Baba's Risotto

• Katia Pedisic, Grade 11
• Short Story
• 2022

If I could eat only one thing for the rest of my life...it would be my Baba’s risotto.

“What's for dinner tonight?” I ask my mum.

Don’t know why I bother asking... my eyes glance over the packed plastic containers that lay out on the white kitchen bench top. Plates and cutlery arranged for you to take as you please. After a long day at school there is nothing worse than having last night’s leftovers for dinner.
“Please can we get takeaway, we had stew for last night’s dinner,” cries my younger sister.
“Are you guys serious? You complain all the time! I worked all day today and don’t have time to make something else,” mum barks.
Super disappointed, I begin to dream about the endless future dinner possibilities...sloppy fast-food, burgers with a side of crispy but greasy fries…wood oven pizza with mozzarella that stretches like an elastic….butter chicken so spicy it feels like a million ants biting my mouth… spaghetti carbonara that tangles like my necklace…

Wait!
My eyes widen as I see mum grabbing the plastic containers and my head fills with questions...
What is happening?
Is mum going to heat the leftovers up for us?
She never heats them up for us!
As she walks to put the packed containers back into the fridge
I ask, “Mum what is really for dinner?”
To my surprise she shares, “We are going to Baba’s!”

I can't wait to get there...20 minutes later I step into the house the sweet but bitter smell fills my nose with joy as I walk into the kitchen. My Baba is standing there with a pot in one hand and spoon in the other as she uses five different frying pans to cook up onion, beef, tomatoes, and rice. That is when I realise…we are eating risotto!

The doorbell rings. I realise she has invited over the whole family. My Striko Boris trips over the obvious step at the front door and together we all laugh. He is always the clumsiest! Later walks in Aunty Angela and Uncle Ivica their boys run down the hallway carrying boxes of freshly made cannoli for dessert. As we sit at the table my Nonno shouts, ‘Siete pronti?’ “Are you ready?” My heart leaps as one by one we go up to the stove and fill our bowls with ragu sauced risotto but not only risotto...
She has also prepared schnitzels, roast potatoes, spinach, sauerkraut, and garlic bread. I quickly run to the freshly and finely grated parmesan cheese. After too many bowls we all say, “BASTA (ENOUGH)!”

Today I am happy to eat leftovers forever... especially if it’s Baba’s risotto.