A civilized breakfast

Steel-cut oats are oat groats that have been sliced into smaller pieces, whereas old-fashioned oats are oat groats that have been flattened. They all contain the same pieces and parts, but the difference between slicing and flattening explains why steel-cut oats take longer to cook (around 30 minutes).

There are many, many choices which come to mind when speaking of the ideal breakfast. Among them naturally are bacon and eggs or the more elegant eggs Benedict; pancakes and waffles; fruit bowl and donuts; the traditional croissant and fresh strawberry jam; or my late mother’s favourite on Christmas morning – filet mignon, creamy scrambled eggs and Champagne. The accompanying assortment of breads is as widely varied, including baguette bagels, rye or whole grain, English muffin and crumpets. A generous quantity of salted butter ensures satisfaction with the jam or peanut butter! My late mother’s memorable preserve was peach jam with tiny red flakes of Maraschino cherries. Perhaps the most preposterous breakfast I had was rose petals on toast with Darjeeling tea. While quite edible it was however more notable for its curiosity than its culinary satisfaction. It stands as a reminder of my youth following a night of lascivious interlude. From the convenience of the luxury Rosedale apartment off Crescent Road we smoked cigarettes and languished while admiring the verdant springtime garden in the faint morning drizzle and mist.

For much of my life breakfast was prepared for me, either at prep school, in residence at undergraduate university or at the local restaurant when I was practicing law.  It was primarily at the local restaurant that I was able to command my preferred daily agenda – bacon, sausage, eggs, toast, jam and coffee.  The chef knew me (and the other five regulars in the booth) and he made certain to produce an ample and enviable spread which to this day is unsurpassed!

What however changed the course of events for me, in particular the breakfast regime, was open-heart surgery in 2007.  Since then I have experimented with the variety of choice I mentioned earlier.  Admittedly I have never fully succeeded to surpass the bacon, sausage and eggs at the Superior Restaurant prepared by Chef Peter Charos. I have attempted to imitate his production whenever I stay in a hotel where breakfast is provided as a buffet; but as grand as they may be, the standard of Chef Charos is never quite met.

When not dipping into the fatty ingredients of bacon, sausage and eggs I have tried steel cut oats. As the packaging makes clear, you’re looking at 30 minutes from beginning to end to get the stuff to the table.  It is nonetheless worth the work!  Today I added for the first time some Liberté Méditerranée plain 10% MF yoghurt – superb!  If one were unabashedly sinful, maple syrup would complete the indulgence!

Percent Milk Fat (% MF) indicates the percentage of fat in grams (weight), not calories. If you are unable to find out which type of milk is used in making a yogurt product, check the % MF. As shown in the above chart, a yogurt product containing at least 3.25% MFindicates that it is made from whole milk.

My breakfast routine currently includes a baguette bagel and soft, ripened cheese with a side of sliced green apple. While I have momentarily removed bacon from the menu (spirited undeniably by its astronomic caloric content and by the huge effort its cooking and clean-up require), I confess I am exceedingly happy with the steel cut oats.  Though when we first stayed on Longboat Key I regularly prepared steel cut oats (prompted by the oatmeal porridge we discovered at a local restaurant on the island), I have since lost the talent for the kitchen detail.  This morning I focused upon the cooking instructions and identified the necessary utensils to sponsor an easy and speedy potion. There is unquestionably far less guilt following consumption of steel cut oats rather than double-thick bacon slices. I have every intention of once again pursuing the product as a standard part of my morning meal.

I am not however abandoning the cheese and bagel. I reason my entitlement to cheese by noting that I customarily do not eat it in the evening when preparing my repetitive raw vegetable salad (which I enlarge with fresh salmon or jumbo shrimp). Salads notoriously invite cheese especially Parmigiano-Reggiano which is among my favourite. My erstwhile debating skills inspire me to add that cheese is a brookable substitute for bacon and sausage, retaining a degree of welcome immoderation without succumbing to something entirely unhealthful.

Post Scriptum

Nothing happens in a vacuum. The casualty of COVID in this household over the past year has been carrot cake and butter tarts. When the weather soared to 19°C last week I went in search of short pants to replace what shamefully had been my stock costume over the entire winter – sweat pants. It was a manifestly disgraceful habit but, never going anywhere or doing anything of a social nature, it was a shortcoming largely undetected. When trying on my wardrobe of short pants (which by the way I already own in a variety of sizes), none fit. I know from experience that getting fat size clothing is not something to be undertaken cheerfully for two reasons: one, it is embarrassing to discover when shopping in “normal” stores that everything is made for Italians; and, two, if you are lucky enough to find anything approaching the required wide girth it is not likely anything sufferable.

I therefore opted to conduct my enquiry “on-line”, something which by the way I am progressively learning is a safe and positive alternative. My latest ventures for spectacle frames and smalls had already proven to be of the utmost satisfaction.  Nor was I disappointed on this occasion.  Not only did I find the girth and colour I sought but – by ultimate complement – a 10″ inseam which nicely avoids the current production of pants with a waist falling below one’s buttocks. The added benefit on arrival was a suitable length just below the middle of the knee, a far better appearance for someone my advanced age than pants ending somewhere along the middle of the thigh.

It is regrettable that the accommodation of pants that fit tends to hide or disguise the initial awkwardness surrounding their purchase. Nonetheless I am motivated to endure a period sans carrot cake and sans butter tarts in hopes of regaining dispensation to my erstwhile wardrobe. It is a lot to ask of steel cut oats.

One thought on “A civilized breakfast

  1. Brian Gallagher

    Thank you for your coverage of a civilized breakfast and for reviving some memories. Having grown up on a farm and only receiving breakfast after the cows were milked, we quite often had large, thick, coarse slices of home grown bacon, fresh fried eggs and probably some potatoes from the garden, left over from last nights supper and re-fried. Home made bread toasted on the wood fire and smothered with homemade jam. Not a refined meal by any consideration but very nourishing and filling. Alternate days might find a huge bowl of quick Quaker oats (definitely not steel cut) probably covered with Kellogh’s Corn Flakes and fresh unpasteurized milk.
    I had forgotten how self sufficient we were at that time and how delicious those meals were.
    How are you making out after your bicycle, heart, pacemaker deal in the south? Have you completely recovered? Any recurring problems?
    Wishing you and Denis all the best.

    Brian and Tammy

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