Quick Fried Egg and Toast

Fresh eggs from the girls

 
My quick go to breakfast every morning is good quality local bread toasted in a hot cast iron pan with EVO then a egg is fried in the same hot pan, maybe wilted arugula or spinach added too. A dash of my own hot sauce completes it or maybe some cheese like I used today.

Note: The photo of the eggs shows how different in size they can be on the farm, eggs that you will buy in the store will always be graded to the same size.

One pan cooking makes for easy clean up.

My fried egg on toast with arugula and parmesan cheese

Hash and More Hash

Roast Pepper and Potato Hash with Poached Egg

I guess its becoming my signature breakfast now? A one pan meal of potatoes, vegetables and breakfast meats like bacon or sausage accompanied by a lone perfectly poached egg, Salsa Verde on this mornings plate. Perfect way for me to start my day with a big coffee.

Green Eggs and Ham

The name comes from the classic Dr. Seuss children's book, the green comes from the Salsa Verde sauce I used in my breakfast hash. Lots of sauteed vegetables with bacon becomes a good bed for the soft poached egg, a spoonful of green sauce and it's ready to go with my coffee.

The Hash with Celery, Garlic, Bacon, Potatoes and Asparagus

Breakfast Hash with Poached Egg and Parsley Salsa Verde

Latin Inspired Weekend Breakfast

My standard go-to breakfast on weekends is a pan of assorted meats and vegetables cooked and topped with a perfectly poached egg. Today I used some Latin ingredients in my breakfast hash, roasted Pasilla Peppers, Cojita Cheese, red beans, cilantro and avocado along with Fingerling Potatoes and Niman Ranch bacon. A good breakfast finished with a splash of my homemade Habanero Hot Sauce and I am ready to start the day.

Ingredients Cooking in the Pan

Latin "Hash" Waiting for the Hot Sauce

Smoked Salmon Hash

Smoked Salmon and Sweet Potato Hash

A friend of mine visiting from out of town stopped by the famed Swan Oyster Depot Restaurant in San Francisco and brought me a big chunk of Local Smoked Salmon. This restaurant has a amazing selection of prepared foods to eat there or take home. A lot of ideas went through my head on using this beautiful fish before I finally decided on making a breakfast hash with it.

Smoked Salmon Hash
Ingredients:
1 pound Smoked Salmon
1 Sweet Potato, diced
1/2 Sweet yellow onion, diced
3 Strips Thick Sliced Bacon, diced
1 Handful Spinach
3 Organic Eggs
Salt/Pepper

Method:
1. Slowly cook the bacon with the onions and sweet potatoes in a non stick or cast iron pan.
2. As the hash is cooking bring a small pot of water to a simmer for poaching the eggs, a dash of plain white vinegar will help keep the egg from spreading and keep it into a round shape.
3. When the hash is tender and slightly brown add the spinach and crumbled salmon to cook.
4. Season with S/P and split on three warm plates, top with a soft poached egg on each.

Yield=3

Smoke Salmon is available in well stocked markets everywhere.

Fresh Garden Vegetable Hash

Just Picked Heirloom Tomatoes

Peppers, Potatoes, Onions and Tomatoes

Garden Vegetables, Grilled Beef and Smoked Bacon Hash with Poached Egg

When the garden is producing amazing vegetables you have to cook them anyway you can. This morning I made a hash with lots of mild gypsy peppers, tomatoes, potatoes and a little smoky bacon for flavor and finished with a poached egg & sliced avocado. A big cast iron pan works great in this recipe. This is simple to prep in the morning while you are drinking your first cup of coffee. The first step is to dice all the ingredients, next slowly cook the bacon. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook till tender and crispy browned, season to taste then place a scoop on a plate. Top with a poached egg if you wish.

Note: I love hot sauce with mine, maybe you will too.

Made Up Breakfast

Breakfast is often the time when I will create something with whatever I happen to have on hand. Depending on how much food I have, it can be simple or complex. This morning I found masa dough, bacon, eggs and fresh tomatoes. My vision was to make a thick masa patty called sopes in Latin countries. This patty would be fried in the fat of the bacon with chopped tomatoes, and when that's done an egg is simply fried and then it's assembled. It turned out great, and next time I will add diced avocado and chopped cilantro.

My kind of Weekend Breakfast

One of my favorite breakfasts is Chilaquiles which is a form of Mexican scramble using tortillas, eggs and beans. This morning I made a version of this using fresh roasted pasilla pepper, corn tortillas, asparagus, pancetta bacon and a poached free range egg. It comes together fast, and having a hot cup of coffee to sip while enjoying this while sitting in the morning sun is perfect. Oh, and don't forget the hot sauce!

Char Roasted Chili Pepper

Runny Egg Goodness

Saturday Morning Breakfast

Besides a cup of coffee, nothing is better than a form of eggs for breakfast. For me it's going to be spicy too. I had some roasted pork on hand so I shredded it to go with some torn corn tortillas into a nonstick pan to crisp up with a dash of vegetable oil. Separately I charred Anaheim green chilies over my stoves gas burners, and then the roasted and cleaned chilies were blended with garlic and cilantro to make a quick sauce. The sauce was then added to the pork and tortilla mixture. In a separate pan I fried a organic egg to place on top of the pork mixture. All is set to go with my cup of coffee.

Breakfast Ham & Eggs

Sunday mornings are for relaxing with a cup of coffee and reading the paper with a quick and easy breakfast. This is what I came up with today, 2 slices of locally baked Acme bread with a hole cut out of each slice, a thin slice of Prosciutto ham placed in the hole next a cracked organic egg on top then into a non stick pan with a dash of extra virgin olive oil. It is started on the stove then finished in the oven. Done when the ham is crisp and eggs are cooked but still runny. A good tasty breakfast in the time it takes the coffee to brew.

Hangtown Fry

There is a famous breakfast dish here in Northern California called the Hangtown fry, its orgins date back to the California gold rush in the 1850's. The town central to where this gold mining operation took place is called Placerville in the Sierra foothills. Back in those wild and semi-lawless days justice was swift and often resulted in death by hanging, which gave this town the nickname of Hangtown. There are a few stories about how this dish of expensive and rare ingredients came about. One is that the miners with new found riches were able to afford this type of food, I like the story of the condemned men being given a choice of their last meal before hanging, they would choose the hangtown fry with its basic ingredients of fresh oysters, bacon and eggs. The oysters being delivered fresh on ice from San Francisco a hundred miles away, it would have to take a day or two to arrive thus buying them some extra time here on earth. This famous dish can still be found on the menus in some bay area restaurants.

Hangtown Fry

Ingredients:

3 fresh organic eggs

3 Small Freshly shucked Pacific oysters

1 Strip thick smoked bacon, diced

Kosher salt/Pepper

Method:

1. In a nonstick pan cook the diced bacon till crisp, remove.

2. Dust the oysters in seasoned flour and fry in the bacon fat till cooked and crispy

3. Remove the cooked oysters and blot on paper towel.

4. Beat the eggs and pour into a greased hot pan, cook till just set.

5. Arange the cooked bacon and oysters on the eggs and serve hot.

6. If you are in Placerville, quickly get out of town when finished eating!

Oyster Mushroom Hash

A Sunday breakfast favorite of mine is some type of hash. Its is a one pan meal of crispy fried potatoes with maybe a meat like bacon. This time I used smoky bacon, diced russet potatoes, chopped green onions and oyster mushrooms. Everything goes into a nonstick pan and cooks into a crispy pieces, a fried egg goes on top to rain down warm yolk all over when cut open. hollandaise sauce? maybe, hot sauce? oh yes please!

Green Eggs & Ham?

No not exactly but close, Today I made a breakfast dish using pork chorizo sausage, corn tortillas, eggs, spinach and the ever present avocado that I love to eat so much. This is a one pan saute of spicy crumbled chorizo and torn tortillas, a organic egg is added with a small hand full of fresh spinach. When the egg is just cooked and the spinach is wilted its onto a waiting warm plate topped with sliced avocado. I really like this kind of a one pan meal and its fast too. Other options can be added such as maybe potatoes, beans or a favorite salsa.

Egg and Potato Breakfast

Fried Egg with Potatoes and Harissa

I made a quick saute of Banana fingerling potato and onions, then place a fried egg on top with lots of fiery Harissa sauce. Easy, simple and good.

Latin Style Breakfast

This was a saute everything in the pan type of thing using ingredients I had on hand. Torn corn tortillas, black beans, Queso fresco, eggs, chopped cilantro, diced avocado and my own very hot sauce. This type of breakfast is closely related to the classic Chilaquiles recipe using some of the same ingredients. I just like the flavors and make this on most Sunday mornings.

Father's Day Breakfast Hash

Normally people would cook for the father on this day but I like cooking too much to let someone else have all the fun doing it. Making some kind of hash on Sunday mornings is common in my house and today we will keep up the tradition. Today's hash is a "use what I find in the refrigerator hash" and there were good ingredients available, Cooked Chicken, Italian Sausage, Yellow Bell Pepper, Russet Potato, Bacon and Eggs. Everything is cut into cubes and cooked in a non stick pan till tender and golden, a Fried Egg and a fiery spoonful of North African Harissa sauce to finish because I like spicy foods.

Ingredients:

1 russet Potato, diced

1 Yellow Bell Pepper, diced

1 cooked Chicken Breast, diced

1/2 cooked Italian Sausage, diced

1 strip Smoky Bacon, diced

1/4 yellow Onion, diced

2 Eggs

Optional: Harissa or other hot sauce

Method:

1. Saute all ingredients in a non stick saute bacon till golden brown, divide on warmed bowls.

2. Fry Eggs in a dash of olive oil in a non stick pan and serve one per bowl of hash, spoon Hot sauce over eggs if desired.

Yield= 2

Fast & Easy Non Fat Granola

On a whim I had the idea of making granola for breakfast this morning and its good to have around the house for a quick snack. People seem to think that granola is very healthy to eat, the basic ingredients of grains, nuts and dried fruits are healthy, but most of all the fat and calories come from the sugar and butter used to make it. My batch was simply oats, almonds and golden raisins, for additional sweetness I used agave nectar which comes from the agave plant that tequila is made from. It's a sweet liquid syrup that is fat free and has about 60 calories per tablespoon. Any combination of grains, nuts and dried fruits can be used, also chocolate chips or M&M's can be added to make it more of a trail mix. I made a bowl with non fat yogurt, Manila Mango and blueberries.

Ingredients:

2 cups rolled oats

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup almonds (whole or sliced)

4 tablespoons agave nectar

dash cinnamon powder

dash vanilla extract

Method:

1. Combine oats, almond, cinnamon, vanilla and nectar on a sheet pan.

2. Bake at 350F for about 10-15 minutes, mix as needed so it is evenly browned.

3. Remove from oven, let cool then add the raisins, mix well and store in air tight containers.

Tomato Omelet

I made a simple three ingredient breakfast this morning with eggs, diced tomatoes and shaved Asiago cheese. Beaten eggs go into a heated olive oil drizzled non stick pan, after a few moments of cooking till the eggs are almost set, a spoonful of sauteed tomatoes and the cheese go on, the eggs are folded over into the classic omelet shape, more cheese and tomatoes go on top with a sprinkle of parsley.

Chilaquiles for breakfast

Chilaquiles are a traditional Mexican dish often served as breakfast, it is a basic one pan scramble of corn tortillas, salsa, eggs and cheese. other ingredients can be added such as beans or chicken. I like it spicy with a lot of hot sauce, avocado and chopped cilantro.

Ingredients:
1 chicken leg, cooked and shredded
2 corn tortillas, torn into large pieces 2 ounce enchilada sauce or salsa
1 whole egg
1 pinch shredded cheese
1/2 yellow onion, sliced thin
chopped cilantro

1. Saute the chicken, onions and tortilla's in a dash of oil.

2. Add the egg and scramble, when cooked add the sauce and the cheese.

3. Plate and garnish with chopped cilantro.

Yield= 1 Options: chorizo sausage, avocado, roasted chili peppers

Chicken and Bacon Hash with Avocado

I could eat this for breakfast every weekend, crispy diced potatoes fried in smoky bacon fat and tossed with chicken and onions, topped with rich and creamy avocado. Maybe with a fried egg and definitely a big splash of hot sauce. Can't wait till the weekend!