Decadent breakfast
French toast. SG Séguret photo
Our first meal of the day sets the tone of what is to follow. Be we inclined to go light with a continental breakfast (bread and butter and coffee with accompanying condiments) or go all out with a Southern spread of eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits, gravy, grits, hash browns, fried apples, cornbread, watermelon pickles, you name it—we all have some sort of routine we like to honor in the morning. For some, it’s simply black coffee and the newspaper. For those with children, it’s often cold cereal with a splash of milk, eaten on the run. For those with more leisure, be you basking in retirement or simply seeking to up your game, here are a few items you can try.
Pain Perdu
I find it amusing that so many of the items we Americans have labeled as being French (French toast, French dressing, French fries, Frenched beans, even a French kiss!) have little or no origin in the beau pays. That breakfast toast steeped in egg and spices and smothered with maple syrup, dusted with a sprinkling of powdered sugar is one. Yes, of course, it is called French Toast. But, surprise! In France it is never eaten for breakfast (the first meal of the day is always the same: a croissant or a pain au chocolat, or yet a long slice of baguette with butter and jam, and a chokingly strong cup of coffee, diluted only by weaklings with hot milk). Rather, it is served as dessert after supper, and is called pain perdu, lost bread. Sugar and cinnamon are omitted from the egg mixture (the French in general abhor cinnamon), though occasionally jam may be served alongside. Apricot or rhubarb jam is a likely choice.
Ingredients:
- Any kind of bread that is about to go stale, or—if you want to be fancy—some fresh brioche, 2 or 3 slices per person
- 1 egg per 2-4 slices of bread, depending on the size of the egg and the consistency of the bread
- A dash of milk
- Cinnamon to taste (or not!)
- Salt to taste
Preparation:
Break eggs into a small, flat-bottomed pie plate, add milk, cinnamon and salt, and stir with a whisk. Heat skillet with oil, butter, or bacon fat. Dip sliced bread in egg mixture, and fry until golden, then flip. Slide onto a plate and serve with maple syrup (the real deal!), Nutella, jam, or fresh fruit. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if you wish, and top, if you want to be extra-decadent, with heavy whipped cream.
Decadent breakfast
Oeuf coque. SG Séguret photo
Oeuf à la Coque
Oeuf à la coque, or soft-boiled egg served in the shell, is a classic French family dish, often served as an appetizer before dinner rather than in the morning for breakfast. The basic element can be garnished in many ways, but you really can’t get better than good butter and salt, especially if you start with a freshly-laid farm egg.
Ingredients:
- 1-2 eggs per person
- A few slivers fresh butter
- Sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Preparation:
Bring eggs to room temperature before lowering them into gently boiling water. Simmer them for 3–4 minutes, more or less, depending on size. (If you start with cold eggs, leave them in for a minute longer.) Plunge momentarily into cold water in order to slow the eggs from continuing to cook while you get them to the table. Have small cups (demitasse can work here) ready to receive eggs the moment they come out of the water. Place eggs, in egg cups, on a serving plate. Surround them with fingers of toast and accompany them with a dish of fresh butter and a small dish of sea salt. You can also dip crispy bacon in the soft egginess for extra decadence.
Show each guest how to slice off the top of the egg, add a sliver of butter, a few grains of salt, and a fresh grinding of pepper. Serve with juice, champagne, or good hot coffee.
Decadent breakfast
Cast iron options. SG Séguret photo
Corn Pudding
A great way to use up leftover corn on the cob, or to take care of those extra ears in high corn season, corn pudding is a comforting side dish any day and can also be used as a main course with a salad served on the side.
Ingredients:
- 2 cups corn, cooked or uncooked, scraped from the ear
- 2 beaten eggs
- ¾ cup cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Butter for baking dish
- Cheese (your choice) for gratin topping
Preparation:
Combine all ingredients, pour into a buttered baking dish, and top with cheese (your choice of Parmesan, cheddar, or Gruyère). Bake at 400°F for half an hour or until set.
Decadent breakfast
Dutch babies. SG Séguret photo
Dutch Babies
A spin on the traditional German pancake, known as Pfannkuchen, the Dutch baby came to popularity in the early 1900s, in a family-owned Seattle restaurant called Manca’s Café. Coincidentally, Austria and Finland both have similar treatments of the ingredients, as I’m sure do other countries, but the Dutch get the credit here, although the term Dutch purportedly came from Victor Manca’s daughter’s pronunciation of Deutch (German).
Relying on eggs and heat instead of leavening for the rise, these breakfast treats are more like a Yorkshire pudding than a pancake. Make them savory (by omitting the sugar and throwing in a handful of herbs) or sweet.
Ingredients:
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup whole milk
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Powdered sugar, maple syrup, lemon slices, or jam for serving
Preparation:
Mix together eggs, milk, sugar, and vanilla, whisking until smooth. Sift flour into the mixture, and throw in the salt, whisking again to remove all lumps. Let batter sit for about 20 minutes if you can wait that long, so that flour will absorb the liquid.
Heat a 9-10 inch skillet, preferably cast iron, melt the butter in the bottom, and give it a swirl. Pour in the batter which will sizzle as it hits the pan. Place in a 425°F oven with ample space above it. Bake for 15 or 20 minutes until puffed and lightly brown across the top. Alternatively, you can pour batter in a cake or pie pan, or a couple of smaller skillets. Adjust cooking time according to size.
Serve immediately, cut into wedges, and topped with fresh fruit and a sprinkling of powdered sugar and cinnamon or a squeeze of lemon if you wish.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Susi Gott Séguret, CCP, CSW, hails from the depths of Appalachia in Madison County, North Carolina, but honed her culinary skills in France, where she resided for over 20 years, earning a diploma in Gastronomy and Taste from the Cordon Bleu and the Université de Reims. Author of several cookbooks including Appalachian Appetite, Adirondack Appetite, and Cooking with Truffles, Susi orchestrates multiple sensory experiences including the Seasonal School of Culinary Arts, the Asheville Truffle Experience, and the Appalachian Culinary Experience. Passionate about elements of taste and style, and how they extend from our palate into our daily lives, Susi strives to blend food, music, words and images into a tapestry for the senses. For more details, visit quintessentialtable.com.