From the Trenches: The Joy of Breakfast
It's the little things
After a couple weeks working nights in the kitchen, I quickly learned that breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. When you’re a night owl cook, you only eat about twice a day. Dinner is just the survival meal of leftovers or late night fast food, because no one wants to come home and cook a whole dinner. This means that the pre-work meal really sets the tone for the day.
I learned that if I made a big breakfast, I wouldn’t run out of fuel mid rush and I would be less irritable. [I call it breakfast even though I woke up at 11am and ate at 1pm]. Once I adapted my body to only eating twice, I had fun making breakfast. It was my moment to get creative with what we had in the fridge. I almost always ate eggs with some kind of starch. Eggs are my favorite ingredient, because they are so versatile. I ate fried eggs on white rice with chili garlic crisp. I ate scrambled eggs with leftover Mexican rice. Fried eggs on crispy potatoes with bell peppers and mushrooms. Fried eggs with black beans on a tostada shell with salsa. Sometimes, it was 3 fried eggs and 3 hash browns with spicy ketchup (Tapatio & ketchup). Or, I would just take any dinner leftovers and throw an egg on it in the morning. The egg makes it like a whole new meal, I promise. This was often the fate of leftover spam rice my boyfriend and I would cook in bulk.
What I loved most about this morning ritual was the silence. There was no TV or music. I would just go in the kitchen, open the windows, and focus on cooking my food in the natural light. It was quite relaxing, almost meditative. It’s funny how I am very opposite my boyfriend because he always needs some kind of music, game, or show on in the background, whereas I enjoy ambient sounds of the outdoors. I never take walks with music. I wash the dishes in silence. Maybe I’m the weird one, but I enjoy having moments where I do not have to think. I just focus on whatever physical task I am doing and it gives me a break from my 100 miles an hour overthinking brain.
When I left the kitchen and changed to a 9-5 schedule, I realized breakfast is precious. I adapted to the morning life, but I don’t think I’ll ever be the person to wake up at 6am to cook a sit down breakfast before work. Nature’s Bakery Fig Bars and bags of dry cereal are my saviors. My weekends are the only chance I get to make breakfast, which made me realize how much I took that for granted during my kitchen days. I often find myself wanting to make breakfast for dinner on the weekdays. I just miss fried eggs! I miss my simple small portion meals that utilized all the leftovers in the fridge. I often used my small amounts of baby peppers and cherry tomatoes that I harvested in the garden. They were never enough for a full meal, but for some eggs, they were perfect.
The small portions of breakfast are what I really love. It is so much easier to experiment with something that is just for you. One meal that you don’t need to make extra of to save for leftovers. So much less to think about. So much harder to mess up. So much more creative improvisation. If anyone is trying to expand their cooking repertoire or learn more, I would definitely recommend starting with breakfast. There is a huge range of options and inspiration out there. Just pick savory or sweet, choose a starch and a protein, then go to town with whatever you have in the kitchen. The morning art project. I hope you all have your own ritual that calms your mind and that you have a favorite breakfast to start your day.
Weekly Round Up
Music
Ya’ll know I have to choose a Blink-182 song after this week. Lowkey, I have been listening to KROQ trying to win tickets to their tour. It’s bringing back so much teenage angst nostalgia. “Anthem Part Two” is such a great song to hype you up for the day!
Cooking Experiments
For this weekend’s breakfast ritual, I tried the viral TikTok potatoes. I topped them with fried eggs (of course) and chopped bell peppers. They were so good!
For the seasoning, I mixed rosemary, parmesan cheese, salt, and Diaspora Co. Sirarakhong Chilli.
Small Business Love
Talking about meditative rituals, I have to recommend Jae and Leona. I use their Regenerative Facial Mask religiously. My skin is always so dry (probably because I’m a dehydrated lizard creature) and this is the first mask that ever made my face feel like a clean sponge first dipped in cool water. So refreshing, I can’t really explain it more than that. If you’re looking to treat yourself for a relaxing spa day, I recommend browsing through their shop or booking a facial appointment with them. They are based in Los Angeles. Check out their Instagram here to keep up to date.
Continuing with the Fall season, I want to shout out RAGGEDYTIFF for the most beautiful Día de Los Muertos Collection, called “Amor Eterno.” I love seeing what collection she designs next. Each piece of clothing is truly a piece of art, which I love. Wearable art that you cannot find anywhere else. Jessica is a true fashion designer. To keep up to date on what is coming next, follow her on Instagram.