eggs – Page 3 – Courage in the Kitchen

When the four daughters of Jerri’s oldest brother compiled The Krehbiel Family Cookbook to preserve some of the recipes their mother used to feed her family, they included a final section titled “Other Great Recipes.”

Some are clearly recipes devised by the girls. For instance, they prefaced their instructions for making “Plain Macaroni” by noting that it was “A favorite main dish when Daddy and Mother had bridge club and we got to cook supper.”

Others are commentaries on remembered dishes. Someone contributed this note: “Heart, Tongue, Rabbit, Goat Meat and other delicacies: Remember all these special meals we had?? Kids today don’t know how easy their life is.”

Still others recognize the kitchen skills of their father. There is one for pancakes “(From Daddy, Carrie and Erica think Grandpa is famous for his pancakes)” which begins “Mix pancake batter according to package directions. Be sure to add an egg or two and use milk instead of water. Stir in any additions. Cook on griddle.” Suggested additions included applesauce, bananas and canned fruits.

Following this entry which helps explain why grandfathers love their grandchildren is a recipe for French Toast with an important piece of wisdom that was probably imparted by Grandpa to his idolators as they watched him cook their breakfast. The recipe is worth quoting in its entirety.

“French Toast: (From Daddy, another breakfast favorite!!) Mix eggs, milk, cinnamon and sugar. Dip in bread (stale is best, be sure to tear off any moldy parts). Cook on griddle. Serve with butter and syrup. Yummy!!”

My recipe for French toast is an upscale version, but I also watch to make sure that no moldy parts end up on the griddle. Incidentally, our grandson thinks my French toast is the best ever.

Here is how to make enough French toast for one hungry grandson and two adults or four hungry adults.

INGREDIENTS:

5 large eggs
2 T sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 to 2 cups milk
1 tsp. vanilla
Slices of stale bread

PROCEDURE:

Start heating the griddle to about 350º or put a skillet over moderate heat while you make the batter.

Beat the eggs until they are lemon colored. Beat in the sugar, salt and cinnamon followed by the milk.

Grease the griddle or skillet lightly with cooking spray or shortening. Test that the cooking surface is the right temperature with a drop or two of water. If it sizzles and bounces, you are ready to cook your French toast.

Dip slices of bread in the batter so all surfaces of the bread are moist. If you are using stale bread, you can turn each slice a couple of times to allow the batter to penetrate the bread. Fry the slices for about two minutes, then turn them over to cook the top side. Both sides should be lightly browned.

Serve with butter and maple syrup.

NOTES: Whole milk works best for French toast, but reduced-fat milk is okay. A couple of times while camping I have made French toast with powdered milk, and it all got eaten.

Fresh strawberries, raspberries or blueberries are tasty additions to the topping.

Stale bread really is best for making French toast. Thick-sliced French or Italian bread is especially good and whole wheat bread works well too. Just let it sit for three or four days, then get up twenty minutes earlier than usual and treat your family to a fantastic breakfast.

I like bacon or sausage with my French toast. Protein, I need some protein!

When Eiersuppe was on the menu at the Aaseehauskolleg, the Studentenheim or dormitory where I lived at the university in Münster, Germany, nobody turned it down. Eiersuppe–in English, Egg Drop Soup–is a comfort food that warms the soul as well as the body.

My mother made it for me when I was sick, and in Germany and Austria it is still considered an excellent food to help people recover from a cold or flu. It is low in calories and carbohydrates and of course is mostly water, so it has to be good for you. The wonder is that it tastes so good.

In its most basic form, egg drop soup is just lightly seasoned chicken broth with threads of beaten egg poached in it. However, for many cooks, that recipe is just the starting point. “Chefkock.de,” a German cooking magazine, lists 480 egg soup recipes on its website.

Egg Drop Soup is popular around the world. It is a staple of Chinese cuisine, and many people first taste this soup in a Chinese restaurant, where it’s often called Egg Flower Soup. There are versions from Korea, Japan, India, Italy, Spain and France. In the New World, cooks from Alaska to Mexico have found ways to naturalize this wonderful soup as well. In Alaska people add king crab meat to the broth while Mexican chefs make Sopa de Huevo y Ajo with garlic, tomatoes and chili powder.

You can make egg drop soup almost any way you want, but here is a good basic recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

4 cups chicken broth
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 T cornstarch dissolved in 2 T cold water.
2 T chopped parsley
2 eggs

PROCEDURE:

Rinse and finely chop about two tablespoons of fresh parsley.

Bring the broth to a boil in a saucepan. Add the salt and pepper. Dissolve the cornstarch in the cold water and stir it into the broth. Reduce the heat to simmer. Beat the eggs to lemon yellow and carefully dribble them into the simmering broth, stirring the stream of egg gently with a fork as you add it to the broth.
Simmer about a minute after you have added the eggs, then taste and adjust the seasoning. Ladle into bowls and garnish with the parsley.