On Mother’s Day I would love to sleep in and savour breakfast in bed but there is always the chance of my lazy morning being disrupted by the well-meaning clanging of pots and pans, inevitably resulting in me getting up after an apologetic voice whispers, “ummm, where do we keep the extra flour… and the mop?”
So please, bring the good stuff but keep it simple. It will be just as appreciated, I promise.
1. A fragrant cup of Japanese green tea
I’d like to wake up to a cup of nutty, delicate Genmaicha tea (green tea with roasted brown rice) that warms my hands while I snuggle in the blanket. Real tea leaves and proper preparation are key; over steeping can makes green tea bitter. Boil the water and let it cool slightly, add the tea ball and steep for 2-3 minutes.
Read about Cooking with Tea
2. The perfect soft-boiled egg
Few things are as cheerful and satisfying as a warm, runny yolk sprinkled with sea salt and mopped up with buttered toast. Boil the water, add a room-temperature egg, set the timer for 5 (or 6 if you like your yolk firmer) minutes and remove. Heaven.
3. Baguette and jam
Bring me a warm baguette from the local bakery and and serve it to me with loads of butter and plum jam. Don’t slice it, I’ll tear off chewy pieces as I go.
Laura Calder's baguette sandwiches
4. Crème Fraiche
Fresh fruit is great, adding a dollop of crème fraiche is even better. Use gratuitously on Mother’s Day-on crepes, breakfast burritos or just send it up with a spoon in the jar.
Read what Laura Caldern has to say on Ingredients, Equipment and Techniques for French Cooking (which includes Crème Fraiche bien sûr)
5. Good Chocolate
Any bittersweet bar with interesting flavour combos like sea salt, chile or lemongrass will make me love you. Then please leave me alone with my People magazine.
Read Global Chocolate Tour to find out the difference between criollo vs forastero
Sue Riedl is a Toronto-based food writer with a passion for cheese who writes a column called The Spread for the Globe and Mail. She loves to push stinky cheese on her 3-year old.
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by Sue Riedl