My Suggestions for Break

Make yourself a nice sandwich. Really spend some time on it. Go get some good bread - the bread will make or break your sandwich. Think beyond lettuce and tomato - what about sprouts or cucumber? Go nuts! Use hummus!

For non-vegetarians (aka NORMAL PEOPLE) I have some suggestions for meat. Forget Boar's Head.

1. Poach chicken breasts or deboned skinless chicken thighs, then shred them and add a healthy dose of mayonnaise with salt, pepper, paprika, diced onions, maybe some green olives.

2. You've all heard the secret to perfect hard-boiled eggs. No? Okay then: Put the eggs in just enough cold water to cover and then put it on high. As soon as it reaches a full boil, cover it and take it off the heat. Let it sit for ten minutes. Take the eggs out and drop them in an ice bath for about five minutes. The egg will try to avoid the cold and will pull away from the shell, making it very easy to peel. The yolk will miraculously still be warm. Then you use your perfect hard-boiled eggs to make egg salad.

3. Shrimp - peel them, and if you have the patience, de-vein them. Then cook on medium heat with butter, flat parsley, garlic, white wine and lemon juice. Serve on a hero with lettuce. Or, if you really don't want a sandwich, toss with some fresh linguine... in which case I would add some halved cherry tomatoes and asparagus.

4. Pork ribs - this is really very easy. Sometimes people are intimidated by ribs and resort to the pansy's way out of boiling them and finishing with sauce under a broiler. That's how Chili's and TGIF do their ribs - do you want to emulate them? No. Here's what you do: Take all the herbs and spices in your cabinet, mix them together with a bit of sugar, and rub them on the ribs. Let it sit in the fridge for about a half-hour. Then put it in a 350-degree oven and cook for about an hour, depending on how big your ribs are and how many you have. When cut, the juices should run clear and the meat should come away from the bone very easily. If the juices are still pink or meat clings to the bone, it needs more time.

5. You want suggestions for herbs and spices for the pork ribs? Cumin, coriander, allspice, salt, pepper, cayenne, crushed red pepper flakes, thyme, rosemary, and so on... just experiment, that's what cooking is about.

6. I guess I got off sandwiches a bit... anyway, tonify the middle jiao. Eat, drink and be merry. Drain damp if necessary. Forget school for a few weeks!