Role Reversal

The general rule around here is if one of us cooks the other one cleans up the kitchen. This morning, I was the lucky recipient of blueberry pancakes. (Unfortunately, the price for this treat was that I did the dishes.) Although I arose when the alarm cat started meowing at 6 a.m., I opted to drink a cup of joe and leaf through a magazine rather than start anything for breakfast. However, when Jeff got up at 8:30, he decided that he would be in charge of food. This was partly because he had a hankering for pancakes and partly because he was procrastinating on some school work. No matter the reason, though, everyone benefited from his industriousness.

While the fresh blueberries in the fluffy pancakes were excellent, the blueberry topping was the star of the show. Jeff pureed the remainder of the fruit and put it in a pan with a little sugar and water to boil off. For an extra shot of interest, he added some blackberry-ginger balsamic vinegar. This added a depth of flavor to the sauce and provided a nice counterpoint to the sugar. As the blueberry "syrup" simmered, he cooked the pancakes to golden perfection and kept them on a warming plate in the oven. By the time he was finished the aroma had permeated my office and was having a close conversation with my stomach, so I was happy to oblige when he said breakfast was ready.

The pancakes, of course, were delicious topped with real butter and Jeff's sauce. We served up the last of the bacon as a side, and all were sated. In the end, I suppose not having to plan and cook something was definitely worth the short time it took to load the dishwasher, after all.