MORNING
ENGLISH MUFFINS
Why are homemade English muffins necessary to your life? Eaten for breakfast, slathered in melted butter and honey, they are sublime. And have you ever put your grilled hamburger on one? Beyond good. If you go to the trouble to make these yourself you must fork-split them, which means going around the circumference of the muffin plunging the tines of a fork towards the center until the muffin breaks open. The irregularity of the cut is what creates all the famous nooks and crannies for capturing precious juices.
THE ACADEMY'S SOUTHERN BISCUIT
We don't care who you are - nobody has the time or desire to make a flaky croissant first thing in the morning. If you are making croissants, then you are baking four hundred of them and opening up a patisserie. We assert that pastry has personality; the croissant is haughty and refined.
The biscuit, on the other hand, is a plucky little fireplug with a can-do attitude. He is the friend to every meal and will even do appetizer duty if you but ask. He has a wide-open smile ready to accommodate ham or melted butter. He just wants to be loved. Folding the pastry a few times creates layers - a nod to its French cousin, the croissant.
CREAMY CHICKEN CREPES
Remember how we had you cook two chickens at once? Here's our favorite thing to do with the second one after we've eaten the first. Shred all of the meat from the remaining chicken. If it's holiday time, don't forget that turkey works just as well.
EGG STRATA
We all know dinner is fun with all the wine and cocktails flowing and the subsequent revelry, but you might be surprised to find that breakfast can be even more fun. You will rehash last night's events and make new plans for the day, so the meal is suspended between past and future.
RAISIN SCONE
Adapted from the Savoy Hotel in London, these scones are fit for the Queen herself. The perfect accompaniment to your High Tea party.
PECAN SANDIES
This recipe, adapted from Southern Living 2010, is the greatest bribe to lure your friends to help trim your tree for the holidays.
SMOOTHIE
On a yoga retreat at OmBase Yoga, the Zen master presented us with this smoothie, and we are smitten. We know you will be, too. It's appropriate for all diets, except someone with a nut allergy. Namaste.