In the Kitchen with Justin

Growing up, skipping breakfast was never an option. And to this day I am committed to all the hype and believe that breakfast is the most important meal of the day (though maybe not the most delicious). "Gotta have a breakfast," as Margie's husband says to her in Fargo.

But some days, I am so rushed I leave the house without breakfast thus forcing me to improvise. Like today.

I had a packet of regular Quaker instant Oatmeal in my bag. I am not an oatmeal fan. However, I learned this weekend - from an 18 years sober alcoholic and former crack addict - that rolled oats are the "perfect breakfast." So I figured I'd give it a go.

I went into the office kitchen and got to fixing my oatmeal. And then I saw packets of Swiss Miss Cocoa with marshmallows. Being an experimental chef, I couldn't help but wonder if the two could be prepared together for a delicious breakfast. I imagined those chocolate oatmeal cookies that were so popular in the mid-80's - particularly in my neighborhood. I put half a packet of cocoa in a mug, then the oatmeal packet, and then 1/2 cup of hot water. I then moved the mug to the microwave and set it for two minutes.

During this time I was (a) hoping that coworkers would not come into the kitchen and see me cooking; and (b) complimenting myself on my inventiveness and planning to tell everyone about my craftiness.

After two minutes, I opened the microwave. Complete disaster. The concoction boiled over completely and was all over the microwave. It looked like I microwaved a sick baby's diaper. So chef Justin fled the kitchen to make room for Utah Disaster Kleenup Justin. And the latter moved like lighting because if Justin didn't want to be seen cooking in the kitchen, he most definitely did not want to be seen cleaning that shit up. While 6 out of 10 people would have used paper towels to clean the rotating glass carousel, I take pride in being in the smart minority that thinks to just remove the glass carousel and rinse it off in the sink. That made a 5 minute clean-up job take only abou 30 seconds. The mug was a disaster too: oatmeal was caked all over it. Scrubbing that was the hardest part. But I got it all sorted.

And then I started all over again because I still had to have a breakfast. This second attempt was much more successful than the first.

Recipe review: It's just okay. Swiss Miss oatmeal is better than plain oatmeal, but not as good as chocolate oatmeal cookies. I think I put in too much water and not enough Swiss Miss. Some milk might have been a good addition, too. And a little sugar.

In other news, I saw two documentaries last night: Jesus Camp and WordPlay. Both amazing in their own way, and I recommend both.

Today's Song: Blurry, Puddle of Mudd