Da lifted Evey onto the step stool next to the counter. The counter was really tall. Evey couldn’t see over it if she wasn’t on the step stool. She couldn’t see on top of it, either. Da kissed her on the top of her head and went through the drawers, pulling out brightly-colored cups and small spoons that were held together with a big metal clip. “Wha’re those for?” she asked, pointing at the spoons.“We have to measure the ingredients, darling,” Da murmured. “The spoons help us measure.”
Evelyn frowned. They must be awfully special spoons. She reached out for them and examined them. One of the spoons was very large. The other was very small. The ones in between them on the clip were all either big or small so that they all fit together. The cups were like that, too. They had handles on them. “Wha’re those for?” she said, pointing at the handles.
“Those are also for measuring, darling.”
Evey frowned. She knew that! “Nooo! The long things! On the cups, wha’re the long things for?!”
Da laughed. Evey smiled. She liked Da’s laugh. It was very deep and nice. “Those are for holding the cups.”
“Why don’t real cups have long things?” Evey countered.
Da was on the other side of the kitchen by now, pulling out bins of white stuff. One of them was sugar—she recognized that one at least. The other she was unfamiliar with. “Some cups do. They’re called mugs, and the long things are curved and attached at both ends.”
Evey huffed, and tried to think of another question. What could she ask…? “Why do we needta measure stuff?”
Da had an answer for that one, too. “We need to measure things so that the cookies come out perfect. If we get the amounts wrong, the cookies will be yucky.”
It was hard to argue with that one. Da had their arms full of bins and bottles, which they set on the counter before standing behind Evey. “Alright, Evey, are you ready to learn how to bake cookies?”
Evey nodded. “Yes, please, Da!” She’d been looking forward to this one all day, it had taken them forever to get through all their chores. She was actually rather nervous—her tail was flicking back and forth.
Da seemed to notice this. They pointed at her tail. “What’s wrong, darling?”
Evey bit her lip. “Is it hard?” she asked. “Cookies are so nice, and I’ve never made them before.”
Da shook their head. “No, it’s not hard. It might be hard this first time, but it will get easier and easier every time you make them. The important things to remember are to follow the recipe, and to be careful in measuring out the ingredients. And if you get nervous,” they added, “remember, I’m right here, helping you along. I’m your sous-chef.”
Evey was pretty sure that Da’s real name wasn’t Sue, but Da had chuckled when they said that, so she decided to let that one slide. Da picked up the sticks of butter, peeling the paper off of them. As they did, they explained to her how much butter they were putting in. Butter was followed by sugar, followed by mixing it around and around with a spoon.
One ingredient followed another, and after a long and arduous path, they had a tray full of cookies in the oven. Evey sat in front of the oven, watching the timer intensely. “How much longer?”
“Five minutes,” Da murmured.
Evey groaned. “That long?”
Da chuckled again. “I guess it is a long time, isn’t it. You know,” the added, “you’re very good at this.”
Evey grinned. They were? How wonderful! “Maybe I could do this for a living?” she said.
Da nodded. “I think you would be very good at this, Evey.”
Evey nodded. “Alright then. It’s settled. Someday, I’m gonna make cookies for a living.”
“I’m sure you will,” Da said. They held up the camera. “Say cheese!”
