yum yum

one of my co-workers grows her own chickens, and has been kind enough to sell me some eggs. this rules for a few reasons, the top two being that 1) they are only $1 a dozen, and 2) farm eggs rule. they make supermarket eggs literally and figuratively pale in comparison. the yolks on linda's eggs are a deep golden yellow-orange, the whites fluffy and soft. they are rich and delicious and using them has made all my recipes better. they even make top ramen better. seriously. lately my favorite breakfast is one small bagel (the mini bagels are good and always on sale at the grocery outlet!), and a hard boiled egg. the trick to making a perfect hard boiled egg, one without the green sulfur ring of doom, is to put the eggs in first with a pinch of salt (this helps seal any minuscule cracks in the shell the egg might have), then turn the water on to high. bring to a boil, lower heat to medium, cook for about seven to eight minutes, ten to fifteen if you have a few in there. when the time is up, shut the heat off, but don't remove the pan or the eggs. go brush your teeth, make a cup of coffee and some toast, and ignore your eggs for a few minutes. that part is harder than it sounds, until you get used to it. when you are ready to eat your eggs, rinse under cool water to make then easier to handle, crack those puppies open and sprinkle with a little coarse salt and eat while still warm.

depending on your eggs, your pan, and your technique, you might want to increase the time they spend in the boiling water, or reduce it. personally, i like my eggs cooked all way through, but a little, tiny bit gummy. i like it when they aren't entirely cooked through, but i love soft-boiled eggs too, so you might be different from me.

also, a warm, hard boiled egg smashed on buttered* toast with salt and pepper is awesome. not pretty to look at, but delicious.

*if you love me you'll use a real butter, like an irish or danish butter. i won't lecture you on why those butters rule, you should just trust me. if you can find it, go for irish. oh my goodness, it's the kind of butter you want to make out with!