By Chef Alexis Hernandez
The Ritual
I don’t usually make toast.
But I do toast bagels. Not in the toaster—an everything bagel belongs under the broiler, where you can flirt with disaster properly.
Not in the toaster. That thing lives in the appliance garage, right next to the bread machine I swore I’d use.
No, I throw the bagel on a sheet pan, shove it under the broiler, and wait. Or at least, I try to.
I like my bagels almost burnt. Just shy of should I be worried?
I want the poppy seeds to crunch, the onions on top to darken, and the whole thing to smell like it went a little too far in the best way.
Then comes the Amish butter from Detwiler’s, a hit of flaky salt, and if I’m feeling bold—which is most of the time—a dusting of garlic powder.
Sometimes onion powder too.
I don’t play favorites.
The Distraction
But some days, I get distracted.
A text buzzes. A DM pops up. Something shiny flashes on Instagram.
And then it’s gone—the bagel, the four minutes I promised myself I could stand still, the chance to just be in one place.
Instead of waiting, I’m chasing notifications like they’re more urgent than breakfast.
A minute later, the kitchen tells on me.
The Lesson
Still, I’ll eat it.
Maybe not the pitch-black ones, but the overdone, extra-crisp, questionably toasted ones. Those I actually like.
Here’s the thing: burnt toast isn’t failure.
It’s what happens when you’re human, hungry, and pulled in too many directions at once. The same thing that ruins a bagel can ruin your morning, your plans, even your mood if you let it.
But sometimes the mistake isn’t as bad as it looks.
Sometimes all it needs is butter. And salt. And maybe a better attitude.
The Takeaway
Sometimes all it needs is butter. And salt. And maybe a better attitude.
So I still eat the bagel.
Not the ones that are truly gone. The ones that just got darker than I meant them to.
Maybe that’s why I don’t mind them.
A little too dark doesn’t mean ruined. It just means I looked away.
Chef Alexis Hernandez writes The Other Side of the Stove. His work has also appeared in News of Sun City Center and South County, and he has appeared on Food Network Star and Cutthroat Kitchen.
