Breakfast Skillet... Eggs, Ham, Potatoes, and a Few Other Things

 I used turkey ham which tastes pretty much like same thing except it's not pork. Whenever I list a recipe that calls for bacon or ham, I'm using turkey.  Although, I just found this website that makes duck prosciutto which sounds quite interesting.  Any who,now that I've gotten that out of the way, I'll proceed with the recipe. This is a perfect thing to make when you're trying to use up ingredients in your fridge.  You could add a ton of other stuff like mushrooms, spinach, sausage, thyme... and the list goes on. I found this to be perfect for brunch since its so substantial.

Ingredients:

1 lb. turkey ham (the kind that comes in a block and you have to cut up.)

1 large onion

1 or 2 tomatoes

3 potatoes

4 eggs

1/3 cup shredded cheddar-jack cheese

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. butter

Salt and pepper to taste

Garnish with a few green onion sprigs

First cut the ham into thick slices and remove the edges. Cut into chunks, I like mine medium size, a little smaller than an almond. Cut the onion into a medium dice and add to a non-stick skillet with the ham and 1 tbsp. of butter. Being to saute until the onions and ham get lightly browned. Set aside. While the ham and onions cook, peel and dice the potatoes. Lightly fry or bake them until they get crispy. I put 2 tbsp. of canola oil into my cast iron skillet and cooked them at 450 degrees, tossing occasionally to brown evenly. This took about 15 minutes. While the potatoes cook, dice the tomato and remove the seeds, saute and add to the ham and onions. Fry up the eggs, but do not flip, just cook them on one side. Once the potatoes are crispy, add the ham, onions and tomato and season with salt and pepper. Top with a little cheese. Next add the eggs, yolk side up on top of the hash. Season the eggs with a little salt and pepper and put the skillet back into the oven for a few minutes to cook the eggs to your desired doneness.

I like this dish with copious amounts of ketchup. Brandon likes his with ketchup and hot sauce...

French Toast Casserole with Maple Glaze

This is the lazy person's way to make French toast. It really is a lot quicker and much much easier, especially if you're making it for a large crowd, as opposed to soaking and cooking the individual toast one by one. It tasted just like French toast too! Add the glaze over the top and you're set.

Ingredients:

1/2 loaf of French bread (cubed- about 5 cups)
6 eggs
1 cup half and half
1 tsp ground cinnamon (plus more for topping after assembling)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
2/3 cup Z sweet (replacement for white table sugar that measures the same)
2 tbsp. butter
pinch of salt

Set your oven to 350 degrees. Next begin by cubing the bread into chunks. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, half and half, cinnamon, nutmeg, Z sweet, salt and vanilla extract. Whisk vigorously to combine all of the ingredients well. Add the bread to the mixture and allow it to soak for about 15-20 minutes. Transfer to a buttered baking dish (you should melt the butter and let it coat the bottom of the pan and sides- allowing the excess to stay on the bottom. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and bake for about 35-40 minutes.

A little of this goes a long way. You just want to lightly drizzle this over the top. It makes a huge difference.

For the topping:
4 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. real maple syrup
1/2 cup Z sweet
1 tsp. Molasses
1/3 cup half and half

In a saucepan, melt the butter and add the z sweet until the mixture dissolves and begins to bubble. Add the half and half, molasses, and maple syrup. Blend well and allow the sauce to bubble and reduce until it coats a spoon.

Churros!

Usually when I go home to Miami, which is about once a year, we have a breakfast tradition: my grandmother usually makes churros. Churros are long strings of fried dough topped with sugar. Usually this treat is eaten along with a cup of hot chocolate... perfect for the weather we've been having lately. When I was little my mom used to stop by a famous Miami landmark called "la palma" where there was a walk-up window that you'd order your food at. They'd give us one of those brown paper bags used for school lunches filled with churros for one dollar. The bag had little grease spots, but when you're a kid you don't worry about stuff like that. That was our Friday treat. Those were the days! La Palma used to make the churros fresh back in those days, but now they buy them frozen and they're just not the same according to my grandfather. Now he just complains and my grandmother ends up making them herself. This was what I ate for my first breakfast in Miami. They were gone as soon as they hit the plate.

Ingredients for the churros:
2 cups flour
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1 pinch salt
1 pinch sugar
canola oil for frying

Bring the liquid to a boil and add the flour. Blend well and allow this mixture to cool before putting into the churro maker (which is really a glorified cookie press). Then drop the churros into hot oil and fry until golden brown. Sprinkle with sugar.

My grandmother "Aby" making churros

Everyone enjoying fresh churros!

My brother, Eric, couldn't let the last little piece go to waste!

Corned Beef Hash- one of my favorite breakfasts...

This is by far one of my favorite breakfast foods. But done wrong, can be pretty disgusting- almost resembling dog food. If you don't believe me, go buy a can of corned beef hash at the grocery store and see what I mean. This recipe uses simple ingredients and is pretty easy to make. Check out the recipe below.

Ingredients:

I package corned-beef brisket cooked and cubed

2 large russet potatoes

1 onion

1 garlic clove

2 tsp. parsley, chopped

2 tbsp. butter

1 tbsp paprika

salt and pepper to taste (I used garlic salt for this dish)

Take the cubed up beef and pulse in a food processor until you have small pieces but you don't want to overdo it because it'd look like corned beef dust not hash. I cooked the brisket in a crock pot the evening before, cubed it up, and stored it in the fridge over night. Next wash the potatoes and cut into small cubes. Add one tbsp. of butter into a non-stick pan and turn on med. high heat. Add the potatoes once the pan is hot. Allow for the potatoes to cook, tossing frequently. Add the paprika and some salt and continue to cook. Once the potatoes begin to brown a bit, transfer to a foil lined cookie sheet and bake to ensure even cooking for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Next finely chop you onion and garlic clove and begin to saute in the pan. When the onions become translucent, pile them on top of the potatoes and set aside. Lastly add the remaining butter to the pan and turn on med-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the corned beef and allow for it to brown until some bits are nice and toasted. This should take about 7 minutes or so. Lastly combine the onions, garlic and potatoes and add the parsley. Combine well and transfer to a nice platter. Top with a few fried eggs and enjoy this hearty breakfast!

Breakfast Pizza

I know I made a pizza not that long ago, but this is a different take on the classic. Who doesn't love pizza for breakfast? There are no objections in our household!

You can view the recipe for the dough in this post- "Three Burglars and a Pizza" I used the same recipe.

Pizza Ingredients:
1/2 cup of your favorite spaghetti sauce (I use Emeril's "Kicked up Gaahlic")
1 cup fresh diced tomatoes
1 cup Cheddar Cheese
1/2 mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup crumbled turkey bacon
1/2 cup turkey ham, cubed in small pieces
1/2 cup onion, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup fresh spinach leaves
4 eggs

Roll out the dough and place in a pizza pan sprayed with cooking spray. Spread the sauce on the dough and begin adding the toppings, the cheese should go first though. Once you have added the rest of the toppings crack the eggs directly on top of the pizza. Place them evenly apart so each piece will have some egg. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Drizzle with a little olive oil and serve.

Veggie Frittata, Turkey Sausage, Turkey Bacon and Home Fries

 

Fritattas are a good breakfast to make on a weekend. They're easy to make and you can make a lot of it or a little depending on the number you're serving without doing any extra work. They're also a good way to get some veggies into your diet- I made this one out of veggies and it was delicious. I served it with some home fries and some lean turkey sausage and bacon to complete the meal. We didn't eat again until dinner!


Veggie Frittata:
6 eggs
1 small onion
1 bag spinach
1/2 a red pepper
3/4 cup shredded cheddar jack cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Dice all of the veggies and saute them until they're tender. Remove and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk in the eggs, veggies cheese and salt and pepper and pour into an oven-safe pan sprayed with cooking spray. Cook on low heat until the frittata is almost cooked through. At this point, put it into the oven and cook at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.


For the Home Fries:
2 large russett potatoes
1 onion
1/3 cup parsley
2 tsp. paprika
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
olive oil- to drizzle over the top
Salt and pepper to taste

Slice the potatoes into rounds ( I used a sharp knife but a mandolin works well too.) Make sure the slices are even. Next dice the onion and mix with the potatoes. Take a foil-lined cookie sheet and spray with cooking spray. Add the potatoes and onion to the pan and season with the paprika, salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Cover with foil and bake for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Remove the pan from the oven and take off the foil. The potatoes should be tender now. Add the cheese and parsley and combine well. Allow the potatoes to cook uncovered until they're slightly crisp.

Huevos Rancheros done in a flash

This dish is extremely easy. Not to mention a good way to get extra veggies in the morning. Tomatoes are a great source of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant which helps prevent several cancers (especially prostate), as well as protect the skin from free-radicals. The lycopene in tomatoes is more potent when tomatoes are cooked, so eating this dish is a good way to get some antioxidant action at the start of your day. If you're trying to watch your carb intake, simply omit the tortilla. So here's how you make it.

Ingredients
4 eggs
1 cup chunky salsa (home-made is best, but store-bought will work too)
5 sprays of Pam (or enough to coat the pan)
1/3 cup shredded cheddar-jack cheese
1 tsp. light sour cream
4 corn tortillas
2 tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro
Fresh ground pepper and salt to taste

Spray the pan and place it on the burner over med- low heat. Once the eggs are cooked on one side, flip them. Next pour the salsa over the eggs and sprinkle the cheese on top of them. Warm the tortillas and put them on a plate to wait for the egg to cook. Roughly chop the cilantro. Remove the eggs from the pan and place each egg, a top a tortilla. Top with sour cream and cilantro. For those that like it hot, add a dash of hot sauce.

Buttermilk Pancakes

I can't even begin to tell you how many a' Sunday morning breakfast has gone from the pan to the trash can when attempting to make pancakes. There are a few things that I am really particular about like popcorn- microwave popcorn doesn't' count (this deserves it's own post in my opinion since its probably my favorite snack). Pancakes are another one of those foods. I hate pancakes that are super thick and cake like. I like them fluffy light and somewhat thin. I also don't like them too brown. When I told Brandon that I was making pancakes the other day for breakfast he said "um... just serve me some cereal" that should give you an idea of what my pancakes have been like in the past. I have found by trial and error (focus on the error) the perfect recipe for the perfect pancake. What's my secret you say? Rice flour!!! Yes that's right just plain ol' rice flour. I substituted half the amount of regular flour for rice flour and that was the trick. So here's how you make it:


Ingredients:
1 cup unbleached flour
1 cup rice flour
1 egg plus one egg white
1 1/2 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 tsp. good vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
4 tbsp. butter- melted
1 tbsp. canola oil

In a bowl combine all of the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, beat the egg, buttermilk, vanilla, and milk and combine well. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and combine well. Next add the butter and oil and combine. Do not over mix though because it will make the pancakes kind of tough.

Put a non stick pan on the stove on med. high heat. Once the pan is hot, take a ladle and pour the batter onto the pan. Allow little bubbles to form on the top before flipping. repeat until you have a nice stack. Serve with real maple syrup.

Tortilla Espanola the Breakfast of "Campiones"

This is one of those dishes that reminds me of mom. I can remember eating this as a kid and sneaking into the fridge when no one was looking to grab a piece of this. Basically this is a Spanish omelet that contains everything but the kitchen sink. A traditional Spanish omelet is only made with eggs and potatoes but this one's got the works because that's how my mom made it- but I digress. Either way they're both made the same way except one has a lot less ingredients. So here's how you make it.

Ingredients:
15 Eggs
1/3 cup half & half
1 large onion
1 bunch scallion
4 large potatoes
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
3 cloves garlic
1 lb. Turkey ham
6 slices turkey bacon
1 bag shredded cheese (I use the Mexican blend)
salt
olive oil

The first thing you do is peel the potatoes and cut into cubes. Place them on a cookie sheet, drizzle olive oil on them and bake in the oven at 400 degrees until golden brown. While the potatoes cook I dice up the onion, bell pepper, and garlic and sauté on high heat with olive oil and set aside in a bowl. Next sauté the ham and cook until nicely browned. Next, crack the eggs into a large bowl. Then whisk and add half and half. Cook the turkey bacon and dice. Then add the rest of the ingredients into the bowl and combine. Drizzle your pan with olive oil and pour contents in. Turn the heat down to low. Let the omelet cook on the stove for about 25 minutes then transfer the pan into the oven and finish cooking in there.