breakfast at the office

My camera walked into the room this morning while I was staring at my tea steeping demanding that I play with her. I can't I said, I have tea to drink, the room to stare at, news and facebook to read, my journal to write, sleepy dog to walk, I have to work out and I have to make breakfast. My camera heard, blah blah blah BREAKFAST! She stomped her little lens and batted her aperture at me. How could I resist? I was helpless. I am at her beck and call. So, here is how my little camera saw breakfast this morning. Looks tasty no?

The office. Tea steeping while sun moves across the room....it's lovely.

Baked eggs with goat cheese and Japanese tomatoes
aka
breakfast at the office

I like to keep breakfast simple. I like to keep everything simple actually (at least where food is concerned). Start with these ingredients. Trader Joe's baby. Love them. Although, this cheese is not organic and I will probably have to find an alternative soon it worked well for this dish. Forgive me. I won't let it happen again. This dish is single summer friendly, meaning, it's calorie lite. Healthy, tasty and quick. 15 minutes to make, swear.

• Spray some olive oil into a ramakin.

Have we talked about Japanese tomatoes? I may be repeating myself here but these are the best things at the farmer's market. I've never seen them at the grocery store. They are a little less vibrant in color than we expect from a robust tomato but the flavor is always light, sweet and wonderful. They are much lower in acid than normal tomatoes. Also more watery.

• Slice one into 4 1/2" rounds. Put one round in the bottom of the ramekin.

• Sprinkle some goat cheese onto the tomato.

• Pour in egg white. Repeat ....until the ramekin is full.

• Finish with cheese on top.
  
• Add ground pepper to taste but wait on salt. The cheese is salty and you can always add more after the first bite.

• Pop the ramekin into the toaster oven at 350 for 10 minutes.
  
• Take it out once to drain some of the water that the tomato will release.
  
• I always toast a piece of rye bread along side the eggs. Flipping the toast once.

• Eh... Voila! Yum.

A perfect way to start the day. Good call camera.

pickles, eggs & rye

My dear and much admired brother (ICL) Tony Cross sent me home from last weeks trip to San Francisco rested, loved and baring the fruits of his recent labors. Fresh kitchen pickles and a newly baked loaf of rye bread. He is a fascinating man, Tony is an extraordinary musician, a naturalist-hiker-leaf-presser, a published writer, an uncanny photographer and perhaps best of all a connoisseur of artisan green teas, handmade pickles and homemade breads. Yay for me and mom and sis (especially sis since she lives with him).

Beckoning back to a time when sharing canned goods, fresh bakery and items from one’s own kitchen garden was simply the neighborly thing to do I have to say I relished waking up in their sunny guest room, padding into the kitchen and seeing on the counter two loaves of bread wrapped in cheese cloth, one marked Rye for Romy and one marked White for Joan (my mom who I was to see later that day). Tony had left these for us before heading off to NY. He had already turned me on to their new dinner of choice pickle cheese sandwiches the night before so I knew about the crisp, vibrant pickles in the fridge, slightly sweet and not too vinegary. This morning I stumbled on to my own perfect American breakfast…

Pickles, eggs and rye toast.


Now this easy little meal is simple and yummy but lets be honest what makes it exceptional is that the ingredients are special. You can’t do this with goods from your last trip to Trader Joe’s or even Whole Foods. This breakfast has to be prepared from fine ingredients, ideally organic of course, made with love and care preferably by someone else who loves you.

Pickles Eggs & Rye

Ingredients:

Rye bread
Two eggs
5 or more sliced homemade pickles
15 small sugar plum tomatoes
butter
olive oil
maldon salt
cracked pepper

• Slice into a freshly baked loaf of rye bread and toast two pieces
• Using an iron pan, turn flame to medium, add a spray of olive oil and a pat of rich Plugra butter.
  
• Toss halved sugar tomatoes (one thing that you can get at TJ’s – organic always so good) into the butter and fry (pardon sauté) for 2 -3 minutes.
• Throw bread in a toaster oven or under the broiler until golden brown and crisp on both sides.
  
• Push tomatoes to one side of pan.
  
• Crack two farm fresh organic eggs into the butter.
  
• Sprinkle with salt.
• Cover loosely so the tops of the eggs cook or flip the eggs in about 2 minutes.
• Butter toast, plate eggs and tomatoes along side of the eggs and toast.
  
• Place pickles on plate or directly on top of eggs.
  
• Salt.
  
• Pepper grinder.
• Eat.
• Yeah!
  

working lunch on hot hot desert day

LA had a heat wave last week. On a particularly whopping 99 degree afternoon in my apartment I scooted my Herman Miller from the depths of my office (closet) and went into the kitchen for some nutrition. No body really wants much food on a day like this. My organs were feeling as lethargic inside as out. Don't burden us with complicated math or chemistry please, cried my liver. My belly simply looked up and shrugged with ennui. " don esspet muuch" he mumbled mostly to himself. My belly is a surly Frenchman who is more hardy than refined but plays himself a gourmand.

Anyhoo, I poked around the fridge and found the makings of a perfect summer salad. Protein covered, nothing sleepy, a good pop of flavor and chew. Pungent hard cheese finish with the occasional happy burst of a sweet cherry tomato. Yum. With a white Lillet and French Vogue I could have called it a perfect day.

Frissée Salad w/ Beluga Lentils & Poached Egg

2C frisée washed and torn tossed in a bowl with miso dressing,

1/2C little black lentils (cooked and cooled naturally)

a handful sweet cherry tomatoes
1/4C Hard dry sheeps milk cheese

1 soft poached egg
salt & pepper to taste