Livestream Cooking Chaos

By Bonnie Gerstenlauer

The stage was set. The ingredients for my grandmother’s special marinara sauce were neatly arranged on the kitchen counter. The pot of water to cook the vermicelli noodles in was sitting on the stove.

My first live-streamed cooking class was about to begin. I was just waiting for my friends Lena, Jake, and Mel to arrive. They had kindly offered to help, and since we hadn’t all been together lately, I thought it would be a fun way to spend time.

Lena, whom I met in college, is the proud mother of an adorable baby boy. I couldn’t wait to hold the little one since she planned to bring him along today.

My friend Mel who is an attorney recently launched her own family law practice. We've known each other since high school, but we drifted apart recently due to her busy schedule.

Then there’s Jake, the free-spirited artist I grew up with. He was my next-door neighbor and feels like a brother to me.

The doorbell rang, and my heart jumped with excitement as I hurried to open it. Standing there were Jake and Mel, both smiling sheepishly. I embraced each of them and led them inside.

“Hey guys. Thanks so much for being here and helping me with my first live stream. It really means a lot to me.”

“We’re always here for you, Clare,” Mel replied, squeezing my hand.

“What can we do to help?” Jake asked, heading toward the kitchen.

Just then, the doorbell rang a second time. I could hear the soft cooing of a baby from outside the door.

“That must be Lena,” I said with a smile, heading to the front door.

“What gave it away?” Jake teased.

“Hi everyone. Sorry I’m late,” Lena said, as I opened the door. She struggled to get the large stroller and diaper bag inside.

“Oh geez, let me help with that,” I offered, taking the bag from her.

Mel and Jake called greetings from the kitchen as Lena and I managed to settle the baby.

“Wow, he’s grown so much since I saw him at the hospital,” I remarked.

“Yeah, he seems to grow every single day.”

“Alright, everyone, we should get started. It’s time for the livestream,” Mel announced.

“Oh, I guess I’ll have to cuddle him afterward,” I said to Lena, feeling a bit disappointed.

I took one last look around the kitchen as the four of us positioned ourselves in front of the phone’s camera, then began streaming.

“Hi everyone! I’m Clare, and these are my good friends Mel, Lena, and Jake. We’re excited to share my grandmother’s recipe for homemade marinara sauce with all of you wonderful viewers.”

My friends waved awkwardly toward the camera as I started the first step of the recipe. “Oh, hi there Brittany from Michigan. Welcome!” I said, while peeling and chopping the tomatoes.

“Want me to start slicing the garlic?” Mel offered behind me.

“Yes, thank you,” I replied, stirring the crushed tomatoes into the tomato paste.

“Thanks for joining us, Kim,” I said staring into the phone’s camera, then turned to Jake.

“Hey Jake, could you please grab the dry ingredients that are prepared in the small dish over there and bring it over?”

“Should I brown this garlic in butter?” Mel asked.

“No, use olive oil,” I replied.

“Okay,” Mel said, pouring oil into the pan and turning the heat to low.

Jake, approaching the spice dish, nodded. “Sure thing, Clare.”

I paused and addressed the camera. “Hey everyone! Here is a secret my grandmother told me. The olive oil really helps to bring richness to the sauce,” I said, winking.

Suddenly, Lena’s baby giggled in the background, and my phone vibrated with a flood of comments demanding to see him.

“Alright, viewers, I hear you—I’ll go get him,” I moved toward the living room just as Jake approached me. My right arm bumped awkwardly into his arm. The dish he was holding flew through the air, spilling oregano and basil everywhere. The dish clattered loudly on the tile floor.

The baby’s giggling quickly turned into frightened wails.

Mel ran over with a damp towel, frantically cleaning up the mess. Lena went to soothe her baby.

Meanwhile, Jake was trying to entertain my viewers with a ridiculous joke, while I rushed to gather fresh ingredients.

“Thanks, Jake. I’ve got it from here,” I said, returning to the camera. “Where were we? Ah, yes, Gigi from Spokane—I was explaining how to use oil instead of butter to brown the garlic.”

“Oh no! The garlic’s probably burning!” Mel shouted, jumping up from the floor where she’d been mopping.

Suddenly, smoke poured from the pan on the stove, triggering the fire alarm. Lena had just calmed the baby, but he let out another loud cry.

“I apologize, everyone. It’s been quite a day, hasn’t it?” Lena said, gently holding the baby.

“No worries, Lena. Honestly, we’d be lost without you here, so please don’t stress,” I replied, waving a towel in front of the smoke detector to silence the alarm.

“Never a dull moment around here,” Jake said, smiling.

“Ain’t that the truth,” Mel agreed, giggling.

“I have more garlic, everyone, so we’re still good to go!” I said to my friends.

The three of us regrouped and focused on the task at hand, determined not to let the earlier chaos disrupt our livestream cook-along experience.

Within a few minutes, we were back on track. The garlic was browned perfectly, so I added the tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and spices to the pan, simmering everything until the mixture thickened nicely. The kitchen filled with an inviting aroma. Mel had boiled the pasta until it was al dente. Steam rose from the pan as Jake flipped the camera to show the bubbling sauce.

“I wish all of my viewers could smell this room right now; it’s incredible!” I said.

“I can’t wait to eat!” Jake added. “I’m starving.”

The meal was finally ready. Mel served up noodles and sauce to each of us, and we eagerly started eating while my viewers patiently waited. Despite the earlier chaos, alarms, and the crying baby, the dish turned out perfectly.

I thanked my audience for sticking with us through my first of hopefully many livestream episodes. In the end, I realized all I needed were good friends, good food, and laughter to have a great livestream show.