” The most private things in the world is an egg until it is broken.” …..from How to Cook a Wolf by MFK Fisher

“So beautiful in conception! The symbol of progress! If the egg were any other shape, the life of the hen would be intolerable.” ….. Raymond Loewy,  French American Industrial Designer

In the kitchen, the egg is ultimately neither ingredient nor finished dish but rather a singularity with a thousand ends.” ……Egg by Michael Ruhlman

Previously, I had mentioned my adoration of the egg. For my birthday, my Jim, gave me Ruhlman’s recent ode to the humble egg. It is the most romantic gift that I have ever received. I’m not being sarcastic. Really. The man obviously knows and loves me well.

The images are as sensual, as instructive, a gastronomic kama-sutra.  The chapters are divided into the multiple methods an egg can be employed:  in shell, out of shell, whole, separated, separated and reunited. Each recipe begins with a narrative that relates the history of recipe, the variations and sometimes even the limitations. The recipes are in both grams and cups! yay…thank you Mr. Ruhlman for indulging our American hubris. There is even a pull out flowchart (which I must frame)! Anyway, didn’t mean to write a review. (Sorry, force of academic habit.) Ahhhh. look at this. As I’m writing this blog with the cooking channel on,  I see Giada’s episode entitled, what else….”eggilcious.” I better go.

The point is…………..eggs are magnificent, comforting, binding, fluffy, frothy, sweet, salty, spicy, hard, soft, liquid, fragile, hard and so much more. What did I have for my birthday breakfast, you might ask? A sunny side up egg with a dash of Tobasco sauce on white buttered toast with guava jelly. Yum. I love eggs.