Scrambled Redux

I posted not too long ago about a veggie scramble, but I'm going to risk being boring and repetitive by posting about another for several reasons.

1. This one is different.
2. I love to talk about eggs, especially when fresh.
3. I love winning prizes, and this one has a prize involved.
4. It's my blog, and I'll repeat if I want to, repeat if I want to....

First, this one is different because I used potatoes and tomatoes, both leftovers from other meals.  The potatoes were the innards from baked potato skins that I had made and just couldn't bear tossing.

Second, I went to the farmers' market last weekend, and could not believe the plethora of eggs available.  It made me so happy, and I bought a ton, or rather 3 dozen.

Third, the prize.  I won a giveaway from Meal Makeover Moms and was thrilled to receive at the end of Feb. a gorgeous wooden crate of  Muir Glen fancy tomato products.  You should visit the company's website to see what all they offer.  I wanted to use those tomatoes in a special way, so for awhile was afraid I'd waste them in some dish where they wouldn't shine.  Finally, I just dove in, and used half a can on some open-faced sandwiches and had half a can leftover.  Into the eggs, they go!  And they were delicious.  And shone.

Fourth, just kidding.

The way I made the dish:

1. Melt two TBS. butter in a nonstick skillet.
2. Throw in the potato innards, and toss around until getting a little crispy.
3. Turn the heat down to low.
4. Mix the eggs (I used four) and a little milk.
5. Add to the skillet, which should be cooled down a bit by now.
6. Scramble it up, and right before it is done, throw in the well-drained tomatoes.

The point of this whole dish is twofold:

1. Get some veggies into breakfast.
2. Use up leftovers.

Any veggie that would appeal to you in the morning would work, I imagine, and it always seems to all go together well with eggs.  And it's great not to be wasteful of food, with the bonus that most everything is already cooked for you, and all you have to do is warm it and mix it all together.

We had this with some hot, buttered toast.  Total time invested was about 10 minutes.  Did the boys enjoy it?  Both said they preferred their eggs plain, but they ate about half a helping each.  It takes time, developing flexible eaters, and I'm not going to push it.  Sometimes, we have plain scrambles, and sometimes veggie scrambles, sometimes weirdly colored scrambles.

If you try adding some leftover veggies to your scrambled eggs, why don't you let me know what you tried and how you liked it?  I'd love to hear from you!

Variations on a Theme

It has been awhile since I have posted.  Never fear, I am still making breakfast; it is just that I'm not having time to write about it.  Encyclopedia's 6th grade class had their yard sale last weekend to fund their class trip, and I have gotten involved with a music ministry during Lent, that has required much more practice than I am used to doing.  Life ebbs and flows.

Earlier this week, I made "customizable" breakfast burritos.  I once tried a really bang-up breakfast burrito recipe that I loved and the boys hated.  Why?  Everything was all mixed together.  But they were open to the idea of breakfast burritos, "but please, mom, don't put in the stuff I don't like."  Simple enough.

Actually, it is easier to make it all at once in one skillet all mixed up, but if it doesn't get eaten, then it's a waste of time.  So here's what I did.

1. First I fried up 1/2 pound of breakfast sausage, crumbling it up in the skillet.  I removed it to a paper towel-lined plate.
2. Then I threw in the same skillet a diced up baked potato.  I baked an extra potato the night before.  I then removed that to a bowl.
3. Then I added a little butter to the skillet, and scrambled some eggs.
4. While the various things were cooking, I shredded some cheese, diced an avocado, poured out some salsa.
5. Finally, I placed a flour tortilla on each plate, and told the boys to customize their own burritos.  Encyclopedia chose sausage, egg, potato, and cheese.  Cool Guy had sausage, egg, and avocado.  I had it all.  We were all happy and well-fed.

As a bonus, I made another burrito, wrapped in foil and sent it to school in Cool Guy's lunch for the day.  He loved it.

So the theme is Tex Mex, and Variation #1 was the burritos.  Everything got saved and two days later, we had Variation #2, which was quesadillas.  Here's how I did that.

1. Set out the filling ingredients, and asked the boys how they wanted theirs.
2. Put a flour tortilla on the griddle and place chosen toppings on one half of the tortilla.  Fold over the empty side to make a half-moon shape.  Kindof press the top down so it will stay in place.
3. Cook it on one side for a minute or two until the cheese gets a little melty (technical term), so that it will all stick together while you flip.
4. Flip it carefully.  A spatula helps.
5. Cook it on the other side for about a minute and then remove to a plate. 
6. Cut into wedges and top with things like salsa or sour cream.

Cool Guy had cheese and avocado.  Encyclopedia had sausage and cheese.  I had everything.

The burritos took longer, mainly because I was cooking the fillings for the first time.  The quesadillas, only needing to warm everything up, took less time.  You would probably need to budget about 30 minutes for the burritos, and about 5 minutes for the quesadillas.  That's per quesadilla, if you only cook one at a time.

Are they healthy?  More or less.  We used whole wheat tortillas, and lower fat sausage.  We got in some whole grains, protein, dairy, even some good veggies in the avocado and salsa.  There are certainly worse breakfasts out there.

Are they tasty?  Absolutely.  Is it kid friendly?  Are you kiddiing?  It's Customizable!  Mine loved it.  Should you make this?  If you want something not too difficult, something different, something that will take you through the morning, then yes, yes you should.  Seriously, give these a try.