These were a rather spontaneous latenight snack. I have laying around a blend of wheat, rye, corn and oats that I made bread from last winter. I decided to add an egg to it. Before I knew it, I’d rolled and cut fat strips of pastry for the rosemary peppercorn chicken broth that was boiling away on the stove.

If you’re going to go on a liquid diet, you could do far worse than to derive your carbohydrates from Australia’s Sheaf Stout. In a world of pussyfooters, Sheaf Stout will put bricks in your step.

Thank you, Sheaf Stout, for being in Portland, Oregon. You are far more than a meal in a glass.

How pleased I was to discover that exquisite Fructal juices from Slovenia are available at Taste of Europe (1739 SE Hawthorne in Portland, Oregon). One of my absolute favorite juice beverages in the world is Fructal’s blueberry and aronia nectar, which I became addicted to in Zagreb. At only $3 a liter, it sure beats the hell out of paying $3.75 for an eight ounce serving of something inferior at Whole Foods. The premium blend of blueberry and aronia (chokeberry) juices is EXTREMELY high in antioxidants, and packs just the right amount of refreshing tartness.

Coffee me, please. I’m probably more stimulated by the flavor, body and aroma of coffee than by the caffeine. It’s a grounding beverage, a conduit of profound elemental energies. You can not have coffee without earth, fire, water or mountain air, after all. It is a drink of pondering, a mystical elixir that quickens the synapses. If it had a frequency, coffee would be deep bass. It’s a drink that enables you to give forth a great, booming, “Hell, YES!” from the very bottom of your being.

And, dammit, I’m all out of sugar.

So it’s pure maple syrup in the coffee this morning. As you might imagine, this is better than sugar because I’m also getting earthy stimulation from yon venerable Maple, whose roots sip from deep within untouched places.

After one cup, I got to thinking of all the exquisite ways to serve and enjoy coffee. The Dutch, I’m told, put butter in their coffee. I’ve tried this, and it’s actually pretty nice. Coffee brewed with green cardamom or cinnamon (or both). I acquired the charming habit of eating raw onions in Croatia (it’s really quite good for your blood), and I’ve actually enjoyed coffee and sliced onions together for breakfast. Just muddy Turkish coffee and onions with a little sea salt. Try it and see if your day doesn’t bang to a start. I know someone who mixes tomato juice into his java. I’m not so curious about how that ends up tasting.