Here’s my take on Katy’s Love Muffins.  They’re just as delicious, but have a sweet flair.  I don’t know when exactly the whole sweet & salty trend came to be, but I do know that I love it and that a breakfast that is salty alone will never satisfy me!  My inspiration came first from J Christopher’s where I spent my time between college and the real world waitressing.  They served an egg Mc Muffin of sorts except theirs had turkey, bacon, and was on a raisin English muffin.  Upon further investigation I don’t actually see this delicious combo on their menu, but it may just be that I made it up myself!  Next up, was Einstein’s with their Einstein Grill – a turkey sandwich with  French toast like bread and raspberry sauce.  Yikes!  This too does not contain raisin bread…  Well I know that my egg sandwich does, in fact, rest between 2 slices of raisin filled bread so despite whether you can get it in your nearest Atlanta restaurant or not, you can get it here:

• 2 slices raisin bread, raisin walnut bread, cranberry pecan bread, or English Muffin
• 1 slice of provolone cheese, brie, or cream cheese
• 2 eggs

 

Top bread of your choice (mine’s from the Dekalb Farmers Market)  with cheese and toast.  In a bowl or egg poacher, slightly beat eggs and microwave for 1 minute until light, fluffy, and cooked through!  Sandwich eggs between your favorite raisin bread and enjoy! 

My roommate makes me these for brunch on the weekends after late nights out and about.  They’re easy.  You have these things on hand.  If you don’t keep them around they freeze well.  And last forever.  So no excuses.  Add these ingredients to your grocery list.  They.  Will.  Save.  You. 

 

 

 

Grocery List

Serves 2, so do your friends a favor.

 

• 2 T olive oil
• 1 cup frozen asparagus spears, chopped
• 4 eggs or 1/2 cup  egg beaters
• Dash of milk or cream
• 3 T real mayonnaise
• Garlic powder
• Fresh pepper
• Cheese (opt)
• Bread, bagel, or English muffins

 

In a bowl whisk eggs with milk or cream, salt, and pepper. 

 

In a skillet, heat olive oil and sauté asparagus for 3-5 minutes until cooked.  Sprinkle with garlic salt.  Add eggs and scramble until cooked through. 

 

Toast bread, spread mayo, and top with eggs.  Relocate back to the sofa, grab the remote, and continue watching your favorite Saturday morning cartoons.

 

NOTE:  If you are up early and feeling fancy-tastic you can use fresh asparagus and substitute the mayo for a nice garlic or lemon aioli.  For an even more elegant breakfast, make the sandwiches open faced on English Muffins or focaccia and top with hollandaise.

With both fall and a park just around the corner, what better way to take advantage of the waning daylight hours than with a picnic?  This recipe, which I modified from an old Bon Appétit recipe is a simple yet unique way to spice up your usual chicken salad.  It’s perfect for a picnic because Tahini, unlike mayo, doesn’t immediately spoil when out of the fridge.  For those that aren’t familiar with Tahini, it’s sesame seed paste (think sesame peanut butter) and is generally found in hummus.  So, if you’ve recently experimented with homemade hummus, this is a perfect way to put all that leftover Tahini to good use.  Additionally, since there isn’t any cheese or dairy in this recipe, the yogurt and feta dip is a nice compliment to the sandwiches and can be used to make avocado, sprout, and feta pitas the next day. 

 

Katy and I originally made this recipe for an anniversary party we catered.  While it made for a pretty and easily assembled appetizer, the amount of prep work involved in deboning and shredding 20 chickens was an experience I am ok never to repeat.  One chicken, however, is a breeze in comparison! 

 

Chicken Tahini Pita Pockets

Adapted from Bon Appétit.  Serves 4.

 

• 1 large garlic cloves
• ½ cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
• 1/6 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
• 1/4 cup water
• ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 cups shredded skinned cooked chicken (from one 2-pound roast chicken)
• 1/4 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
• 1 avocado (sliced)
• ½ cup bean sprouts
• 4 pita pockets

 

In a food processor, mince the garlic.  Add tahini, lemon juice, lemon peel, and water and blend until smooth.  In a large bowl, mix chicken with sauce, cilantro, and pine nuts and season to taste with salt and pepper. 

 

Halve pitas and stuff with chicken salad, avocado, and sprouts.  Picnic time!

 

NOTE: The original recipe calls to top a mini pita with the chicken salad and serve as an appetizer.  I added the avocado and bean sprouts to give it more of a sandwich feel; they’re optional. 

 

Greek Yogurt & Feta Crudités

• 1 cup herbed feta cheese
• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt & pepper
• 1 cucumber (sliced)
• 1 red pepper (sliced)
• Pita chips

 

Combine first four ingredients and serve with cucumber, red pepper, and pita chips!

 

Bocadillo – isn’t that a fun word to say!  Reminds me of armadillos and my disappointment in not seeing one in all of my time in Texas…  Something about the fact that they’re just rolling around on the streets and whatnot makes me laugh.  To round out my meandering train of thought, Texas aka Texaco borders Mexico where people speak Spanish, but unfortunately do not eat bocadillos.  Luckily you do not have to face the same fate now that you have this recipe.  Tortas be gone!

 

This recipe again comes from one of my best Cali blonde girlfriends who also graced me with the recipe for the oven roasted tomatoes.  Thank you Kristo!  While she didn’t actually come by this recipe during her year plus abroad in Madrid, she did hone her fine appreciation for Manchego and late night bocadillos without which she might not have found this recipe worth trying.  Parece que es el destino.

 

For Bocadillo:

 

• 8 oz Manchego cheese (thinly sliced)
• 1 baguette (halved length-wise)
• 1 recipe oven roasted tomatoes
• 2 cloves Garlic (1 chopped, 1 whole)
• 1 lemon (juiced)
• 1 package arugula
• 2 T olive oil
• ½ t Chile Flakes
• Salt

 

Heat olive oil, add chopped garlic and cook until opaque.  Add Chile Flakes, cook until they bleed until the oil (5 seconds).  Add arugula and cook until wilted.  Remove to colander, toss w/ salt. 

Rub the bread with peeled garlic.  Cover w/ greens and squeeze lemon juice on top. Add layer of cheese.

 

For Herbed Oil:

 

• 1 cup olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• Thyme
• Sage
• Rosemary
• Flat leaf parsley

Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor, let stand for 1 hour, and drizzle over sandwich.  Close sandwich and slice!’