By Week 335. Summer 2022. I am 39 years old and standing in my kitchen — the Bench house kitchen, the one that held cancer and divorce and cinnamon rolls — and the stove is on and something is cooking and the house smells like grilled food and garden herbs and this is my life. This is the life I built.
Tom made his trout on Friday, the way he does every Friday, and the fish was perfect, and the kitchen smelled like lemon and capers, and I sat at the table and ate fish that my partner caught and cooked and served, and the being-served is still a wonder after all these years.
Mason is 11 and reading everything he can find and examining the world under a microscope with the intensity of a tenured researcher.
Lily is 9 and riding horses with the fearlessness of someone who has never considered the possibility of falling.
I made tomato sandwich this week. The food continues. The food always continues. It is the thread that connects every week to every other week, every year to every other year, every version of me to every other version — the woman on the kitchen floor, the woman at the chemo recliner, the woman at the grill, the woman at the outdoor table under the string lights. All of them, connected by the food they made with their hands. All of them, me.
The tomato sandwich got its moment this week, but it’s this orzo that kept appearing on the counter all summer long — warm orzo tossed with Parmesan and basil pulled straight from the garden, the herbs that made the whole Bench house kitchen smell like July. It’s the kind of dish that doesn’t ask anything of you. You boil, you toss, you eat. It sat next to Tom’s Friday trout. It showed up on the kids’ plates without complaint. It is steady food for a steady life, and I am grateful for both.
Orzo with Parmesan & Basil
Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 15 minutes | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (about 1 1/4 cups) dried orzo pasta
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Cook the orzo. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the orzo and cook according to package directions until al dente, about 8 to 9 minutes. Reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water, then drain.
- Toast the garlic. In the same pot over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the minced garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant and just golden, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Toss everything together. Return the drained orzo to the pot. Add the butter and stir until melted and coating the pasta. Add the Parmesan, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, tossing to combine. If the mixture seems dry, add a splash of the reserved pasta water to loosen.
- Finish with basil. Remove from heat, fold in the fresh basil, and taste for seasoning. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 310 | Protein: 11g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 38g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 390mg