For the first time potentially ever in my life, I opted to not go anywhere at all for the holidays. I didn't go home (was there for a full week at Thanksgiving...and it's far...), I didn't away anywhere, I simply stayed put right here in SF. In my mind's eye, it was going to be a glorious four days: I'd go to yoga each day, I'd take long runs, I'd read the paper, I'd wander obscure neighborhoods on sun-dappled sidewalks, perhaps go see a movie or two by myself.
In reality...I discovered that four days sans social contact is not all that it's cracked up to be. I'm decent company, reasonably entertaining, but I'm ready to return to a peopled life. External factors also cropped up to spoil my plans: on Thursday night the cold from hell hit me out of nowhere. I managed to spend Fri baking cookies and entertaining a 9 yr-old and a 12 yr-old On Friday, and I looked forward to adult company that evening for dinner. Alas, I could not smell nor taste nor go a minute without snotting, so I declined and stayed put on my couch. Saturday, it rained all day long, thus, I hadn't the strength to leave and go anywhere.
So in summary, I had a couple of runs, but no yoga, no paper-reading, no wandering, and no movies. The one thing I did manage to do was a bit of cooking though. And that was my savior and sustenance for the soul this long weekend. The highlight was my Thursday morning welcome to the holidays breakfast, classic eggs benedict:
I didn't have to experience any of that nervousness I always get when I order benedict and go to cut into the egg and worry that it's going to be over-done - I knew the eggs would be perfectly soft and runny. And they were. For those of you seeking to make it yourselves, I'll save you the trouble of looking up a recipe and give it to you here. And with that, I'm going to finish watching yet another movie (Pineapple Express), blow my nose again, and mentally prepare myself for the return to productivity. Hope you all had a lovely Xmas!!
- Poaching the eggs: Grease the bottom of a large, deep skillet (so the eggs don't stick). Fill 1/2 way with water and bring to a boil. Crack eggs, one at a time, into a measuring cup and then transfer them into the water, getting the lip of the cup as close to the water as possible. Simmer the eggs 3-4 minutes (I found 3 to work). You want the whites to set firm but the yolks (duh) to stay good and runny.
- Making the sauce: You need 3 egg yolks, a Tblsp of fresh lemon juice, 1 Tblsp of water, a dash of salt and pepper (white if you have it), and 1/2 C butter. For the butter, cut it into about 5 thick slices, and a double boiler. Whisk the eggs, lemon, and salt and pepper together, and pour into the top of the double boiler once the water is going. Add once slice of butter and start whisking. As it melts, add in the additional slices one at a time. You need to watch this stuff -- you want to incorporate the butter in but you can't actually cook the sauce -- the eggs will curdle. If you do see any signs of curdling, add a tablespoon of hot water and quickly incorporate.
- Getting it all pulled together: Get all your ingredients and cooking implements set up first. Toast the muffin and fry the canadian bacon slices as the eggs cook. Then transfer the muffin and bacon to a plate, and slip the cooked eggs into a bath of hot water in a large bowl. THEN do the sauce -- it's fast and you want that to be hot.
