COMFORT; FOOD.

Byline: Emma Jenkins

Oh, Sunday mornings. They used to be filled with long, well looked-forward-to sleep, followed by an extra snooze, strong coffee and the bulk of the Sunday papers.

But not now. Our Sunday begins at the same hideous hour as every other morning - usually 6am when one, if not both, small ones wake and migrate to our bed.

If we''re lucky the soft warm bed will induce some extra sleep and deep parental cuddles will gain another half an hour and then it''s a finger up the nose, a poke in the ear or, worst of all, our eyelids are prised open.

Thelittle giggleswhichcan''tbeignoredcomenextandthe only solution is to give in gracefully to the children and hope thatmy partner has remembered that it''s his turn to get up!

Our weekend activities are now filled with fresh air, a trip to the swings, a walk and lunch out - but always include a good and hearty breakfast.

My current favourite is soft boiled free range eggs balanced on or served in a toasted bagel with pan fried Parma ham and oven baked tomato.

The yolk from the egg runs into the bagel making a mess but definitely worth it!

Apacket of bagels 4 free range eggs A packet of Parma ham Butter Salt and pepper Tomato Herbs Olive oil Honey Cut a large fresh tomato in half across the middle and season the top. Sprinkle with some oregano. Place a knob of butter on top of each open half and drizzle a little good quality honey over the top. Bake in the oven at 160C for about 20 minutes till the tomato is soft but not mushy.

Put a pan of water on to boil. Split and toast the bagels in the toaster or under the grill and then butter. Heat a frying pan and when hot lay in slices of the Parma ham. They will crisp up and shrink a little, which reminds me of shrinky dinks. Do you remember them from cereal packs when you were a kid? They were such fun.

Place the Parma ham into the bagel and sandwich it by putting the two halves together. Plunge the free range eggs into the boiling water for six minutes and drain.

Take the egg and place into the hole of each bagel. Tap the top and remove the lid in front of the wee ones and let the yolk run free. Eat and enjoy the sandwichwhich has nowbecome a gooey fruit of your labour. It has not created much washing up but you''re now all fed and ready for your Sunday to start.

Emma Jenkins is Director, and creative inspiration behind EJ Catering