So What's for Breakfast?
by Tracy Schneider
on September 08, 2010
I'm not much of a breakfast person myself. I love breakfast, really, but I'd prefer to eat it at 10 am rather than 7 or 8 am in the morning. That's why breakfast in central Italy was perfect for me. Coffee with milk and a little breakfast pastry. Nothing overwhelming. That is, until we made our way north to Lake Garda, near the German border, where breakfast had many German influences.
In addition to coffee and pastries, salami and cheese were a staple, and I actually came to look forward to my little sandwiches every morning. For some people, coffee is all they can stomach in the morning. What about you? Do you like bacon and eggs? Cold cereal and milk? Hot oatmeal? Are you up for salami and cheese sandwiches?
--Tracy Schneider
Phil on September 08, 2010 at 04:53 PM
When I first wake up I can barely eat anything. But if I'm up for a couple hours I love a large brunch, eggs and sausage and fruit and bagels and toast and all that kind of delicious stuff. But if I only have 5 minutes its usually some juice and a granola bar.
Tapeworm on September 08, 2010 at 06:09 PM
Who really has time in their busy lives to eat a decent breakfast anymore? Usually now, that's a week-end luxury.
I remember the breakfasts served in Germany when I was there for a couple weeks about 15 years ago. I too, though they were serving what we in the U.S would consider lunch fare. Hearty breads (not toasted), sliced meats of all kinds, cheeses, yogurt; very heavy food. In fact, I used to make a sandwich from the selections for later in the day. Some of the hotel buffets also had soft-boiled eggs so I'd grab a couple of those to go with my sandwich later. By midday, the egg yolks had continued to cook while they slowly cooled down so I had hard-boiled eggs to go along with my hearty lunch.
My favorite breakfast treat now? The truck driver's staple, buttermilk biscuits & sawmill (sausage) gravy with eggs over easy. As my mother used to say, "It'll stick to your ribs!" She was right of course, meaning you won't get hungry very soon but unfortunately now, they not only stick to my ribs, but everywhere else too! I usually only indulge a few times per year.
Sausage, grits & eggs are a glorious 'comfort-food' breakfast too, but it's hard to find anywhere that even offers grits on the menu anymore, let alone a place that serves decent ones. Of course, if I lived in the southern U.S. that might be a different story. So occasionally I'll cook them for myself. My wife can't stand grits (I think it's just the name that's unappealing to her), so I usually only cook them when I "baching" it when she's out of town.
Sometimes I'll have breakfast[food] for dinner when I've got more time to cook. I know I'll suffer about 2:00 in the morning with acid reflux, but hey . . . it's worth it!
Robert Arvanitis on September 09, 2010 at 06:15 AM
First business trip to Stockholm, many years ago.
Flight arrived early in the morning, so I explored the breakfast buffet.
Eighteen kinds of herring, plus a cheddar at the end of the table. Naturally the cheese was herring-flavored...
Mr. Bingley on September 09, 2010 at 06:17 AM
"...near the German border..."
It hasn't been near the German border for some 60+ years ;)
Lazarus Long on September 09, 2010 at 06:18 AM
My Mom WAS from the country (upstate Penna), and a child of poverty and the Depression, so some of the things we make still reflect that.
How about homemade buttermilk pancakes? Baked eggs?
And, strangely enough, yesterday I made (regular)oatmeal for the first time in a million years.
Compared to Scott's Porridge Oats, they were bland and tasteless.
Thank goodness I married a Scot!
Greg Hlatky on September 09, 2010 at 06:27 AM
Actually every morning I used to make myself a salami and provolone cheese sandwich to take to the office and eat with my first cup of coffee.
The old saying "Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper" has a lot to recommend to it. I've found that if I eat a hearty breakfast there's no real need to eat for the remainder of the day. My favorite is the good old greasy spoon truck stop breakfast: bacon, eggs, hash browns, toast and coffee.
Then there's the pleasures of the regional variations. Country-fried steak, sawmill gravy and biscuits and grits in the South, goetta in Cincinnati, scrapple in the Northeast, beignets in New Orleans. Not to mention lox, cream cheese, bagels and capers.
The great thing about the all-American fried breakfast is that it can be eaten at any time of the day.
sharon on September 09, 2010 at 06:44 AM
Yes, salami and cheese are perfect. In fact this is one of the concerns I have about the breakfast fare of Italy. How will I survive without protein in the morning with hypoglycemia tendencies? I never eat pastries alone with coffee. Each day for me must start with something in the protein group be it eggs, protein shake to go. So glad to hear there is hope for me for breakfast in Italy.
Andy on September 09, 2010 at 06:45 AM
I've forced myself back into the habit of eating breakfast every morning. Some mornings it's just cereal or instant oatmeal, but if I have a few more minutes to spare, I'll do eggs (over easy) on toast (or egg-in-the-basket). If I have a little more time, I like to get one or two of those small "breakfast pork chops", sprinkle them with salt and pepper, dusting of flour and fry for 3 minutes per side.
Biscuits w/ sausage gravy are of course fantastic, but require quite a bit more prep, so not usually suitable for weekday mornings. Of course, I could do like the farmers do and get up at 6am, then I'd have plenty of time for a real breakfast every day.
357 on September 09, 2010 at 07:27 AM
Salami for breakfast reminds me of the Plaza Deli in Denver in the 80s. An East German refugee family owned it and made the most wonderful breakfasts and sandwiches. My favorite was the salami, onions and Muenster cheese omelet. I have not had better - yet.
Patrick Carroll on September 09, 2010 at 07:35 AM
Coffee with cream and six Oreo cookies.
JAL on September 09, 2010 at 07:47 AM
Salami, cheese and bread was the offering in a local (as opposed to touristy chain) hotel in a off the tourist track city in Switzerland. Different than our sugar cereal and "Danish" fare, that's for sure. It worked.
Jim T on September 09, 2010 at 08:45 AM
Nothing better than huevos rancheros, the perfect eye-opener for me.
Quilly Mammmoth on September 09, 2010 at 08:59 AM
Grits with cheese and crumbled sausage.
Like other posters my wife doesn't eat grits (being Canadian perhaps the name if offputting). So I make a single serving of grits in a bowl and at the two minute mark toss in shredded cheese and some diced, precooked sausage. I use the frozen ones from Aldi's.
It goes best with a cup of fresh made Tim Horton's. :)
Mycroft on September 09, 2010 at 09:26 AM
Leftover pizza, with leftover fried chicken a very close second. Sounds disgusting, maybe, but it got me through college!
memomachine on September 09, 2010 at 10:01 AM
Hmmmm.
Coffee with one of...
1. Toasted steel cut oats cooked with water & milk with a little butter.
2. Fried cubed potatoes, red bell pepper & onion.
3. Korean vegetable pancake with scallion and bell pepper.
4. Korean bulgogi, marinated thinly sliced steak, with rice and kimchee.
Miriam on September 09, 2010 at 10:54 AM
8-10 oz ribeye steak - with some fresh veggies on the side.
Yogurt with fruit for dessert.
Oooh yeah. Keeps me going for the whole day. Eat a light dinner at night (eggs, fish, or suchlike).
Dad of 5 on September 09, 2010 at 11:47 AM
Coffee. And some cheese and turkey or ham from making my kids lunches. Salad for lunch.
Stephan F- on September 09, 2010 at 02:44 PM
I miss Europe for breakfast sometimes, I remember them being: Laughing Cow cheese, an a dozen different jams, jellies and marmalades in little packets, really good bread and brotshen and a little trashcan on the table.
@tapeworm Call it Polenta instead of Grits and she might go for it :) Use the "leftovers" for breakfast the next day.
On hot days I usually go for cold cereal but it is beginning to cool off so I am looking forward to some oatmeal.
Though lately I have been practicing easy-over eggs, my wife loves them but I either overcook the yolks or undercook the whites, which she dislikes.
Tom DeGisi on September 09, 2010 at 04:09 PM
Cold pizza.
deet on September 09, 2010 at 04:30 PM
When I make breakfast for the family on Saturday mornings, I make a grits, ham (or sausage), and cheese casserole; or I'll make a couple of stacks of waffles or pancakes with eggs.
Otherwise if I'm cooking for myself, I'll make some soft boiled eggs, toast with jam, and a couple of cups of coffee.
Denny, Alaska on September 09, 2010 at 06:35 PM
Oatmeal, of course. Just the basic quick stuff from the Quaker folks (your body cannot tell the difference between "old fashioned" oats, steel cut, etc.), cooked up in the microwave, with raisins, sliced pecans, a little brown sugar. Oatmeal is g-o-o-d stuff, and good for you. And coffee; who can live without coffee?
Dandapani on September 12, 2010 at 06:15 AM
Western omelet with a little sausage gravy over it. Hash browns. And a grilled biscuit. Coffee, plenty of coffee. Had that yesterday at the best breakfast restaurant in all of Pasco County, Florida. The Breakfast Club. "Where it's never too late for breakfast or never too early for lunch!"
Jimi on September 14, 2010 at 08:02 AM
I had my favorite breakfast this morning: gingered steel cut oatmeal topped with fresh fruit (a sliced peach in this case), yogurt, and maple syrup. I pre-cook the steel cut oatmeal and freeze in muffin cups. The recipe is from a food blog--Pie of the Tiger ( http://pieofthetiger.com/2009/03/steel-cut-oatmeal-with-cardamom-yogurt/).
Jimi on September 14, 2010 at 08:03 AM
Hopefully the link works this way:
http://pieofthetiger.com/2009/03/steel-cut-oatmeal-with-cardamom-yogurt/
Dan on September 16, 2010 at 05:06 PM
Eggs over easy, a little too much olive oil and play with time and heat so you get the edges just barely brown and crispy and still have the yolks runny. Then some good sea salt.
I love eggs.
yup.