Catch-Up

Whew! I have been out of the game for far too long, but I’m back in the kitchen, and although I’ve been starting out slowly, I feel an experiment coming on in the next few days, so look out!

We’ve been eating a fair amount of bean burgers and scrambles lately:


Green Chile Cheese Bean-and-Oat burger on a WW English Muffin with a side of baked sweet potato fries- yum!


Egg and veggie scramble topped with Trader Joe’s raw cheddar.

And I’ve been a little obsessed with a new salad creation:


A fig, goat cheese, broccoli and spinach salad with walnuts (this was the only time I added egg, and it was good, but not as good as it was without the egg).

As often happens when trying to get back into the swing of something, I have also had a few fails:



When I was in college I had a roommate who would often pair a few Jimmy Dean sausage patties with an egg fried in a hole in a piece of toast. I'm fairly certain there is a name for this dish, but I have long since forgotten it. I had never seen it before I roomed with him, and I had never tried it before last week. The picture looks awful, partly because I often sprinkle egg dishes with an almost inordinate amount of brewers yeast, but it tasted awful too. Perhaps there is some crucial step I’m missing?

The bean burgers have worked out really well both times I tried my original recipe (sautéed mirepoix, mashed black beans, raw rolled oats, spices and an egg- I will get more specific next time I make them), but a few days ago I used refried black beans and egg-whites from a carton, and it was pretty disastrous. I couldn’t bring myself to take a picture, but the patties did not stay together AT ALL, so it was basically like eating a tasty bean and oat crumble.

Breakfasts have seemed to be the star of the show around here. Oatmeal made a brief return:


This was the only time I have made oatmeal from rolled oats. When I finally started making oatmeal last year, I bought a bag of oat bran from Trader Joe’s and I never looked back. The regular oats were good, but I definitely prefer the straight bran. Berries, coconut and cinnamon seem to be my go-to toppings for any sweet breakfast.

We also made pancakes for the first time! Nick took the lead on this one (I melted the butter and simmered the maple syrup with the blueberries), and thanks to Chef John they were awesome.


I sprinkled mine with some coconut.

I even invented a new-to-me breakfast.

Nutsy Fruit Toast (worst name ever)


Ezekiel toast with nut butter and fruit slices. Pretty self-explanatory.

I will leave you with the thought of fresh, salty chard, since I’m pretty sure that’s what is on the menu for tonight.


Topped with marinated, fried tofu and sesame seeds.

Happy cooking until next time!