Simmer Down

from Adrianna. I tried her phone, but she wasn’t picking up.
    “She’ll call when she’s ready, Chloe,” Josh tried to reassure me.
    “All right,” I agreed, scooping up a mound of rice.
    An unpleasant scratching noise made me look up from my food. “What was that?”
    Josh looked around the room. “Is it Gato?”
    “No, he’s asleep on the chair.” The sound continued, and I prayed that I didn’t have strange animals crawling behind the walls.
    Josh pointed to the cage across the room. “I think it’s Ken.”
    He was right. Ken, who had finally chosen to emerge on his own from his shell, had one crabby claw stuck out and was scratching the side of his glass house.
    Josh said, “Hey! He’s alive! And sort of cute!”
    I put down my bowl and went to peer at Ken. He wasn’t nearly as disgusting looking as I’d previously thought. He had a red body and claws, two big black eyes, and funny antennae that projected from his head in a manner that I tried to see as whimsical. I’d learned from my online research that he must be a strawberry hermit crab and thus much more interesting than the typical brown crabs. “I like him! He’s not so gross!” I felt sorry for the little guy, just left to crawl around on boring sand with nothing to do. I would go to Petco tomorrow and buy him special snacks, tunnels, climbing branches, and decorated shells.
    Ken had made it through New Year’s. Now I could look back and say, “Last year, Ken slept most of the time, but this year, Ken has become comfortable enough in his environment to explore new activities.” So, Ken had come out of his shell, but I would stay nestled in mine with Josh.
    Josh interrupted my Ken daydreams. “I almost forgot. I have something for you.” He disappeared into the bedroom and emerged with a blue candy box in his hands. “I hid these under your bed, so once you wipe off the dust bunnies, I think you’ll be happy.”
    Josh held out a ten-piece box of Baci chocolates. “Open one.”
    I didn’t need another invitation before tearing into the treats. The rest of my curry could wait. I unwrapped a chocolate, but before I could pop it into my mouth, Josh stopped me. “Wait, Chloe. Look, each one is wrapped in a little note. Read it.”
    Why speak? The entirety of love can be said in a kiss.
    And so Josh kissed me.

Trying to get a chef to write out a recipe for fewer than sixty people is trickier than you might think. When we asked Jessica’s husband, Bill, for the recipe for the Sesame-Honey Vinaigrette, it began with two pints of salad oil and one pint of rice vinegar. The entire recipe would have made enough to last the average household a year. After much nagging and complaining, we finally convinced him to write out all the recipes in traditional serving sizes. The vinaigrette still makes more than you’ll need for four salads, but Bill swears that when you start breaking down a recipe too much, you risk losing the integrity of the dressing. The extra will keep nicely in the refrigerator.
    Each of these recipes makes enough for roughly four servings, and all were created by chef Bill Park, with the exception of the kielbasa dish, which is Jessica’s own recipe and her favorite winter dish.
    If you plan to make all four courses from the New Year’s Eve menu, be sure to give yourself enough time. The vinaigrette can be made ahead of time, and you can plate and cover the cucumber salads until dinner. Although making the entire meal is fairly labor intensive, a little help from your dinner guests will go a long way. Besides, everyone always hangs out in the kitchen at dinner parties, so you might as well put your friends to work! Each dish is also wonderful on its own and could be served on separate occasions with different side dishes.

    Olive oil
    1 package kielbasa, sliced into 1 Vi-inch-thick pieces
    1 large onion, sliced thickly
    2—3 cloves garlic, minced
    ½ tsp. dried basil
    1 tsp. dried parsley
    ½tsp. dried savory
    ½ tsp. dried marjoram
    ½ tsp. crushed bay leaves, or 1 whole bay leaf
    ¼ tsp. dried oregano
    ¼ tsp. black pepper
    ¼tsp. salt
    1 can whole tomatoes
    1 can cannellini beans, drained
    ¼ cup chicken broth
    1 large bunch of kale, thoroughly washed, excess water shaken off, and roughly chopped
    1 tbsp. sugar (optional)
    Additional salt and pepper to taste

    Heat a bit of olive oil over medium-high heat in the bottom of a stockpot or large pan. Add the kielbasa pieces and sauté until lightly browned. Add