'I'm always looking for the Hows and the Whys and the Whats,' said Muskrat, 'That is why I speak as I do. You've heard of Muskrat's Much-in-Little, of course?'
'No,' said the child. 'What is it?'
- The Mouse and his Child. Russell Hoban.

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Thursday, 21 February 2013

Eggs



I sent a text:  We are having scramblers sunday tea 6.30. Want to join us? BYOE.

Eggs are delicious in so many ways.  When I was at school I had two (soft-boiled) eggs every morning with one piece of toast.  On Sunday teas we almost always had scrambled eggs on toast.  The Bird Man's favourite cafe food is Eggs Benedict.
Eggs add exquisite thickness to custard and zabaglione and will homogenise butter when beaten in, trapping air and creating lightness and richness to flour-based breads (ie cakes). Then there's the pavlova and cheese soufflĂ©, nougat and turkish delight... heavenly!

There's something very primal for me about my reaction to an egg.
I can feel the texture with my memory's fingertips right now.  Matt, smooth, slightly oily surface. By just looking at an egg, I can almost feel it in my hand... rounded, cool, heavy, precious... My hand Knows Egg.
It probably goes back to the dawn of primate conciousness.

Eggs are very handy.  A portable, defendable, waterproof parcel of protein and fat.  In spring they are relatively easy to acquire for a climbing, sharp-eyed binocular creature with opposable thumbs, and that's a time when seeds and nuts have yet to be produced, and meat is warily skinny.  The previous long winter has made food especially precious ~ eggs make the difference between life and death.  I think they must be in our genes.

Wonderful eggs...

Traditional designs from Romania.



13 comments:

  1. I'm a egg fanatic too. Have one for breakfast every day!

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    1. Yum.
      Are you still at home Helsie? I must catch up with your doings soon. So much has been going on here...

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  2. ..did you say pavlova?....if you want to set a trap to catch me, bait it with pavlova :P

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    1. I have a whole lot of whites in the freezer left over from something-or-other. I should make a pav and invite you over Jules!

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  3. This is egg season, all right. My 12 laying hens are squabbling over which gets to use the nest first and by the end of the day I have another gorgeous dozen to collect. The bantams are starting to lay, too, but most of their eggs are destined for the incubator so I'll have something to show in the fall. I love eggs, but I also love what grows in them.

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    1. Ah, so you grow your own banties Jan. I was wondering if you did.

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  4. It is easy to forget the beauty of an egg. How many millennia did Mother Nature take to perfect this simple form that seems to spit on the transience of human invention?

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    1. Egg shaped is a very sensible shape. I only recently learned that pointier eggs are better for two (different) reasons. They don't roll far (good for stony ledges) or four-fit-together in a nest and under a feathery bum.

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  5. Sadly I'm allergic to eggs, and I have to say, there should NOT be eggs in Turkish Delight! Sugar, cornflour, cream of tartar and lemon juice/rosewater - and sometimes gelatin - yes, but not eggs!

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    1. Oh yes, of course you're right Jay. I was getting muddled with marshmallow... I think. Nope, just checked and there's not egg in that either.

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  6. Mrs. RWP loves eggs -- loves, loves, loves them -- but a little goes a long way with me. Oddly, during a recent illness, I wanted poached eggs, something I normally avoid.
    .

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    1. I'm sorry to hear you've not been well Robert. I have been away from the blogosphere and obviously need to catch up.
      Hope you're better now. And probably off eggs again...?

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  7. This is surely a curate's egg rhyme.
    It is excellent some of the time.
    There are parts which are good,
    But the others are dud.
    All in all, it is not worth a dime.

    With apologies to the author from whom I doubtless stole it at some time in the distant past.

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