It is a well know fact of our family life that I can and do burn anything - I cannot blame it on encroaching senility, my entire life is a catalogue of not just burnt pans but also molten pots. Things left on the cooker so long that the contents have evaporated, burnt, burst into flames and then eventually the hapless pan just might give up and melt.
This tradition recently took on a 21st century twist. OK, I know microwaves aren't 21st century - but they are to me - I did not get one until a couple of years ago. I have always been a little unsure of the microwave thing - room filling up with wierd waves; when the children were young I would hate them to be in the same room as a microwave when it was on. Clearly I have got vary blase about this and use it quite a lot in the chocolate workshop.
Anyway, late the other night I was melting a large amount of cocoa butter - to flavour with meadowsweet - it was late, I was tired and willing myself to do this one last task before I went to bed. Turned the machine on, thought I would nip upstairs to write a quick email, found my daughter at the computer watching something, sat down next to her to wait for a natural pause in the programme to interupt and do my email, and time just evaporated. Not sure how long this went on for - but I do remember hearing the ping of the microwave turning itself off and being dragged out of my tired state with alarm - 'how long was that thing going?' Got down into the workshop and this is what I found:
The cocoa butter had got so hot that it melted the plastic bowl that it was in - and then just flowed freely out of the microwave (so why don't they make these things water tight?), down the back of the fridge that the microwave sits on and then all over the floor.
The microwave is dead - choked to death with cocoa butter, the fridge is OK, and I have now a very interesting reminder of my negligence. A plastic/cocoa butter fused abstract version of our logo?
