Guess Who’s Coming to Breakfast

i hate cleaning!
(My current mess of a kitchen)

About a month into the lease, 80 Proof and I are still settling in to our new living-in-sin apartment. Maybe 2 or 3 boxes have to be unpacked, we’re waiting for some furniture from 30 Minute Abs, and I’m clueless as to where to store my — no joke — 60 purses. (And in case you were wondering, the first room set up — the kitchen.)

So as we take our time to get the apartment together, I find out 80’s mom is coming over THIS SATURDAY MORNING to watch the last leg of the Tour de France.

And now this women and gender studies student has suddenly turned into to June-effing-Cleaver and I’m freaking about scrubbing the floors, dusting the mantel (we don’t have one,) and vacuuming in a skirt and heels.

Not to mention, cooking breakfast.

I’m thinking maybe a French toast, on some to-be-determined really great bread with a fruit topping (never done before,) or some sort of egg scramble that highlights the neighborhood Hispanic markets, such as using chipotles, chilis, Hispanic cheeses… But I’m open to suggestions.

So, my ES readers, I need your help. What breakfast spread do I make for 80’s momma? I need something that will say, yes, it’s okay that your son and I share a bedroom without a legal commitment.

HELP!

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19 comments

  • JoeHoya July 24, 2007  

    If you’re watching the Tour de France, I think a French-inspired menu is in order. Not knowing anything about you, 80, or his momma, I’m not exactly sure what’s going to float everyone’s boat and not knowing what you’ve got in your kitchen I’m not sure if you’ll be able to do it, but here’s a start:

    Breakfast Crepes – http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/108134

    At this time of year, i would serve them with fresh strawberries or blueberries.

    Black coffee is pretty traditional when it comes to French breakfast…but that’s a personal taste thing and you could just as easily go with cappucino or tea.

    If you can give some more insight into likes, dislikes, allergies, etc. we might be able to give better recommendations!

  • 80 Proof July 24, 2007  

    JoeHoya’s post has received the prestigious 80 Proof Seal of Approval.

    mmm…crepes

  • gansie July 24, 2007  

    JoeHoya–
    Thanks so much for the suggestion; I love the idea and the French theme. But, I’ve never made crepes before and the thought of doing this delicate dish scares the shit out of me. Maybe if I can find time to practice this week, I will do it on Sat AM. Or am I just being a baby?

  • JoeHoya July 24, 2007  

    Crepes are basically thin pancakes – as long as you’re decent with a spatula and you have a griddle of some kind, you should be okay. And if the readers of Epicurious can recommend this recipe 95% of the time, that says it’s not going to be super-hard.

  • BS July 24, 2007  

    Do It! Make the crepes! Your entire relationship depends on it!

  • gansie July 24, 2007  

    I guess I’ll reserve Wednesday night for practice. What other toppings/fillings should I have? I’m thinking nutella, for sure.

  • JoeHoya July 24, 2007  

    Nutella is a winner, for sure. But berries and lightly whipped cream (or mascarpone or even vanilla yogurt) would probably work best for breakfast.

    Bananas Foster make a great crepe filling – butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, bananas, rum, and vanilla ice cream. Easy recipes abound.

    And there’s always Crepes Suzette – oranges, orange juice, orange liqueur, sugar, butter.

    If you can serve either of the above en flambee you get bonus points!

  • BS July 24, 2007  

    I’ll tell you what to make a crepe out of…roll up that bitch catherine andrews liz gorman and serve her for breakfast with a side of bacon

  • 80 Proof July 24, 2007  

    Gold Star for JoeHoya, single handedly making this the most commented post in ES history…on top of giving some great ideas.

  • JoeHoya July 24, 2007  

    Hey – I’ve got to do my part to support the nascent DC Foodie scene! There may not be many of us, but dammit we’re vocal.

    If you ever need a hand around here, feel free to poke me.

  • gansie July 24, 2007  

    I have some mangoes and avocados too, think they could work?

  • JoeHoya July 24, 2007  

    With crepes? How do I put this delicately? GROSS!!!

    I would give both a big thumbs down. There’s not enough sweetness in the avocado to match up with the crepes, and the mangoes are likely to be a bit too stringy or tough to work as a filling.

    If it were me, I’d pop those mangoes in the blender with some yogurt and a few other ingredients to make a smoothie (or a mango lassi, if you want to be all Bobby Flay about it).

    The avocados I would probably save for another meal. Maybe some homemade guacamole for snacking later in the day?

  • gansie July 24, 2007  

    thanks, JoyHoya, I’m clearly clueless about this crepe filling thing. I really thought you could put anything in the middle, kinda like a tortilla. Teach Me!

  • JoeHoya July 24, 2007  

    You can put anything you want in there. It’s just a question of whether or not you should. Think of crepes as having a flavor that is very similar to pancakes, only slightly lighter. There are definitely some savory flavors that do work with crepes (goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and mushrooms all come to mind), but part of that is dependent on the crepe recipe you’re using. In this case, the recipe I gave you is going to have some inherent sweetness to it (that pancake flavor from the sugar and vanilla extract) and that just works best with fruit fillings and dessert stuff.

    There are definitely savory crepe recipes out there, too…and once you’ve gotten comfortable with this one you can branch out. Then it’s only a matter of time until you and 80 are sick of crepes altogether.

  • MonkeyBoy July 24, 2007  

    If the test crepes come out okay you could wrap them completely around a filling and fry them up and call them blintzes. Either a cheese or fruit filling would be ideal but it might save some time since you actually made them another day.

  • gansie July 25, 2007  

    Okay JoeHoya, you’ve convinced me – I’m in for the crepes. Plus, according to BS, my relationship depends on it. Regardless, I think I’d like to do some eggs, smoked salmon and ham (not altogether) in crepes, is the above recipe going to work with those fillings, or do I need to find a different crepe recipe. I still want to use berries and nutella, so I’d like a very neutral (easy!) recipe. Let me know.

  • Jeb July 25, 2007  

    I’ve had one crepe in my life…on the streets of paris after my overnight flight. It had strawberry jelly in it and it was the best thing I’ve ever tasted in my life.

  • JoeHoya July 26, 2007  

    The recipe above has a sweeter flavor because of the vanilla extract, the brandy and the sugar.

    If you want a more neutral crepe, this recipe seems about as basic and neutral as you can get. And to top it off, they even have a recipe for a smoked salmon and creme fraiche filling for crepes.

  • BS July 31, 2007  

    gansie-
    once you’re an expert at the crepe thing, will you make me this?
    http://creampuffsinvenice.ca/2007/06/17/the-real-crepe-cake/

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