Cookin' with Karl
What does Mom really want?
with Karl Gerhard
Leave the kitchen better than you found it. Nothing ruins a Mother’s Day breakfast in bed more than mom getting up to find a kitchen disaster. Photo by KARL GERHARD
Mother’s Day is next Sunday, May 14. In my opinion, this is one of the most important holidays of the year. After all, what is more important in any of our lives than celebrating the woman that made us possible, loves us unconditionally and keeps the family thriving.
So the question is: How do we best celebrate mom? Or, better put, what does mom really want for Mother’s Day?
Of course some flowers from a great local garden center are a must. But, nothing says we love and appreciate you like great food. Great food that mom does not have to shop for, prepare, cook and clean up.
One age-old tradition is to take mom out for a Mother’s Day brunch or a Mother’s Day dinner. Most of the best places to take mom for a Mother’s Day brunch or dinner are advertising right here in The Post’s Dining Section.
They include The Galaxy in Wadsworth, Corkscrew and Main Street Cafe in Medina, Amici Restaurant and Lounge in North Royalton, The Brew Garden in Strongsville and Middleburg Heights, Square 22 in Strongsville (dinner only), Granite Grille at Shale Creek in Medina/Brunswick, Gandalf’s Pub in Valley City or even Johnny J’s in Medina and Strongsville.
Another great place to celebrate mom is Bianca’s at 4284 Beverly Hills Drive in Brunswick. They have the traditional brunch from 11 a.m.-3 p.m., with a free mimosa or Bloody Mary for mom, and also have a late dinner option from 4-6 p.m. Bianca’s has the romantic Italiano feel that moms appreciate!
Brunches are the perfect option if larger family groups get together for Mother’s Day, as well as for people who just do not enjoy cooking or are frankly not great at it. Why not let your talented local chefs do all the work and wow you and most importantly, wow mom!
As I write this column, my wife and sister-in-law are talking on the phone discussing the options for brunch. But I think back to my days as a child, with a mom who somehow raised eight children and remained sane.
I remember that my mom always wanted to sleep in on Mother’s Day, and she always asked for breakfast in bed. I asked some other moms I know now, and many of them had the same thought, that breakfast in bed would be nice.
Now to do breakfast in bed, there are a few requirements. First, you have to let mom know about this a few days in advance so she is not making plans of what to buy, etc. She will appreciate the opportunity to sleep in. Second, you have to buy the ingredients, prepare the food, serve the food, and, most importantly, what does Mom really want?
Leave the kitchen better than you found it. Nothing ruins a Mother’s Day breakfast in bed more than mom getting up to find a kitchen disaster. Get creative with mom’s breakfast in bed. Put some thought in to it. What does she love?
I created a sample / test run Mother’s Day breakfast in bed (pictured) to give you some ideas. It was simply an omelet, a slice and a half of bacon, a circular slice of cantaloupe, filled with fresh blueberries, some sliced banana and some strawberries. It took all of a half hour, had protein and lots of fruit, and would have been perfect for my wonderful wife Yvette.
It was on a platter and arranged to spell “mom.” My son Jake enjoyed it for dinner last night.
One thing I will surely incorporate into my wife’s “real” Mother’s Day breakfast in bed is Eggs Benedict. It is a little more work, but it is her absolute favorite. It will also be the “o” in “mom”. Here is how you do it: you need to have four ingredients come together at the same time: poached eggs, hollandaise sauce, crispy bacon or Canadian bacon (my preference), and good English muffins, toasted with butter.
I will assume you can make all of the above adequately. I recommend just buying the hollandaise sauce mix for the hardest ingredient. Make the bacon first, and set aside. Then, poach the eggs, and make the Hollandaise sauce at the same time. The English muffin half can be toasting at the last minute.
Then, assemble: buttered English muffin on the bottom, bacon or Canadian bacon next, perfect poached egg on top of bacon, spoon hollandaise sauce over that, and garnish with chopped parsley. This will make mom smile!
So the question is: How do we best celebrate mom? Or, better put, what does mom really want for Mother’s Day?
Of course some flowers from a great local garden center are a must. But, nothing says we love and appreciate you like great food. Great food that mom does not have to shop for, prepare, cook and clean up.
One age-old tradition is to take mom out for a Mother’s Day brunch or a Mother’s Day dinner. Most of the best places to take mom for a Mother’s Day brunch or dinner are advertising right here in The Post’s Dining Section.
They include The Galaxy in Wadsworth, Corkscrew and Main Street Cafe in Medina, Amici Restaurant and Lounge in North Royalton, The Brew Garden in Strongsville and Middleburg Heights, Square 22 in Strongsville (dinner only), Granite Grille at Shale Creek in Medina/Brunswick, Gandalf’s Pub in Valley City or even Johnny J’s in Medina and Strongsville.
Another great place to celebrate mom is Bianca’s at 4284 Beverly Hills Drive in Brunswick. They have the traditional brunch from 11 a.m.-3 p.m., with a free mimosa or Bloody Mary for mom, and also have a late dinner option from 4-6 p.m. Bianca’s has the romantic Italiano feel that moms appreciate!
Brunches are the perfect option if larger family groups get together for Mother’s Day, as well as for people who just do not enjoy cooking or are frankly not great at it. Why not let your talented local chefs do all the work and wow you and most importantly, wow mom!
As I write this column, my wife and sister-in-law are talking on the phone discussing the options for brunch. But I think back to my days as a child, with a mom who somehow raised eight children and remained sane.
I remember that my mom always wanted to sleep in on Mother’s Day, and she always asked for breakfast in bed. I asked some other moms I know now, and many of them had the same thought, that breakfast in bed would be nice.
Now to do breakfast in bed, there are a few requirements. First, you have to let mom know about this a few days in advance so she is not making plans of what to buy, etc. She will appreciate the opportunity to sleep in. Second, you have to buy the ingredients, prepare the food, serve the food, and, most importantly, what does Mom really want?
Leave the kitchen better than you found it. Nothing ruins a Mother’s Day breakfast in bed more than mom getting up to find a kitchen disaster. Get creative with mom’s breakfast in bed. Put some thought in to it. What does she love?
I created a sample / test run Mother’s Day breakfast in bed (pictured) to give you some ideas. It was simply an omelet, a slice and a half of bacon, a circular slice of cantaloupe, filled with fresh blueberries, some sliced banana and some strawberries. It took all of a half hour, had protein and lots of fruit, and would have been perfect for my wonderful wife Yvette.
It was on a platter and arranged to spell “mom.” My son Jake enjoyed it for dinner last night.
One thing I will surely incorporate into my wife’s “real” Mother’s Day breakfast in bed is Eggs Benedict. It is a little more work, but it is her absolute favorite. It will also be the “o” in “mom”. Here is how you do it: you need to have four ingredients come together at the same time: poached eggs, hollandaise sauce, crispy bacon or Canadian bacon (my preference), and good English muffins, toasted with butter.
I will assume you can make all of the above adequately. I recommend just buying the hollandaise sauce mix for the hardest ingredient. Make the bacon first, and set aside. Then, poach the eggs, and make the Hollandaise sauce at the same time. The English muffin half can be toasting at the last minute.
Then, assemble: buttered English muffin on the bottom, bacon or Canadian bacon next, perfect poached egg on top of bacon, spoon hollandaise sauce over that, and garnish with chopped parsley. This will make mom smile!
