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Breakfast

I love beginnings. Beginnings are full of promise and a kind of energy that is hard to replicate. It is important to think of how, before you begin, you wish the end to look, to feel— and for us in the kitchen, to smell. The beginning of the day or the beginning of a meal is a sacred time and should be honored, even in small ways.

Breakfast is my favorite meal and one in which there is an infinite amount of creative room to play with traditional ingredients. I like to give the morning its due with a meal— a real meal. More often than not, what was enjoyed at the dinner table the night before finds itself reinvented at the breakfast table— the asparagus is now in my frittata, the potatoes and pork loin have been turned into a hash, chile verde is topped with a fried egg on a tortilla with chopped onion and cilantro. It is like being handed a palette of colors and you get to make a painting— even better, since the painting is edible, no?

I encourage you to sit down at the table and begin your day with good tastes and wonderful sustenance. I love breakfast so much so that if given my choice of any restaurant, it would most certainly be one known for its breakfasts. While I was in culinary school in New York, breakfast was the meal I did not miss— no matter how tired I was. All of the culinary students had to do a stint working in the breakfast restaurant. The breakfasts were nothing short of phenomenal and anything but standard. However, we had to report to work at 3 A.M. to start the prep for opening at 7 A.M. I was cured of wanting a breakfast restaurant after that experience, but not cured of seeking an incredible beginning meal.

Even though breakfast is my favorite meal, and even though I am armed with the knowledge that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it is still tempting to hit the snooze button and skip or skimp on this meal. Nevertheless, my son and I sit down together at the breakfast table every morning— despite the sometimes hectic pace with which the school and workday may start— say our Three Things, and enjoy a good breakfast. I have vowed to not eat my breakfast on the run, in the car, or away from the smooth, worn edges of a table.

Weekends present another opportunity, however. On the weekends we linger over the breakfast table. I once started a breakfast club for the early rising neighborhood children who couldn’t wait to start their Saturdays by knocking on my door at seven o’clock in the morning. We would invite them in and share our breakfast traditions— frittatas and eggs-in-a-nest and such. It grew into a “Are we having Breakfast Club this weekend, Ms. Tasia?” I really loved the sound of that question! Even better was when the gaggle of children scattered outside, leaving the leisurely weekend breakfast table still surrounded by the parents, an event often spanning all the way past noon. I am always pleased when just another pot of coffee is being made and conversations last until eventually someone asks, “What’s for lunch?”

French Press Coffee with Steamed Milk

I have experimented quite a bit with different methods of brewing coffee. And spent quite a lot of money along the way. It seems indicative of my style to have to try everything but to eventually come round to champion the simplest method out there. This would be a twelve-ounce French Press, sometimes called a “press pot.” If you have never had coffee made in a French Press, I encourage you strongly to try it. It couldn’t be simpler, and frankly I believe it couldn’t be better. Café au lait is the French version of coffee with lots of milk, fifty-fifty coffee to milk. The milk is steamed or warmed. I no longer have any fancy coffee equipment in my kitchen, so I just gently heat my milk on the stove and boil my coffee water in an old teakettle that lives on my stove.

Serves 6

3 rounded tablespoons coarse-grind coffee

12 ounces boiling water

12 ounces warmed milk

Scoop 3 tablespoons of ground coffee into the bottom of the French Press. Slowly pour in the boiling water. Stir well with a wooden spoon. Put top of press on the container and let coffee steep for 3–4 minutes. Plunge slowly. Pour coffee into huge coffee “bowls” halfway and then fill with warm milk. Sweeten as desired.

Fresh-Squeezed Orange Juice

When I am in Greece and staying with my sisters at my stepmother Dina’s house, the day always begins with a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice. It is indescribably delicious.

I know that most of us won’t take the time to do this every day, but for certain occasions it is absolutely worth it. A simple juicer makes it oh so easy.

There is an endless variety of presses and juicers on the market, and some of them are quite expensive. A very simple plastic one with a strainer to catch the seeds on the sides can work just fine. I have a rather War of the Worlds-looking one that I leave on the counter at all times, just in case the mood strikes.

Serves 1

4 large oranges

Per person, you need about four large oranges, cut in half.

Squeeze juice with your press or manual juicer directly into a glass. Enjoy!

Hot Cocoa

I don’t know of a single child who doesn’t love hot cocoa on a cold morning. For that matter, I don’t know many adults who would turn down that offer. As a matter of fact, and I promise I am telling the truth, my son had hot chocolate with his breakfast this very morning. Pre-made mixes are certainly accommodating but I know you will find them lacking in comparison to this easy-to-create recipe. A little tip for the coffee drinkers: after amply handing this out to children, I sometimes spoon the remaining cocoa from this recipe into my coffee cup instead of steamed milk.

Serves 2

3 cups whole milk

1 cup half-and-half

¼ cup good quality Dutch-process cocoa powder

½ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Marshmallows, for topping

Pour milk and half-and-half into a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Meanwhile, stir together the cocoa powder, sugar, and cinnamon. To make a smooth paste, stir the hot milk into the cocoa mixture a few teaspoons at a time. Scrape the cocoa mixture into the saucepan with the milk and simmer a few minutes; do not let it boil. Stir in the vanilla.

Pour into small serving cups and place 4 marsh mallows on each serving. Serve immediately.

Mimosa

You know that orange juice you just squeezed? I have just the perfect thing for you to do with it!

A Mimosa is a classic breakfast or brunch drink, and honestly I cannot think of a better friend for an orange than a sparkling wine. I was just recently in the region in Italy where Prosecco reigns. Prosecco was served everywhere and for every occasion— don’t you love the Italians?— and especially at breakfast. Prosecco was even on the breakfast buffet at our hotel. Since it is having a moment here in the States, feel free to try it or any other sparkling variety that you love in making a Mimosa.

Serves 4

8 ounces orange juice, preferably fresh-squeezed

1 (750-milliliter) bottle champagne or Prosecco Champagne flutes

Pour 2 ounces of orange juice into each flute. Fill almost to the rim with champagne. Toast and celebrate the day!

Bloody Mary

The Bloody Mary is one of my all-time favorite drinks. I love it especially because it is so savory and spicy (my preference), and I adore it in a salt-rimmed glass (my second preference). Inevitably when I think of a Bloody Mary it conjures images of New Orleans and brunch at Commander’s Palace … or just Sunday suppers at my house. I serve mine with lots of accompaniments such as pickled okra, olives, celery stalks, and anything else pickled I have around. And salting the rim is always a nice touch. It is also a lot of fun to put out a Bloody Mary bar since everyone is their own Bloody expert. Customization can be accommodated with ease, and experimentation is encouraged. I will make up a delicious base mix and then put out a beautiful array of options.

Serves 6

Mix 32 ounces (1 large container) V8 juice

6 ounces premium vodka

Half a large lemon, juiced

Generous shakes of salt and pepper

4 large dashes Worcestershire sauce

4 large dashes hot sauce

Bar Ingredients Pickled okra

Celery stalks

Fresh horseradish

Pimiento-stuffed olives

Hot sauce

Lemon or lime wedges

Set Up Large glasses

Ice

Let everyone assemble their own and customize as they choose. This leaves your hands as cook and host free to entertain.

DIY Breakfast Cheese

We use Belle Chèvre’s fromage blanc for our recipe (fromage blanc is a soft, often spreadable goat cheese), but if you cannot find it in your stores, you can use a goat cheese log moistened with milk or cream until it is a spreadable consistency. The amount needed will depend on how dry the log is.

Serves 4

1 cup fromage blanc

2 tablespoons honey

Mix the fromage blanc and the honey. Serve on your favorite breakfast bread. Enjoy!

Belle and The Bees Stuffed French Toast

A perfect breakfast or snack, this is a more nutritious version of French toast. Lightly sweetened goat cheese is the surprising, delicious filling for sweet bread. Strawberries add some freshness to the honey-flavored goat cheese, tucked in the toasty bread.

Serves 4

4 slices (about 2-inches-thick) dense bread, like challah

4 ounces Belle & The Bees Breakfast Cheese (honeyed goat cheese)

8 strawberries, sliced

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup buttermilk

3 large eggs

1 tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon lemon zest

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon salt

Cut the bread slices almost in half, leaving one edge intact to form a pocket, similar in appearance to pita bread. Spread the cheese on the inside of each piece. Follow with a layer of strawberries and close the bread.

Heat pan over medium-high heat. Melt butter in pan. Whisk the buttermilk and the remaining five ingredients in a flat bowl. Dip the bread into the mixture, soaking sides and edges. Fry in pan until each side is golden brown.

Keep warm in a 250-degree oven while preparing remaining French toast in the same way.

Breakfast Quesadillas with Smoked Salmon and Goat Cheese

The quesadilla is a go-to item in my house. Some times it is simply cheese that is toasted between two beautiful tortillas and served as a snack. This recipe is certainly an elevated example. You already know what I am going to say but … feel free to experiment once you are comfortable with the technique!

Serves 6–8

1 small red onion, thinly sliced crosswise

11 ounces goat cheese, room temperature

2 teaspoons fresh chives, finely chopped

½ teaspoon fresh lemon zest, finely grated

¼ teaspoon black pepper

12 (8-inch) flour tortillas (not low-fat)

1 pound smoked salmon (preferably Nova), sliced

1 firm, ripe California avocado

2 teaspoons lime juice, freshly squeezed

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 pound (2 2/3 cups) cherry tomatoes, halved lengthwise

Soak sliced onion in a bowl of ice and cold water 15 minutes; drain well and pat dry.

While onion soaks, stir together cheese, chives, zest, and pepper in a bowl until well combined.

Evenly spread about 1½ tablespoons cheese mixture over 2 tortillas (keep remaining tortillas covered with plastic wrap). Top one tortilla with an even layer of salmon, covering goat cheese completely; then top with other tortilla, cheese side down. Make 5 more quesadillas in same manner, then stack on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and chill until ready to heat.

Halve, pit, and peel avocado, then cut lengthwise into 1/8-inch-thick slices. Lightly brush avocado slices with lime juice and set aside.

Heat cast-iron skillet over high heat until very hot, then reduce heat to moderate. Lightly brush 2 quesadillas on both sides with some oil, then toast on skillet (one at a time if necessary) until undersides are golden with some blackened spots, about 1 minute. Flip quesadillas over with a spatula and toast until undersides are golden with some blackened spots, 1–2 minutes, then transfer to a baking sheet, arranging in one layer, and cover with foil to keep warm. Toast remaining quesadillas in same manner, using a second baking sheet.

Heat remaining oil in the same skillet over high heat until hot but not smoking, then cook tomatoes, stirring occasionally and seasoning with salt and pepper, until they just begin to soften, about 1 minute.

Transfer quesadillas to plates, then top with onion, avocado, and tomatoes.

Breakfast Suggestions

For a quick but very fulfilling breakfast, imitate the Mediterraneans and serve cheese and fruit and slices of cured meats (salami, for example). The breakfast table at my family’s house in Greece always has a hunk of feta on it.

Other breakfast ideas using goat cheese include serving it on toast with honey or jam or whipping it into biscuit recipes instead of buttermilk.

A great way to get vegetables to the table in the morning is to combine them with your eggs in a frittata, omelet, or scrambled eggs.

With the addition of a tortilla and some sour cream, non-traditional breakfast meats, such as braised roasts or even shredded chicken, can creatively turn scrambled eggs into a delicious Mexican-inspired dish.

Spring Pea and Goat Cheese Frittata

Frittatas are my easy go-to breakfast dish. In fact, I will go for periods where I make them almost every morning for my son and myself. When I told him I was going to write a cookbook, Kelly immediately said, “You should put in our frittatas! You’re the one who made them up!” I am the only author of the frittata in my son’s mind, but you can be the author of your own version very, very easily. You can make them with almost anything you have on hand. The base ingredients are eggs, milk or cream, and some kind of cheese. Once you get the technique and concept down there is no stopping you from an endless variety of frittatas.

Cook’s note : What is left over from the previous night’s dinner is normally what ends up in the breakfast— asparagus to roast chicken come back alive in this simple baked omelet with a great Italian name.

Serves 4

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 leek stalk (light part only), thinly sliced

½ cup fresh peas, blanched and drained

6 large eggs

1 small bunch fresh mint, stems removed, torn into small pieces

Kosher salt and pepper, to taste

2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

½ cup half-and-half

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Heat the oil in a large ovenproof sauté pan over medium heat. Add leek and sauté until soft, then add peas and cook for 2–3 minutes more.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, beat the eggs with ½ cup of half-and-half.

Add the eggs and half the mint to the pan, season with salt and pepper, and cook, lifting the edges with a spatula to allow the uncooked eggs to flow to the bottom. When the frittata is partly cooked (7–10 minutes), sprinkle on the goat cheese and transfer the pan to the oven.

Bake for 8–10 minutes until puffed and golden. Remove and allow to cool slightly. Garnish with the remaining mint to taste and serve.

What’s Love Got to Do with It?

At home, when you make those favorite cookies (or other special dish) that you meticulously copied down the recipe for while your grandmother (or other special person) whipped them up for you, do they taste the way you remembered?

Whole companies are inspired by grandmothers’ secret recipes, and internationally renowned chefs (even and especially the surly ones who have boastfully elevated food to high art) credit their grandmothers’ humbler hearths as their inspirations; when asked about those original childhood food moments, eyes roll back just a bit and smiles slowly spread across serious faces as food is recalled that was lovingly made for us alone, with results that often can’t be replicated.

One of my best girlfriends tells me often about her childhood spent in her grandparents’ basement kitchen (I never knew why the kitchen was in the basement) watching the preparation of all kinds of masterful Italian dishes. She made meatballs with her grandmother, who schooled her on how the meat should feel as it is kneaded— like a woman’s breast, her grandmother would say. My friend now will spend the better part of a day recreating that recipe. She is proud of the way the meatballs turn out, but she still admits they don’t taste as good as in her grandmother’s basement kitchen. Why is that?

I think about this mystery a lot. In fact, I talk about it a lot in relation to the recipe we use to make our cheese at Belle Chèvre. Ours isn’t a secret recipe, as the making of goat cheese is a relatively simple exercise, but I confidently believe that our cheese tastes the way it does because of how we make it, because of the emotion and the pride we put into it when we are making it, and— please forgive the sentimentality of this— because of the love with which we make it.

I feel silly in a way writing about this because it seems so trite to say.

Kung Fu Panda learns that there is no secret in the secret recipe.

Before I had any ideas of formulating this mystery into a theory I went so far as to say that my grandmother’s chicken and dumplings would be a memory that I wouldn’t muddy. My grandmother was my definition of love, and she tangibly and magically whipped her love into a round fluffy form we all know as a biscuit. But that biscuit wasn’t just a biscuit and even my eight-year-old self recognized that.

I vowed quite some time ago not to try to emulate her chicken and dumplings, nor do I eat anyone else’s. I realize that stance is probably over the top, but it is where I am with protecting that particular memory and that particular kind of love.

Perfect Fried Eggs

Serves 1 or 2

2 teaspoons butter or olive oil (or bacon grease)

2 large eggs

Salt (fine sea salt preferred) and pepper

Place a 7- or 8-inch nonstick frying pan (I like a well-seasoned cast-iron pan) over medium heat and add butter. When the butter has foamed and the foam begins to subside, carefully break and slip the eggs into the pan. Reduce the heat a bit and cook slowly until the whites are firm, about 3 minutes. Use a nonstick spatula to turn the eggs over gently. Let them cook on the second side for about 30 seconds. Carefully lift the eggs out of the pan and place on warmed plates. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Fried Eggs and Learning to Cook to Please

I kind of see fried eggs the same way that Forrest Gump’s friend Bubba saw shrimp. There are so many ways to enjoy them— fried egg sandwich, fried egg on a tortilla, fried egg on sautéed greens with bacon. I have even had a fried egg on a pizza and served on a bowl of steaming soup!

My mother always made the fried eggs when I was growing up. Saturday mornings were filled with sounds of eggs cracking against the side of the skillet and then landing, sizzling, on the hot surface. One morning I wanted to make them— create for myself those splendid sounds and the resultant oozing yellow on the plate— and I received my first fried egg lesson. She told me I did a good job (a wonderful thing for a girl to hear from her mother), and I suppose it was true because from then on it was my job to fry the eggs. I didn’t take this job lightly because my mother liked her fried eggs just so. The yoke had to be runny but the whites absolutely cooked through, and with one flip.

I didn’t find it easy to achieve the perfect fried egg, and sometimes this task would produce no small amount of anxiety. There was so much that could go wrong! The yoke could break just after entering the pan (maddening!) or during the flip. The whites might not be all the way finished when the yoke starts to harden— that is not good. It makes me nervous just to think about it!

I most often use butter or olive oil but my mother always fried eggs in the grease left in the pan after frying bacon. It produces a very obvious smoky flavor for the eggs, and little flecks of bacon are seized in the egg whites that make them very delicious. If you aren’t concerned about the fat, then please use bacon grease for a wonderful treat.

Sweet Potato Hash

I love the idea of a hash for breakfast, even though the corned beef hash seen on most menus tends to scare me a bit. I will often make a hash the morning after I have made a delicious roasted pork loin, and cube several thick leftover slices to put into the hash. If you don’t have a pork loin to use, bacon is a good substitute— or, for that matter, any rustic roasted or grilled meat.

Serves 4

4 sweet potatoes (1¾ pounds), peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

6 ounces slab bacon, sliced ¼-inch thick and cut into ½-inch pieces

1 pound Vidalia or other sweet onions, cut in a rough dice

2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

½ teaspoon dried oregano

2 tablespoons chives, minced

Salt and pepper

In a medium saucepan of salted boiling water, boil the sweet potatoes for 3 minutes; drain well.

In a large skillet, heat the oil. Add the bacon and cook over moderate heat until crisp, 4–5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain. Add the onions to the skillet and cook over moderate heat until browned, about 12 minutes. Add the sweet potatoes and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until just tender, about 15 minutes. Increase the heat to high and cook without stirring until browned on the bottom, about 2 minutes. Stir in the bacon, parsley, oregano, and chives.

Season with salt and pepper and serve with your Perfect Fried Egg on top. A little crumble or two of goat cheese and herbs on top of that, and you are in heaven.

Egg in a Nest

This is one of the neighborhood children’s favorite things to ask for when coming to Ms. Tasia’s house, no matter what time of day. Little Jack Schamban swears by mine, but just know that it is the easiest recipe to make and has a little bit of fun built right in. I make these one at a time, and if you have a crowd you can keep the prepared ones in a very low heat oven (you don’t want to cook the yolk through) until all are made and everyone is gathered at the table.

Serves 1

Olive oil (to coat the bottom of the pan, may need to add again after the flip)

1 slice good-quality whole-grain bread

1 egg

Sprinkle of salt and pepper

Coat the bottom of a good nonstick or, even better, a cast-iron skillet with olive oil. Heat over medium heat.

Use a biscuit cutter or just free-form tear a hole in the center of the bread.

Place holey bread in skillet and crack the egg in the hole. Let the egg set up and the bread get toasty on one side and then flip to toast the other side of the bread for roughly 2 minutes per side, depending on preference for how well done the egg should be. I believe it is best though when the yolk is runny and can spread over the plate so the bread can soak it all up!

Belle Chèvre Scrambled Eggs with Shiitake Mushrooms

Who doesn’t love scrambled eggs? If there is some one out there who doesn’t, I haven’t met her. This recipe is a hearty and earthy way to dress up the standard fare.

Serves 4

3 tablespoons butter, unsalted

6 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps thinly sliced

Salt and pepper

8 large eggs, well beaten

3 tablespoons chives, snipped

3 ounces (about 1/3 cup) mild goat cheese, crumbled

Toast, for serving

In a large nonstick skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Add mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly browned, about 5 minutes.

In a bowl, season the eggs with salt and pepper. Melt the remaining butter in the skillet with the mushrooms; add the eggs. Cook over moderately low heat without stirring until the bottom is barely set, 30 seconds. Add the chives and cook, stirring occasionally, until the eggs form large soft curds. Remove from the heat and sprinkle the cheese on top; let stand until softened, 30 seconds. Gently fold the cheese into the eggs; serve with toast.

Belle Chèvre Baked Eggs

I first fell in love with baked eggs at my friend Lyn Aust’s wonderful gourmet bistro in Huntsville, Alabama. Hers were ultra-yummy, as I recall, with ham and spinach. This is a simple yet very elegant version. What I especially like is that it is remarkably easy to feed a crowd with this dish.

Serves 6

2 tablespoons mixed fresh herbs (parsley, basil, thyme, mint, tarragon), chopped

Clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons butter, melted

2 tablespoons heavy cream or half-and-half

6 eggs

3 tablespoons goat cheese, finely crumbled

Sea salt

Cracked black pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Combine herbs and garlic; set aside. In a glass measuring cup, mix butter and cream. Place six 4-ounce ramekins or ovenproof cups on a baking sheet. Pour butter mixture evenly among ramekins. Bake in oven until bubbly hot, about 1–3 minutes.

Remove from oven. To avoid breaking yolks, carefully crack 1 egg into a separate cup and gently slide it into a heated ramekin. Top eggs with herb and mixture and crumbled cheese. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat with remaining eggs.

Return to oven and bake 3–5 minutes. Eggs should look not quite done; they will continue to cook after removed from oven. Place each ramekin on a plate. Serve immediately with toast.

Cornmeal Pancakes Topped with Honey-Pecan Butter

I wholeheartedly agree with Mark Bittman, author of How To Cook Everything, when he said that we must have, as Americans, lost our connection to the kitchen when we stopped making pancakes from scratch. This recipe calls for an incredibly easy mix of ingredients, and I am sure you will love experiencing the result. The fromage blanc makes it especially pleasing.

I adore this recipe!

Serves 4–6

Honey-Pecan Butter ½ cup (1 stick) butter, unsalted, warmed to room temperature

2 tablespoons honey (my favorite is Savannah Bee’s Tupelo Honey)

¼ teaspoon cinnamon, ground

1/3 cup toasted pecans, chopped

Salt, to taste

Cornmeal Pancakes 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/3 cup fine yellow cornmeal

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

¾ cup fromage blanc

¾ cup whole milk

¼ cup vegetable oil

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Melted butter

Maple syrup, warmed

Using electric mixer, beat butter, honey, and cinnamon in small bowl until fluffy. Stir in pecans. Season with a touch of salt. Set aside honey-pecan butter for serving with pancakes.

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in large bowl. Whisk eggs in medium bowl; whisk in fromage blanc, milk, oil, and vanilla. Gradually add liquid mixture to dry ingredients, whisking just until blended.