Breakfast of a Champion?

Preparing for a snow storm for most people involves stopping at a grocery store and stocking up on bread and milk.  For me, a trip to Dunkin' on the way home to buy a black French Vanilla so I can reheat it in the morning and add cream and sugar is the way to go.

I no longer drink coffee daily, but for special days and some weekends, it is a fabulous treat!

To offset the calories and sugar, I pour a bowl of the most traditional cereal in the world that comes in a yellow box... can you guess?

Growing up, my sister and I were allowed to sprinkle a little sugar on top.  I used to driver my sister absolutely crazy at the breakfast table by barricading myself behind the cereal box and she could not see me.  The more I realized this annoyed her, of course, the more I did it.

Funny how simple thoughts about cereal make one wander off and I think of my in-laws and how they always had a box of the cereal with Tony the Tiger.  When our sons were young, the Mr. would complain about how much cereal was consumed and how expensive it was becoming compared to when we were young.

I enjoy my bowl of oooo's with a handful of blueberries while I enjoy a section of a book I am reading that was loaned to me by a coworker.  A slower pace.  No rush to shovel the walks as I wait for the man who plows our driveway and I linger at the table feeling Fed Well and satisfied.

Bad Girl Breakfast

A squishy hard roll, a scrambled egg and bacon.  A moment of silence please to honor this most perfect, yet highly unhealthy or at least lacking in nutrition breakfast.

Because I order it so rarely, I have affectionately named this treat, "The Bad Girl Breakfast," when talking with one of my co-workers and she knows exactly what I have ordered.

I have been cutting out the sweets and am on the treadmill faithfully every other day and continue to increase speed (don't tell anyone I was jogging the other night when no one was home) and adjusting the incline for bursts of extra work.

Honestly, I believe in moderation.  I do prefer fresh and raw produce.  Am I saying all of this for me benefit or yours?  Doesn't matter, mostly I'm feeling as if I am Fed Well.

1 + 1 = Happy Breakfast

One pancake and one sausage patty.  The cook in our employee cafeteria laughs almost every time I order this breakfast.  My serving size seems smaller than the average at work.  The typical pancake sale is double the size.

For years, I was someone who skipped breakfast, then I went to carbs only like a buttered hard roll or a bagel, next I moved on to a healthy breakfast of oatmeal and now with an employee cafeteria, I splurge all over the place with eggs, pancakes, and I've even tried the raisin bread french toast.  Spoiled.

Part of the mulit-cultural environment in which I work includes unusual smells in our office area in the morning.  Some eat soup.  Some eat dinner in the morning.  And others may not enjoy the smell of eggs in the workplace.  We make it work.  We are tolerant and I am seriously considering jumping over to try the non-breakfast food items in the morning just to switch things up.  Mixing it up and trying new things contribute to me feeling Fed Well.

Play With Your Yolks

I once had a friend who's husband could not stand the sight of anyone dipping toast into egg yolk.  

Odd? 

Or is it odd that I think that is half the fun of eating any eggs with a nice runny yolk?

My Monday morning was made a bit more tolerable with a smiley egg plate and wheat toast designed to dunk.

Maybe it's just odd that I turned my plate of eggs into a smiley face?  I just want to have a little fun, have a few laughs, who doesn't?  

Take a minute if you can, play with your food, do whatever it is that makes you happy.  If it means dribbling egg yolk into a smile, well, who does it hurt?  Hoping your day starts well and ends leaving you Fed Well.

Sunday Smoothies with Sweet or Savory Breakfast

What to do with the fruit that is turning the corner?  The fruit the husband tried to throw away because he thought it wasn't good?  The fruit that you bought because you wanted it and then forgot about?

The strawberries were on sale and sold in a display next to the yellow sponge cakes.  I had much healthier plans for the juicy red berries, but they sat in the drawer in the refrigerator for just a day or two to long to simply eat them raw.

Smoothies!

Smoothies are always the answer.  Well, almost always.

A slice the pretty-darn-ripe banana with the same paring knife I used to halve the berries.

Give the berries a quick rinse and toss in the blender with blueberries and milk.

Everyone blends on low for about 30 seconds then a quick whip on high before evenly distributing into 4 short glasses.

Older son and his girlfriend are making pancakes.  A few with blueberries, some with "chocolate chippies" and I'm not sure if their was one or two with both.

The Mr. and I opt for savory sausage patty on toasted english muffin with scrambled egg.

We plan our day; son will play football with friends for awhile, his girlfriend is heading off to work, hubby and I have a morning errand date which includes a stop at Dunkin' for a french vanilla coffee for me, then son and hubby are off to do some guy shopping before we all plop in front of the t.v. for a bit of football playoffs.

Sundays are for that slower pace, a decreased sense of urgency, more casual and laid back while still feeling Fed Well.

Dorothy Parker Breakfast

One of the great modern Internet inventions - Pinterest.  One of my favorite discoveries on Pinterest - almost everything!  I have a board dedicated to my favorite author, Dorothy Parker.

Pinterest

For those who do not know what Pinterest is, well, it is basically a world of images that may or may not be attached to websites.  The image may be just that a photo or cartoon or a link to a website or blog.  

When I found Dorothy Parker quotes, I could hardly contain myself and the best part for me was finding quotes I had never heard or seen.

"This wasn't plain terrible, this was fancy terrible, this was terrible with raisins in it."

LOVE!

The way I have noticed the universe to operate (can you tell I have read, "The Secret?") is that when one thought is put out to the universe, others may follow and so after having found that quote, was it sheer coincidence that I decide to try the cafeteria's Raisin Bread French Toast with sausage?

Maybe.

Anyway, you can see one side of the bread has the look of a scrambled egg coating, but you know what, it was fine.  The bread was crisp enough to stand up to the syrup and while I thought I couldn't eat the entire 3 slice serving, I managed to make it all disappear.

Have I ever told you I am a charter member of the Clean Plate Club?

Mind, body and soul were Fed Well with one serving.

A Holiday Treat on a Plain Old Saturday

My older son's girlfriend made a tasty breakfast treat this past Saturday morning.  These popular cinnamon buns with frosting are typically only prepared one morning a year in this house - Christmas morning.  Why?   I'm not really sure, but it is one of the few traditions my husband started.  Grocery shopping for the holidays one year he put the popular cardboard tube in the cart and simply pronounced them to be Christmas breakfast and so, a tradition was born.

I have seen and heard others share more involved breakfasts and traditions but this has become ours.  Also, when I prepare them, I cram them all in a circular pan so they are touching when they bake.  I prefer this "new" method of separating them on a large pan so all edges can crisp a bit.

What are your families own holiday food traditions?  How did they start?  Have they evolved?  Culinary traditions always leave me feeling Fed Well and are an important part of holiday memories.

When Breakfast Needs Dessert

Nothing screams holiday meal more loudly than a sweet and decadent dessert.  Why should dinner have all the fun?  When scouting around the kitchen for just the right post-breakfast treat, why not open the white bakery box and dig right into a slice of wonderful?

Who makes the culinary rules anyway?  Who says you can't have pie after eggs?  Grab a slice of freedom and make sure it is topped with home made whipped cream (sweetened with a drop of vanilla and sugar) and dance around the room.

* This post does not apply to those suffering from diabetes or other health risks, are underage/minors who must currently listen to their parents regarding dietary habits or elderly parents under their adult children's supervision.  Always check with your doctor before staring this or any other new health regimen :)

I hope you heard the disclaimer above in the speed reading voice featured in most new medicine television commercials.

The point is, if you want to indulge every now and then, it certainly adds to the gleeful joyousness of feeling Fed Well.

Thankful Breakfast

On the third Thursday of November, the country celebrates Thanksgiving.  At my house, it has long been a tradition to also go deer hunting.  Not for me, but my Dad hunted, my father-n-law was a hunter, my husband hunts alone or with his brother and nephews, and my sons have gone to humor their father in the past.  Part of their tradition used to seem disruptive while preparing to host a major holiday, but now, I have incorporated it into the holiday.

In planning the menu for the day and taking a step back even further, when grocery shopping, I consider what Thanksgiving Breakfast will include.  Past menus have been pancakes or french toast with sausage, various egg dishes with or without meat, toast and potatoes.  This year I decided to saute green peppers and onions with red potatoes, brown sausage links and since it would be my youngest niece (no nephews or sons) at the table with my brother-in-law and my hubby, custom order eggs would be fine.

While the men talk about deer, my niece and I chat a bit about school, school sports she is participating in and of course, Christmas.  

Keeping with holiday serving sizes, I overestimated on both the sausage and potatoes, but it worked out fine.  A treat for the long weekend included left-over breakfast on Friday morning with all ingredients, including eggs, are tossed together in my favorite non-stick skillet.

 

A second Thankful Breakfast is served on left-over holiday themed paper plates with 2 small slices of Italian bread from the day before that has been re-purposed by toasting and buttering. 

 

All food traditions and shared meals have their own memories.  Looking forward to next year's Thankful Breakfast, wonder who will be seated at the table and which stories of being Fed Well will be shared.

Cherry Danish with Sausage

Sometimes a person just wants an unusual combination of foods.  The balance found with a sweet and salty dish can be extremely satisfying and with just a look, a woman can certainly order or purchase whatever foods will fill the craving.

Craving.  Did I use that word?  No, I'm not pregnant, but I do believe everyone should give into their food cravings within healthy reason.  If pickles and ice cream are really something you want, then yes, enjoy.  I have also been known to indulge in french fries with a salad - the perfect balance of good vs. culinary evil.

So what did I have one morning at work for breakfast from the employee cafeteria?

Yes, a cherry danish and a sausage patty.

The most satisfying part was dipping some of the sausage pieces into the cherry ooze.  Would I order it again?  You bet.  The only thing I would change would be to warm up the danish for a few seconds in the microwave.

What is the most unusual food combination you have eaten?  Please share so all the odd combo lovers can feel the camaraderie and still maintain being Fed Well.

Grown ups eat Hash Browns

As part of a particular generation, many may believe childhood included certain foods:  hot dogs, macaroni and cheese, peanut butter and jelly, tater tots, fishsticks and maybe hash browns.

Mostly, I didn't really eat any of those things.

Sometimes, while grocery shopping with my husband, he would share food memories of his youth that I simply could not understand.  He used to eat fishsticks.  I'd had actual fish but my mother wasn't a big fan of real or packaged fish of any kind.

When my sons were young they did like things like chicken wings and nuggets as sort of childhood foods, but surprised many with their love for shrimp, fried calamari and steak. It wasn't until I was a mom that I would even consider PB & J on white bread, but I have learned to love it once in awhile.  I have also modified the ingredients for a grown up version to include blueberry jam and peanut butter on a nice grainy bread.

My culinary upbringing included a lot of meat and potato based meals, pasta and lunches were typically sandwiches including cold cuts.  Ok, I did and still do love french fries and fast food hamburgers.

A few years ago when I turned 40 I had my first hash browns and tater tots.  You know what?  They weren't so bad and not really what I thought they would taste like based on their appearance.

Luckily, when our work cafeteria does not offer small red potatoes with breakfast now I can be sort of satisfied with hash browns.

A few childhood favorites would likely make me sick now like Strawberry Quik or bowls of rice with butter.  Some are simply no longer available like Quisp cereal.  What childhood favorites leave you feeling Fed Well?