Monday, October 31, 2011

A relaxing Fall Day

I took a day away from work. A lazy day waking up without the alarm the natural way. Sunrise is around 8am so no need to wake up with the dawn, or in the dark as on a work day. I was waiting for the sun to come out and decided to make my own breakfast with our new gas stove. Did I tell you that we love our new gas stove ? I decided to make one of my favourites . . .

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(eggs benedicts)

It's a simple recipe but I am getting used to our stove and I am not sure what heat level to keep the water at. I have 1/2 cup of melted butter standing by in that clear dish. A pot of nearly boiling water on the front element with another container on top, being heated by the heat from the water, which contains the yolks of 3 large eggs.

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I have another pan on the right element half filled with water ready to poach the eggs. I also purchased a bag of sourdough english muffins which I half toasted. I find that fully toasted is too hard, and not toasted the hollandaise sauce makes the bread go soggy.

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You have to watch the heat or the sauce will overcook. You have to constantly stir the liquid (eggs yolks) until they thicken. I use a stainless wire wisk. As it thickens you have to add a bit of boiling water, perhaps a tsp or so, but I prefer to add the melted butter, very slowly at first, constantly stirring a bit at a time until it is all added. As the liquid thickens I turn down the heat a bit and add a bit more water (another tsp). This is when I turn the element down to low. My liquid has thickened again, so I add a bit more boiling water (from my hot pot), and then I add a TBsp of juice from a squeezed lemon. I like lots of tang so I add lots of lemon juice and perhaps just a pinch or two of salt

We usually have double smoked black forest ham on hand for sandwiches so I slice some up and get it ready for my benedicts, but you could just as easily use hand peeled shrimp or smoked salmon. You could pan fried the black forest ham or do what I do which is faster. I put it in the microwave to take the chill off

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Eventually everything is ready and I have to start to assemble my meal. I bring over my plate with the lightly toasted english muffin, put the ham on top, then I add the poached eggs and pour my hollandaise sauce over it

Prepare my cup of Vietnamese coffee and I am set to devour my creation

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One thing I find when we go out and order eggs benedicts, the sauce always runs out before the eggs are finished. Today I have lots of sauce with each mouthful and tangy just the way I like it. If you need more sauce to make 4 benedicts (for 2 people), then just use 4 egg yolks and another sliver of butter, it's not like I didn't have enough sauce, but I like my eggs smothered with it

I do have video clips to be edited if you want to see this cook in action

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After breakfast I got my bike ready and headed south to do a couple of errands before I could start my ride. I needed to buy another battery tender as one is flakey, first stop was to buy

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some halloween treats, just in case I need some. It is best to buy candies that you want yourself, that way you won't waste the leftovers. Most of my rides are on repetitious roads but today I was looking for photos. Here is a Mike Simmon's inspired self portrait "shadow" photo

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(overlooking the approach to George Massey Tunnel, Rice Mill Road, Richmond, BC)

Then I headed down to the Fraser River

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then I stop again on an empty gravel parking lot to show you the Village of Steveston in the background

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today it was very windy with wind gusts which nearly blew me off the road

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it was a chilly 11°c and while the sun was out there was little heat

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(Gulf of Georgia Historic site, Steveston, BC)

I have taken numerous photos of Finn Slough before but today I noticed the very high water levels, so of course I just had to snap another one

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It won't be long before our Fall days turn into days of rain and gloom so you have to enjoy them while you can. I certainly enjoyed today. It was great to be out on two wheels

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14 comments:

  1. Bob:
    What a great day - not a care in the world away from work and a great breakfast to start. Eggs Benedict is one of our favourites - ham for me and salmon for Jennie. Only at cafes though as we've never made it at home. Thanks so much for the cooking lesson!

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  2. Bob

    It's a rare skill making sauce - do you have French blood in you by any chance?

    N

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  3. Bob, your day away from work looks like it was time well spent. Careful though...a fella could get used to that.

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  4. What a great day. A full homemade breakfast and a sunny ride.

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  5. I've never had eggs benedict, but they look good, and the ride looked great!

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  6. It's great to spend one of those rare sunny days on the bike while others are confined to indoors... working. Be careful, you might get hooked.

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  7. It's been awhile since I've made Eggs Benedict though hollandaise is made more often. If you add a little vinegar or pickle juice to the poaching water, the egg whites stay together. When is the video coming out?

    I really like that last photo. Maybe because all of our trees are bare and white...

    Richard

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  8. Geoff:

    I am an eggs benedict connoisseur. It is one of my preferred brunch choices, sometimes with shrimp & crabmeat or salmon. Much more cost effective to make them at home

    Nikos:

    unfortunately, no french blood, only the red type. I did take a cooking class eons ago but I hardly remember anything about it since it was a long time ago

    AHD/Paul:

    one day when I retire I will get to do this everyday. I went through your calculations but things are a bit different here in Canada. It's hard to know when to stop working 'cause that's when the income stops. Thanks for visiting, I am hoping to be down your way in the near future

    Trobairitz:

    part of my retirement planning is to eat out less and not spend so much. Definitely a change in lifestyle but we are in the same boat as everyone else in our situation, wondering if we have saved enough for retirement.

    don't let the sunshine fool you, it was chilly and gusty winds nearly blew me over but I didn't turn on the heated grips, nor have I used my heated vest for nearly 5 years

    Ken:

    It was nice to get out and travel on some backroads and lean into the curves, twist the throttle and stop for photos. I felt like I was free and no-one to tell me what to do

    SonjaM:

    I enjoy company more than being by myself but I have gravitated to going on less group rides. I also like the lure of the open road as opposed to our traffic gridlock. I only wished that we had one more month of summer as I ran out of time and there were still some unfulfilled rides on my list.

    RichardM:

    right you are with the vinegar, but a bit of oil also does the trick. Great minds think alike, when I saw the trees I had to do a U-turn and ride back for the photo. sometimes I am slow to stop when I am close to home. When on a trip I turn around all the time in search of that elusive photo.

    If you go to my Youtube channel you will find the video, it has been uploaded but I haven't posted the link yet

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  9. A yummy breakfast, and it looks like no burn injuries to report - A good sign! Beautiful scenes from your ride. What a great day.

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  10. Sigh....what a nice day! Although I usually do it in reverse order. Ride first, eat later.

    I'm pretty sure the bike is more nimble in corners and gets better fuel economy that way!

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  11. Mr. Skoot!


    Way to go on making your own Hollandaise! It's quite a pain in the double cheeks - I used to do it every day on the line of a French restaurant, and now bring it out as a party piece when I'm having a fancy dinner. I never used water, though, I just went straight to the flat top and whisked like hell. I like it on steak with a pinch of cayenne or Tabasco...


    Brady
    Behind Bars - Motorcycles and Life
    www.behindbarsmotorcycle.com

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  12. BlueKat:

    the ride was a duplication of local places I like to photograph. I was lucky, no burns today. I was a great Fall day, but could have been warmer

    Irondad:

    You are always so smart, but without nourishment, I would be too weak . . . besides I am not that concerned with fuel economy. Also if you eat first, you can eat again when you reach your intended destination, which I did.

    Brady:

    that is neat that you worked in a French restaurant. I wouldn't mind doing that for a day or so. Just imagine all the calories from having to test everything before it is served. You wouldn't need to have any meals.

    I'll have to try Hollandaise on Steak. I find that when you go out the sauce always runs out, they never give you enough

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  13. I love Eggs Benedict. If I visit, will you make me some? Wow, Finn Slough looks very different with so much water in.

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  14. Bob,

    Great scenic pictures as always, and one day I may go uninvited to your place to feast on those egg bennies!

    Benny

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