Thread: Full English or Continental? Board: Oblivion / Ship of Fools.


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Posted by Ariel (# 58) on :
 
Having briefly dropped by the Hell thread of that name and gone away disappointed, here's Heaven's own version. No ranting, but possibly some raving about the wonders of a really good breakfast.

Personally, nothing beats a Full English, except a Full Irish. Both (at their best) offer you bacon, sausage, black pudding, fried or scrambled eggs, tomatoes, baked beans and mushrooms. The Full English will also additionally offer you hash browns, fried bread and toast, while the Full Irish will additionally offer you white pudding, potato cakes and possibly soda bread as an alternative to toast. After you've consumed a plate of the Full Whichever, you're set up and don't need to eat again for a week.

Continental, on the other hand, means different things to different people. It can be as basic as a mug of coffee and a croissant, or it can be the whole works with fruit salad, cereals, yogurts, a selection of cheeses and ham, and as much toast as you can handle with or without preserves.

So - in an ideal world, what would be your perfect breakfast? Any particularly memorable ones? (And does anyone really like kippers?)

[ 20. February 2014, 17:46: Message edited by: Ariel ]
 
Posted by balaam (# 4543) on :
 
Nothing beats scrambled egg and smoked salmon. With plenty of pepper on the egg.
 
Posted by Ethne Alba (# 5804) on :
 
Each day is so different. One day it's bacon, eggs, baked beans, onions and anything left over from supper the night before + half a pint of milk and then sweet scalding coffee.
While today was a supermarket's cluster muesli with handfuls of freeze dried red berries, ordinary and then chocolate croissants (oh yum) and Chai tea.
Work days used to be an apple on the way out of the front door, sandwiches on the bus, crunchy bar and banana on the walk from bus to work and a nice cup of tea the instant my feet crossed work's threshold.

And I Love kippers!
 
Posted by Hedgehog (# 14125) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Ariel:
Having briefly dropped by the Hell thread of that name and gone away disappointed...
I should probably warn you about the bacon thread in the Circus...

What constitutes an excellent breakfast can change depending on mood but a toasted bagel with salmon and capers would be high on my list. With a pot of tea (either a breakfast blend or possibly Darjeeling). Oh, and I do like a glass of grapefruit juice, too.
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
I spent several years in a job with an early and intensive piece of work at the beginning of the day - c 7 to 8 am. Nothing tasted better after that than serious amounts of coffee and a white roll crammed with bacon and a hash brown. Stodge, grease and caffeine - yum.

The full English/Irish/Scottish (like the other two - plus haggis) not so much. Soft boiled egg with hot buttered toast would probably score higher.
 
Posted by lilBuddha (# 14333) on :
 
Another changes with the day person here. But if I had to pick one: chorizo con papas. I prefer the spices in the Mexican variety.
But then again, crepes are divine and delicate. Mustn't forget scones with cream and jam. Or....
 
Posted by Ariel (# 58) on :
 
I've just remembered: eggs Benedict, with a cup of hot black coffee. Makes a great start to a Sunday morning.

(Though there are times when it just needs to be baked beans on hot buttered toast with a couple of rashers.)
 
Posted by Tree Bee (# 4033) on :
 
I struggle to eat breakfast. I'm not hungry first thing but need something to keep me going.
So I have porridge each morning, at the moment I have it topped with agave syrup.
Hotels rarely have porridge I find, so I opt for continental. I can just manage a croissant, but they're too greasy for me.
Failing that, a dippy egg and toast .
 
Posted by Kelly Alves (# 2522) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Ariel:
Having briefly dropped by the Hell thread of that name and gone away disappointed...
[Big Grin]


Eggs benedict. with "Home fries" (Cubed, fried potatoes, with seasoning.)

Recently I had a Peruvian version of eggs benedict which had pisco-marinated gravlax as a base instead of ham. It was to die for.

And of course you can't claim to be a Peruvian restaurant unless your potatoes are pristine.
 
Posted by Og, King of Bashan (# 9562) on :
 
I'm big on Mexican cowboy-style breakfasts. Tortilla chips simmered in salsa verde with cheese, creme fraiche or sour cream, and a fried egg on top is an easy one to fix on a camp stove. Fried egg with re-fried beans smothered in ranchero sauce and served with corn tortillas (huevos rancheros) are another favorite.

Christmas morning breakfast at our house consists of tamales smothered in green chile, cheese, sour cream, and fried eggs, served with beers.
 
Posted by balaam (# 4543) on :
 
The full *insert part of the UK here* breakfast is measured on the quality of the bacon.

Bacon is not just bacon though, is it? It can be back bacon, streaky bacon, salt cured, water cured cooked soft or crispy. Well cooked bacon should be reserved for bacon sandwiches IMO. Bacon to go with the full ?ish is best when it is a salt cured back bacon cooked quickly so that it just starting to crisp at the edges but the centre is still soft.

Perfect.

But what about the mushrooms? Small button mushrooms or large flat ones — which is best?
 
Posted by comet (# 10353) on :
 
In most of Alaska, the standard restaurant breakfast would be the same as an american standard breakfast - two eggs, bacon or sausage, toast, and hash browns. alternately, a giant stack of sourdough flapjacks with birch syrup.

however, in my home town, they have their own signature breakfast, the Full Standard. (or Half Standard, if you don't wish to eat enough to feed a small third-world nation) it's (a ton of) scrambled eggs, 4 pieces of bacon, home-fried potatoes with green chile, pepper, and onion, two pieces of homemade bread over an inch thick, apple butter, coffee, and juice. It's obscene. I used to get one full standard for the whole family to share.

my personal breakfast (embarrassing to admit) is the same every day. A cup of coffee, and a smoothie. the smoothie has: 2 cups of frozen blueberries, a tablespoon of crushed ginger, a teaspoon each of macha and cinnamon, and 3 cups of fresh spinach, packed. blended all together with a little water until it resembles mud. Not very attractive but very easy and I couldn't live without it. plus, it's delicious. if I'm out of blueberries I'll use frozen cherries.

[eta: birch syrup not bitch syrup. hah!]

[ 20. February 2014, 19:51: Message edited by: comet ]
 
Posted by balaam (# 4543) on :
 
Bitch syrup, I like it [Big Grin]
 
Posted by pydseybare (# 16184) on :
 
Pancakes all the way.

Mind you, having said that, I also really like Belgian waffles. In Belgium, of course.

[ 20. February 2014, 19:56: Message edited by: pydseybare ]
 
Posted by Bob Two-Owls (# 9680) on :
 
I am firmly in the "bacon should not bend" camp. Personally, my birthday breakfast is my ideal - tea, crispy bacon, fried egg, scrambled egg with cheese, black pudding, fried bread, grilled tomato topped with cheese and relish, grilled mushroom done similarly, baked beans or ideally a slice of last night's macaroni cheese. Followed by more tea, toast, butter and marmalade.

I only have one a year (un)fortunately...
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
White toast, salted farmhouse butter, good marmalade, hedgerow conserve. Fat juicy sausages. A pot of tea (my favourite standard brew is Waitrose Gold Blend or Yorkshire Gold, Sainsburys Red Label is however very tasty too). Hedgerow conserve (bramble, rosehip, apple, sometimes sloes and haw berries) can be replaced by any country preserve eg hawthorn jelly.

If I've had a roast the night before, dripping on toast is a lovely breakfast.
 
Posted by lilBuddha (# 14333) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Og, King of Bashan:
I'm big on Mexican cowboy-style breakfasts. Tortilla chips simmered in salsa verde with cheese, creme fraiche or sour cream, and a fried egg on top is an easy one to fix on a camp stove.
Chilaquiles, verdad? Me gusta! Para mi, sin huevos, por favor.*

* this is called chilaquiles, right? Make mine without eggs, please.

[ 20. February 2014, 20:00: Message edited by: lilBuddha ]
 
Posted by pydseybare (# 16184) on :
 
Wow. OK, maybe not pancakes and waffles all the way, those sound great!
 
Posted by Sir Kevin (# 3492) on :
 
Most days during the business year five days a week: continental - some sort of sausage, orange juice and black coffee freshly made.

At a big hotel in Penzance or anywhere else in England: the full English is the only acceptable choice! Especially with Marmite on toast: gonna have some of that right now!
 
Posted by HCH (# 14313) on :
 
There was a period of time in my life in which my usual breakfast consisted of a cup of milk and a cup of dark grape juice.

Nowadays I tend to eat a couple of cups of puffed cereal, dry.

When I am on vacation and walking around a lot,
I eat substantially more for breakfast.
 
Posted by Og, King of Bashan (# 9562) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by lilBuddha:
quote:
Originally posted by Og, King of Bashan:
I'm big on Mexican cowboy-style breakfasts. Tortilla chips simmered in salsa verde with cheese, creme fraiche or sour cream, and a fried egg on top is an easy one to fix on a camp stove.
Chilaquiles, verdad? Me gusta! Para mi, sin huevos, por favor.*

* this is called chilaquiles, right? Make mine without eggs, please.
Yes, chilaquiles. If you have chips, salsa or sauce, and something else to fill them out, you have a meal. There is a somewhat related Tex-Mex dish called Migas, which are essentially a giant omelet with tortilla strips and Mexican fixings. That's another great breakfast.
 
Posted by Kelly Alves (# 2522) on :
 
I have only tried those once, and they were awesome.

I also like to sample local variations on corned beef hash-- poached egg on top, please.
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
In God's Country: huevos rancheros, with green chile and sopapillas, lots of black coffee.

When I'm in a "when's the next train back to Oxford?" mood: kippers, black pudding, fried mushrooms and tomato, fried eggs, wheat toast, lapsang souchong.

At upscale "diners:" migas, wheat toast, fresh-squeezed orange juice, more coffee.

At real diners: either the garbage plate ("we're cleaning the cooler, you get what you get") or chicken fried steak, eggs, and homefries, both with a pot of coffee.

On the rare days I'm feeling fancy at home (and actually wake up early enough for it): granola with Greek yogurt, dried dates, and maple syrup. Two pots of tea or a French press of Sidamo or Chiapas, depending on what I grab first in my half-concious pre-caffeinated haze.
 
Posted by Horseman Bree (# 5290) on :
 
The presence of black pudding would remove my desire to have any meal. At breakfast, sorry, I would definitely leave the room.
 
Posted by Meg the Red (# 11838) on :
 
I'm with HB; even the sight of the words "black pudding" trigger my gag reflex. My breakfasts vary from season to season; my current favourite is overnight oatmeal with homemade apple butter. For a bit of self-indulgence on winter weekends, I'm fond of the loco moco adaptation from Breakfast for Dinner. Or homemade cinnamon buns. Mmmmm - cream cheese icing . . .

[ 21. February 2014, 01:23: Message edited by: Meg the Red ]
 
Posted by jedijudy (# 333) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Bob Two-Owls:
I am firmly in the "bacon should not bend" camp.
Amen! And that goes perfectly with a plateful of grits topped with two over easy eggs and the crispy bacon crumbled (leaving one piece to enjoy whole.) Mix all that together, and enjoy with a pot of tea and a glass of grape juice spritzer!

But, my most common breakfast is steel-cut oats cooked with golden raisins, dried blueberries, nutmeg, cinnamon and walnuts. So good!
 
Posted by Palimpsest (# 16772) on :
 
My most common breakfast is instant oatmeal with dried cherries or frozen blueberries and a sprinkling of cinnamon or a cup of yoghurt.

Other breakfasts I'll get when I'm near the right place to get it.
Doughnuts.
Poppy bagels with cream cheese and lox and decaff coffee, pancakes with maple syrup, fresh berries or peaches, fried eggs, bacon or sausage and real home fries.
 
Posted by Arabella Purity Winterbottom (# 3434) on :
 
Porridge made with water, with fresh fruit, no milk, no sugar, with a cup of tea, every day for the last 10+ years. Very very occasionally, toast with peanut butter (about twice a year, usually because I've run out of porridge).

I even take packets of porridge and a bowl with me if I'm going to be staying with friends or at a motel.

I find the cooked breakfast, as described above, makes me feel sick all day, and somewhat sleepy.
 
Posted by Porridge (# 15405) on :
 
I suppose it goes without saying that my standard cold weather breakfast is, well, porridge (though this side of the pond we call it oatmeal). I have it with blueberries, some chopped nuts or sunflower seed and maple syrup. And tea, though the tea comes first.

On cold mornings with sufficient leisure, I might have a couple of sausages or a fishcake (flaked cod mixed with mashed potatoes, coated with corn meal and fried); maybe substitute baked beans for the porridge.

Usually I also have 1-2 pieces of whole-wheat toast with cream cheese or peanut butter.

In hot weather, I like yoghurt with wheat germ or oat bran and some cut-up fruit, maybe with brown sugar if the fruit's tart. And cold tea (or sometimes iced coffee, with lots of milk).
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
1. Bacon should never bend. This rules out most American diner bacon, which, since it's cooked quickly, rather than properly burned, bends. The only exception to this rule is in England or other places that think of "bacon" as back bacon, which, since it's basically pig steak, can bend all it wants.

2. Black pudding is delicious. All you fools who be hatin' can step off. Don't ask me why—I hate Marmite with a passion, I'll never eat another sausage roll, and I never miss a chance to slander pork pies—but I can't get enough black pudding. As far as English foods of questionable origin go, it's my favorite.

3. A point I've always wondered: is American "oatmeal" exactly the same as British "porridge?" In my mind, I've always thought of porridge as wheat-based, like American Cream of Wheat, but I'm thinking I might just be wrong.
 
Posted by comet (# 10353) on :
 
...
I like bendy bacon.
 
Posted by Ariel (# 58) on :
 
Bacon should always bend. If it shatters, it's overdone. If you can't get a fork into it, chances are you won't get your teeth into it either.

quote:
Originally posted by balaam:
But what about the mushrooms? Small button mushrooms or large flat ones — which is best?
Small button mushrooms, which should be fried in butter.
 
Posted by Ariston (# 10894) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Ariel:
Bacon should always bend. If it shatters, it's overdone. If you can't get a fork into it, chances are you won't get your teeth into it either.
Ah, but let me explain something to you, and all other British folk who may be reading this. When you think of "bacon," you mean back bacon, which, if cooked until crispy, would be inedible. Indeed, if what I called "bacon" was back bacon or gammon, I would agree with you. However, in the States, "bacon" is always stripy bacon—sliced pork belly, usually thinly sliced. Even "thick cut" deli bacon is never quite as thick as your typical rasher. If our bacon shatters, that means two things: one, it's been cooked in its own grease for a long time, and, secondly, that it'll disintegrate once you chew it at all. Crispy stripy bacon is one step away from a million tiny bits of crunchy bacon powder. While well-done back bacon would be chewy and dry, like a well-done sirloin steak, well-done (indeed, burned) stripy bacon is less chewy than floppy bacon.
 
Posted by ken (# 2460) on :
 
This Brit thinks bacon should be crispy.

And have the rind on it. Rindlessness in bacon is one of the few steps backwards that mass-produced food has made in the last couple of decades (the biggest being the decline in standard of supermarket bread since it got briefly good in the 1980s after having mostly been Chorleywood fluff for the previous thirty years. And don't talk about the excuse for wholemeal)
 
Posted by RuthW (# 13) on :
 
There used to be a restaurant in Irvine, CA that served my all-time favorite breakfast. In a dish resembling a gravy boat, they placed a biscuit, split down the middle, then a spicy Louisiana sausage, split lengthwise, and then two eggs, fried or poached, depending on the customer's taste. This was all drowned in red-eye gravy.
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
I love bendy bacon, sorry - though I'm not sure I've ever had streaky bacon at breakfast. Middle bacon is clearly the king of bacons, however. Lidl does a fine maple cure one.

Black pudding is delicious.

UK porridge is the same as US oatmeal - though since I can't eat oats (but can eat white wheat-based products for some reason) I can't have it at all. I am not big on sweet breakfasts though, aside from marmalade (should be barely sweet anyway!) and sugar in coffee.
 
Posted by Sir Kevin (# 3492) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by HCH:
There was a period of time in my life in which my usual breakfast consisted of a cup of milk and a cup of dark grape juice.

Nowadays I tend to eat a couple of cups of puffed cereal, dry...

Hardly a proper breakfast! My kids that I teach eat light-years healthier than that. Avoid cereal - too many bloody carbs! Why not try a steak with or without eggs or at least ham or sausages? You'll be getting your protein then! Barring that, at least have marmite and butter on toast...
 
Posted by Ariel (# 58) on :
 
Sir Kevin, please remember that you're posting on the Heaven board. Keep the tone light, on topic, and avoid getting personal.

Thank you.

Ariel
Heaven Host
 
Posted by Gill H (# 68) on :
 
Most days it's a pot of porridge at work (the kind you make up with water). But on holiday in the UK, the full English is great.

When visiting NYC back in 2005 we discovered the whole pancake/bacon/syrup thing and loved it. (Hello, Olympic Diner on 8th and ooh, about 48th? We miss you...)

In Germany I go for the whole 'umpteen types of cold meats, cheeses and breads' scenario. I could make a meal of that any time. And in Switzerland birchermuesli is wonderful.In France I can eat as many croissants as you can provide - hey, we'll walk off the calories later.
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
I like black pudding, but its proper home is nestling under a seared scallop IMO.

Has anyone come across instant croissant? This appeared a few years ago in the UK - a small cardboard tube which, when you opened it, billowed out white dough. This you shaped and baked and in 10 minutes had something approximately croissantish.

Described this once to a French acquaintance, on to whose face came a look of horror 'That is terrific!*'

*not the word he was looking for but I know what he meant.
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Firenze:
I like black pudding, but its proper home is nestling under a seared scallop IMO.

Has anyone come across instant croissant? This appeared a few years ago in the UK - a small cardboard tube which, when you opened it, billowed out white dough. This you shaped and baked and in 10 minutes had something approximately croissantish.

Described this once to a French acquaintance, on to whose face came a look of horror 'That is terrific!*'

*not the word he was looking for but I know what he meant.
You can still get them I believe - used to love them as a child, we had the pain au chocolat type. They are popular in the US as 'crescent rolls'.

Gill, I too love a German/Dutch style breakfast of bread, cheese and cold meat. When I want a quick, cold breakfast I'd rather have that than cereal.
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Jade Constable:
You can still get them I believe - used to love them as a child, we had the pain au chocolat type.
Indeed. I came across something similar in Tesco just yesterday, which is what called it to mind. These seem rather more ambitious, with a choice of pain au chocolat, cinnamon bun or apple Danish. I thought I would try the last as a weekend treat and a change from virtuous porridge.
 
Posted by Eutychus (# 3081) on :
 
In a tradition that dates back to Mrs E's debilitating morning sickness (ie quite a while ago), breakfast in bed when at home: orange juice, porridge (in winter) or fruit&fibre (summer) and tea. Secret to porridge is preparing the mix the night before and nuking it twice in the microwave whilst waiting for the kettle to boil. With skill and practice this can be done without opening my eyes too much.

When in a hotel, grapefruit juice, muesli + fruit + yoghurt plus the cooked breakfast if it looks edible and not made with dehydrated eggs, toast, coffee.

Ferry: full English, either the first taste of ancestral homeland on arrival or the last on leaving.

[ETA instant croissant? Perish the thought (and the croissant)]

[ 21. February 2014, 08:34: Message edited by: Eutychus ]
 
Posted by rufiki (# 11165) on :
 
I have bought Jus Rol Croissants in my local Tesco recently. I enjoyed them but I'm no connoisseur.
 
Posted by Heavenly Anarchist (# 13313) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by rufiki:
I have bought Jus Rol Croissants in my local Tesco recently. I enjoyed them but I'm no connoisseur.
I put jam or chocolate spread in mine before cooking for breakfast. Or ham and cheese for lunch.

My ideal breakfast is porridge (English style) followed by eggs Benedict and a latte. But a bacon and fried egg roll is also good.
 
Posted by Alan Cresswell (# 31) on :
 
At home it's a cup of orange juice, bowl of cereal, cup of coffee and maybe a slice of toast and marmalade.

Travelling I would almost always opt for the local cuisine. So recently that was rice, varieties of fish, meso soup, vegies.
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Heavenly Anarchist:
quote:
Originally posted by rufiki:
I have bought Jus Rol Croissants in my local Tesco recently. I enjoyed them but I'm no connoisseur.
I put jam or chocolate spread in mine before cooking for breakfast. Or ham and cheese for lunch.

My ideal breakfast is porridge (English style) followed by eggs Benedict and a latte. But a bacon and fried egg roll is also good.
Hmmm now I'm pretty tempted to have a hot ham and cheese croissant for lunch!
 
Posted by Curiosity killed ... (# 11770) on :
 
We tested those croissants in a tube when I was at school, against home-made and bought - all got to make one of the three and taste test. (That means they've been around for a long time). I think those tubes were the trigger for my sister to learn how to home-make croissants (now that would be a GBBO challenge).

The only time I eat full English is away with my daughter, and we're usually walking. We got given potato cakes in Glasgow, and they were delicious - shame she couldn't eat them - she got my fried eggs instead. Normally it's hash browns, bacon, fried/poached egg, baked beans, mushrooms (not cooked in butter) and tomatoes for her, and I'll eat most of that lot.

I like kippers, but not with bacon and eggs, they are an alternative breakfast, last time was over Christmas, nice Scottish kippers.

Nobody has added devilled kidneys to their breakfast options, or fried Christmas pudding (with bacon and full English) or kedgeree. A bastardisation of kedgeree is a frequent weekend breakfast, particularly when my daughter is around, bastardised because I tend to use smoked mackerel and take out the cream and butter.

What I really eat most days is porridge or muesli - and not the nasty sweetened stuff you find in hotels and hostels.
 
Posted by Heavenly Anarchist (# 13313) on :
 
I've just bought English muffins and gammon at the supermarket [Hot and Hormonal] ready for brunch tomorrow [Big Grin]
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Curiosity killed ...:
We tested those croissants in a tube when I was at school, against home-made and bought - all got to make one of the three and taste test. (That means they've been around for a long time). I think those tubes were the trigger for my sister to learn how to home-make croissants (now that would be a GBBO challenge).

The only time I eat full English is away with my daughter, and we're usually walking. We got given potato cakes in Glasgow, and they were delicious - shame she couldn't eat them - she got my fried eggs instead. Normally it's hash browns, bacon, fried/poached egg, baked beans, mushrooms (not cooked in butter) and tomatoes for her, and I'll eat most of that lot.

I like kippers, but not with bacon and eggs, they are an alternative breakfast, last time was over Christmas, nice Scottish kippers.

Nobody has added devilled kidneys to their breakfast options, or fried Christmas pudding (with bacon and full English) or kedgeree. A bastardisation of kedgeree is a frequent weekend breakfast, particularly when my daughter is around, bastardised because I tend to use smoked mackerel and take out the cream and butter.

What I really eat most days is porridge or muesli - and not the nasty sweetened stuff you find in hotels and hostels.
I like kidneys so should probably try adding the devilled variety to my breakfasts.

If you have one nearby, Aldi and Lidl do particularly good luxury muesli. I can't eat it due to the oats, but it's absolutely crammed full of fruit and nuts.
 
Posted by Sioni Sais (# 5713) on :
 
While I'm anyone's for a good fried breakfast I detest the term "Full English Breakfast". This use of unnecessary adjectives and descriptors menus always raises my hackles. If a dish has one as an integral part of its name, eg Eggs Benedict, or has a PGI (eg, Stilton cheese, Melton Mowbray pork pie) that's OK but no fried breakfast has one, so cut the pretentiousness from the least pretentious cooked meal possible.

And another thing: one eggs, one sausage, one rasher of bason, half a tomato and a couple of button mushroom with half a slice of toast is not a "full" anything. Baked beans and chips just don't belong either and if someone wants to sell me a full English breakfast, it had better fill me, so there ought to be two of everything for a start.

So call the damn thing a "fried breakfast" and let the customer choose what goes into it.
 
Posted by Curiosity killed ... (# 11770) on :
 
Baked beans are good news if you're gluten intolerant, and they taste good with sausages, bacon and hash browns, so I don't see them as a bad thing. Unlike tinned tomatoes, which are not a good addition.
 
Posted by TheAlethiophile (# 16870) on :
 
I like to stick to what I know. On an overseas business trip once, I thought I'd be adventurous and tried Japanese porridge. Truly horrendous stuff.

If I'm at home I'll stick to croissant and a crumpet, maybe with a small pot of yoghurt on the side. But I don't have the time or energy to do a full English, so only opt for that if I'm staying away and someone else is cooking.
 
Posted by Ariel (# 58) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Sioni Sais:
And another thing: one eggs, one sausage, one rasher of bason, half a tomato and a couple of button mushroom with half a slice of toast is not a "full" anything.
I agree. Which is why I proposed the idea of a "Full" one and asked what people's personal ideals were.

quote:
So call the damn thing a "fried breakfast" and let the customer choose what goes into it.
Well, "fried" is going to be a turn-off for me ever since staying in a guesthouse in Shrewsbury years ago where everything was chucked into a frying pan and came out dripping with grease. The young couple at the next table, who had clearly been out at the pub the evening before, took one bite, gave up and went back to their room looking distinctly green and I didn't blame them.

The only things I'd want fried would be the mushrooms and the egg, all else can be grilled. Except for the potato cakes, which are dry-fried and I'll add my own butter and salt, thanks. But they'd form part of the Full Irish, rather than the English.

Incidentally, what would the regional element be on a Welsh breakfast with all the stops pulled out?
 
Posted by Curiosity killed ... (# 11770) on :
 
Laver bread - and no, didn't get it when staying in B&Bs in Wales
 
Posted by Drifting Star (# 12799) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Ariel:
Incidentally, what would the regional element be on a Welsh breakfast with all the stops pulled out?
Bacon, sausages and eggs, laverbread and cockles, mushrooms and tomatoes, all of which must be Welsh and should be local (although Penclawdd cockles can trump more strictly local ones).

There's a reasonable description here.

[ 21. February 2014, 11:46: Message edited by: Drifting Star ]
 
Posted by seekingsister (# 17707) on :
 
Being American my ideal breakfast is a combination of sweet and salty. I can't really tolerate eggs (the smell) and prefer my bacon crispy, so I've always avoided the Full English.

On a weekend or big breakfast out, ideal would be pancakes of French toast with maple syrup and a side of bacon or sausage, depending on my mood.

However I'm also from the Northeast which means that bagels have a very special place in my heart as well. Following the breakfast above, my second choice ideal would be an authentic NY style everything bagel with cream cheese, with smoked salmon if I'm feeling more peckish.

After that I'd go Continental - toast with butter and jam, muesli/oats, and fruit.

I have clearly moved to the wrong country based on my breakfast preferences.
 
Posted by Drifting Star (# 12799) on :
 
We love a full cooked breakfast, but not when we've just got up. Lunchtime is the idea time for it. We recently stayed in a hotel that had the most fantastic breakfasts, and if we'd been able to go back at midday we would have been very happy indeed.

When we do have a cooked breakfast we mix and match. Starman doesn't like eggs, I'm not keen on most sausages, he doesn't like mushrooms, I don't think hash browns have any place in a cooked breakfast. We've also been known to buy one mega breakfast and ask for two plates.
 
Posted by Alan Cresswell (# 31) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by TheAlethiophile:
I like to stick to what I know. On an overseas business trip once, I thought I'd be adventurous and tried Japanese porridge. Truly horrendous stuff.
Japanese porridge is rice based, basically very well cooked rice. It's usually cooked unseasoned, and served with a variety of seasonings available to add (I'm not sure anyone would actually eat it without adding something to it). Personally, I just have the rice!
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
I found far eastern breakfasts a bit difficult - except for the one time we were staying at this 7-star hotel in Taiyuan - marble fountainage out the wazoo - and, in a corner of the vast breakfast buffet some sliced bread and a toaster.
 
Posted by leo (# 1458) on :
 
My ideal breakfast is bacon, fried eggs, black pudding, friend bread and baked beans.

Variations can include hash browns or potato croquets, poached or scrambled eggs, sausages, tomatoes, mushrooms.

For a change, Dutch breakfast + hard-boiled egg, cheese, cold meats, potato salad.
 
Posted by Kyzyl (# 374) on :
 
What is it with baked beans in "English" breakfasts? I've never seen BBs in an American diner breakfast. I've eaten my share of refried beans at breakfast, but that is a way different taste profile. I've been told that it is a WWII US GI leftover, along with Spam, any truth to that? And don't go dissing Spam, it is a local Minnesota contribution to world wide cuisine. [Razz]

[ 21. February 2014, 13:10: Message edited by: Kyzyl ]
 
Posted by jbohn (# 8753) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Kyzyl:
And don't go dissing Spam, it is a local Minnesota contribution to world wide cuisine. [Razz]
My grandfather served in the Pacific during WWII - he always said they'd have killed for Spam rather than the damned C-rations the Army issued them.

I rather like it myself, sliced and fried.
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
Oh if I have to be specific about what's in an ideal cooked breakfast - bacon (crisp edges to the fat but otherwise bendy), good-quality sausages (preferably with leeks), fried eggs with lacy golden edges and none of that over easy nonsense, black pudding, sliced mushrooms cooked in the bacon/sausage fat until crispy, some kind of fried potato. Fried or grilled tomatoes but only if properly ripe - can't stand woolly tomatoes. Bubble and squeak is a very good kind of fried potato to have, if it's available, and I'm not averse to a potato waffle or two. I dislike pulses and they irritate my IBS anyway, and to me they're just...filler. I can appreciate that they're good for vegetarian breakfasts though.
 
Posted by Porridge (# 15405) on :
 
In New England, baked beans are not unknown at breakfast, but I think it's mostly a rural thing.

Mind you, not canned baked beans, which are only emergency, polar vortex-time fodder. They have to be the Real Thing: dried navy beans first soaked overnight, then boiled briefly next morning, maybe with a little baking soda, then drained and put in a traditional ceramic beanpot in which is buried a sizable onion stuck with several cloves. Over the top, pour a mixture of brown sugar, dried mustard powder, a little molasses, and boiling water. Don't add any salt until the end. Bake in a slow (250 F) oven 6-8 hours, or plop into a slow cooker on low. Stir occasionally and top up liquids as needed until about halfway through the baking, so you end up with beans, not bean soup.

Next morning, add a spoonful to a New England breakfast, and you won't need another bite until the midday meal.

New England farmer's breakfast: fried eggs with bacon, ham, baked beans, fried potatoes (or maybe red flannel hash -- yum! my favorite!) followed by hot apple pie with a slice of aged, sharp cheddar on top. Pots of very strong tea with milk and sugar. Brown bread* with butter if you have any room left.

*In New England, this is a concoction made up of corn meal, rye or graham flour, with baking soda, molasses and sometimes also raisins, plus boiling water poured into a mold and steamed for 3-4 hours, best served warm with country butter.

Personally, since I have a semi-sedentary, semi-office job, I could only eat such a breakfast at the rate one bite of each item, or I'd either be dead now or weigh 600 pounds. But for an active, hard-working old-time farmer, it's (maybe) ideal.
 
Posted by Welease Woderwick (# 10424) on :
 
Masala Dosa is a real favourite - we had a perfect one yesterday with plenty of ginger in the potato masala. The dosa should NOT be greasy, it needs neither butter no ghee to give it taste.

Iddly are good too, served with a thickish Sambar and a spicy coconut chutney.

When we were away the last couple of days I had porage for breakfast both mornings - not perfect but ok - I cook mine longer so it is creamier.

Tuesdays I make scrambled eggs with garlic, black pepper and oregano.

I agree about cooking the small button mushrooms in butter but a little squeeze of fresh lemon or lime juice does wonders for the flavour. Big flat field mushrooms are best baked upside down with a little pesto sauce in the 'cup' and an extra dribble of good olive oil.

We like food.
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
Ooh Woderwick - Indian breakfasts sound wonderful.
 
Posted by Mamacita (# 3659) on :
 
My favorite local diner serves "Mrs D's Breakfast Hash," which is a messy mixture of hash brown potatoes, onions, green peppers, mushrooms and zucchini, covered with a slice of melted cheese, with two eggs on top (I take mine poached easy). They also serve a version with cut-up sausage mixed in, but that's too much for me.
 
Posted by piglet (# 11803) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by balaam:
The full *insert part of the UK here* breakfast is measured on the quality of the bacon ...
Yea and amen!

Sadly, in this otherwise mostly delightful part of the Commonwealth, most of the bacon on offer is streaky, which is not what one should have with one's sunny-side-ups.

A few years ago we spent a week in a perfectly ordinary but nice hotel in Norwich, and the breakfast buffet was excellent, mostly because of the divine, thickly-cut back bacon.

**sigh**

Also yea and amen to smoked salmon and scrambled eggs or Eggs Benedict, preferably with a glass of Buck's Fizz.
 
Posted by BessHiggs (# 15176) on :
 
My favorite is breakfast in the duck blind. A big plate of scrambled eggs, sausage*, biscuits and cinnamon rolls and hot coffee, eaten while looking out over the river bottom.

*Homemade duck/goose sausage made from so-called trash ducks and snow geese killed the previous season. I'll be making sausage for next year this coming week. A bunch of the guys are heading to Arkansas for conservation hunt and, if all goes well, will be bringing me back massive quantities of snow geese.
 
Posted by Chorister (# 473) on :
 
Our first and last foray into instant croissants (Say Hello, Say Hello, to Pilsbury Dough) happened when we went on holiday, leaving a tube in the fridge. It got rather frisky while we were away and we returned to a scene from 'The Day of the Triffids' when we returned!

So I usually play safe, when at home, and have a bowl of Rice Krispies. At least they only Snap! Crackle! and Pop!

However, on holiday, I try to stay at the best B&B in the area, which has won a 'Breakfast' award if possible. Options I've had the delight of choosing have included: Devilled kidneys, Arbroath Smokies, Smoked Haddock with Poached Egg, Smoked Salmon and Scrambled Egg, Maple Syrup Pancakes, Porridge with Scotch Whisky, and several others besides. I did, however, draw the line at having Haggis for breakfast - any other meal of the day, perhaps, but not breakfast!
 
Posted by TheAlethiophile (# 16870) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Alan Cresswell:
Japanese porridge is rice based, basically very well cooked rice. It's usually cooked unseasoned, and served with a variety of seasonings available to add (I'm not sure anyone would actually eat it without adding something to it).
Ah, I don't recall seeing any seasoning around. Ironic, as it was the Four Seasons hotel I was staying in!
 
Posted by Nenya (# 16427) on :
 
At home I never cook breakfast - it's usually my own home made muesli with yogurt. Mr Nen has fruit and yogurt and then egg on toast. Nenlet1 has toasted syrup pancakes and jam - he's usually in a hurry.

I find the problem with being away is that breakfast seems to come very soon after the meal the night before so my stomach is seldom ready for it. [Roll Eyes] I have muesli or granola and yogurt and then something cooked - I can't face sausage but will have egg, mushrooms, bendy bacon, beans, hash browns... and what I can't eat Mr Nen helps me with. [Biased] I can't get my head round cold meat and cheese for breakfast though.

I'll have to be more careful in future, as my stomach doesn't appreciate fatty food much these days. So it will probably be the salmon and scrambled egg for me, or beans and mushrooms on toast. [Biased]

Nen.- feeling peckish.
 
Posted by St. Gwladys (# 14504) on :
 
When we go down to Cornwall we stay overnight at a particular b&b because of their amazing breakfast menu. First of all, there is fruit juice and a big bowl of homemade fruit salad with a bowl of natural youghurt as garnish. My favourite 2nd course is the pancake - a large American style pancake, made freshly, topped with greek youghurt, strawberries, raspberries and pecans, served with maple syrup. Freshly prepared toast and preserves and a pot of tea to round off - that's why we keep going back!
 
Posted by piglet (# 11803) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Chorister:
... I did, however, draw the line at having Haggis for breakfast ...
Probably the most comprehensive breakfast buffet I've ever seen was in the Stakis Hotel in the Isle of Man - they had absolutely everything you could possibly imagine having for breakfast, and several things you couldn't, including haggis.

I regret not trying the Manx kippers, but I somehow never quite felt like them in the morning, and there was so much else to choose from, English or Continental.
 
Posted by ken (# 2460) on :
 
The "Full" English/Scottish/Irish/Welsh/Cornish/Devon/Yorkshire/Lake District/whatever breakfast is a bit of sales jargon for cafes and hotels. Its not something many British people would ever eat at home.

We do eat fried breakfasts in but not that often I think. They are for special occasions, hangovers, long-distance drivers, and builders on their way to work (which is why the best ones are bought in cheap cafes near main roads in the suburbs of big cities, often closed by 2pm)

So what's in a real English fried breakfast? Well I suppose the essential ingredients aren't even fried, because they are tea and toast - because tea and toast are the essential ingredients of an English breakfast as such, whether full, empty, fried, grilled, or boiled.

After that, bacon and eggs. And FRIED BREAD. With MARMITE. And also MUSHROOMS. They make it a fried breakfast.

Asking around the other people in the room with me (they think I'm weird, are you doing a quiz?) we get sausages, beans (not fried, they go with the toast, just like the butter and marmalade does), bubble-and-squeak (one southerner thinks this vital), black pudding (a northerner)

Other more optional suggestions, tomatoes, onions, hash browns (apparently a low-budget substitute for bubble) kippers or bloaters (perhaps a little old-fashioned) sauted potatoes (but no-one mentioned chips)

[ 21. February 2014, 19:51: Message edited by: ken ]
 
Posted by lilBuddha (# 14333) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Eutychus:

[ETA instant croissant? Perish the thought (and the croissant)]
Croissant from a tin is to a real croissant what Taco Bell is to real Mexican. Which is to say nothing like.
 
Posted by Timothy the Obscure (# 292) on :
 
I'm a breakfast person. I often lie in bed of a weekend morning, drifting in and out of sleep, pondering what I will have for breakfast when I finally get up. Most mornings it involves eggs, either over easy or poached. Eggs, bacon (sometimes sausage or ham), and either hash browns or grits (I am a Southerner by birth) is a favorite. Huevos rancheros is another. Once in a while I get ambitious and do pancakes or waffles, with a strong preference for buckwheat. I'm also fond of omelettes--mushrooms, bacon, spinach, and brie or smoked fish. peppers, and goat cheese.

When I'm in a hurry, steel-cut oats with dried cherries and pecans.
 
Posted by balaam (# 4543) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by piglet:
Probably the most comprehensive breakfast buffet I've ever seen was in the Stakis Hotel in the Isle of Man - they had absolutely everything you could possibly imagine having for breakfast, and several things you couldn't, including haggis.
A hotel in Barcelona had a breakfast buffet where there was a British section, a Scandinavian section, a Dutch section... Most people, regardless of their country of origin mixed from the different areas.

Doughnuts for breakfast is one which seemed particularly odd (though my daughter adored that), but I could cope with Danish pastry.
 
Posted by Edith (# 16978) on :
 
A handful of almonds (nicer than calcium tablets) and a banana or clementine. And two mugs of English Breakfast tea.

But for indulgence, very occasionally, get up late and champagne with scrambled eggs and smoked salmon.

Prepared by someone else too.
 
Posted by Firenze (# 619) on :
 
Well, just had a couple of my boil-in-the-bag Danish and a mug of fresh filter coffee for breakfast, and it was very nice. A change from the Unending Porridge.
 
Posted by justlooking (# 12079) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Jade Constable:
Oh if I have to be specific about what's in an ideal cooked breakfast - bacon (crisp edges to the fat but otherwise bendy), good-quality sausages (preferably with leeks), fried eggs with lacy golden edges and none of that over easy nonsense, black pudding, sliced mushrooms cooked in the bacon/sausage fat until crispy, some kind of fried potato. Fried or grilled tomatoes but only if properly ripe - can't stand woolly tomatoes. Bubble and squeak is a very good kind of fried potato to have, if it's available, and I'm not averse to a potato waffle or two. I dislike pulses and they irritate my IBS anyway, and to me they're just...filler. I can appreciate that they're good for vegetarian breakfasts though.
This corresponds with my idea of a traditional English breakfast. Baked beans and hash browns are modern interlopers. If potatoes are included they are meant to be leftovers from the previous night's dinner since all proper English dinners include potatoes. So these would be sliced and fried or made into bubble and squeak.

A genuinely Full English breakfast would be a four course affair starting with a half-grapefruit, carefully segmented and sprinkled with sugar, or a small glass of juice. This would be followed by a bowl of porridge or cornflakes, then the main course as above, and finally hot toast and marmalade. Tea would be drunk throughout with often a fresh pot being needed for the final course.
 
Posted by Bob Two-Owls (# 9680) on :
 
Just been helping out at the Scout Camp. Breakfast was a corned beef fritter, in a breadcake with brown sauce and a fried egg on top. Served with hour-stewed tea and a jam sinker for afters. Delicious!

I'm glad I had it after chopping two trees down, before may have had unfortunate consequences.
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Bob Two-Owls
[Projectile]

Bad enough that an adult inflict that on his digestive system but to feed it to children??? [Eek!]
 
Posted by L'organist (# 17338) on :
 
Ideal Saturday breakfast:
Eaten on a Saturday because it means you don't need to stop for lunch - and that little lot keeps you nice and warm when you're watching the RUGBY!
 
Posted by Alex Cockell (# 7487) on :
 
Sunday brunches are always good- basically a supersized fryup.. haven't had one for ages though..
 
Posted by The Phantom Flan Flinger (# 8891) on :
 
Usually have cereal or toast in the week, but if I'm indulging in a cooked breakfast, it's bacon (bendy), baked beans, black pudding, sausages and maybe hash browns.

I'm also partial to a kipper.
 
Posted by Ariel (# 58) on :
 
Breakfast around the world

Never thought I'd hear myself say it, but other than the German and Hungarian, I quite fancy the Burmese fried rice with onions and peas.
 
Posted by leo (# 1458) on :
 
Interesting article.

I intend to bring more variety into my future breakfasts not that I am retired and have more time to cook and savour things.
 
Posted by Porridge (# 15405) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Firenze:
Well, just had a couple of my boil-in-the-bag Danish and a mug of fresh filter coffee for breakfast, and it was very nice. A change from the Unending Porridge.
Hey. What did I ever do to you?
 
Posted by Augustine the Aleut (# 1472) on :
 
On Sundays after the 8.00 at Our Lady Joy of All Who Procrastinate, starting with an orange, and then smoked whitefish (Winnipeg goldeye) or Nipigon hot smoked trout, an omelette with a handful of grated pecorino romano and (in season) asparagus, fresh baguette, buckwheat honey from Merrickville, and a pot of Harrar or Yergacheff.

Most days, an orange followed by an alternation of muesli with yogourt or a soft-boiled egg with a bit of baguette. Usually a cup of espresso with it or, diligently and feverishly checking liturgical calendars for an excuse to do so, hot chocolate in the Spanish manner. The Globe and Mail for entertainment.

When the weather permits, in the three weeks allowed in Ottawa between winter and the mosquitoes, breakfast is taken outdoors. Zorro, a local tabby, usually attends at the foot of my deck and carefully supervises-- water is provided for hospitality's sake.

[ 22. February 2014, 17:37: Message edited by: Augustine the Aleut ]
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Bob Two-Owls:
Just been helping out at the Scout Camp. Breakfast was a corned beef fritter, in a breadcake with brown sauce and a fried egg on top. Served with hour-stewed tea and a jam sinker for afters. Delicious!

I'm glad I had it after chopping two trees down, before may have had unfortunate consequences.
I'm not usually one for corned beef (or indeed brown sauce) but that sounds mighty fine. What's a jam sinker?

Also fried bread is a delicious once-in-a-blue-moon treat.

[ 22. February 2014, 18:44: Message edited by: Jade Constable ]
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by BessHiggs:
My favorite is breakfast in the duck blind. A big plate of scrambled eggs, sausage*, biscuits and cinnamon rolls and hot coffee, eaten while looking out over the river bottom.

*Homemade duck/goose sausage made from so-called trash ducks and snow geese killed the previous season. I'll be making sausage for next year this coming week. A bunch of the guys are heading to Arkansas for conservation hunt and, if all goes well, will be bringing me back massive quantities of snow geese.
That sounds lovely, though I'd probably swap biscuits for toast and leave out the cinnamon rolls. Duck/goose sausage sounds amazing!
 
Posted by Mockingale (# 16599) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Ariel:
Having briefly dropped by the Hell thread of that name and gone away disappointed, here's Heaven's own version. No ranting, but possibly some raving about the wonders of a really good breakfast.

Personally, nothing beats a Full English, except a Full Irish. Both (at their best) offer you bacon, sausage, black pudding, fried or scrambled eggs, tomatoes, baked beans and mushrooms. The Full English will also additionally offer you hash browns, fried bread and toast, while the Full Irish will additionally offer you white pudding, potato cakes and possibly soda bread as an alternative to toast. After you've consumed a plate of the Full Whichever, you're set up and don't need to eat again for a week.

Continental, on the other hand, means different things to different people. It can be as basic as a mug of coffee and a croissant, or it can be the whole works with fruit salad, cereals, yogurts, a selection of cheeses and ham, and as much toast as you can handle with or without preserves.

So - in an ideal world, what would be your perfect breakfast? Any particularly memorable ones? (And does anyone really like kippers?)
My perfect breakfast is an omelet with bacon, cheddar, onions and spinach, some home fries (potatoes cubed and pan-fried) and a cup of really good french-press coffee.
 
Posted by Mockingale (# 16599) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by L'organist:
Ideal Saturday breakfast:
Eaten on a Saturday because it means you don't need to stop for lunch - and that little lot keeps you nice and warm when you're watching the RUGBY!
That sounds *fantastic*.
 
Posted by Barefoot Friar (# 13100) on :
 
I'll take a biscuit (of the American variety), topped with one of the following:
That last one is my favorite, but I don't make them at home.

When staying in a hotel, I like a bagel toasted with melted butter and cream cheese. I prefer plain or cinnamon-raisin. Tasting one of those always brings back good memories of exciting trips I've taken.
 
Posted by Porridge (# 15405) on :
 
Ooh, I've just now remembered my daily breakfast years ago in the Jewelry Exchange neighborhood of Manhattan. Between subway and work, I'd always stop in this little hole-in-the-wall deli and get a toasted bialy slathered in butter and a tall mug of tea.

Oh, for one of those bialys now . . .
 
Posted by Sir Kevin (# 3492) on :
 
Sorry, hosts! We choose not to eat cereal as we are on the low-carbohydrate Atkins diet. It has worked well for us...

[Hot and Hormonal] [Big Grin]
 
Posted by Bob Two-Owls (# 9680) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Jade Constable:
What's a jam sinker?
Its a Scouting tradition, that's what it is! Basically a jam sandwich dipped in beaten egg and griddled until the egg sets. Its the breakfast that keeps you bilious for longer.

Oh and there were no kids there, this was a day for grown up kids to play with sharp and dangerous things, such as chainsaws and corned beef.
 
Posted by Rev per Minute (# 69) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Bob Two-Owls:
quote:
Originally posted by Jade Constable:
What's a jam sinker?
Its a Scouting tradition, that's what it is! Basically a jam sandwich dipped in beaten egg and griddled until the egg sets. Its the breakfast that keeps you bilious for longer.

Oh and there were no kids there, this was a day for grown up kids to play with sharp and dangerous things, such as chainsaws and corned beef.
I am pleased to say that the 'jam sinker' does not appear to have infiltrated the Scouts of South Wales [Projectile] - but the rest of your weekend sounds ideal for my daughters, especially the 'Young Leader' and her DofE expeditions!

As for my breakfasts, I used to love the waffles from the Metro station on my way to work in Brussels, especially with a good coffee. I am one of those who likes kippers but find them all too rarely. If being good, poached eggs on grilled and buttered muffins with a good dab of hollandaise is fantastic. If being bad, the full set of bacon, sausage, fried egg, fried bread (yes, I know) and black pudding - maybe some mushrooms, preferably not baked beans, washed down with plenty of tea.

I have fond memories of a trip to Scotland where, along with 'square sausage', there was deep-fried fruit cake along with the fried bread. It may have been an attempt to bolster a Scottish stereotype, but I remember it going down extremely well with the Scots breakfast...
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Bob Two-Owls:
quote:
Originally posted by Jade Constable:
What's a jam sinker?
Its a Scouting tradition, that's what it is! Basically a jam sandwich dipped in beaten egg and griddled until the egg sets.
That sounds like what we call French Toast over here, except for the jam. Jam sounds like a good idea, though -- I must try it soon!
 
Posted by Amanda B. Reckondwythe (# 5521) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by Sir Kevin:
Sorry, hosts! We choose not to eat cereal as we are on the low-carbohydrate Atkins diet.
Atkins permits several cereals, including puffed wheat, puffed rice, puffed millet (if you can find it), all in heavy cream, of course. I prefer bran flakes -- most of the carbohydrates are fiber, which Atkins permits.
 
Posted by ArachnidinElmet (# 17346) on :
 
The best buffet breakfast I've ever seen was in a hotel in Mechelen, Belgium. Different fruit salads, made-to-order omelettes, a variety of cheese and smoked meat, fresh warm pistole (crusty rolls) with the ubiquitous nutella or a type of spread made from speculaas (spiced biscuit) and mini pastries. There was also a jug of fresh orange juice and a bottle of champagne on ice so you could make your own bucks fizz. Very civilized [Big Grin]

Mentioning the 'Full Yorkshire'. Should you want one, a cooked breakfast served in a giant Yorkshire pudding is available from a café in Whitby.
 
Posted by Jade Constable (# 17175) on :
 
quote:
Originally posted by ArachnidinElmet:
The best buffet breakfast I've ever seen was in a hotel in Mechelen, Belgium. Different fruit salads, made-to-order omelettes, a variety of cheese and smoked meat, fresh warm pistole (crusty rolls) with the ubiquitous nutella or a type of spread made from speculaas (spiced biscuit) and mini pastries. There was also a jug of fresh orange juice and a bottle of champagne on ice so you could make your own bucks fizz. Very civilized [Big Grin]

Mentioning the 'Full Yorkshire'. Should you want one, a cooked breakfast served in a giant Yorkshire pudding is available from a café in Whitby.
Americans, I believe, eat Yorkshire puds aka popovers or Dutch baby pancakes for breakfast, so it's not too weird!
 
Posted by balaam (# 4543) on :
 
If there are any Yorkshire puddings left over from the previous day they can be eaten for breakfast the next day: Cold and spread with jam. It's a trick my father-in-law taught me.
 
Posted by LutheranChik (# 9826) on :
 
Our usual breakfast around here is steel-cut oats with brown sugar or maple syrup; we often have dried tart cherries we'll stir in, and I also like walnuts or pecans in mine.

My favorite hearty breakfast is a poached egg, thick-sliced bacon (floppy, not crunchy, thanks), rye or other wholegrain toast and -- my breakfast weakness -- fried potatoes in any iteration (hashbrowns, diced or simply sliced). I try not to indulge too often in this!

Travel tip: DP and I have had some beautiful breakfasts in spendy restaurants that we simply wouldn't be able to afford later in the day. One year when we were visiting the kids in NYC we went hunting for a breakfast spot one morning near our hotel...found ourselves outside a posh, Beautiful People sushi/seafood place that we wouldn't have patronized during the dinner hour out of pure Upper Midwestern self-consciousness...but we noticed a breakfast menu in the window, liked what we saw, and gave it a try. Wonderful food; I had a generous omelet filled with a sauteed butternut squash, apple and smoky cheese filling and all the usual breakfast sides for about $18 including coffee . That wouldn't have bought us a drink there during prime time. And the place was almost empty; we had wonderful service and enjoyed ourselves immensely.
 


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