Ab ovo

Our refrigerator melted down. When I awoke Tuesday to a pool of water, I blamed the kids for not closing the freezer door. Then I hopped on a plane for a week of travel. It turns out the kids closed the door. The fridge shorted out. As a result, all the food we’d saved / neglected / relied upon spoiled. Other than a few essential items Jeanette purchased yesterday, the cooler is now completely bare.

In the hustle and bustle of the evening, Jordan and I started getting hungry. Luc wasn’t thinking about food. He was preparing himself for a school dance, bathing his adolescent pits in scented deodorant that announced his arrival before he entered the room. Jeanette eats late and was noncommittal to food. So, that left Jordan and I, our tummies growling at us.

In situations like these, I have a technique that sometimes works. I rummage. I hunt through the cupboard and cooler looking for something inventive to cook. Today, I had an idea. Jeanette restocked the fridge with a dozen eggs, but not much else. In the cupboard I found a can of white kidney beans. A few minutes later I mixed them with some bacon fat (yes, bacon fat) and a few herbs, then folded the mixture into an impromptu omelet. Jordan loves omelets, and so do I – especially for dinner.

– What kind of cheese did you put in the omelet, Dad?
– We don’t have any cheese. I tried something else.
– What?
– Kidney beans.

She eyed me with skepticism. The long silent stare was not warming.

– Let’s call mom and have her pick something up.
– Just try this omelet. It has beans. You love beans.
– OK. I’ll try it. Then we can call Mom to pick something up.

She picked at the eggs as though they were laced with poison. I shoveled half the dish onto my own plate. After her first bite, she was resolved.

– I’m calling Mom.

She started to get up, but then took another bite … and then another. She alternated between telling me what she would ask her mom to buy while continuing to eat the strange omelet.

– It’s not sooo bad. (another bite) What should I tell Mom to buy for us? (another bite) This is just okay, Dad.

She ate more than half of it before prancing to the family room to call Jeanette and summon other food stuffs. The girl likes her eggs. In fact, she returned to pick around the beans and finish off the egg portion of the omelet. And while she was a nonplussed critic, I still enjoyed her dinner company. It’s one of the pleasures I treasure in life – eggs with the girl.