grilled cheese egg-in-a-hole

Back in April (around National Grilled Cheese Day), I meant to post about my grilled cheese egg-in-hole, which clearly didn't happen. I got distracted.. For three months.

So here is the story. I could not decide between breakfast and lunch. Grilled cheeses are one of my favorite foods, because it is hard to mess up and so so satisfying. All you have to do is make sure the buttered bread is perfectly toasted and the oozy cheese covers the entire surface of the bread. Whenever I'm feeling a little breakfasty (definitely not a real word), a fried egg always hits the spot. So putting the two together just seemed to make the most sense. God, I love when I'm right. It was brunch perfection.

Grilled Cheese Egg-In-A-Hole
Yields one sandwich

INGREDIENTS
2 slices of bread
2-3 slices of cheese (I use cheddar)
1 egg
2 Tbsp butter (more or less depending on preference)
salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS
1. Heat skillet on medium to medium high heat. Place 1 Tbsp butter into the pan with one slice of bread. 
2. Cut the slices of cheese into thirds and assemble around the slice of bread, making not cheesy square I the center of the bread. Cover with other slice of bread.
3. Cook until cheese is melty and bread is toasted to liking on the one side, about 2 minutes. 
4. Flip sandwich over and 1 Tbsp of butter to pan so the other side can get buttery and toasty. Cook for about 1 minute on this side. 
5. With a cookie cutter or small glass (with about 2 1/2-inch diameter), cut a circle in the center of the grilled cheese.
6. Crack the egg into the center of the hole. Add a little more butter before cracking the egg into the pan if not using a nonstick skillet or just want to be safe.
7. Cover and cook egg until set to liking.
8. Slide sandwich onto a plate. Add salt and pepper to taste. Eat and enjoy!

pumpkin muffins with almond & oat crumb topping

Now that Thanksgiving and Christmas are over, I finally have some free time to test bake. Sadly, my holiday baking fell a little short this year. I caught the flu and it was absolutely miserable. Needless to say, I was not in the best condition to whip up any holiday treats. I am totally ashamed of myself. And, even worse, I had an unopened can of pumpkin purée that clearly didn't get any lovin'.

Well, it's still pumpkin season in my book. I wanted to try Smitten Kitchen's Pumpkin Muffins recipe, because she never lets me down. I also added my own personal touch-- my Almond and Oat Crumb Topping.

Almond and Oat Crumb Topping

INGREDIENTS
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

DIRECTIONS
1. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together all ingredients except melted butter.
2. Add melted butter to mixture and combine well. Break up into crumble pieces to your preference.
3. Use as a topping for muffins, fruit crisps, etc.. If preparing ahead of time, can be refrigerated until ready to use.

So, I usually prepare the topping first, so then I just have to put it all together. This pumpkin muffin recipe is stress-free, not overly sweet, and just amazing. The moist muffin with the crunchy topping is   too good.

Pumpkin Muffins

Adapted by Smitten Kitchen

Yields about 24 standard cupcake-sized muffins

INGREDIENTS

3 cups all- purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 cups canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
2/3 cup canola oil
4 large eggs
2 1/2 cups white granulated sugar
Almond and Oat Crumb Topping (see above for recipe, also used here)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice in a medium bowl. 
3. In a larger bowl, whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, and white granulated sugar.
4. Add dry ingredients to wet and stir until just combined. 
5. Fill muffin cups 1/2 to 3/4 full.
6. Add a heaping tablespoon of Almond and Oat Crumb Topping to each muffin cup.
7. Bake about 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
8. Let muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Then, transfer to cooling rack until warm or room temperature.
9. Muffins can be stored in an airtight container. Muffins will remain fresh for up to 3 days at room temperature. Then can be frozen to store for longer until needed (just defrost before serving).

banana walnut muffins with cinnamon crumb topping

This week was exhausting, people... like borderline unbearable. I've been working almost every day, which is a big transition for me. Two days this week, I had to be in at 5am. Both those days, I passed out once I got home.. while it was still light out. Hence, I've been semi radio silent even though I keep saying things will be posted on my blog "soon". Sorry, a girl's gotta sleep. But, instead of resuming faceplant into pillow right now, I'm blogging from bed.. in the dark.. with the John Mayer Where the Light Is concert playing on my t.v. Yes, this is real life.

When asked to come in to work at 5am, I never want to show up empty-handed. So, instead of getting a solid 8 hours of sleep, I did a little test-baking on Tuesday night prior to my 3:30am wakeup. I adapted my Black and White, Chocolate Chip Banana Bread recipe and present you with this:

Banana Walnut Muffins with Cinnamon Crumb Topping
Yields about 28-30 muffins

INGREDIENTS
Banana Walnut Muffin
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups white, granulated sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup canola oil
2 cups mashed ripened bananas (about 5-6 medium-sized bananas)
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

Cinnamon Crumb Topping
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup white, granulated sugar
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into chunks


DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pan(s) with cupcake liners. 
2. Prepare Cinnamon Crumb Topping. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, sugars, and cinnamon. With a pastry cutter, cut in the cold butter until you have large pea-sized crumbs. You can also do this with your hands, but I find a pastry cutter easier, cleaner, and keeps the butter cold. Place this bowl into the refrigerator.
3. Prepare the Banana Walnut Muffin batter. In large bowl, combine the dry ingredients-- flour, white sugar, baking soda, and salt. In a smaller bowl, combine wet ingredients-- eggs, canola oil, mashed bananas. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, carefully stirring until there is no more visible dry ingredients. Do not overmix. Fold in chopped walnuts until evenly dispersed.
4. Put it all together. Fill the cupcakes liners 2/3 full with the batter. Fill the remaining 1/3, up to the rim of the liner, with the crumb topping (about a heaping Tbsp). Gently pat down the crumb topping into the batter.
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick come out clean. I also like to test by using my fingertips to gently pressing onto one to see if it is firm enough-- it should spring back a little bit when it's done.
6. Remove muffins from cupcake pans and place on a large tray or cooling rack. Serve warm. Can also be stored in an airtight container once cooled.

Cranberry Orange Buttermilk Scones

I'm backkkkk! This is my first post of the New Year (which, in retrospect, doesn't say much considering I've been off the grid since September). Naturally, I am accompanying this return with a recipe that is worthy of a same-day share.

Scones are perfect for winter. I will tell you why. The process requires cold ingredients-- specifically, cold butter that will result in that oh-so-dreamy flakiness. With "room temperature" scaled on the cooler side these days, you don't have work quite as quickly as needed during the warmer months. The chance of messing this up is thus very low. You're welcome.

Back in May, I adapted a savory Cheddar and Chive Buttermilk Scone recipe. But if you are craving something fruity, I now have something new for you: Cranberry Orange Buttermilk Scones. They are divine. Tart, citrus, buttery, flaky sweetness... nailed it.

Cranberry Orange Buttermilk Scones
Adapted from Tartine // Elizabeth M. Prueitt & Chad Robertson
Yields 12 scones 

INGREDIENTS
4 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 cup + 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, very cold
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 cups whole cranberries, unsweetened (Sometimes, it's hard to find fresh cranberries. I used frozen and then thawed them ahead of time)
1 Tbsp orange zest

1 Tbsp + 1 tsp freshly squeezed orange juice

Orange Glaze

INGREDIENTS

1 3/4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

1 tsp orange zest

extra zest for sprinkling (optional)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Then add sugar and salt and stir with wooden spoon.
3. Cut cold butter into 1/2-in cubes and scatter over dry ingredients. Use a pastry blender to cut butter into dry ingredients until it's a coarse mixture with visible pea-sized lumps of butter.
4. Add buttermilk, cranberries, orange juice, and orange zest all at once to the mixture. Stir gently with the wooden spoon. Continue gently mixing until dough comes together-- add small amount of buttermilk at a time if the dough is too dry. 
5. Turn dough onto work surface lightly dusted with flour. Shape into a rectangle about 18 inches long, 5 inches wide, and 1 1/2 inches thick. 
6. With a sharp knife, cut into 12 triangles and place onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.  
7. Brush the tops of the triangles with melted butter (you will need about 2-3 Tbsp).
8. Bake in preheated oven for 25-35 minutes until the tops are lightly browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before glazing.

9. Prepare the Orange Glaze: While the scones are baking, make the orange glaze. Whisk together powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest until even consistency. Then, set aside.

10. Once the scones have cooled down, generously drizzle the top surface of the scones with the orange glaze. *TIP: I like to transfer the prepared orange glaze into the bottom corner of a plastic ziplock bag. I just slightly snip off that corner of the bag when I am ready to drizzle!

11. Allow the glaze to set up and harden a bit or just eat right away. I don't judge! I couldn't wait to dive in either..

This is the treat you want to have on a lazy winter morning/afternoon/night when it's too chilly outside to care about leaving the premises. So, instead, you pop in a movie and devour a scone [or two] while sipping on hot tea. P.S. I just described my whole day. Oh yeah, also, it was awesome.

egg-in-a-hole with sausage and broccoli hash

Lately, I've been obsessed with featuring a runny yolk on my breakfast plate. This morning, I made egg-in-a-hole. If you don't know about egg-in-a-hole, then you have clearly been living on another planet. But let me break it down for you, anyway. It's a slice of bread with a hole cut out of the center and replaced with a fried egg. The bread gets toasted and the egg gets fried simultaneously. Amazing and easy. I wonder how people don't know about this.

I'm never quite satisfied with just an egg and toast, because I know I'll probably end up skipping lunch. So, I like to make my egg-in-a-hole extra hearty with some kind of meat and veggie hash. I absolutely love cutting into the yolk and having the bright yellow yumminess just gush all over the hash. So freakin good.

Egg-In-A-Hole with Sasusage and Broccoli Hash
Yields one egg-in-a-hole breakfast

INGREDIENTS
1-2 Tbsp butter (use 1 Tbsp for a smaller slice of bread/smaller skillet and 2 Tbsp for a larger slice of bread/larger skillet)
1 slice of bread (I used a big slice of sourdough)
1 egg
1 uncooked hot sausage link, uncased (use whatever kind you like. I use one of the Johnsonville hot Italian sausages)
1/4 cup chopped broccoli, uncooked
2 Tbsp diced onion
salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS
1. Cut a hole into slice of bread. I used a biscuit cutter but you can also use a glass, cookie cutter, etc etc. 
2. Heat a small skillet on medium high heat. Drizzle about 1 tsp into the skillet and saute onion and broccoli, stirring occasionally until tender but not overcooked (unless you like your veggies like that). Then transfer veggies to a bowl.
3. In the same small skillet, on medium high heat, crumble the hot sausage (uncased!). Do not touch the sausage pieces once they hit the pan. Allow them to brown up on that side, which will take a couple minutes. Then flip the over and allow the other side to brown, about another minute. Once the sausage is cooked, add veggies back into the skillet and stir it all together. Turn off the heat, the hash is done.
4. I tend to multitask, so I begin the egg-in-a-hole while the sausage is cooking. But if you are more comfortable, make the hash first. If you ever make fried eggs, you know that letting a fried egg sit around too long is no bueno. In another skillet (that will fit your slice of bread and it's complementary removed center piece) on medium high heat, add the butter. 
5. When the butter starts to bubble a bit (but don't let it burn!), place your bread and center piece both into the skillet.
6. Carefully, crack the egg directly into the hole in your bread-- you don't want your yolk to break!
7. Allow the bread to get toasted and the egg to cook. I usually check the center piece of toast on the side. When it's all nice and toasty a golden brown, I flip everything over. I have a habit of flipping my fried egg, which disguises the yolk. It's not as visually pretty when serving but breaking the yolk open and see all that yellow is so much more fun.
8. At this time, you can add a little more butter to your pan if you want to make you toast more gold on the other side. Cook for about 1 more minute. Then it's ready to eat. Don't let your egg-in-a-hole overcook and sit in the pan or else you will lose your runny yolk.
9. Add sausage and broccoli hash to your plate and top with your egg-in-a-hole. Sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper on top.
10. Devour the whole damn thing.

cheddar and chive buttermilk scones

Okay. Storytime. So, when people don't know what the hell to buy me for my birthday, Christmas, etc etc.. I almost always receive a cookbook. And since I spend all my free time in the kitchen, I can see why I'm just so easy to please. But out of all the cookbooks I've accumulated over the years, my sister seems to find me the best ones. She actually puts in a lot of time researching and reading reviews beforehand. It's thoughtful and--I'm almost positive-- a giant hint she wants me to make all that stuff for her.

One of the most recent cookbooks from my sister, Tartine, is a must-have.. at least for me. The recipes from this San Francisco based bakery are not only diverse but doable. And for those less interested in the actual recipes themselves, this gorgeous hardbound book would look sensational on a coffee table.

I've been dying to make scones, because I'm always interested in making something new. When I was strolling through Trader Joe's the other day, I intentionally picked up buttermilk, a block of sharp cheddar, and chives knowing I had to be on this mission.

Note: When attempting to make something for the first time, always have a good standby guide on hand. In this case, mine was the Tartine cookbook. Although their dessert buttermilk scone recipe wasn't quite what I had in mind, it's all about adapting... And I happen to adapt well.

Cheddar and Chive Buttermilk Scones
Adapted from Tartine // Elizabeth M. Prueitt & Chad Robertson
Yields 12 scones

INGREDIENTS
4 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 cup + 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, very cold
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar + more for sprinkling
1/4 cup chopped chives

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Then add sugar and salt and stir with wooden spoon.
3. Cut cold butter into 1/2-in cubes and scatter over dry ingredients. Use a pastry blender to cut butter into dry ingredients until it's a coarse mixture with visible pea-sized lumps of butter.
4. Add buttermilk, cheddar and chives all at once to the mixture. Stir gently with the wooden spoon. Continue mixing until dough comes together-- add small amount of buttermilk at a time if the dough is too dry. 
5. Turn dough onto work surface lightly dusted with flour. Shape into a rectangle about 18 inches long, 5 inches wide, and 1 1/2 inches thick. 
6. With a sharp knife, cut into 12 triangles and place onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. 
7. Brush the tops of the triangles with melted butter (you will need about 2 Tbsp). Sprinkle extra shredded cheddar on top (optional).
8. Bake in preheated oven for 25-35 minutes until the tops are lightly browned. Remove from oven and serve right away.

Crisp on the outside and SO fluffy, flaky, and tender on the inside. It really is everything a savory scone should be. The end.

edna mae's sour cream pancakes

Happy National Pancake Day! I didn't even realize it was National Pancake Day until after I made pancakes this morning. I must have a sixth sense for these things. As you know I've been trying to use up a carton of sour cream, and I've hardly put a dent in it. So, I woke up this morning and immediately started googling recipes for pancakes with sour cream.

I found a recipe on Smitten Kitchen that looked easy enough. The recipe was adapted from The Pioneer Woman, so I knew it had to be good. One of my favorite food blogs using a recipe from another one of my favorite food blogs. Sounds like a win/win.

The only difference between the two recipes is that Smitten Kitchen reduced the amount of sugar and vanilla, which totally works for me. Other than that, everything else is the same.

Edna Mae's Sour Cream Pancakes
Yields about 8 5-inch pancakes
Recipe by Smitten Kitchen, adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks

INGREDIENTS
7 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sour cream (plain Greek yogurt would be a great substitute!)
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (I might add 1 tsp next time, as in PW's original recipe,  because I love a stronger vanilla flavor.)
butter
maple syrup

DIRECTIONS
1. Heat a cast iron skillet or griddle over medium-low heat; you want to get slowly get it nice and hot. I used a stovetop griddle on medium heat and it worked for me.
2. Stir the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt together in the bottom of a medium bowl. Dump the sour cream in on top and stir it together very gently; it's okay to leave the texture a bit uneven.
3. Whisk the eggs and vanilla in a separate bowl and stir them into the sour cream mixture, once again, being careful not to overmix.
4. Melt about a tablespoon of butter in your skillet or griddle and pour the batter in, a scant 1/4 cup at a time. Cook for about 2 minutes on the first side, or until bubbles appear all over the surface, flipping them carefully and cooking for about a minute on the other side. Repeat with remaining batter.
5. Serve in a stack, topped with a pat of butter and a cascade of maple syrup. I also added banana slices and a sprinkle of cinnamon on top! Fresh berries would have been a great addition, too.. if only I had some.

I was a little hesitant to actually make these after reading 1 cup of sour cream. That's just terrifying. It took some self-encouragement but, ultimately, I decided that using the sour cream I had was necessary. I took the plunge, and I'm totally happy I did.

These pancakes exceeded my expectations. I should know better than to question Smitten Kitchen and Pioneer Woman. They would never do me wrong. I've made a lot of pancakes and these are the easiest and lightest pancakes I've ever made/eaten. I didn't even have to beat egg whites separately and fold them in. Because there's so little flour and sugar in the batter, the eggs and sour cream make these super light. The key is to not overmix-- if your batter looks airy, your end product will be light and fluffy.

I guess I could have just gone to IHOP today to get a free shortstack, but these left me so satisfied that I don't even care. This will be my new go-to pancake recipe. It's flawless and I can't wait to indulge again with some other topping variations.

egg roll up

I eat eggs almost every morning. In order to keep myself from getting bored of the same looking breakfast, I try to come up with new ways to eat my eggs. This morning I made egg roll ups. They look just like a breakfast burrito or wrap minus the heavy flour/corn vessel. Instead, the egg acts as the "wrap" (and, might I add, holds up well). I like to stuff mine with veggies and bacon for breakfast. But you can use this technique for any type of sandwich wrap, too.

 

Egg Roll Up
Yields about 2

INGREDIENTS
4 eggs
1 small zucchini, cut into lengthwise strips (thinner is better)
1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
1 avocado, sliced
4 strips of bacon, cooked
salt and pepper
olive oil

DIRECTIONS
1. Prepare veggies. On medium high heat, saute red bell pepper in a skillet until tender. Simultaneously, lightly dress zucchini strips with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Place a grill pan on the stovetop and preheat to medium heat. Then, grill the zucchini strips. If they are thin, it will only be a couple minutes on each side. I love the grill marks and it also gives the zucchini great flavor. Set aside zucchini and red bell pepper with bacon and avocado.
2. Prepare egg wrap. In a large, liquid measuring cup, beat eggs. This makes for easy pouring. Then, in a preheated skillet with a little olive oil, pour just enough of the eggs to coat the bottom. (Add more egg for a thicker wrap, but I prefer mine to be on the thinner side) Swirl around for an even layer. Allow to cook for a couple minutes, then flip the egg over to cook other side.
3. Assemble. Set your egg wrap on a flat surface. On top of the egg wrap, layer with the bacon and veggies. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top if you like. Then, tuck everything in and roll it up!

 

These egg roll ups are a fun way to shake up your breakfast, while using the same simple ingredients you might see in an omelet or scramble. Especially when I'm eating Paleo, it's also a nice alternative to lettuce wraps. These are substantial but will also keep you feeling lighter and less guilty as you continue your day!

salmon and veggie cakes

Happy NBA Sunday! So far, I've spent my morning watching NBA on ABC and I don't see that changing anytime soon since Thunder/Lakers are up next.

During halftime of this Heat/Celtics game, I cooked up some salmon cakes. Salmon cakes are by far the best breakfast/brunch if you have leftover salmon in the fridge. I made a batch a couple weeks ago on a whim. I loved how they turned out, so I decided to make them again. They also happen to be gluten-free and Paleo!

Salmon and Veggie Cakes
Yields about 11

INGREDIENTS 
1 cup salmon, cooked and shredded (gently break up with hands)
1/3 cup onion, finely diced
1/3 cup red bell pepper, finely diced
1/3 cup broccoli, finely chopped
1 large egg
3/4 cup almond flour
1 tsp parsley, chopped
pinch of salt and pepper
olive oil

DIRECTIONS
1. On the stove, heat a skillet/saute pan on medium high heat with a drizzle of olive oil. When the pan is hot, add onion, red bell pepper, and broccoli. Saute until veggies are all tender. This should only take a few minutes since the veggies are finely diced. Remove from heat and allow veggies to cool.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, add salmon, 1 egg, cooled veggies, parsley, salt and pepper. Use a fork to combine together well.
3. Then, add almond flour to mixture. Gently incorporate. The mixture should look sticky but not wet. If the mixture looks too wet, add a little more almond flour.
4. To the same skillet, add a drizzle of olive oil and heat to medium/ medium high.
5. Place about 1 to 1 1/2 Tbsp portions of the salmon and veggie mixture to the hot skillet. Press down slightly on each dollop to flatten for even cooking.
6. These cook quickly. With a spatula, flip each cake over once it is golden brown on the bottom. Cook for a couple more minutes on the other side.
7. Turn off the stove, and serve right away while they are still warm!

These aren't baked but they are definitely good! I'm letting my oven rest because I will be baking up a whole lot of sweetness tonight..

sausage and spinach frittata

Sunday brunch is my favorite meal of the week. Because it's Sunday, I will spend a few extra minutes staring into my refrigerator, trying to get inspired.

Eggs are definitely a friend to the Paleo community. It's the one exception to the "no dairy" rule and such a versatile ingredient. Scrambled, fried, hard-boiled, poached.. I'll eat it in any form (except raw because I'm not that hardcore).

I haven't made a frittata in a while. But I whipped up a good one today that was so so incredibly perfect. Yes, I said perfect. And I mean it! Don't be intimidated by the word frittata, we're just dealing with eggs.

Sausage and Spinach Frittata
About 6 servings

INGREDIENTS
8 eggs
1 cup sausage crumbles (about 2 good-sized spicy sausage links, uncased)
1 cup sauteed veggie mixture (about 1 small onion + 1 red bell pepper, diced small)
1 cup uncooked baby spinach
olive oil 

**NOTE: I didn't add any extra seasoning because I used a spicy sausage. Feel free to add some s+p and/or fresh herbs to amp this up!

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Dice onion and red bell pepper and set aside. I prefer a smaller dice, which seems to make for a more balanced frittata. 
3. Prepare sausage crumbles. On the stove top, heat a saute pan on medium to medium high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil to the pan. Once the pan is hot, break up the sausage into fairly small pieces and drop into saute pan. Do not stir sausage around constantly. Allow to brown a bit and then flip over to finish cooking. They should be in crumbles but not crumbs-- there's a difference! The more you stir, the more crumbs you will make. When the sausage is cooked, place into a separate bowl. Leave all the sausage grease in the pan.
6. Prepare veggie mixture. Still on medium to medium high heat, add the diced onion and bell pepper to sausage grease. Cook veggies until they soften. The onions will soften a bit more than the red bell pepper. Then turn off the heat and let veggies cool down.
7. Put it all together. In a medium mixing bowl, lightly beat together eggs with a whisk. Add cooled veggie mixture and 3/4 cup of the sausage crumbles to eggs and mix together. Gently stir in spinach.
8. Lightly grease a baking dish with olive oil. Pour entire egg mixture into the dish and spread so mixture is evenly distributed. Scatter reserved 1/4 cup of sausage crumbles to the top of the egg mixture.
9. Bake in preheated oven for about 35 minutes or until fully cooked. If you pat the top of the frittata, the egg should feel like it's springing back.
10. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes (or as long as you can wait!) before serving. If your baking dish was well-greased, the frittata will start pulling away from the edges as it cools.

No milk, cream, cheese, bread crumbs, whatever crazy things people add these days.. This frittata doesn't need all that. It maintains such a wonderful, tender consistency because of the low and slow baking. As long as you don't keep opening the oven to check it, it will turn out beautifully.

the paleo life

In an attempt to undo all the crap I've put into my body over the years, I started Paleo (aka the Paleolithic diet aka the caveman diet). Once I completed my first Whole 30, I was hooked. Although I haven't been as strict with my Paleo eating over the past few weeks (because everyone said I was being "no fun"), I want to get back on track. The basics of Paleo are: no grains, no legumes, no starchy white potatoes or corn, no dairy besides eggs, no refined sugar, no processed foods of any kind. Honestly, I was unsure if I could make it though the first 30 days but then I reached a point where I forgot what I was missing, because real food just tastes better.

And then Thanksgiving happened, and I was once again reminded of how freaking amazing hot, buttery, castiron parkerhouse rolls taste. Don't even get me started on the apple pie with the super flaky crust and sweet, gooey filling. I tried not to overindulge but shoot, when it hit my lips, I knew I was in trouble.

While I was eating all the bad, bad, very bad, taboo food, it felt good for all of 15 minutes. Then, I just started feeling lethargic, unmotivated, and overall useless. I literally spent hours not doing anything because my body was in shock. Everyone has their own reasons for going Paleo but mine is pretty clear-- I feel more energetic, healthy, and happy. And, me, I like to be happy.

I'm not saying I will never eat frozen yogurt or pasta or french fries again. That would be so silly and, not to mention, such a big lie. Though, my goal has always been to try to eat Paleo at least 90% of the time. I don't believe in depriving myself of everything I love, but I know that eating mindfully will always steer me in the right direction. It's really easy to do when I have time to prep, cook and come up with new food creations. But, truthfully, it's such a pain when I don't.. So I can understand how sometimes Paleo just doesn't fit into a person's lifestyle.

The meal I cannot live without is breakfast. I used to never eat breakfast, because I either slept through it or ran out the door in too much of a hurry. In order to prevent those awkward moments when someone nearby can hear my stomach growling like crazy, I push myself to wake up at least 30 minutes earlier than normal. Although I wake up hating myself for setting my alarm to go off 6 times in 5 minute intervals, I end up being so thankful for those 30 extra minutes I can eat, relax, and check my email at the beginning of the day.  

This is what I had for breakfast this morning: an omelet stuffed with sauteed red bell pepper, onion, mushroom, and broccoli.. also, free-range chicken meatballs and sliced avocado. My breakfast usually looks like this or some of variation of the same thing. Yes I'm boring and semi-predictable. The more color I can put on my plate is always better, especially when there's no cheese in my omelet and no toast on the side. My version of Paleo also includes black coffee because, well, you don't want to know me if I'm deprived of coffee.

On that note, I must gulp down another cup and finish up some work. I hate when the weekend is over.