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Breakfast is not only the most important meal of the day… it’s also my favorite. Sweet. Savory. Doesn’t matter. Just give me a cup of coffee, some good company, and load up my plate! One of my favorite things to get when I go out to eat is eggs Florentine for the same reason that I love to get fillet mignon at a nice restaurant – I can make it myself, but getting the insides cooked just enough, but not too much, and getting the sauce just right, well, that’s a lot of work! So I created this low fuss version using some fresh arugula.

I splurged on myself this given morning, but breakfast is always better with two, so just double the recipe and enjoy.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1 C packed, sliced arugula, or any other tasty green of your choice
• 2 T butter
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 – 1/2 lemon
• 1 T coarsely chopped fresh tarragon
• dash or two of cayenne pepper
• salt to taste

Directions

First things first, gather all your materials. The thing about working with eggs is that things happen fast, so you need to be prepared. Make sure you’ve got everything together so you can act fast. There’s nothing worse than cold eggs.

In this picture you can see one of my lovely tarragon plants peeking in. He really is an attention hog. I started growing perennial herbs in my window about 6 months ago. And this is the benefit – I don’t have to pay $2+ whenever I just need a tablespoon of an herb.  If you’re interested in your own window herbs, really good herbs include tarragon, thyme, rosemary, sage, and mint. While basil and cilantro are annuals, they will also thrive in a window for their short lives.

Okay, off my soapbox/window sill and back to the recipe…

Chose your favorite method for soft boiled eggs. This is my first shortcut. I HATE poaching eggs. I don’t have the equipment for it and am usually sad with what I get out of my attempts. Forget it – just soft boil the eggs!

Place a metal strainer above the boiling pan and put the arugula in it. Toss it a few times till it’s the consistency you like then take it off.

Next, comes my trick for making Hollandaise sauce. Melt the butter and toss it into a blender. Yes, you read that right. Use the blender. Trust me. With the blender on low add the egg yolk and then slowly squeeze in lemon juice. If you like things tart, use half a lemon. If you don’t, use about a quarter or less. Add about half the tarragon and salt and cayenne pepper to taste. Then pour into a shallow pan and place above the boiling water pan, whisking continuously. Really, you just want to use this makeshift double boiler to keep the sauce warm until your soft boiled eggs are done.

My last shortcut – skip the bread. Who keeps English muffins in their house? Really? I don’t. And I don’t really care about them. So I just skip them. If you like them and have them in the house, I apologize for insulting you. Feel free to put them on the bottom of the pile. Otherwise, plate the steamed greens and sprinkle with the remaining tarragon. Then peel the eggs and place on top. Cover the whole thing with the sauce. Dig in!

To support the school’s horticulture club I bought a flat of strawberries during their annual Spring sale. Needless to say a flat of ripe strawberries is impossible to eat before all the strawberries will go bad. Thus the reason jams and jellies were created. This was my first time making “real” jam, meaning jam which requires canning. I was a little nervous as I don’t have all the canning gear, however, I was able to retrofit an existing pot and trivet to work well. This is the standard strawberry jam recipe and makes 8 half-pint jars (twice the size of the jars in the picture).

Ingredients

• 2 quarts fresh strawberries, hulled
• 1 (1 3/4 oz) package regular powdered fruit pectin
• 1/2 teaspoon butter (optional – cuts down on foaming)
• 7 cups sugar

Directions

Place 1 cup of berries in an 8-qt heavy pot. Crush the berries. Continue adding berries and crushing them until you have 5 cups crushed berries. Stir in pectin and butter.

Meanwhile put your boiling water canner (or large pot fitted with a rack) on and heat the water to boiling. Also, begin the process of sterilizing your jars (see below).

Heat berry mixture on high, stirring, until mixture comes to a rolling boil. Add sugar and return to a boil. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and skim off foam with a metal spoon.

Ladle at once into the hot, sterilized half-pint canning jars, leaving 1/4-inch space at the top. Wipe jar rims then put on lids. Place in the boiling water canner. Process for 5 minutes (starting the timer when the water returns to a boil). Remove jars and cool on racks.

Notes

To sterilize your jars and lids. I recommend using glass jars with self-sealing lids. Always use new lids when canning. Start by washing your jars in hot soapy water. Then rinse and dry. Place the jars right side up on the rack in the boiling water canner. Add the lids but make sure they don’t stick together. Boil 10 minutes (if at sea level). Remove and drain the sterilized jar and immediately add hot jam. Remove a lid, place on the jar and tighten with a screw band. For more information on canning see the USDA’s Complete Guide to Home Canning.

Arepas are a popular breakfast dish in Venezuela and Colombia. They are corn cakes made of precooked cornmeal (I like the white variety). I was introduced to arepas by a friend in college. Her father was from Colombia and her mother would frequently make arepas (and wonderful empanadas). We would eat them with carne mechada (shredded beef) and black beans for dinner. Ed grew up eating arepas with cheese, carne and a side of black beans for breakfast – aka Pabellón Criollo, the traditional Venezuelan breakfast. So obviously they are very versatile and good at any time of the day. Ed says that in Venezuelan people basically treat them as bread making all kinds of sandwiches with arepas – ham & cheese, black beans & onions, shredded pork, etc. So, I present to you our breakfast this morning, Arepas con queso. We used a fresh Latin cheese called Guayanés, however, any fresh white cheese (e.g. Farmer’s cheese) will work. I also like them with cheddar & feta but don’t tell Ed – it is heresy!

Ingredients

• 2 cups masa de arepa (masarepa)
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• fresh white cheese

Directions

Place the masa in a bowl and mix in the salt. Add the water and stir with your hands until the water is absorbed. Let sit for 5-10 minutes then knead for a few minutes until the dough is smooth.

Shape into 2″ to 5″ patties (just depends on how big you’d like your arepas) that are about 1/2-inch thick. Cook in a cast iron skillet on medium-low heat until outsides are crisp and the inside is cooked. This will take 10+ minutes.

Serve while hot. Cut each arepa in half and fill with white cheese (or carne, or black beans, or ham, etc.).

Yield: 4 servings

Notes

You can also crumble the cheese into the dough (about 1/2 cup) so it melts while you cook the arepas. These are great filled with beef or beans.

These are my favorite waffles, period. They also happen to be vegan! You might have to cook them longer than other waffles you are used to.. When done they are crisp on the outside and chewy and moist on the inside.

Ingredients

• 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar (brown sugar preferred)
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 Tablespoons soy yogurt
• 2 cups soymilk
• 15 oz pureed pumpkin, fresh or canned
• 1/3 cup oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions

Sift together dry ingredients. In a different bowl, whisk wet ingredients until well mixed. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and combine with a few strokes until there are not many dry pockets. Pour enough batter into waffle maker to make a nice size waffle and follow your manufacturer’s instructions.

Yield: 6 servings