Good Morning: Breakfast Polenta

Some mornings you need a little extra to get yourself going, particularly if the night before involved a little more wine than you had anticipated. A bit extra oomph in your breakfast will help soak up last night's bad decisions and course correct for the rest of the day.

Enter, breakfast polenta.

Bacon, cheese, and creamy grits are the bed for ... what else ... a fried egg.

Ingredients

1 cup polenta 

3 cups chicken broth

2 cups milk

4 slices bacon

1 ounce smoked gouda

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Eggs for frying

Salt

Preparation

1. Bring the chicken broth to a boil. Add a good pinch of salt. Whisk in the polenta and reduce to low. Stir regularly(i.e., don't go on Pinterest for 20 minutes and let your polenta slowly roast to the bottom of the pan. Not that I'm speaking from experience or anything...). Add milk as you need it to loosen the polenta. Let this cook for 30 minutes or so until finished - depending on whether you have instant polenta or traditional, your cook time will vary. Check the packaging for exact timing, because I never truly know.

2. Fry up bacon. Mmm, bacon. 

Once, Justin said that they should include the sound of sizzling bacon to those 

soothing sleep sound machines. I don't disagree.

3. When your polenta is cooked through (smooth to the taste, not gritty) add in some shredded smoked gouda and parmesan. Season to taste. Crumble in bacon.

4. Fry egg. If you're going for a photogenic sunny-side-up, try putting a lid on the pan to encourage the steam to cook the top of the egg so you don't have to flip.

Lastly, serve up with a little extra sprinkle of salt on top.

CAUTION: May require a mid-morning nap immediately after eating.

-Katie

Sips on Saturday: Grilled Peaches & Gin

Summertime is the perfect time for gin. I LOVE gin and tonics (and I've been told that I'm essentially an old lady because of that...but see if I care.

 Incidentally, it's also peach season. I thought it'd be a tasty marriage, and I was right. It's a jazzed-up classic with a little extra sweetness, a little floral-fruity note. Grilling the peaches brings out their flavor and adds a little caramel flavor in the background. Perfect for a hot St. Louis summer.

Ingredients:

1 peach, sliced into wedges

1 lime, sliced into wedges

Tonic water

Gin

Sugar

Optional: lemon verbena, mint

 

Procedure:

Sprinkle peaches with sugar. Grill for a few minutes per side or until you get some gorgeous marks.

 

Meanwhile, rub a lime on the rim of a glass and dip in sugar, just for a little extra something sweet.

Add the lime, a couple grilled peaches and some ice into the glass. Add your preferred amount of gin, tonic, and any optional herbs.

Happy Saturday, readers. 

Good Morning: The Cheshire Sunday Brunch

A couple weeks ago Justin and I treated ourselves to a Sunday brunch at the Cheshire Inn, which is just a couple blocks away from our house. Sometimes going out for breakfast is even better than going out for dinner, because then you have the whole day ahead of you and you've already indulged in a little outing. That way, you don't have to feel guilty about spending your fifth weekend in a row at home ;)

First, the biscuits. These came out free, like rolls at dinner. They were flaky and warm, served with a side of strawberry jam and butter. I could've eaten about 10 of these for breakfast alone.

I got the eggs benedict with the in-house smoked salmon. The kicker was that instead of an English muffin, it was served atop a super crunchy and creamy potato pancake (my Irish blood is swooning). The hollandaise had dill in it, which offered the perfect compliment. On the side, a little sauteed spinach to make it really savory.

Drool

Justin got the prime rib hash with potatoes, poached egg, and horseradish hollandaise. Served on the side, a little cup of au jus. This was also a winner, but probably could've benefited from a few more potatoes and a little less sauce. Still, it didn't stop us from snarfing it like champs.

If you look closely, you can see Justin's fork hovering impatiently over his breakfast like a hungry bird of prey.

-Katie