Mother's Day a la Husband

We now interrupt your regularly scheduled blogging to provide a brief interlude from Kyle, based on the delicious items I whipped up for Cara to help celebrate her third Mother's Day (yes, I know Laela's only 20 months and that math may appear faulty, but trust me- I was informed that yes, Mother's Day very much still counts if a woman is pregnant).

Anyway, before I begin I should probably mention that everything I am about to describe is due to Cara: my culinary knowledge before meeting her was limited to fast food, Healthy Choice frozen dinners, and whatever fried concotion the cook at my frat house whipped up to serve 70-odd guys.  Fine dining (or any "dining", really) was out of my element. 

Then Cara came along and taught me that being such a picky eater wasn't really the way to go, and that food (even vegetables) could taste delicious beyond my wildest dreams.  So to me making breakfast and dinner for her on Mother's Day means maybe just a little bit more than it does for your average Joe husband who does it - it's really a testament to the fact that any truly delicious thing I've ever eaten has been because of Cara, so I'd just like to return the favor.

Anyway, I started her day off with a pretty standard breakfast....scrambled eggs, bacon, an everything-bagel with cream cheese, as well as some fried potatoes.  Basic stuff, yes, but I've learned that scrambled eggs actually take a pretty deft touch if you want to make them pop.  The key, as I've learned, is to go "low and slow" (Of the many nuggets of culinary wisdom Cara has imparted to me, possibly the most important is this: just because a little heat is good DOES NOT mean a lot is better.  Trust me: if a recipe says 300 degrees for 20 minutes, it does not mean that 450 for 12 will work).

Anyway, crack a few eggs into a mixing bowl, add some salt and pepper, a bit of milk, and then whisk until combined.  The key then becomes pouring the mixture not into a blazingly hot inferno pan, but into a skillet that's on nothing more than medium-low heat.  Let the eggs cook for a good 10-15 minutes, folding over gently several times throughout as they solidify.  Towards the end of the timespan you can added shredded cheese, if you're part of the "cheese makes everything better" political party.

Just make sure you keep the heat low....if you've ever had awful rubbery eggs at a diner, it's because they broke this cardinal rule.  Low and slow gets you light and fluffy.

So Laela and I took this delightful breakfast up to Cara in bed, and she loved it....but the best was yet to come.

For dinner, I opened up the grill Cara gave me for my birthday a couple years back and made the first burgers of the season.  (At our house, the grill is closed for business all winter, much to Cara's chagrin - you just don't grill in January.)

And while despite Cara's best efforts, I may never become a truly amazing chef....but I do make a pretty mean burger.  It's a little difficult to give a recipe, as I don't really use one....but the following guidelines should get you a pretty awesome burger:

- 2 lbs ground beef (80/20 is best for standard ground beef, grassfeed is usually leaner by nature but can give a nice flavor, so it's a personal choice)
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
- One small squirt of BBQ sauce

Combine the above ingredients in a mixing bowl with pinches of the following: salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, oregano, and montreal steak seasoning. (I know some burger purists will scoff at all this and proclaim that a good burger should stand on it's own beefy flavor, but spices were invented for a reason - just don't overdo it).

Anyway, with the goods in the bowl, it's time to get your hands dirty.  Work the mixture together and form 6-8 patties, and press your thumb down in the center of each to make a little depression  (this will help prevent over-plumping during cooking).  Once you've got the patties formed, sprinkle some additional salt on top, and you are ready for the grill.

It's critical to not overcook a burger, as even an extra minute or two can be the difference between an amazingly juicy and decadent sandwich and a dried-up husk of a cow.

I find it best to have the two halves of your grill set to different heat levels: half at high heat and half at medium.  Toss the patties onto the high heat part for about 45 seconds to get in a good sear to lock in the juices, then flip onto the medium heat side and let cook for about 2-3 minutes.  Flip once more on the medium side and go for another 2 minutes, and you should have some pretty solid medium burgers. 

Note: if you are cooking grassfed beef (it cooks quicker) or are like Cara and prefer your burger to be basically mooing while you eat it, reduce the above time by about 1-2 minutes.

After letting the burgers rest for a minute or two, serve with cheddar cheese and your choice of rabbit food and condiments and you have a burger that will make any woman's Mother's Day (well, maybe not those pesky vegetarians.  Meat is murder after all....tasty, tasty murder).

So those were Cara's Mother's Day feasts, and I think she enjoyed them.  At least I hope she did because, as any reader of her blog knows, she spends so much time being the best wife and mother in the world that she usually forgets to do anything for herself....which I think is why they invented Mother's Day in the first place: so that we could actually force these women to take the break they all need and deserve, but would flatly refuse if it wasn't a freakin' holiday.

So I guess that's the best way to put it: I used a delicious hamburger to get my wonderful wife to take the day off that she absolutely deserves....and if she enjoyed the meal too, even better.

We love you Cara, happy Mother's Day!!!