EASY RECIPES AND STUFF

EASY RECIPE

This week I have three easy to make and fun to eat breakfast recipes for your consideration.

Bacon and Egg Taco Breakfast

Recipe serves four.

Ingredients:

1 lb. thick butcher cut bacon.

8 eggs.

8 taco shells.

2 tomatoes – diced.

1 can refried beans.

1 C Mexican cheese mixture – shredded.

1 avocado – cut into wedges.

1 lime – cut into wedges.

1 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro.

1 Tbsp bacon grease.

Preparation:

This brunch recipe is super easy to make, but timing the elements is critical to the final result. So, it is important to do the meal in stages.

Stage 1:

Chop the cilantro.

Dice the onions and tomatoes, sprinkle some cilantro on the tomatoes, cover and set aside.

Spoon canned refried beans into pot, and reserve empty can.

Cut the lime into wedges.

Stage 2:

Heat fry pan to medium high heat and begin browning the bacon. This will take some time and will include multiple batches. You may need to drain off bacon fat midway. If so, place a paper towel in the empty bean can, and carefully pour grease into the can; but remember to reserve 1 Tbsp.

As each batch of bacon is done place bacon on paper towel on plate with large pot cover to keep warm.

When all the bacon is cooked, turn burner off, and in mixing bowel crack 8 eggs and then whisk them.

Place fry pan with bacon scraps and 1Tbsp of grease back on medium heat and when warm add the eggs. Salt and pepper to taste and begin to fold the eggs to create soft scrambled eggs.

At same time heat refried beans on low temperature.

Stage 3:

When eggs are done, plate them along with the bacon and taco shells on a large serving platter.

Peal and cut the avocado into thin wedges.

Plate the onion, tomatoes, avocado, and limes.

Place beans in bowl and cheese in bowl.

Place store bought salsa in bowl.

Easy Egg with Prosciutto Breakfast Bagel

The following step by step recipe is easy to make and results in a quick great breakfast.

This recipe serves two:

Ingredients:

2 Whole Wheat Bagels – cut in half and toasted

2 Eggs – over easy

3 oz Prosciutto

4 Sun dried Tomatoes – sliced

1/4 C Gruyere Cheese – grated (Sue thinks her serving could have had less cheese)

Assorted Fruit

Drizzle a little olive oil over the toasted bagel.

Preparation:

Fry eggs over easy.

Place both eggs on a paper plate, add Prosciutto to each, next add grated Gruyere cheese, and top with slices of sun dried tomato. Place in microwave oven until cheese is melted (this will also firm up the egg so do not overcook the egg).

Toast bagels.

Lift the prepared egg off the paper plate and place on the bottom half of bagel on serving plate. And boom baby you cook like a pro.

To really do it up right, you could also prepare Bloody Marys. Here is Sue’s step by step recipe for a very good Bloody Mary: Fill highball glass with ice. To each glass add 2 oz of jalapeno infused vodka (night before add strips of jalapeno [seeds removed] to bottle of vodka and place in freezer), add prepared Bloody Mary Mix, a drizzle of Worcestershire Sauce, 1/8 tsp prepared horseradish, 4 dashes of Tabasco sauce, and a touch of lemon pepper.

Easy Chorizo and Eggs

Recipe serves four

Ingredients:

10 oz chorizo (beef, pork or soy).

1 package frozen hash browns.

8 large eggs.

14.5 oz can re-fried beans.

14.5 oz can diced tomatoes.

4 flour tortillas.

3 Tbsp canola oil.

1/2 cup chopped onion.

1 Tbsp diced green chiles (canned).

1 tsp dried basil.

1/2 tsp salt.

1 clove garlic – minced.

Preparation:

In large fry pan brown chorizo on medium high heat. Spoon out grease as the chorizo browns.

Add onion and garlic to browned chorizo and saute for few minutes.

Add diced tomatoes, chiles, basil, and salt. and then reduce heat to simmer and stir occasionally. Reduce for 5 to 15 minutes depending on progress of remaining ingredients.

In large fry pan heat canola oil on medium high heat add hash browns and cook pursuant to package instructions. When cooked place in serving bowl and cover with foil.

Heat re-fried beans in sauce pan.

In large fry pan melt butter for eggs, add the eggs (four at a time). Once the eggs form up a little add 1/2 cup of water and then cover with foil to steam eggs. Do not over cook (think of it as almost a poached egg).

Plate the flour tortilla (or not), add re-fried beans, hash browns, drizzle chorizo sauce over the hash browns, and then top with two eggs.

AND STUFF

I have known Steve Aspel, the Mayor of Redondo Beach, for a number of years going back even to when he was an insurance agent. Steve is a great mayor and has also branched into the creative world by starting a popular radio program known as Steve on the Esplanade. I was his guest last week on his live broadcast, and had a great time talking recipes and action books with him. Check out the podcast at http://www.tunein.com/radio/Aspel-on-the-Esplanade-p382150

Good Eating and Table Talk,

Roger

 

EASY RECIPE

It was raining the other day, so perfect conditions for a nice warm soup. I have a chicken zucchini basil soup recipe I like but I felt like something a little spicier. So I changed a few things around and came up with my Killer Chicken Soup.

recipe serves 4

Ingredients:

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken.

2 zucchini – sliced into 1/4″ thick rounds.

1 yellow Italian squash – cut into 1/4″thick rounds.

1 large Green Anaheim Chili Pepper.

1 Qt. ready made low sodium chicken stock.

1 can 14.5 oz diced tomatoes plus can of water.

1 bay leaf.

1 Tbsp salsa.

1/2 tsp cumin.

1/2 tsp minced garlic.

shredded white cheese.

Preparation:

In large pot cover chicken with water, add bay leaf, dash of salt and pepper and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low boil for 10 minutes.

Over an open flame if possible, or hot burner if not, use cooking tongs to carefully toast the Anaheim Chili Pepper so as to get it blackened in sections. Move pepper to cutting board and chop it and add it to bowl of zucchini, squash, and garlic.

Remove chicken and place on cutting board. Slice chicken into large bite size pieces.

Pour half of water out of pot. Add the chicken stock, diced tomatoes, garlic, cumin, salsa, fresh vegetables, and bring to boil.

Add chicken pieces and cook at low boil to vegetables soften. As it cooks add water as necessary.

Place generous servings of chicken soup in bowls, top with shredded cheese and enjoy!

AND STUFF

The third adventure in my Amber Reyes and Jack Fields novel series was recently published!

In Desert Ice, beautiful ex-Army Ranger Amber Reyes and her ex-FBI business partner and lover Jack Fields are hired to provide security for a super wealthy London underwriter and his friend the ex-Prime Minister of Great Britain as they yacht along the New England coast. When the yacht disappears, along with Jack and Amber’s junior partner Juval Saint James, Jack and Amber immediately spring into action. Jack and Amber follow the kidnapers trail from iceberg alley to the 163 floor Desert Ice Tower in Dubai. And then, things go real bad when they become the hunted.

DESERT ICE is now available in e-book form from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the iStore.

Good Eating and Table Talk,

Roger