A well balanced breakfast...

When I was in my teens, my dad, a forester,  went on a kick of making dinner for breakfast.  I'm pretty sure this coincided with shifting his work schedule to four ten-hour days, and needing serious fuel for hiking through the woods from dawn to dusk.  Some of my favorite breakfasts are still like those, and when two boxes of amazing produce recently appeared on my back step, I had visions of those early autumn breakfasts.  Papa's breakfast often included venison steaks, though by late summer, the previous year's had vanished from the freezer, and it wasn't quite hunting season again.  No matter.  Greens and eggs were such a natural combination.  Still are...

Every breakfast should include the basic food groups:  Edible, drinkable, readable. No?

This mess of mustard greens sauteed with onions and mushrooms was the perfect bed for an over-easy egg (with lots of pepper), and slices of heirloom tomato.  Of course, my grown-up idea of the perfect breakfast also includes a lovely cup of sweet dark java, and something gorgeous to read, since I don't have Dad at my breakfast table.  Most days...

Well, you can see where I learned it all, huh?

One of the lovely things about my recent trip home was letting my parents spoil me thoroughly, which I swear they never did when I was a child.  : ) .  My siblings will swear otherwise, of course.  Knowing I am an early riser, coming from an earlier timezone, Papa was up very early most mornings, making sure coffee was brewed, and breakfast started.  Some mornings, it was granola and pears with Greek yogurt, and one morning, he even treated me to his infamous oatmeal, which I must admit has either improved with time, or I've developed my taste for it.  On the morning pictured above, it was just like old times, with plates of zucchini, crookneck squash and onions, caught in scrambled eggs, topped with fresh tomatoes.



Are there any country songs with lyrics about daddy cooking breakfast at the stove?  Of course, the countless ones with wives and mamas are all about dinner.  Maybe it's a forester thing, and the cowboys haven't caught on yet.

Except, unlike old times, Dad now hangs out in his jammies for the first few hours of the day, puttering about.  He may have taught me to cook breakfast, but could I have taught him a thing or two about the pleasures of leisurely mornings, stretched longer by starting the workday in flannel? It's a well-balanced start to a well-balanced day.  

I may start slow and early, and in my jammies, but I do still show up for full days on the job, creating wonderful walls for fine folks.  You can check out my portfolio, and all the info on how to hire me at theartofthehome.com.

You might have spotted my reading material in the first photo.  If you like reading this blog, you might like reading that, since I am the Editor-in Chief of that, and write many of the articles (in the wee hours of the day, in my jammies). Check it out at 365being.com.

Comments or questions can be left below, or feel perfectly welcome to email me at dawnmariedelara@gmail.com.