Breakfast is the most important meal of the day but most days is entirely forgettable. When planning an extraordinary menu of food for my latest birthday, I struggled to find something different and tasty for breakfast.
I had the Good Eats episode Marrow Minded in my head for a different reason. Cutting expenses is crucial these days. The idea of eating bone marrow in a restaurant was very tempting yet expensive. Could I actually follow what the episode said to prepare bone marrow at home.
I was considering a snack of bone marrow for the birthday in case going out would be a struggle (the curse of a winter birthday). After all, the first pandemic birthday of 2021 was a nightmare for different reasons.
The bone marrow for breakfast idea came out of using a spreadsheet for the eating possibilities. I put bone marrow in the breakfast slot and never changed it out.
Alton Brown's idea for cooking the pipes was terribly impractical. Not having an outdoor grill, much less access to one, much less access in the middle of winter: that wasn't going to work.
Alton Brown's idea for cooking the canoes was clever and practical. Using aluminum foil to balance out the bones was helpful.
Pipes run vertical and require a marrow spoon or even a letter opener (talk about multitaskers) to get out the marrow. Canoes run horizontal and access to the fat is really easy.
I have an excellent meat market so getting the bones was the easy part of the exercise. I also had access to day-old local bread that toasts up really well.
Here is what I did not do:
- Alton Brown suggests brining the bones. My bones were too long for a container. Maybe that would have made a huge difference in taste.
- Brown made a combination of the 2 suggested salads to go with the dish. Looked good but this was too much work for my birthday, especially when I was the chef. The idea was to cut the richness of the fat yet I wanted that richness to stand out.
These were marvelous ideas if you have the time/need/space to do this.
My aluminum foil attempt still produced some leakage of fat from the bones. I did create a 2-layer system of foil so it kept the fallen fat safe.
The marrow can be in large chunks when removing the fat from the marrow. Give yourself time to spread this thinner on the bread. Your patience will be rewarded: an Alton Brown common phrase.
Do not think you are cooking too much toast. I wondered if I was cooking too much toast and it was not. Marrow can go a long way on toast.
Your house will smell wonderful for some time after you cook. That was the best my kitchen had smelled in a very long time.
A simple breakfast of bone marrow and sourdough toast might seem too simple. I thought of adding bacon, since everything goes with bacon. I was glad I did not add bacon. The prize was the marrow and toast. I should have added a finishing salt but forgot.
The only accompaniment was a glass bottle of Mexican Coca-Cola with cane sugar. Not normally a breakfast item but this was not a typical breakfast.
You deserve better than 'birthday cake' flavored anything
BalanceofFood.com holidays coverage
Cost: Was surprised that a nice amount of bone marrow cost $8.40, tax included. Figure $1.50 for the bread and $1.25 for the soft drink. You could get a fancier meal having brunch in a restaurant but not one as satisfying as what I made at home.
I hadn't considered the idea of bone marrow at home until Alton Brown mentioned this in his show. That sounds pathetic to me but factor in a lot of cooking that seems unsure and life can be "safer" to not try.
Bone marrow is getting popular but has been around for a long time. If we want nose to tail, bone marrow is a tasty way to live out that philosophy.
That breakfast was one to remember. These food memories are some of the best-treasured moments from my life. Creating one without having to travel beyond a few miles is important when traveling is difficult.
photos credit: me
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