On Saturday I had brunch with a friend at Namu on Balboa at 6th Avenue — fine place that — and broke into a rant about Michael Pollan’s book In Defense of Food. I really believe in his way of eating and can’t help going on about it.
On the subject of breakfast, Lisa said she would like to eat fresh food but she has two pre-teen daughters and teaches. Mornings are hectic, to say the least. Her first class is at 7:30, so she eats a Trader Joe’s power bar in the car during her commute. “I have to be able to eat with one hand,” she said, “something not messy. I don’t like what I eat for breakfast, but that’s the way it is.”
I don’t have that problem, but was thinking about her plight the next morning. I put together a breakfast that was not messy, and while I ate at the table, what I had could have been eaten in a car with one hand, from a container rather than a dish.
- Piccoline olives
- Anchovy stuffed olives
- Hard boiled egg, quartered
- “Mikes” cheese curd (with peppers) from Spring Hill Farm, available at a Farmers Market near you.
Hamataschen from the Cinderella Bakery on Balboa, across from Namu
That was good.
Substitute what you want for your taste, the season and for variety,
- Many varieties of olives or pickled vegetables
- Grapes
- Cherries
- Sliced apples or pears
- Cubed hard cheese
- Leftover cooked or partially cooked vegetables; carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus (the season is just around the corner!)
- Ham slices or cubes
- Salami
- Toast or bread sticks might be good
- Make some cookies on the weekend; oatmeal-raisin, peanut butter, chocolate chip, and take one of those for dessert or a mid-morning pick-up
Imagine your breakfast the night before and assemble in the morning. The possibilities are endless.
Just use real food
One handed
Not messy
HARD BOILED EGGS
Put four eggs in a small saucepan. Prick their bottoms
Cover with cold water
Cover the pan and bring to a boil (about 5 minutes)
Just when the water begins to boil, take the pan off the heat, cover the pan and wait 12 minutes.
When the timer dings, move the eggs to an icewater bath
Wait 5 minutes
Peel the eggs. Put them in a covered container and refrigerate.
Quarter and eat
Make deviled eggs
Make an egg salad sandwich
Yum
eats for one 
Better yet, put that stuff in a steamed flour tortilla, wrap it in foil or waxed paper, and now yer really livin’ la vida loca!
You should be able to sympathize with Lisa, though — I remember that you were an EARLY adopter of travel mugs for coffee (though you didn’t eat breakfast), well before there was such a thing as a cup holder option in cars. In fact, you used to pride yourself on your smooth shifting skills that were illustrated by your ability to drive with a regular ceramic mug full of coffee without spilling it. Then you found a ceramic mug shaped like an upside-down funnel that let the coffee slosh without getting up and over the edge.
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