Sunday Morning Brunch: Souffléd Omelet

Sunday Brunch. Simple words that serve as a cherished weekend routine. It’s a meal that becomes the event on a lazy weekend day. A meal you take your time with. Relax, unplug, visit, eat, read, enjoy. Since Sunday is my Saturday, I get extra excited when I roll out of bed. The combination of sleeping in and knowing that the meal I have been waiting all week for is just moments away... well, there are few words to better describe it than "perfection."

This is who I want to be:

Photo via Marion Nestle

I love Marion Nestle. I'm rather picky when it comes to choosing role models but its safe to say that if I had to pick one person to be when I grow up, I would be her. As a New York University Professor, widely published author (she writes a monthly Food Matters column for the San Francisco Chronicle and has numerous books, one of which I wrote a book review on a few weeks back) and fellow blogger, its safe to say that she doesn't mind sharing her point of view on all things food.

When San Francisco voted to eliminate toys from McDonald’s Happy Meals, the Forum at the Harvard School of Public Health invited comments on the issue. Not surprisingly, she chimed in. here’s what she had to say about it:

Polenta Cookies:

Since my post on breakfast polentina the other day, I have been thinking nonstop about whipping up a batch of Italian Polenta Cookies. These crispy little treats are a great change of pace from the everyday cookie. Polenta adds a gritty-ness to the finished product, so they aren't quite melt-in-your-mouth, but I have to admit, thats what I love best about them. They are a different kind of cookie: delicious enough to hold me over until the Girl Scout Cookies arrive, but not too sweet that I feel bad when I sneak a few extra after dinner!

Fresh Flowers:

Ask anyone who knows me: the best way to get on my good side, fast, is to get me a lovely bouquet. This darling cluster was found at the only coffee shop on a small island off the coast of Maine called North Haven (the same island where my honey proposed to me last fall). I'm posting it today because all I want right now is a lovely bunch of summer blooms, but alas, it's the middle of winter and I'm stuck in Chicago. I guess I'll have to be patient, good thing Spring is just around the corner!

Caramelized Brussels Sprouts:

I have a serious vegetable crush on Brussels Sprouts this season. The market down the street from my house has been keeping them in stock all winter and I make sure to pick up a pound or two every chance I get. I love them almost as-is: just a quick steam, a little bit of salt and a deep caramelization, I can think of few things that are better.