Quick Black Bean Chilaquiles

You may be a Derby fan, and I like the idea of celebrating the Kentucky Derby—what’s not to love about strong minty whiskey drinks!?—but I’ve never really gotten around to it. Probably because it always falls around the same time as Cinco de Mayo, and I live for Mexican food.

Breakfast Tacos with Chorizo and Fried Eggs

One of my friends has the most insane stories from her office, almost daily. Recently she was telling me about her coworker from Texas (Dillon/ East Dillion I’m assuming). He was talking about the things he misses most about the lone star state, particularly breakfast tacos (followed closely, I'm sure, by Tim Riggins). And the rest of the coworkers didn’t believe him that breakfast tacos exist. Seriously!? Who are these heathens! I want nothing to do with them. And everything to do with breakfast tacos (and Tim Riggins).

Sausage & Pesto Fried Egg Sandwiches

Runny egg. Slightly crispy sausage. Creamy sharp white cheddar. Fresh, garlicky pesto. 

That's what went in between the slices of my toasted English muffin this morning. This breakfast sandwich is based on the Yolko Ono, which is the best fried egg sammie around, from the best Portland food cart: Fried Egg I'm in Love. 

Amanda is friends with one of the Fried Egg owners, Jace. We make sure to stop by every time we're in Seattle's little sister to the south…not just because we know Jace, but because holy fried egg, it's so good! And also, they have a lot of fun. Those guys are basically the only reason I still look at Vine. And they sell super cute tshirts. And they use Aardvark hot sauce, which I love. And, the sandwiches all have fun music-inspired names, like Yolko Ono, Sriracha Mix A Lot, Free Range Against the Machine, and Back in Black Bean. Annnd one more thing, they have contests on Facebook where you can help name their new sandwich specials. So fun. So good.

My favorite is their original crowd pleaser, the Yolko Ono, which inspired this lil' mashup here. Of course I still dream about the real deal, but this homemade version will totally do the trick between trips to Portland. 

If you're not putting pesto on your fried egg sandwiches, you're not livin', friend. 

Sausage & Pesto Fried Egg Sandwiches

Inspired by the Yolko Ono

For each sandwich, you'll need:

1 English muffin, toasted

1-2 tablespoons pesto (store-bought, or recipe below)

2 slices aged white cheddar

1 pork breakfast sausage patty, cooked

1 fried egg (over medium for me, please, with salt & pepper)

Hot sauce for serving

To assemble, add a healthy dollop of pesto to both pieces of English muffin, then add cheese to one side, top with sausage patty, fried egg, and other English muffin half. Serve with hot sauce. Dig in.

Basic Basil Pesto

Makes about 1/2 pint

1/4-1/2 cup  extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup grated parmesan 

2 garlic cloves

2 cups fresh Basil

1/4 cup cup nuts (I used almonds, but you can also use pinenuts, walnuts, etc)

Squeeze fresh lemon juice

salt and pepper

If using a high-powered blender like a Vitamix or Ninja: add ingredients in order listed (not including salt & pepper), starting with 1/4 cup olive oil, and blend, slowly increasing speed, until smooth (use tamper as necessary). Add more olive oil if it's too thick. If using food processor, add garlic & nuts, and pulse for a few seconds until ground, then add remaining ingredients, and pulse until smooth (adding more olive oil as needed. 

Stir in salt & pepper to taste. 

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. 

Fried Egg Caprese Sandwich

I love breakfast sandwiches. More often than not, if a brunch menu is sans the bfast sammie, I'll order toast, a fried egg, and a side of bacon, and I'll make my own damn breakfast sandwich. 

Amanda taught me that trick. She's pretty smart like that. I mean… she just got her Master's degree over the weekend… talk about brains, that gal's got em! 

This breakfast sandwich is super fresh tasting…that's the basil. It's basically a caprese salad (um, yum!) but on a ciabatta roll. With a fried egg. It's got all the right fresh & tangy & creamy stuff goin' on. And it comes together really fast (no Master's degree required). 

PS. Doesn't that fried egg look like a steak? Why is it shaped like that? 

Fried Egg Caprese Sandwich

Serves 1

1 ciabatta roll, sliced open

Olive oil 

1 tablespoon mayonaise 

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

2-3 thick slices fresh mozzarella 

2-3 large basil leaves

1-2 thick tomato slices (I used a big, meaty heirloom)

1 egg

Salt and pepper

Brush the insides of the roll with a little bit of olive oil, and broil until lightly golden and crispy (or grill!). Whisk together the mayo & balsamic, and spread on half the ciabatta roll. Add tomato on top of mayo, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add cheese then basil to other half of roll. Fry an egg to your liking (I prefer over-medium….the yolk is still runny, but the white is fully cooked everywhere), and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put egg on tomato, and combine sandwich halves. That's it!

Ham & Cheese Waffles

It's March! And it looks like spring out there! I've learned not to pack up my sweaters too soon, though. We've had snow in May. But, I'm definitely excited for spring to hurry up and get here, I'm ready for asparagus! In other news, here are some things I've been digging lately. 

• La Roux! I may be late to this discovery, but I've become completely obsessed with La Roux and lead singer Elly Jackson! Their music is really far from my typical taste, but I'm loving it so much right now. I pretty much watched every video on You Tube. Watch this one. And this one.   
• Speaking of music, on a totally other different end of the spectrum, I saw my friend Kimber's band Della Mae perform at Wintergrass bluegrass festival last night. Those ladies are incredible! 
• My grocery store started carrying Midnight Moon moonshine! I bought the apple pie flavor and I loooove it! I really want the blackberry next!
• Did you guys read this article about the guy who found a baby in a train station, adopted the baby, and now, 10 or so years later, got the judge who did the adoption to do the marriage of him and his partner? Gah, it's incredible. I cried a little bit.
• Shutterbean's fig balsamic dressing. OMG. I've made it like three times in the last week. I also used it on a really tasty roasted chicken salad I'll share with you soon! 
• Have you ever shopped at Zulily? I have a friend who works there, and the other day she posted that they were having a TOMS sale. I bought two pairs. Plus a laptop sleeve. Plus a hat. 
• Along with everyone else on the internet, I'm in love with Jennifer Lawrence right now. But, I fell in a love a little bit before that, when I read this article.
• Amanda brought me this can o' maple syrup from her recent trip to Montreal. It's so good (and how cute is that can!?). Perfect for ham and cheese waffles!

Ham and Cheese Waffles

This is the perfect breakfast for someone who can't choose between savory and sweet breakfast. The salty ham and cheese goes so well with the tangy waffles (from the sour cream!) and sweet maple syrup. 

Serves 2 (makes 4 thin waffles)

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup water

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 large egg

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

1/2 cup diced ham

For serving:

Fried eggs

Warm or room temperature pure maple syrup

Combine flour through salt in a large bowl, and whisk together. In a glass measuring cup, combine the sour cream and water, and whisk until combine. Add to dry mixture, add egg, and stir until well blended. The batter will be a tad thicker than you may be used to for waffles. Gently fold in the cheese and ham. Preheat waffle maker, and add a fourth of the batter to the center, close, and cook until golden. Repeat until you have four crispy, cheesy waffles. Serve topped with syrup and fried egg. 

Savory Oatmeal!

Have you seen this blog, V.K. Reese Photography, yet? It's pretty amazing. I love it for 3 main reasons. 1. The photography is phenomenal. Seriously, I could look at her photos all day long. 2. She includes a picture of her cat in every post (dammit, why didn't I think of that?!). 3. Her recipes are fantastic and inspiring. Like this one, for savory oatmeal. 

V.K. Reese's savory oatmeal has all kinds of good stuff in it, which I don't have in my house right now. I want that squashy, tofu-filled oatmeal…like, real bad, but my desire to not head out into a rainy-cold morning won that battle. So, inspired by her recipe, I did a quick Google search for savory oatmeal (who knew, this stuff is everywhere!?), and found a very simple version by Penny De Los Santos. Penny's version is one of those always-have-all-the-ingredient recipes that doesn't even need a recipe, and it took like 5 minutes to make. 

Oatmeal, olive oil, salt, pepper, parm, and a runny fried egg. It's good people. It's really, really good. 

How have I never done this before?

Greens, Eggs, and Ham

I'm certainly no Sam-I-Am when it comes to green lentils, fried eggs, and thick cut, smoky bacon.

This has been the winter of the lentil. I've been making lentil soups, salads, and sides like a mad-woman. I made this curried lentil soup 3 times... In two weeks. I just can’t get enough. I’ve also been making different variations of warm lentils topped with fried or poached eggs. This happens to be the best I’ve made thus far—green lentils with bacon, roasted tomatoes, and olive oil fried eggs. It’s savory, smoky, and salty, and feels like a hearty stew on a cold winter night…but I bet over a bed of arugula, it could just as easily pass for a light lunch on a spring day.

Lentils with Bacon and Roasted Tomatoes, Topped with Olive Oil Fried Eggs
Serves 2 as an entree, 4 as a side/salad

2 tomatoes-roughly chopped

Olive oil, cider vinegar, salt, and pepper
3/4 cup green lentils
6 oz thick-cut bacon, cut into bite-size chunks
1 cloves garlic-minced
1 shallot- finely diced
2 tablespoon olive oil
2-4 large eggs

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Toss tomatoes with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper. Roast in oven for about 20 minutes or until tomatoes burst and brown in a few spots. Take out of oven and set aside.
After putting tomatoes in oven, cover lentils with cold water by 2 inches in a saucepan, then simmer uncovered about 20 minutes—drain (reserving 1/2 cup liquid).

While lentils are simmering and tomatoes are roatsting, cook bacon in large skillet until almost crisp. Add shallot and garlic Cook, stirring, until just tender (in this step, you could also add chopped asparagus, if it suits your fancy!). Add to pot with lentils, add tomatoes. Heat over low until liquid just begins to reduce. Salt and Pepper to taste (though it should be fairly salty, with the bacon and tomatoes).

Add olive oil to skillet and heat over moderate heat. Fry eggs to desired doneness, season with salt and pepper. (For excellent olive oil fried eggs, try this recipe).

Top lentils with eggs, devour. Repeat.