Someone once taught me the term –Showtime-, which applies to those moments when you’ve been having a blazing row with your partner and have the misfortune of then having to pretend everything’s peachy at a social engagement.
You know the drill… The atmosphere in the Uber on the way to the party is colder than a Siberian winter. You’ve just about pulled yourself together having said, “Nothing’s WRONG” at least sixteen times before listing all the things that are, in fact, very wrong; his eyes have just about rolled back round the right way in his head, having accepted that the baking tray does not always need a procrastinatory soak.
Neither of you particularly feels like socialising but it’s a better option than hissing at one another at home – and nobody likes a Debbie Downer, so when you arrive at the party it’s only polite to suck it up – IT’S -SHOWTIME-!!
Smiles! Hugs! –“Darling? A drink?” –“Yes please, darling! Thank yooooou!”
And then you spend the next two hours on opposite ends of the room, ignoring each other, getting drunk on a combination of wine and rage, and telling any spinster, bachelor or divorcee who’ll listen how lucky they are to be alone.
Usually by the end of the night you’re happy and smashed enough to have forgotten what it was you were fighting about in the first place. Who needs couple’s therapy when you have Showtime?
This is an easy dip that I contributed a few years’ ago to a friend’s drinks’ party, at which I am confident my husband and I could have won joint Oscar nominations for our own episode of Showtime. We also eat it at home for supper with some roasted aubergine to make it a bit more of a substantial meal.
Ingredients
(Serves a few as a snack)
- 150g soft goat’s cheese
- A couple of generous dollops of Greek yogurt
- A small handful of walnuts, roughly chopped
- Zest of a lemon
- A pinch of crushed chillies
- 1tbsp clear honey
- Baguette, to serve
Method
- Whisk together the goat’s cheese and yogurt until it’s all combined and creamy (electrical or manual whisk is fine).
- Fold in the chopped walnuts and the lemon zest.
- Taste it as you may like to add a pinch of salt at this point.
- It can be kept in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
- When ready to serve, heat the honey and crushed chillies on a very gentle heat for a couple of minutes. Keep an eye on it – it won’t need long to warm through.
- Drizzle it over the goat’s cheese dip and serve with some baguette slices.
