Part 2 (Bettina’s Birthday Gift continued)

How It Tasted

Iced Cantaloupe

As lightly as I chilled the melon it was still too much for my family—no one touched it. There was heavy coastal fog hanging low over the house, and cold cantaloupe on such a morning seemed as appealing as munching snow cones in in the heart of Antarctica.

Poached Egg on Toast

Filip: There’s egg yolk on my toast.

Not unsurprisingly these weren’t a hit with either me or my son. We both detest runny eggs and I almost gagged over every mouthful. Determined as I was to be a good sport I just couldn’t get this down--sorry, Bettina!

Toast

Toast is toast, but I was surprised at how quickly this stuff lost heat traveling from the oven to the table. And, although the toast was medium brown when ejected by the toaster, the pieces at the back of the oven turned several shades darker. I didn’t expect raves from my family over this commonplace dish—didn’t get any—didn’t care--I was still recovering from the sight and taste of the oozing egg yolks (see above).

Apple Sauce

Filip: Can you make this again?

Happily this dish made up for the runny eggs and the lackluster toast. It was superb—and that’s an adjective I don’t use lightly. The fact that I put too much cinnamon in it didn’t matter a bit as the texture was perfect and the sauce had just the right amount of sugar.

The downside, I suppose, is that my family is now going to balk at eating commercially canned or jarred sauce. The homemade stuff puts all supermarket brands to shame, and I’m sure to hear plenty of moans and groans the next time I serve up a bowl of Mott’s.

Would I Make This Again?

The answer is pretty obvious, at least as far as the eggs and the apple sauce are concerned—the eggs were so repulsive and the sauce so terrific I figure they kind of canceled each other out.

Thumbs down on the toast, though, at least as far as making it ahead of time and then trying to keep it hot in the oven. Which Bettina editor came up with that one? It seems an awful waste of time and, as I noted before, the bread doesn’t stop toasting during its time in the oven.