simple sundays

Is there a better way to start the day than with a big cup of French roast and the Sunday New York Times?

How about the simplest of Sunday starts. A three-minute egg. In a time-warp egg cup. Al fresco on a sunny seventy-degree morning.

This past Sunday was the perfect summer morning. The skies were clear and the humidity low. Walking outside with my paper and coffee I realized this may be our only chance to have a quiet morning repast on our outdoor deck before the outdoor temps rise to an unprecedented sizzle.

A soft-boiled egg is one of the easiest things to make. Ironically it is one of the easiest things to screw up. Done right it’s sublime. Though an error on either side of the egg timer renders less than desirable results.

Don’t be fooled by the most basic of recipes. They are often straightforward and just as often need to be executed at a quick clip. Don’t think you can start your egg and it will wait around for you to set the table, put out the juice and your husband’s baby aspirin, crisp up the bacon and butter the toast. The egg waits for no one.

Set the table, pop the bacon in the microwave, put the toast in the toaster but don’t start it. Then when everything is in place place your eggs in a saucepan of cool water making sure they are completely submerged. Bring the water to a boil. When it gets close to a boil start the toast.

Right when the water reaches a boil set the timer for three minutes. Lower to a gentle rolling boil and just as the timer dings gently empty out the water and fill the pan with cool water. Because you don’t want the eggs to get cold (but you want to halt the cooking process) quickly remove the eggs from the water. Summarily decapitate the tip of the large end of the egg and set in the eggcup, repeat with the fellow captives.

Butter the toast, put on the bacon and enjoy one of life’s simplest of pleasures.