fennel to cook with it, even though it is not required at all. Fennel seeds is the thing. And I had fennel-flavoured sausage. So there's extra fennel in the mix. 
• Though I forgot to add the fennel seeds, so that may be just as well.
• I defrosted a full pack of said fancy sausages, instead of the two leftover ones I had stashed for just this sort of dish. They are spicy, pricey and a bit wasted in quantity. Plus it means two sausage meals in succession, which even in Meat Week is a tad much.
• Also salty. I couldn't add much parmesan and even what I did add tipped it over a bit. Pass the water.
  
• Could I get radicchio either? Ahaha no. Isn't it meant to be in season at the moment? Anyone would think we were having some trade problems... (This is before the snow btw.) I couldn't get anything bitter at all, really. 
• So I used lettuce, red gem because that was the thing on the shelves. Red gem isn't very red, tbh. Which is partly why the risotto looks hideous. 
• And then I added it before the rice was 100% cooked and I had to boil it for a while. I love cooked lettuce, but it doesn't keep its crunch, boiled.

I mean, look.  

Anyway. It's edible, I have eaten some of it, and I will reheat with some plain water tomorrow to try to take the salt off. Surviving, but not thriving, chez moi, I fear. 

Adequate nutrition. Mustn't grumble.

Glad I was not in this state on Saturday, or I might have had a number of consecutive #ConfinedCookalong disasters... 

Dionysus makes it out of the Underworld in the end, and finds his competence too. So shall we all.