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Archive for the ‘Breakfast’ Category
Well, here it is Friday and leading into a 3-day weekend here in the States – thank goodness. I can’t remember the last time I looked this forward to an extended weekend. I also have many things to do at work before I can enjoy my holiday weekend, so today’s post is short and sweet.
Well, savory actually. I’ve posted a version of this before, but it’s been two years (back when I had essentially no readers) with Stilton with Lemon Zest and fresh tarragon (I love my herb garden), but this one was done using a pepper-crusted goat cheese and fresh thyme (I love my herb garden). You can use any combination of cheese and herbs you like, really, and the dish itself is easy, as well as tasty, especially served with bacon and fresh strawberries and blueberries
And have a lovely weekend, y’all.
Savory Souffleed Omelet
Soufflèed Omelet with Cheese and Herbs
serves 4
4 large eggs, separated
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 to 2 tablespoons of butter
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
1/4 cup fresh goat cheese, crumbled
Preheat the oven to 375 F.
In a large glass mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff, but not dry. Without cleaning the beaters, beat the egg yolks with the salt and pepper in a small mixing bowl until thick and light. Fold the yolk mixture gently into the whites.
Melt the butter in a 10-inch, ovenproof skillet over medium heat until it begins to foam. Once the foam has subsided, but before the butter begins to brown, pour the egg mixture into the pan, spread evenly and smooth the top. Let it sit for a few seconds, then shake the pan back and forth to discourage sticking. Cover the pan with a lid whose underside has been buttered to prevent sticking. Reduce the heat and cook for 5 minutes.
Remove the cover and sprinkle the top of the omelet with the herbs and cheese. Place the skillet in the oven and bake until the top is set, 3 to 5 minutes.
Slide the omelet out onto a warmed plate, cut into fourths and serve immediately.
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Well, it’s Monday in spades – I got into the office this morning and all hell just broke loose. So today’s post is going to be a quickie.
“Skillets” are popular at restaurants that serve breakfast; they usually consist of eggs and sausage and potatoes, along with other ingredients, that are all mixed together and cooked in the same skillet, then topped off with cheese (or even gravy) – they’re sometimes referred to as “scrambles.” They are quite popular here at the Sushi Bar, and are quite doable, even when doing a controlled carbohydrate diet.
We are also very fond of breakfast burritos, and every time I find real Mexican chorizo I buy it in large quantities and freeze it. Breakfast burritos in our house consist of tortillas (corn or flour – I prefer corn), fried potatoes, eggs scrambled with the chorizo, cheese and salsa. But since I’m not eating white potatoes or tortillas, I’ve made one of our favorite Sunday brunches into sort of a “skillet” using sweet potatoes instead of white. (Sweet potatoes are more nutritious, don’t screw with your blood sugar as much, and I just plain like ‘em better.)
This will make two generous servings, with plenty of the egg/chorizo combo left over for another meal, or for a 15-year-old boy who won’t eat sweet potatoes to devour with toast. You can, of course, use white potatoes and/or wrap it all up in tortillas if you wish.
Mexican Chorizo "Skillet"
Mexican Chorizo “Skillet”
two generous servings with leftovers
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1″ cubes
1/2 cup yellow onion, chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons clarified butter or vegetable oil
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 pound spicy Mexican chorizo (in natural casings, if you can find it)
8 eggs
2 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup good quality salsa
Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil and add a teaspoon salt; add the cubed sweet potatoes and parboil for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain in a colander and run with cold water to stop the cooking process.
Heat a small, heavy skillet (I use cast iron) over high heat until nearly smoking; add the clarified butter or oil and wait for 15 seconds. Carefully add the sweet potatoes, season with salt and pepper, stir and lower the heat a bit to medium-high. Continue frying the potatoes for 8 to 10 minutes, until they are soft and beginning to brown. Decrease the heat to low and add the onion, continuing to cook while stirring occasionally, until the onions have softened and the potatoes have browned, another 2 or 3 minutes. Keep warm.
Heat another, larger, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Remove the chorizo from the casings and fry, breaking it up with a large spoon or spatula, until the fat has been rendered and it is just about cooked through. Lower the heat to medium-low.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs together until well mixed. Add to the skillet with the chorizo and cook, stirring frequently, until the eggs are set and the chorizo is cooked through.
Divide the sweet potatoes between two plates. Layer 1/4 of the egg/chorizo mixture, followed by half the shredded cheese and half the salsa on each plate. Serve immediately.
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I found myself in the midst of another side dish crisis last night. I had one of my in-danger-of-imminent-freezer-burn roasts in the crock pot since our current financial situation is backing up Beloved’s demand suggestion that I cook from the freezer, refrigerator and pantry (thank you, Uncle Sam, for your yearly fleecing), and I had to decide what I could make to go with said roast. Potatoes? No, we’re having those tonight with the rest of the roast. Pasta? No, we’ve had that the previous two nights, in the form of mac ‘n’ cheese and spaghetti. Rice? No, we’re having that Friday night (either teriyaki chicken or a stir fry). There are grits and couscous in my pantry, but neither seemed to scream “Make me with your roast!”
So I threw together this spoon bread. It was pretty good, warm and comforting and filling, but in retrospect there were things I could have done to make it more…exciting, I guess. I’ll make it again, but will probably throw in some sauteéd onions and garlic, maybe a pinch of red pepper flakes and a bit more salt. I might also leave off the “custard topping”, which was pretty decadent but didn’t really lend a lot to the overall quality of the dish (and added a ton of calories).
At any rate, here it is as written. And as written, it might also make a pretty decent brunch dish. (I also apologize for the cruddy picture – I was in a hurry when I took it.)
Custard-Topped Spoon Bread
serves 8
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 rounded tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups milk
1 1/2 tablespoons plain white vinegar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 can corn, well-drained
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup heavy cream
Preheat oven to 350º F. Generously butter an 8 x 8 inch baking dish.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt. Add the eggs, milk and vinegar and stir until well-moistened, but still a bit lumpy. Stir in the melted butter, then fold in the corn and cheese.
Scrape the batter into the prepared baking dish, the pour the heavy cream slowly and carefully over the batter without stirring.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
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Quiche. They say real men don’t eat it, but if that’s true very few men I know are “real.”
‘Cause quiche is darn good.
I have dozens of good quiche recipes in my repertoire, and all of them are very, very tasty. But we’ll start with what is probably the best known of all quiches – quiche Lorraine. This classic dish is a specialty of the Lorraine region of France, where it was first made as early as the sixteenth century. In the United States, it is considered primarily a breakfast or brunch dish, but it can be served as an entrée, for lunch or an evening snack (presuming you want to go to all this trouble for an evening snack…).
Traditional quiche Lorraine contains no cheese, but I’ve never been a very traditional person, so mine contains a good Gruyère, although you can use any Swiss variety you prefer. You can also add a half cup of caramelized onions.
Note: Use a refrigerated pie crust if you’re so inclined; after fitting it into the pie plate and crimping the edges, pre-bake and glaze according to the following directions. But no matter what you do, pre-bake and glaze the crust – it will keep it from getting soggy.
Quiche Lorraine
serves 4 to 6
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
4 tablespoons vegetable shortening, cold
4 tablespoons very cold butter, cut into cubes
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 -5 tablespoons ice water
1 egg yolk
pinch of salt
4 ounces thick sliced bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 large eggs
1 cup finely shredded Gruyère cheese
1 cup half and half
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
pinch of freshly grated or ground nutmeg
Position the rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400º F.
Whisk the flour and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Cut the shortening and butter into the dry ingredients by chopping vigorously with a pastry blender or by cutting in with 2 knives. Periodically stir dry flour up from the bottom of the bowl and scrape clinging fat off the pastry blender or knives. Some of the fat should remain in pea-sized pieces; the rest should be reduced to the consistency of coarse crumbs. The mixture should seem dry and powdery, not pasty or greasy.
Drizzle 3 tablespoons of ice water over the flour and fat mixture; using a silicone spatula, cut with the blade side until the mixture looks evenly moistened and begins to form small balls. Press down on the dough with the flat side of the spatula – if the balls of dough stick together you have added enough water; if they do not, drizzle another tablespoon of ice water over the dough. Cut in the water, again using the blade of the spatula, then press with your hands until the dough coheres. (Cut in the last tablespoon of ice water if necessary.) The dough should look rough, not smooth. Press the dough into a round, flat disk and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
Roll out the dough and fit it into a 9-inch deep dish pie plate, trimming the dough 1 inch beyond the edge of the pie plate then tucking it under the edges and crimping. Refrigerate the crust for at least 10 minutes.
Smooth a sheet of aluminum foil, shiny side down, over the bottom and sides of the the crust, flaring the excess foil, like an awning, over the crust edge to keep it from overbrowning. Fill the liner with raw beans or rice, or metal pie weights, banking the weights against the sides if you do not have enough to fill the crust to the brim. Bake the crust for 20 minutes with the weights in place to set the pastry. Carefully lift out the foil with the weights inside. Prick the crust thoroughly with a fork, return it to the oven and bake until it is lightly golden brown all over, between 5 and 10 minutes.
Whisk together the egg yolk and pinch of salt and brush the inside of the crust with it. Return the crust to the oven until the egg glaze sets, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the crust, set aside and reduce the oven temperature to 375º F.
Heat a small but heavy skillet over medium high heat and cook the bacon until the fat is rendered and the bacon is just beginning to crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towels and set aside.
Whisk together the eggs, half and half, cream, salt, pepper and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl until well-combined.
Scatter the bacon evenly over the bottom of the prepared pie crust, then sprinkle the cheese over the bacon. Pour the egg mixture over the bacon and cheese.
Bake until the filling is browned and set, about 35 to 40 minutes. Allow to sit for at least 15 minutes before serving.
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I’m in a hurry again today (I’d threaten to run away and join the circus, but who’d be able to tell the difference?) so here’s another recipe.
I liked how yogurt worked in my new pancake recipe so well that I decided to make some waffles using buttermilk this weekend. The results were interesting – while they didn’t come out quite as crisp as my regular waffle recipe, the taste was so good that I consider it a fair trade-off.
If you can find a full-fat buttermilk, so much the better. And as with any waffle recipe, don’t over mix the batter or they’ll come out tough.
And a tough waffle is an unhappy waffle.
Buttermilk Waffles
Makes about five 8″ round waffles
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1½ teaspoons baking soda
2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs, separated
1 stick of butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
Preheat the waffle iron according to the manufacturers instructions.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda. In another large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff, but not dry. In a smaller bowl, lightly beat the egg yolks.
Stir the egg yolks and buttermilk into the dry ingredients until just mixed – the batter should be lumpy. Stir in the melted butter, then gently fold in the egg whites.
Bake in the hot waffle iron until the waffle iron stops steaming and the waffle is a golden brown. Serve immediately.
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