There are some things in life that are better the second time around. Take music for example, songs from the 1970s, such as “Hotel California,” have made a comeback, but there’s another thing from that era that I’d rather just leave where it belongs — in the past.
The boyfriend and I have become known in our circle of friends for our love of cooking. For example, we always cook something special for Sunday brunch. We’ve cooked everything from potato, onion and prosciutto frittatas topped with sour cream and fresh chives from the garden to one of my favorites, country ham with a Parmesan cream sauce. Hey, don’t knock it until you’ve tried it. It’s simply delicious.
This past Sunday we made probably one of the best breakfasts I’ve ever had. We make chocolate crepes with a cream cheese and macerated berry sauce with a side of sausage. It was so good, it’s hard to describe. It was the perfect balance of everything good. I promise that I will be making this recipe again and again. And, I have to add, that not only did it taste amazing, it was so simple to make. That’s always a plus on a lazy Sunday morning.
There we were, all set in our foodie ways, until one Sunday night when we started talking about all the foods we ate growing up. We named off things like deviled ham, bologna sandwiches and macaroni and cheese in the blue box — basically all of the things that became familiar favorites from our childhoods.
It wasn’t too long before we hatched the idea of having a whole week of eating nothing but retro food.
At first we were all excited. We made a grocery list and headed out to the store to load up on meals that would remind us of the food we ate as kids. We stocked on the afore mentioned foods, plus Hamburger Helper, pizza in a box, not to mention the must have — white bread. No true southerner would ever eat a proper tomato or fried bologna sandwich on wheat bread. It’s just not right.
I was the one that insisted on having pizza in a box. Making those pizzas was such a fond childhood memory, that I eventually became interested in making pizzas from scratch at home as an adult.
One of his childhood likes were Red Hots. While I had never heard of this product before, he assured me that we would be able to find it at the store. We couldn’t find the exact ones he ate, but we did find a different brand. He made them for me for breakfast one day and I have to say, they weren’t bad. It tasted like a regular smoked sausage, only it was really, really hot. I enjoyed it, but I can’t say that’s something I’d like to eat on a regular basis.
I guess the problems started when not only were our taste buds offended by this over-processed junk we were eating, but our stomachs weren’t too far behind. Even now, nearly a week later, I’m just now overcoming the ill effects of eating this way for a week.
At the end of the week, we collectively decided that the pizza in a box was the hands down favorite. We also decided that this was a stupid experiment and we paid for it with our health. From now on, we are just going to stick to eating what we like, the healthy stuff.
Let me leave you with this recipe this week. I hope you make it and enjoy it in good health.
Chocolate-Berry Crepes
Ingredients
Crepes:
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk, at room temperature
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoons sugar
A pinch of kosher salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 12 cubes
Filling:
1 stick of cream cheese (8 ounces)
1 1/2 cups mixed berries of your choice
4 tablespoons of honey
3 tablespoons of cream
For the crepes: Combine the eggs, milk, flour, cocoa powder, sugar and salt in a blender or bowl. Blend or whisk by hand until the mixture forms a smooth batter.
Preheat a 10-inch nonstick crepe pan or skillet over medium-low heat. Melt one cube of butter in the pan. Add 1/4 cup of batter and quickly tilt the pan to form an even coating of batter on the bottom of the pan. Cook until set, about one minute. Using a heat-resistant spatula, carefully loosen the sides and gently flip the crepe over. Cook for one minute. Repeat with the remaining batter and butter.
For the filling:
Soften the cream cheese by heating for about 25 to 30 seconds in the microwave. Incorporate the cream with a whisk or beaters. Stir in 2 tablespoons of honey. In a separate bowl, drizzle honey over the berries and let sit for a few minutes. Mix the berries and cream cheese mixture together before filling the crepes.
Serve those with a Mimosa, (that’s sparkling wine with a splash of orange juice) on the side, and prepare to eat the best breakfast of your life. Enjoy!
Mondee Tilley is a staff reporter at The Mount Airy News. She can be reached at mtilley@heartlandpublications.com or at 719-1930.
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