Brunch

   Today I had friends over for brunch. This is my annual get together with some of the girls I work with and we celebrate that school is out and that we get to "do summer" like our kids do. They always appreciate whatever I make them and it makes me wish I could cook for them more. I experimented on them. I do that often with company. I know some people have their old stand-byes they make when someone comes over but I do that for dinner most nights. I throw out the caveat that these are all new recipes and if they don't work I'm sorry. Usually things work out, sometimes not. Today everything was great!

Here's the menu: (pictures too)

Baked Eggs and Mushrooms in Ham Cups

Croque Madame French Toast Cups

Garlic Squished Potatoes w/ Sour Cream Dill Sauce

Mixed Fruit Salad with Vanilla Sugar

Pastries

Ginger Lemonade

   I bought the pastries since I don't really like to bake and the reality is I don't really like sweets so I'm not compelled to make something I don't like. There was nothing special about the mixed fruit except that I tossed the fresh strawberries with vanilla sugar the night before. It begins to break down the strawberries which makes them a little soft but the flavor is so good. I'll tell you about Vanilla Sugar in a minute. I mixed the berries with cantaloupe, green grapes and blue berries. Simple but screams summertime.

   I wanted to do small things. I guess that's all the rage. Shot glasses of soup, mini desserts. You get the picture. While the 2 main dishes have similarities they were different from one another. The Baked Eggs and Mushrooms in Ham Cups has no cheese or bread but obviously has meat. The Croque Madame French Toast Cups have bread and cheese and ham. I made some with whole eggs with runny yolks, some with beaten eggs, scrambled style and some with only egg whites for my friends who are watching what they eat. Not much of it is low calorie but they are small so it's easy to have portion control if you practice that kind of thing.

   So, the Vanilla Sugar. I've had mine so long I forget that I have it. I started the jar when my now 25 year old son was little, like 4 or 5. (Wow! That makes it 20 years old. Some things just should not be pondered.) This "old" sugar lives in a glass jar with a metal hinge and rubber gasket. You know the type. It probably holds about 2 1/2 cups. Whenever I use a vanilla bean I put the spent bean in the sugar. It just stays there. For years. I add to it any time I can. We use the sugar for French toast, in coffee, in cremé brulée. I add sugar to the jar to keep it topped off. It just sits there waiting for us to find a good reason to crack it open and take a big whiff. It's delightful and every home should have one.

   Have people over. It does several things for you and others. It makes people feel special and it gives you an excuse to try new recipes and you get the house in a little bit better order than you probably would have other wise. Is it stressful? Yes a little but it's the good stress, the kind that gets your heart beating and mind thinking and with good planning you get to enjoy good food and good friends and when they go home your house is clean (except the kitchen) and you can take a nap.