Category Archives: Breakfast

Guest Post: Huevos Rancheros

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Today Mr. J provides a guest post for you. He’s quite the cook, though he doesn’t get as many chances to make dinner. With dinners like this, he could be cooking a lot more often! 

First and foremost, I do not claim to have a Mexican cooking background nor is this an authentic recipe. This was my interpretation of Huevos Rancheros based on looking at a few recipes online and determining what we had on hand for ingredients. I was looking for a quick weeknight breakfast meal for dinner and came across several Huevos Rancheros recipes online, many of which offered different variations on preparation and ingredients.

I didn’t have all the ingredients to make a fresh salsa, so I chopped some fresh tomato and added it to some existing jar salsa to freshen it up a bit.

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I preheated the oven to around 250 degrees, and then heated some olive oil on a griddle pan. I dropped two flour tortillas on the pan for about 2-3 minutes per side, just long enough to get some browning and bubbling, and then transferred them to the oven to stay warm.

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The eggs are the key ingredient in my mind, and I noticed some recipes taking a shortcut by using scrambled eggs. I prepared them sunny side up, because the runny yolk ties everything together and is so delicious.

When the eggs were almost done, I pulled the tortillas from the oven and topped with shredded cheese,

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Then topped that with the sunny side up eggs,

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Followed by the salsa,

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Finally finishing with more shredded cheese and a dash of parsley.

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I was really pleased with how these turned out. They didn’t take more than 10-15mins to prepare and are perfect for a quick and easy weeknight dinner.

What I Ate: Easiest Banana Muffins

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What I Ate is a series that might not necessarily require a recipe but these muffins are a prime example of a recipe to file away and whip it up when the time is right.

Pinterest introduced me to a shortcut banana muffin recipe just like the pumpkin muffin shortcut I loooove. Do you follow me on Pinterest? They’re so quick and really easy to make. I’m not a big baker but these came out perfectly!

I made these guys before I knew how badly I’d need warm banana goodness. Work has gone bananas…to put it mildly. Bananas I tell you. Thank goodness I had these for the week. I think my crisis is averted. I’ll be sure to shower my local co-workers with these soon to thank them for all their support. When the goings get tough, the tough get going. For sure.

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Ingredients:

1 box yellow cake mix
4 very ripe bananas (small or 3 large)
2 eggs

Directions:

Mash bananas or use a mixer, or food processor.
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Mix in eggs and cake mix.
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Add in cinnamon, nuts, dried fruit, chips, or anything you like! (I added cinnamon & cinnamon chips)
Fill muffin cups or a sprayed loaf pan.
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Bake 20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out cleanly.
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These are suuuuper easy and are such a good use for discount bananas. I love discount produce and these bananas were a steal. Forty-three cents for 6 bananas. Forty three cents. I froze some of the least ripe bananas in chunks for future smoothies.
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Cost Breakdown:
uber ripe bananas: $0.43
cake mix: $2.25
2 eggs: $0.30
cinnamon chips: $1.35 (1/2 bag)
total: $4.33, or $0.30 per muffin

Citrus Smoothie & Smoothie Tips

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This smoothie is another example of just how many different ones I’ve whipped up (literally). I have more to come too! I have a few tips with this fresh tasting smoothie. Smoothies are a great breakfast to get back on track. I didn’t celebrate St. Patrick’s Day (I was being a lazy leprechaun) but we’re having a green/St. Patty’s Potluck today at work so that’ll give me some spirit. I’ll share it with you soon, as in later this week? maybe next week? Did you celebrate?

Juice versus milk for the liquid:
In this smoothie, I used low-cal juice to keep it more juicy/clean-textured rather than creamy. Milk would hint toward the yogurt. I think it waters down the smoothie. That’s a personal preference or flavor combo. Juice hikes up the calorie count. If the fruit is fresh (and not frozen) ice cubes will add that frozen slushiness while the fruit will add the liquid. 
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Not-just-berry-smoothie:
The mix of berries and peaches is perfect. Pineapple could have made it too acidic for me. I think the peach reminds me of a frozen cocktail on the beach. Mixed berries are great, but the seeds of raspberries can get to me. I only want to crunch down so much when sipping away. Banana is a pretty typical choice to add good thickness. I also love blueberries and mangos. 
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Yogurt & Citrus:
I like the tart  to contrast with the smooth creamy yogurt. Orange juice would be good too. I only recently discovered that I like pink grapefruit juice. It is a different flavor I don’t have all the time. So for me, that’s what makes it special.

Other Add-Ins:
I love peanut butter in smoothies. Honey is a great touch to make it a bit sweeter. I want to try adding cocoa mix…I’ll be sure to report back on that. I loved nutella too. I’ve never added chocolate chips or nuts but that could be good. I want to try oatmeal.

What makes a good smoothie to you? What do you want when you’re sipping away at breakfast?

Cookbook: Breakfast for Dinner

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Do you make breakfast for dinner? I love to throw that into the mix and it is such a helpful theme for keeping dinner budget friendly and for keeping dinner varied. I was psyched to see Breakfast for Dinner by Lindsay landis and Taylor Hackbarth. Lindsay writes Love & Olive Oil and wrote Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook.
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Besides the beautiful photos, I love that these are different recipes. This is no ‘scrambled-eggs-for-dinner’. These are real dinners, inspired by breakfast. I thought maple glazed meatballs was genius. Habanero-cheddar bread pudding? Yes please! Cornmeal pancakes with beer-braised short ribs also sounded amazing. The sunny side up burgers are a great idea (with a touch of crispy potatoes!) and will definitely be part of my menu planning sometime.
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Italian-Style Stuffed French Toast

adapted from Breakfast For Dinner

Ingredients:

2 garlic cloves
½ cup whole-milk ricotta
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
3 tbs chopped basil
1 tsp dried oregano
salt & pepper
4 slices french bread
2 eggs
¼ cup milk
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp garlic powder
1 cup marinara sauce, warmed

Directions:

Mix ricotta, Parmesan, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper.
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Cut a pocket into the bread horizontally with a small sharp knife. Cut into the bottom of the bread, starting small and cutting deeper while leaving a ¼ inch intact around the other edges.
Gently stuff ricotta mixture into the bread.
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Whisk eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a shallow dish/bowl.
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Heat a large skillet or grill pan over medium heat and spray with nonstick spray.
Gently dunk and coat stuffed bread pieces into the egg mix.
Pan fry on each side for about 3 minutes.
Top with marinara to serve.
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I loved the flavors. I thought this savory stuffed french toast was great. The original recipe called for sauteed spinach mixed with the ricotta. That would be right up my ally, but I was out of spinach and lots of fresh basil. I left out the spinach, and upped the basil.

Occasionally I crave pancakes, but normally, I’m not seeking sweet for breakfast. This cookbook is perfect for lots of savory options.
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I truly love this book and thought it would be a great gift after being a house-guest. Cooking breakfast just seems so do-able and I think anyone would feel comfortable picking out something and whipping it up. Breakfast for dinner is also super fast…like fast enough to help allow you to watch the entire 3-hour Bachelor finale. 3 hours…that’s like a movie! Nope, don’t know who would need to fit those 3 hours into their week. Surely not me 😉

Full 3 Bite Rule Disclosure: My copy of Breakfast For Dinner was completely complimentary but my thoughts, opinions, and words are entirely my own.