Breakfast Hash

After completing his second marathon, I thought my husband deserved a fantastic breakfast. (Sadly because of a back injury I am still in physical therapy and wasn't able to run this year). Waffles are kind of a Sunday morning tradition but he also requested some kind of breakfast hash. Digging around in my arsenal of cookbooks I spotted a corned beef hash. Not really appetizing to me, but the rest of the recipe sounded delicious.I had some leftover sausage and decided it would be a great substitute.

Chock full of golden brown potatoes, diced onions, bacon, & sausage, this hash was delicious. I was a little leery of adding cream but combined with the hot sauce and topped off with some sunny side up eggs it was perfect. This is a yummy dish I'll be making again. (My family was starving and attacked the hash before I could snap a picture. I did find this one online to give you a good idea of what it will look like.)

Sausage and Potato Breakfast Hash
adapted from The Best Skillet Recipes

2 lbs. russet potatoes (about 4 medium potatoes) peeled, and diced into 1/2 in. pieces
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic minced or put through a garlic press
4 oz. (about 4 slices) bacon, diced into 1/4 in. pieces
10-12 oz. sausage ,cooked in a separate pan then kept warm until ready to use(I used the kind in a big roll and cooked it like hamburger)
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 tsp. hot sauce
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tbsp. olive oil
4 large eggs


Toss the potatoes with the oil, salt and pepper in a microwave safe bowl. Cover the bowl and microwave on high until the potatoes begin to soften, 7-10 minutes, stirring the potatoes halfway through cooking. Drain the potatoes well.

Cook the bacon in a 12 in. nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until the fat begins to render, about 2 minutes. Stir in the onion and cook until softened and lightly browned, about 8 minutes.

Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. (If there is a lot of grease you can drain it. See note at bottom of recipe.)Stir in the drained potatoes, cream, and hot sauce. Using the back of a spatula, gently pack the potatoes into the pan and cook undisturbed for 2 minutes.Flip the hash, one portion at a time, and lightly repack it into the pan. Repeat the flipping process every few minutes until the potatoes are nicely browned, 6-8 minutes.
Stir in the cooked sausage adn lightly repack the hash into the pan. Make four shallow wells (about 2 inches wide) in the surface of the hash.

Crack 1 egg into each indentation and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and continue to cook until the eggs are just set, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately. Serves 4-6.

*Note- the recipe didn't call for draining the pan but when i saw the amount of grease after cooking the bacon I drained mine.*
Posted by: Sallie

Sunday Brunch

We had some friends in town this weekend for UNLVino, and decided to have everyone over for brunch today before they all went home. The food was delicious and I wasn't stuck in the kitchen the whole time because I was able to make some of the things ahead and time and just throw it in the oven before the guests arrived. Here's what we had on the menu:

Caramel Pecan French Toast

Spring Onion & Smoked Salmon Frittata

Breakfast Potatoes
Breakfast Sausage
Fresh Fruit & Assorted Cheese Platter
Shrimp Cocktail
Lemon Tarts topped with Assorted Fruits

Paula Dean's Southern Pecan Brownies
Croissants with Strawberry Jam and Lemon Curd
Coffee
Orange Juice
Cranberry Juice

The caramel pecan french toast and the brownies are from recipes that Sallie posted on here and the lemon tart is from a previous recipe that I posted. The french toast was so good. I made two pans of it and there was hardly any leftover. The brownies were so delicious as well, I will definitely be using that recipe for my "go to" brownie recipe in the future. Here are recipes for the other menu items:

Breakfast Potatoes

These potatoes were a huge hit. They've got a little bit of a kick to them, but you can add less chili flakes if you don't like spicy food. They're also good with ketchup.

Ingredients:
2 large russet potatoes diced
2 -3 TBS olive oil
1 tsp dried dill or parsley
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp pepper
2 TBS grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp salt

1 tsp chile flakes

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 425 deg.
Peel and wash potatoes. Dice potatoes in small cubes (about 1/2 inch thick).
Place in a medium bowl. Add olive oil and toss to coat all potatoes. Add the rest of the ingredients and toss to mix.
Place potatoes in a single layer in a 13x9 pan.
Bake for 40 -45 minutes or until nicely golden brown.

Spring Onion and Smoked Salmon Frittata

This frittata was so good. The chunks of cream cheese and the flavor of the smoked salmon pair so well together. I got this recipe from Williams Sonoma, but altered it a bit so I could bake it rather than have to tend to it on the stove.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted
1 green onion, thinly sliced
6 eggs
3 Tbs. heavy cream
2 1/2 oz. smoked salmon, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 oz. cream cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 Tbs. minced fresh chives
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions:
Prehead the oven to 350 degrees. Pour melted butter into a baking dish. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs and cream. Stir in the smoked salmon, cream cheese, 1 Tbs. of the chives and the green onion, and season with salt and pepper. Pour into baking dish. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the eggs are set and a toothpick comes out clean. Garnish with the remaining 1 Tbs. chives. Serves 4 to 6.

Lemon Curd

The lemon curd is used to make lemon tarts, but it also it very yummy used as a spread on croissants. I also got this recipe from the Williams Sonoma website, but altered it slighty. I like to strain the curd once it's finished because I don't like the lemon zest in the curd, I think it is better when it has a completely smooth texture.

Ingredients:
5 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Grated zest of 2 lemons
6 Tbs. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter

Directions:
In a heavy saucepan, combine the egg yolks and sugar and whisk vigorously for 1 minute. Add the lemon juice and zest and whisk for 1 minute more. Set the pan over low heat and cook gently, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Strain though a fine mesh sieve. Stir in the butter. Let cool, stirring occasionally. Cover tightly and refrigerate before using. Makes about 1 cup.

Twice Baked Potato Casserole

This was another dish we had for Easter and really loved. I've made it before and like to use this when I want something different from mashed potatoes. It is great for feeding a crowd. Our family hardly made a dent in it. They are similar to the loaded mashed potatoes at Texas Roadhouse if you've ever eaten there. They are super yummy with green onion, bacon, two different kinds of cheese and sour cream. I made these the day before and then just took them out of the refrigerator a couple of hours before I was ready to bake them. You could easily cut the recipe in half. One more note, I was making too many things at a time and let my potatoes cool. It was a lot harder to get them out of the skins once they were completely cool. If you like perfectly smooth mashed potatoes you might want to prepare them the way I have noted at the bottom.

Twice Baked Potato Casserole

from Emeril Lagasse

10 large russet baking potatoes (about 7 pounds total)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
3/4 pound bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled
1/2 pound sharp white Cheddar, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3/4 pound mild Cheddar, grated (3 cups)
1/2 cup finely chopped green onions
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Scrub the potatoes well and rinse under cool running water. Pat dry with paper towels and prick the potatoes in several places with a fork. Place the potatoes in the oven and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until tender. Remove from the oven and set aside on a wire rack until cool enough to handle.
When the potatoes have cooled, cut each potato in half and, using a spoon or a melon baller, scoop the flesh out of the skins, leaving as little flesh as possible. Place the potato flesh in a large bowl and add 1 stick of the butter, the sour cream, heavy cream, salt, and pepper and mash until chunky-smooth. Add the bacon, cubed white Cheddar, half of the grated Cheddar, the green onions, and eggs and mix thoroughly.
Butter a 9 by 13-inch casserole with the remaining tablespoon of butter and reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F.
Place the seasoned potato mixture in the prepared casserole and top with the remaining grated Cheddar. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until bubbly around the edges and heated through and the cheese on top is melted and lightly golden. Serve hot

*If it seems easier you could just peel and boil the potatoes (like you would do for mashed potatoes) and then continue making them that way. If you don't like any lumps this might be a better way to prepare them.*

Pioneer Woman's Delicious Creamy Mashed Potatoes

If you haven't checked out The Pioneer Woman's website have a look. She is hilarious! Plus, she has a lot of really yummy looking food. She even has one of my favorite casserole's (chicken spaghetti casserole) and eggs in a hole which I never knew anyone else ate!(I know it's a casserole but it's yummy!) Hopefully I'll get around to making it soon there are just so many new things I want to try. Anyway, sorry to ramble on. This was the perfect accompaniment to the Bacon Cheeseburger Chicken. Really creamy and really delicious. I know these will be making more appearances at my house. You can mash them as little or as much as you want depending on how you like them. I recommend starting with the least amount of half and half called for. I halved the recipe (this post is for the full recipe) and it was plenty for our family of 6.

Delicious, Creamy Mashed Potatoes

5 lbs. russet or Yukon Gold Potatoes

1 1/2 sticks (3/4) cup

1 8oz. package cream cheese, softened

1/2-3/4 cup half and half

1/2 to 1 tsp. Lawry's Seasoning Salt

1/2 to 1 tsp. black pepper

Peel and cut the potatoes into pieces that are generally the same size. Bring a large pot of water to a simmer and add the potatoes. Bring to a boil and cook for 30-35 minutes. When they're cooked through, the fork should easily slide into the potatoes with no resistance, and the potatoes should almost-but not totally fall apart.

Drain the potatoes in a large colander. When the potatoes have finished draining, place them back into the dry pot adn put the pot on the stove. Mash the potatoes over low heat, allowing all the steam to escape, before adding in all the other ingredients.

Turn off the stove and add 1 1/2 sticks butter, 1 8oz pkg cream cheese and about 1/2 cup of the half and half. Mash, mash, mash. Next, add about 1/2 tsp. of Lawry's Seasoning Salt and 1/2 tsp. of black pepper.

Stir well and place in a medium sized baking dish and to top it off with, you guess it, butter! Throw a few pats of butter over the top of the potatoes and place them in a 350 degree oven and heat until butter is melted and potatoes are warmed through. (If making this dish in advance, take out of fridge about 2-3 hours before serving time. Bake in a 350 degree oven 20-30 minutes until heated through.) * I cheated because I had my chicken in the oven and just microwaved them for a minute and they were fine. *