A Flavor for Life

This is a stack of pancakes James and I made together on a Sunday morning.

I started the stack because I wanted to make him smile. So I made pancakes and pretended like the flurry of work emails that had woken me up that morning hadn’t flustered me. James finished the stack because my charade broke down halfway through.

He made the pancakes big and small. He made them all light and fluffy. And he brought the jaunty stack of pancakes over to the corner of his couch where I was huddled under his blanket with my work laptop. And he dug his spoon into the poached eggs I had made him with the biggest smile on his face. And he took ridiculous photos and made me say pancakes over and over again. And he reminded me that moments like these make life worth living.

They say that God gives you trials in order to strengthen you. And He never gives you a trial He knows you can’t overcome. I like to think that God gave me the past 8 weeks to teach me how to manage the inevitable stress that will always be part of my life as I try to do His will through work.

A part of me also likes to think that He gave me the past 8 weeks so I could learn that, while independence is great, I cannot live life alone, and I am so fortunate to have so many loving, caring, and supportive people in my life.

A small part of me also likes to think that He gave me the past 8 weeks to break me down enough to open myself to the possibility of letting James into my life.

It’s been almost 1 month with this boy. To be honest, I don’t know where we will be 1 month from now. All I know is that when I am with him, I feel safe, secure, and happy. And that’s good enough for now.

Brown butter pancakes
Makes 2 very generous servings
3 tbsp butter
1 1/4 c skim milk
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp white sugar
1 egg

1. In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt the butter and continue to cook while stirring until the butter solids are browned. There will be a nutty aroma. (~4-5 min)
2. Whisk the milk into the browned butter until incorporated. Set the mixture aside to cool.
3. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and white sugar
4. Create a well in the middle of your flour and crack in the egg. Add the milk and butter mixture and stir with a fork just until combined.
5. Set the batter aside in the refrigerator to chill (~10-15 min)
6. Warm a large skillet over medium-low heat with a small pat of butter to grease it
7. Drop 1/4 c of batter onto the pan and cook until bubbles start to rise to the top and it is golden brown on one side (~2 min) flip and cook the other side.
8. Continue until you’ve cooked all the pancakes.
Serve warm

Brown butter poached eggs over greek yogurt
Makes 2 servings
2 tbsp butter
2 eggs
1 tbsp white vinegar
~ 10 oz greek yogurt (I prefer 0%, but go full fat if you want an even more luxurious texture and flavor)
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a small saucepan, melt the two tbsp of butter and cook over medium-high heat until the butter solids are browned. Set aside.
2. Crack 1 egg into a small, clean cup or bowl
3. Fill a small saucepan about halfway with water and set the water to boil. When the water comes to a rolling boil, add the tbsp of white vinegar and reduce the heat to medium or until the water is gently simmering. Swirl a clean spoon in the middle of the hot water until it creates a little “tornado” in the water. Gently drop the egg into the middle of that “tornado.” Don’t agitate the egg and let it cook for about 2-3 minutes or until the egg whites are set. Using a slotted spoon, remove the cooked egg onto a plate lined with a paper towel.
4. Repeat with the other egg
5. Spoon the greek yogurt into two bowls. Create wells in the each of the centers and pour half of the brown butter into each of the wells. Top with your poached egg and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.