mulberryshoots

Most mornings, I have been making green smoothies for breakfast. I’ve been drinking them for about two months or so. Into my blender goes some almond milk, pomegranate juice, a fresh banana, a good handful of baby spinach, some green algae supplement called Pure Synergy and either frozen mango, peaches or wild blueberries. Blend it all up and drink while I begin reading the day’s New York Times newspaper.

Then, if I feel like it, I’ll boil an egg or two to round out my breakfast. I’ve always wondered how to do this in order to get consistent results–a white that has formed, a yolk that is still warm and runny, and not in between nor overcooked. Nigel Slater, a renowned British cookery writer, described a method that works perfectly. Every time.

Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Then slip in your egg(s). Set the timer to 5 minutes, the pot still set at the same heat as when bringing the water to a boil. Take out when the bell rings and rinse the eggs in cold water. I then scoop out the eggs into a small bowl and add a dollop of Chinese oyster sauce. This is the way that my Dad used to eat his eggs every morning.

This morning, I read a heartening story on the front page of the Times describing how the poor residents of a small Spanish town called Sodeto had won the gigantic annual Spanish Christmas lottery. I’m always a sucker for stories like these, because it shows struggling individuals helping each other and then benefiting from a swoop of incredible luck. Some of the residents couldn’t afford the $6.50 to buy a “participation” in the lottery drawing. One friend held a ticket for another who couldn’t afford to pay for it, even after the winning number was drawn. But she held onto it anyhow for her friend. One resident who had somehow been bypassed by the women selling the tickets also benefitted when a neighbor, on the day after the lottery win, offered to buy some land that he hadn’t been able to sell. Some of the ladies who won wanted to get their hair done. But the hairdresser also won and said she wasn’t working that day!

I love mornings like this. Making a smoothie that’s healthy. Eating eggs in a way that reminds me of my father. Reading a heartwarming story about rags to riches on the front page of the New York Times. What more could anyone ask for?