How About a Romantic Breakfast?

When one thinks of romantic dining, images of a candle lit dinner with soft music playing come to mind. However, once you are married with each trying to manage a job and chauffeuring the teenagers, etc. such dinners are more difficult to pull off, especially when you leave the telephone connected in case the teenager who borrowed one of the cars has to call for help and, instead, you end up answering a string of calls from India offering to refinance your home.

Weekends, when neither of you have to get up and rush off to work, are an ideal time for this.  Special days like Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and your wife's birthday are also ideal times - especially when you rise early to go out and buy a bouquet of roses from the flower section of the supermarket and surprise her with flowers and breakfast in bed.

So, for a different type of romantic meal why not try preparing breakfast in bed for your wife on the weekend. This is a nice change of pace for both of you, and women seem to really appreciate the effort.

While she sleeps, you get up and put the coffee on to brew. When she is about to wake up, start cooking some eggs or French Toast. If you are having eggs, also pop a couple of slices of bread in the toaster to toast. A side dish of fresh or canned fruit always goes well with breakfast and is easy to prepare. When flowers are in bloom in the yard, which, in Arizona, is frequently, pick a flower and put it in a small vase on her tray.

If your wife is like most women, you will find that she really appreciates this pampering from you.

Before you embark on preparing breakfast in bed, purchase trays made for eating in bed. One for your wife and, if you want to join her in bed, one for you. I don't care to eat in bed so I just place a chair next to the bed and eat my food from a try on my lap. Set the tray up with the food and flower just like one would expect in a fancy resort and serve her. Then either pull up a chair next to the bed or join her in bed with your own tray and enjoy a nice leisurely breakfast and conversation.

Fried eggs – grease a frying pan (I use a tablespoon or so of olive oil). Crack the eggs and pour them into the pan from the shell trying not to break the yolk. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the eggs and fry on medium heat until the whites are firm. Remove from pan, again without breaking the yolk, and put on a plate. For added flavor, top eggs with picante sauce (salsa).

Scrambled eggs – grease a frying pan as above. Crack eggs and pour from shell into a bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste and mix vigorously with a fork and pour contents of bowl into the frying pan. Fry over medium heat. Stir with mixing spoon or spatula periodically to avoid eggs cooking together into one large unit. When eggs are done remove from pan and put on a plate. For added flavor, top eggs with picante sauce (salsa).

Omelets – these take a little more time but make a great meal. On a chopping board dice some or all of the following – onion, green/red/yellow pepper, tomato, cooked ham or other vegetables/meats to taste. Crack eggs (2 – 3 large eggs per omelet – less if you plan to limit stuffing, more if you want to really pack it with the chopped items above) for first omelet and pour into bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste and mix vigorously with a fork. Grease frying pan as above and place over medium heat. Pour egg into pan and let it cook until bottom is firm enough to fold over but top should still be uncooked. Add vegetables and meat to one side of egg mixture. Using two spatulas or spatula and fork, carefully lift the empty side of egg up and fold over the side with the vegetable and meat mixture. Pat it down with spatula so that inside mixture is completely enclosed. Flip over a couple of times to evenly cook and seal the contents. When fully cooked remove from pan and place on plate trying not to break the omelet Repeat process for the second omelet For added flavor, top omelets with picante sauce (salsa).

French Toast – Crack 3 large (or 4 medium) eggs and pour into mixing bowl. Add ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon (or more depending upon your taste) and ½ cup of sugar. Stir vigorously with a fork. By mixing the cinnamon and sugar with the egg you are less likely to have all the cinnamon float to the top of the mixture when you add the milk. Stir in ½ to ¾ cup of milk and a half teaspoon of vanilla. This quantity should be good for 9 – 10 slices of ordinary sandwich bread – fewer if you are using wider specialty breads.

Turn the burner to medium and place a flat Teflon pan on the burner. Grease the pan with butter or margarine (you can also use Pam or a similar product). Using a fork or tongs dip a slice of bread into the batter so that both sides are covered with the batter. Carefully place the bread on the pan to cook. With most pans you can cook 4 slices of bread at a time. Flip slices with a spatula frequently until both sides are golden brown. Place cooked toast on plate and add butter or margarine. Sprinkle with some confectioner's sugar and serve with maple syrup, honey, fruit syrups or jam. Add a side dish of fruit and you have a great breakfast. Add more butter or margarine to the pan to grease it and repeat the process with the next four slices of bread.

Pancakes – There are many recipes for these but I just keep a box of pancake mix on hand. This makes it easy to make pancakes quickly. Depending upon the mix you buy, you usually just have to add water or milk and sometimes an egg. To make the pancakes fancier, purchase some fresh or canned blue berries and add them to the mixture. Mix according to the directions. Prepare a flat pan with butter as described for the French Toast above. If you mix the batter in a dish with a pouring spout you can just pour the batter on to the pan. Depending upon your taste you can pour small amounts to get pancakes 2 – 3 inches in diameter or larger ones 4 – 5 inches in diameter. I find it easier to just take a large mixing spoon and spoon out 1 – 2 spoonfuls per pancake (more for larger pancakes). When bubbles appear all over the top of the pancake it is time to flip it. Once flipped it should only take another 30 seconds or so (the larger the pancake the more time it may take) for the pancake to be done. I flip it back once and, if not done, turn it over for a little more cooking – when both sides are golden brown the pancake is done. Remove pancake from pan with spatula and place on a plate and add butter or margarine. Serve with maple syrup, honey, fruit syrups or jam. Add a side dish of fruit and you have a great breakfast. Add more butter or margarine to the pan to grease it and repeat the process with the next batch of pancakes until all the batter is used up.