I spent Christmas with my mom in Florida this year. It was my mom, my sister, her husband and my two nieces, Skylar (13) and Sunday (8). On Christmas Eve, my sister and I decided we should have a feast of a breakfast on Christmas morning. So up my alley! I love breakfast if you didn’t notice. So I looked up what time the nearest market was going to close and we had just enough time to make it. It was 6:00p and they were closing at 7:00p. I got all the ingredients I needed to make a vegetarian style Eggs Benedict, ingredients for Skylar who was going to make French Crepes with a strawberry maple sauce, and ingredients for smoothies, that my sister was going to blend up. It was so exciting! Clearly, “it’s the little things.”
Christmas day arrives and we were getting ready to take over the kitchen together. Before heading to the kitchen, I looked up a video of how to poach the eggs perfectly like Jamie Oliver did in a video I saw previously. I thought that if I did it his way, it would’ve been fool-proof, avoiding looking foolish in front of the fam if the eggs didn’t come out right. You see, when it comes to poaching eggs, sometimes it can be a hit or miss and I wasn’t trying to take that gamble. So, I did it Jamie’s shortcut poach-hack way, instead of my way which has worked out just fine for me before.
How did it turn out? A mess! Okay I’m exaggerating a little. It just didn’t come out as I hoped and it actually wasn’t a shortcut–it took longer because I had to fix what got jacked up. That experience made me think of how this plays out in our lives at work. It can be tempting to do what other people are doing and how they’re doing it, even though your method is what works best for you. You can think, “well it’s working for them, so why don’t I try their their way”, instead of having confidence in your own ideas, quirks, talents and insights.
Case and point. As I prepared to launch this blog-mag, RiseandShineBright.com, I was so tempted to look at other publications and bloggers as a guide to how I would format articles, design the aesthetics, etc. Don’t get me wrong—it’s okay to look around for inspiration, but if doing so starts to dim the light of your own gifts, flare, and personality that God gave you, that’s when “inspiration” can become toxic.
“Don’t let what’s in your peripheral stifle your uniqueness that you can offer the world around you. Over-stimulation of inspiration can become toxic.”
-Yardley
One thing you will always get here at RiseandShineBright.com are good ‘ol, helpful, DIY practicals. So I leave you with this:
- Schedule Yourself “Focus Time” to Work/to Create. Whether at the office or remotely if you work independently, you’ll find it helpful to set aside time to work on that project that you want to pour your unique self into. This time gives you the opportunity to focus and center yourself, to unleash your creativity, skills, and knowledge.
- Pause the Over-stimulation of Inspiration. To prepare for this special “Focus Time”, turn off the TV, put your phone in another room, X out of the internet tabs on your computer, and put the magazines that are laid out in a drawer. Although your surroundings can be helpful for ideas and motivation, this is not the time to outsource your inspiration. Look within at what you already have.
- Find a “Reminder Scripture.” God designed you the way you are for a purpose and you have the privilege and obligation to express yourself through your work, the way you were designed. Find a Scripture that will remind you of how wonderfully unique you are.
- Tap into The Source. Thank God for how he has equipped you to do impactful work. And ask Him to pour out of you the very thing(s) He wants you to share with people around you who you know, or to the public to those who you may not know.
- Go and Work! Hit the ground running. Do your best as you work, and trust that you have exactly what it takes to do what you were meant to do in this very season you’re in.
Now it’s time for some breakfast! Eggs Benedict recipe is below.
#powerfulworkweeks + #goodmorningeats
Love,
Yardley
EGGS BENEDICT, VEGETARIAN STYLE
INGREDIENTS
-Eggs Benedict-
1 Fresh Egg per serving/per English muffin
Sliced Mushrooms, 1 handful per serving
Fresh Spinach, 1 handful per serving
½ English muffin, gluten-free or whole wheat
1 tsp. parsley, chopped
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Sea Salt + Pepper, to taste
-Hollandaise Sauce-
3 Egg yolks
¼ cup melted real Butter, recommendations: Kerrigold, Finlandia, or any ghee brand
juice from ½ a Lemon
1 tsp. Sea Salt + Pepper
½ tsp. Tabasco sauce
Note: You will have extra sauce. This amount should cover at least 4 Egg Benedicts
INSTRUCTIONS
-Eggs Benedict-
Add 1 Tbsp. of olive oil to a pan at medium high heat, and sauté mushrooms until cooked and browned
Season mushrooms with salt and pepper, stir, remove from pan and set aside
Using the same pan, add 1 Tbsp. of olive oil to pan at medium high heat, and add in spinach until slightly wilted
Season spinach with salt and pepper, stir, remove from pan and set aside
Place English Muffin into the toaster oven until lightly toasted—not too crispy. You want the juices of the toppings to soak into the nooks and crannies of the English Muffin.
-Hollandaise Sauce-
Add your yolks into a bowl and add the juice of a ½ lemon, the Tabasco sauce, and salt + pepper to the yolks
Whisk swiftly until the yolks get slightly thicker in consistency
Slowly pour the melted butter into the bowl while you’re mixing, until all the butter is in the bowl
Whisk until the mixture becomes like a velvety creamy sauce and set it aside, but not in a cool place
-Poaching the Egg(s)-
Fill up a medium size pot of water ¾ of the way up, and set it to high heat
When it comes to a boil, bring the temperature down to a simmer, with very little to no bubbles
Crack your fresh egg into a small bowl or cooking spoon
Take a regular spoon and stir the water in the center of the water in a circular motion, creating a swirl or whirlwind
Pour your cracked egg into the center of the swirl/whirlwind
After 3 minutes, take a slotted cooking spoon and scoop out the egg
Note: Be sure your eggs are fresh, so the white of the egg won’t be liquidy, which will spread throughout the water
Assemble your Eggs Benedict: First spinach, then mushrooms, followed by poached egg, drizzled with Hollandaise, and sprinkle with chopped parsley for a fresh green garnish
Enjoy!
