Breakfast Casserole

All the Major Breakfast Groups



This breakfast casserole features the major breakfast food groups - eggs, sausage, and potatoes. With some coffee and juice to wash it down, you're ready to take on King Kong. Nevertheless my standard breakfast is a few cups of coffee, some yogurt or a banana, and a couple of cigarettes (although if I have to go somewhere in the morning I like getting a sausage biscuit at Burger King) so I make this for supper more often than breakfast. But whenever you make it, it's a great, easy, and inexpensive meal.

Recipe here...

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Country Ham Breakfast Sausage

That Wonderful Machine



There was a strange old butcher, His name was Dunderbeck
He was very fond of sausage-meat, and sauerkraut and speck
He had the finest butcher shop, the finest ever seen
Until one day he invented his wonderful sausage machine

Oh Mr. Dunderbeck! How could you be so mean?
I told you you'd be sorry for inventing that machine
For all the neighbor's dogs and cats will never more be seen
They'll all be ground to sausage meat in Dunderbeck's machine

Sausage has a reputation for being made from all the things that would ordinarily be thrown away. In truth, so long as the sausage tastes good I see nothing wrong with that. Better to use those bits and pieces in sausage than throw them away. But if that kind of thinking makes you nervous the solution is to make your own sausage.

As much as Benton's hams and bacon deserve their national reputation, the sausage is even better.

There’s a place about 30 miles up the road from here that sells the best country sausage I’ve ever had. You may have heard of it, Benton's Smokey Mountain Country Hams. You may not have heard of the sausage though, because he doesn't ship it. This is a shame because as much as his hams and bacon deserve their national reputation, the sausage is even better. He sells three varieties: hot, mild, and smoked. My personal preference is the hot (the smoked is too smoky and the mild is, well, mild).

I've been eating Benton's sausage for nearly 20 years now (since my father discovered it) and it's unlike any other country sausage I’ve had. It has a strange texture — sort of grainy — and a flavor I simply couldn't tie down. Not a strange flavor, but I it baffled me. Then I figured it out a couple of years ago — he was mixing ground country ham scraps in the sausage. He was following Dunderbeck's lead and using whatever came to hand (and for all I know his sausage also contains pig lips and ears) and the ham scraps were a brilliant addition. So I set out to replicate it.

Benton's sausage is still better than mine, but he's been perfecting it for a long time. And I'm just getting started. Nevertheless I can tell you that some finely ground country ham added to the mix makes a world of difference.

Country Ham Breakfast Sausage
Adapted from a recipe by Bruce Aidells.

3 lb boneless Boston Butt roast
1 lb fat back
1/2 lb country ham
1 1/2 tbsp red pepper flakes
4 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp dried, ground (rubbed) sage
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup water (or pork stock if you have it)

Chill your grinder and mixing bowl in the refrigerator.

Cut pork and fat into strips and toss with seasonings. Spread in a layer over a baking sheet and partially freeze. You’re going for stiff but not hard. This takes about 1 1/2 hours in my freezer and I rotate the baking sheet half way through. (The time depends on how efficient your freezer is and how much food is already in it.)

Cut country ham into 1-inch pieces and process until very fine in a food processor or blender.

Grind the seasoned pork and fat using the 1/4-inch plate. Add water, and mix thoroughly.

Fry up a small taste and adjust seasonings, but keep in mind the flavors will mature. Refrigerate overnight. Form into patties and fry.

The sausage will keep for 3 days in the fridge and up to 3 months in the freezer. (I make patties in advance, separate them with waxed paper, wrap in two layers of foil and then freeze in a ziplock bag until needed. I can then pull out a patty or two and keep the rest frozen.

One day a very little girl came walking in the store
She ordered up some sausage meat and eggs, a half a score
And while she stood a-waiting she whistled up a tune
And the sausage meat it started up and danced around the room

Oh Mr. Dunderbeck! How could you be so mean?
I told you you'd be sorry for inventing that machine
For all the neighbor's dogs and cats will never more be seen
They'll all be ground to sausage meat in Dunderbeck's machine

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Zeppole

Fat Tuesday, Italian, Deep Fried



Tomorrow is Fat Tuesday this year. Apparently the tradition behind the name is to use up all your sinful ingredients (sugar, butter, spices) before beginning Lent. In England Fat Tuesday is often celebrated as Pancake Tuesday and a recent press blurb I received noted that beignets are the New Orleans' tradition on Fat Tuesday.

I'm not Catholic — at least not beyond being catholic in my tastes — but I do love food-oriented occasions and I often have pancakes on Pancake Tuesday. But the PR notice reminded me that as long as you have something suitably sinful you have indeed given the occasion it's proper due. (I have a masochistic friend who so enjoyed giving things up for Lent he had to give up Lent for Lent. Ba-da boom!)

I ended up eating half the batch I'd made one after another. By the time I went to bed that night all 30 were gone.

At any rate, when I read "beignet" my mind immediately leapt to zippole. I was teaching a class on cooking with cheese several years ago and needed something sweet using cheese — preferably not something as common as cheese cake. And in casting about I found a recipe for an Italian fritter named zeppole at AllRecipes and featuring ricotta cheese. I ended up choosing something else for the class that didn't involve deep-frying, but I just had to try zeppole myself.

So one morning I made up a batch and I haven't made them since. I ended up eating half the batch I'd made one after another. By the time I went to bed that night all 30 were gone. They were clearly highly dangerous. But that was four years ago so I'm thinking I'll make a batch tomorrow. Maybe they weren't as good as I remember. Maybe, even if they are, I'll have more resistance to them having eaten them once. But if you don't see a fresh post here tomorrow, then I OD'd on ricotta fritters. Send help.

Zeppole
Makes 24 - 30.

2 qt vegetable oil for frying
1 c all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 pinch salt
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 c ricotta cheese
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/4 c powdered sugar for dusting

Heat oil in a deep-fryer to 375F.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and nutmeg. In a small bowl thoroughly mix the eggs, ricotta cheese, and vanilla. Gently stir the egg mixture into the flour mixture until a sticky, fairly thick, batter forms.

Drop by tablespoons into the hot oil a few at a time. Fry until golden brown, about 3 or 4 minutes — the Zeppole will turn over by themselves. Drain on paper towels and dust with confectioners' sugar. Serve warm. Or room temp, if they last that long.

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Candied Bacon

In 2009 Candied Bacon was all the rage. Ok, so in 2009 anything involving bacon was all the rage including bacon placemats and chocolate-covered bacon. But of the less-over-the-top ideas, candied bacon was a definite winner. It's easy to make, absolutely delicious, and good for breakfast, lunch and dinner. For that matter, it's an awesome snack at any time of day.

Recipe here...

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Breakfast

Breaking a Fast



When I was growing up Dad was in charge of breakfast during the week. Mom taught at the university and in those days that meant she had to dress up with a dress (and girdle) and full makeup. Dad was a scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratories and didn't even have to wear a tie to work (he was a white collar worker who didn't wear a white shirt - an odd circumstance back then). So while my mother had to go through the dressing ritual Dad was making breakfast for us kids.

Oatmeal was common — particularly in the winter — as was cream of wheat. Sometimes he'd make us egg in a basket (one of my favorites — I've always loved fried eggs), and canned soup was actually a pretty common breakfast. Sometimes after a busy Sunday Mom or Dad would make breakfast for supper and the next day we'd have leftover biscuits, buttered, drizzled with syrup, and lightly broiled for breakfast.

On weekends we might get pancakes or bacon/sausage with eggs. Waffles were sometimes featured and my parents favorite big breakfast was SOS — Shit On a Shingle. This is dried beef cooked in a cream sauce and spooned over toast or baked potatoes. I've no idea why they liked this so much (we kids didn't, though we ate it), but it was a significant breakfast dish in my childhood.

I'm featuring breakfast at my Cooking for Two site next week and thought I'd do the same here today.

Apple/Ricotta Coffee Cake: I had some leftover ricotta from something I'd made and was casting about for a way to use it and some how or another ending up whacking several recipes together to produce this coffee cake. It's wonderfully moist, packed with appily goodness, and delightfully spiced. The ricotta keeps it moist so you can easily make it the night or day before serving it and it will still taste fresh.

Welsh Rabbit: I've loved Welsh Rabbit since I first had it at Chowning's Tavern in Williamsburg, Virginia when I was about 11. I typically make it for supper because I typically don't make breakfast, but when I do I make sure I have leftovers because it makes an outstanding breakfast poured over a toasted English Muffin. And by the way, I highly recommend Bays English Muffins. You'll find them in the dairy section and they have a marvelous chewy texture.

Cinnamon Buns: These are another breakfast food you can make the day before - in fact you need too. I have another cinnamon bun recipe and when I published it I got a note suggesting I try making cinnamon buns using a brioche dough. Seemed like a good idea to me so I developed a new recipe. Frankly I like my other recipe slightly better, but I love the fact that this is made a day in advance so I don't have to get up and do anything as complicated as making bread.

Spanish Bread Pudding: This isn't actually a Spanish dish but instead is a dish based on Spanish cuisine. Also, it's a savory bread pudding and not a sweet one. But it's easy to make even if you're only on your second cup of coffee, filling, and includes eggs, cheese, toast, and sausage in one dish which you park in the oven while you enjoy your third cup of coffee - or a Bloody Mary.

Shrimp and Grits: Shrimp and Grits is a common breakfast in the Carolina Low-Country and it's just what it sounds like - you cook up a mess of grits, cook some shrimp in a sauce and pour the latter on the former. Toss in some cornbread or (my preference) biscuits and you've got some food that'll get you out on that shrimp boat ready to haul in the nets filled with wriggling crustaceans. Gooooood tucker.

Fried Green Tomatoes: Another weekend breakfast dish when I was a child. Most of the time we had these at supper, but they'd appear at weekend breakfast during the summer months. In case you didn't know, tomatoes are a fruit, not a vegetable, and their fruit-like nature is most apparent in green tomatoes where the acidity is reminiscent of green apples. A couple of fried eggs, toast, sausage, and fried green tomatoes make a breakfast fit for a king.

Pancakes with Cornmeal: American pancakes are, perhaps, the ultimate breakfast food. They're quick and easy to make. The sugar in the form of syrup provides a quick energy boost and the carbs a longer-term source of fuel. Paired with bacon, sausage, or ham you get the protein component. Growing up, we typically had that fake maple syrup on them, but my preference back then was either molasses or sorghum syrup. These days I like real maple syrup and always have a bottle of Grade B in my fridge - which is not to say I've quit pouring molasses or sorghum on my flapjacks.

Technorati: Food | recipe | kevin d weeks | seriously good | breakfast

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Death by Sandwich: II

Three Birds, One Stone



Am I a genius? Perhaps not. But I'm certainly a master of efficiency and killing figurative birds with figurative stones.

Some of you may recall my January post, "Kill Ed Levine: Death by Sandwich." Ed, a Serious Eats muckety-muck and sandwich fiend, had made a New Year's resolution to lose weight. I have a sincere aversion to New Year's resolutions and, in addition, the site's obvious attempt to pirate my readers by emulating this blog's name is a sad testament to Ed's lack of imagination.

I decided to set out on a year-long quest to sabotage Ed's diet by offering an array of tantalizing sandwiches.

As a consequence, I decided to set out on a year-long quest to sabotage Ed's diet by offering an array of tantalizing sandwiches. Not wishing to kill myself in the process of doing away with Ed I've elected to pursue the project over the course of a year, offering a tantalizing sandwich each month. And so we come to month two.

I've been pondering the February sandwich but was having problems coming up with something suitably fiendish until yesterday morning when the stars were aligned, the birds were in a row, and I had a handy rock: A pancake sandwich.

Yesterday was Fat Tuesday, which in some areas is celebrated by eating pancakes and, so, also known as Pancake Tuesday. It's also Super Tuesday when folks around the country to select the politicians they think will provide the most pork. Pancakes? Pork? Killing Ed Ed? Three birds with one stone.

So I dug up my favorite cornmeal pancake recipe, thawed out a few slices of Benton's bacon, and made a sandwich. I particularly enjoyed imagining Ed's envy of my ready access to Benton's ham, bacon, and sausage. (Benton's actual smokehouse is 40 minutes away from here.)

Cornmeal Pancakes
Makes 8 pancakes.

1 cup flour
1/2 cup corn meal
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/3 cups milk
1 egg
3 Tbsp. butter

In a large bowl, thoroughly mix flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. In a smaller bowl, whisk together milk, egg, and butter. Whisk liquid ingredients into dry ingredients.

Meanwhile, lightly oil a skillet or griddle and warm over high, medium heat. When the griddle's hot, make pancakes, allowing bubbles to form before turning over.

This recipe is a take on the Southern hoecake, which is often made only with cornmeal. I find true hoecakes rather heavy, but love the texture cornmeal adds to these cakes. In the photos above, you can see the aforementioned Benson's smoked bacon peaking out, and they're doused in another Southern favorite: sorghum. Eat your heart out, Ed.

Technorati: Food | recipe | kevin d weeks | seriously good | pancakes | breakfast

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