Bed bound for a week and a half due to a persistent bout of flu, my whole life took place in a few square meters.
It was very relaxing to just eat, sleep and watch season after season of tv shows for that long.
My body seemed to be saying ‘if you’re not going to take a vacation, I will’.
The breakfast served here is a shiitake green onion omelet with garlic rubbed toast,
hummus and mixed sprouts, cucumber and apple-orange juice.
.
Garlic toast:
Slice your favorite bread (sour dough works very well) and drizzle it heavily with olive oil. It’s okay if the bread is stale, it’s one of the best things you can do with old bread. Put it in a hot oven (180-200 °C) until it starts to brown and feels crispy. You could also do it in a pan, or in a toaster. If it’s toasted, add the oil afterward, or your toaster gets oily. Slice a clove of garlic in half lengthwise (you can leave the skin on) and rub the bread thoroughly with it. Add freshly ground pepper and salt to taste. This is also great with some fresh chopped herbs on it if you have some lying around: parsley or cilantro, and maybe even some lemon.
Hummus:
The hummus used here is from a pack, it was a pretty good one, but of course there’s nothing like making your own. It’s so simple, too. I know you’re officially supposed to cook your own chickpeas for this but I’m way too lazy for that. So I just take a can of chickpeas (drained), the juice of a lemon, a small clove of garlic (finely minced), salt and pepper and mash the lot with an immersion blender. I add some olive oil, but not that much. If I’ve got time, I’ll take that garlic and a finely chopped onion and fry them in some olive oil until they’re soft and sweet, and add them to the hummus before mashing. I definitely prefer cooked garlic over raw in spreads, you can use more because it’s much less sharp. Officially I think you’re supposed to add tahini (sesame paste) as well, but I prefer it without.
Omelet:
Slice your shiitake mushrooms and fry them in some oil until brown. Add about half a chopped green onion halfway through, and a dash of soy sauce at the end. Set aside. For the perfect fluffy omelet (I finally listened to all those tv chefs and it really does work), heat a non stick pan until very, very hot and add some oil and butter. The pan should be so hot the butter melts and turns brown immediately. When the butter is brown (but not smoking), add one, two or three eggs (whisked). They should start setting at the bottom within seconds, and now you take your spatula or a fork and sort of scramble the egg while it’s still liquidy. Because you mixed it up, the bottom of the pan is now again covered with liquid egg, which will set as well, and the top of the egg is sort of half liquid, half solid. If you use three eggs, repeat this step, otherwise you’ve got too much liquid egg. Allow to set until just barely solidified, another few seconds, but never let it get tough and leathery. The egg should not be in your pan for a long time at all. This is the moment where you add your shiitake-onion mixture (or fresh herbs, or grated cheese, or anything else you like), fold the omelet closed, and serve. With a bit of practice, it will be seriously fluffy, and crispy on the outside.
apple breakfast cucumber eggs food garlic green onion hummus juice omelet orange recipe shiitake sprouts toast