Monday, January 30, 2012

bad news brunch

Cute baby strikes again!

Cute baby (Aya, to the rest of the world) and her parents came over for brunch last Sunday and I had a very nice menu all planned out. And then they arrived and Mabel went a little nuts and I was so bewitched by Aya’s cuteness that I overcooked the fancy baked eggs.

I bought special ramekins to cook those damn eggs, and they ended up being practically hard boiled. D’oh!
But I plated them anyway, and as I plated them (alongside a few slices of toast per person—meant for dipping into luscious, gooey yolks) I looked at each person’s plate and thought, “Hmm…that looks kind of off. Why does this seem weird? Oh my god, Aya is so cute.”

And everyone kindly ate the overcooked eggs, complimenting the sautéed spinach and mushrooms hidden underneath. "I like hard boiled eggs," said Dan, trying to be helpful. Well, I hate eating hard boiled eggs out of a ramekin.

I also made grapefruit juice with ginger syrup and lime juice, thinking it would be some sort of magical, ambrosial beverage. But it just tasted like grapefruit juice. Which is good, but come on. I made ginger syrup, you guys.
Several hours later, after we ate and chatted and discussed the similarities between babies and dogs and everyone left, I noticed a plastic box of arugula sitting in the refrigerator. Arugula that should have become a salad to go with the stupid non-runny baked eggs and toast. Which I totally blanked on. Double d’oh!

I also ever-so-slightly overbaked the coffee cake, which was not a tragedy. It was completely edible but a little dry. (Sorry, co-workers who ate slices of this coffeecake two days later when it was probably bone dry.)

Do I blame cute baby for these brunch mishaps? No, I blame my own spaciness. But the combination of a cute little baby and cute little dog in the same room is a little much. Would I do it again? Yes, yes, and yes. It's not just about the food, it's about the company, of course. And I love these particular friends a lot. But maybe I'd make a more foolproof menu. Cuteness is distracting, people!

7 comments:

Margaret Pinard said...

Haha- so true! Good things our friends love us for more than out cooking/ baking prowess :)

Julie said...

Oh man, I hate when I open the fridge after people leave and find something I meant to serve! The worst. But you're right - it's the people (and babies!) who count, not the perfect meal.

Daniel said...

I do like hard-boiled eggs! Who doesn't? And eating out of a ramekin never hurt anybody.

Anonymous said...

I'm a little tardy, (this recipe was a couple of posts ago)) but your ragu dinner was delicious tonight. We almost licked the plates clean! Will make it again for sure.

Megan and Butch! said...

Dearest Lisa, this comment is completely unrelated to eggs or ramekins (or babies!), but --- do you know how many times I have made your pimento cheese dip since you posted the recipe here? At least five! It always disappears before everything else. And every time I make it, I think of you and this site. Just FYI.

XO, Your Alaskan Reader

Lisa said...

Margaret: Indeed!

Julie: Yes, totally. Although I HATE that too.

Daniel: It hurt me deeply.

Anony: Thanks--nice to hear!

M&B: Aww, I miss you guys.

lulu said...

Oh man, but my eggs were really perfect;) It was distracting with the kiddo & doggie, though, (as it tends to be these days,) but so much fun, and that coffee cake carried us home and through the week! Thanks again!!

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