Jack's Huevos Desperados

Once famous on this very same blog for his Trailer Park Margaritas, Jack Pirtle (my father) returns again, but this time for breakfast. (I realize I'm posting this a month too late for breakfast month but I figured you'd forgive me.)

Thanks to my wonderful, fabulous, truly talented cousin Janna, for posting this recipe on facebook. Janna visited her parents (my aunt and uncle) in Tucson over Christmas and documented this recipe and even took a picture of it!


From Janna: We had this for breakfast.  Sally told a ghost story.  Buz talked about the aliens.  Mark got the story from Regan about how she found Grandpa George on the Benson Highway with her psychic powers.  Just a regular Sobel/Pirtle/Kaufman/Roberts/Siek/Havens family breakfast.)

From Jack:

Ingredients:

10 farm-fresh Mexican eggs (you may substitute American eggs)

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon ground pepper

2 cups low-fat cottage cheese

16. oz shredded goat cheese

1 cup or less diced green chilies

1 cup chopped mushrooms

1 cup diced red onion

Directions:

Throw the mess into a mixing bowl and mix.  Bake at 350' until eggs set (about 35 min?) Serve to Pancho with salsa, warm flour tortillas, and enough tequila to keep him tranquil for a couple hours or so.  Skip the tequila if you expect Pancho to fix the screen door.  He will be hungry by noon, whether he fixes the door or not, so what do you have in mind for lunch?

History:

Margarita, Pancho Villa's seventh wife, once was challenged by Pancho to present him with an egg dish worthy of a bandit's hearty appetite.  He followed the request with a threat.  Either create the egg dish, or he would leave her forthwith and start a revolution somewhere.  Margarita waited several weeks for him to carry out his threat and leave, until finally taking pity on him and whipping up her now famous "Huevos Desperados."  Having filled himself with the delicious dish one fine Mexican morning, Villa proclaimed everlasting love to Margarita, and promised that he would retire from the revolutionary scene and just hang out around the casa.  Pancho's retirement was not what Margarita had in mind... though perhaps he could learn to be of some help around the house... but she doubted it.  

Mama's Perfect Scrambled Eggs

I had an epiphany the other day. It happened when I was feeling really burnt out and out of balance. I had been spending way too much time at work and not nearly enough time at home. My two year old, in retaliation, stopped letting me get him out of bed in the morning and refused to sit on me or snuggle. I was being shunned and although my friends and co-workers assured me his behavior was simply him being a two year old, I knew it was something more.

So I took Friday off and I kept the kids home. We played hookie! I started the day off making “Mama’s Perfect Scrambled Eggs” and then we went to Rocket Donuts and had a donut. And then we went to Boulevard Park and played on the boardwalk and threw rocks into the water. And then we went to Boomer’s Burgers for lunch and all shared a strawberry milkshake. And I’m proud to say that after three straight days of nothing but mommy time, my two year old finally called for me this morning.

No, it doesn’t solve all of my problems of course, but it does reinforce my need for finding balance. And I know I’m not alone in that one.

Anyway, this post is supposed to be about breakfast! The plan had always been to start our day off with Rocket Donuts but I always worry about my children having too much sugar and not enough protein. So I made my famous scrambled eggs. It might seem strange that I’m doing an entire post on something as simple as scrambled eggs, but in the same vein as Megan’s “Perfect Hashbrowns” I strongly believe there are few people out there who actually know how to make good scrambled eggs. It truly is a science. So I thought I’d enlighten you.

Ingredients
eggs
milk
butter
salt
shredded cheddar or jack cheese

Directions
I will scold you throughout these directions. I’m sorry about that but it is necessary.

Scramble your eggs with a little milk in a bowl. Heat nonstick skillet on medium low. Butter pan well. If butter browns the skillet is too hot. The number one key to cooking perfect scrambled eggs is to cook them slowly which means the burner cannot be too hot. After you pour the eggs into the pan wait patiently for a minute. Then, take your spatula and simply scrape it along the bottom of the pan. Do not flip, do not break apart. Scraping the bottom will simply move the cooked parts of egg away from the heat of the pan and make room for the other parts that have to cook. This also helps make the eggs fluffy. When eggs are halfway cooked, sprinkle with salt and stir around a bit. At this point it might be ok to break the eggs up a bit into chunks but don’t over scramble. One of the biggest mistakes I have seen people make, if they get past the too-hot-of-a-burner problem, is that they over-scramble. My husband, for example, makes his eggs into teeny tiny egg bits and that’s just frankly hard to get on a fork, and is not at all fluffy. At the very end of cooking time, sprinkle shredded cheese on the top and turn off the burner. Stir cheese around a bit and let sit until it melts, then stir it around a bit more. The cheese adds a bit of extra flavor and makes the eggs more creamy and oh so delicious!

Heat on medium low and butter a non stick pan well

After a minute or so, simply scrape the cooked eggs off the bottom with a spatula

continue to scrape the bottom until the eggs all begin to cook, then...

Add salt and stir...

Add cheese and turn off burner.

get cheese all melty and stir around and break the eggs up a bit into forkable pieces.

To recap: Cook on low. Butter pan well. Use your spatula to simply move eggs from bottom of pan to top. Do not over scramble. ADD CHEESE!

And, a couple of pictures from our beautiful day...

Gallo Pinto aka Costa Rican Breakfast

I'm usually a French toast kind of gal when it comes to favorite breakfast dishes, but after Curtis and I spent our honeymoon in Costa Rica we were both hooked on their traditional rice and bean breakfast: Pinto Gallo. When we came home from our trip, we created our own version we call "Costa Rican Breakfast" that's more of a hash and it's one of our favorite meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner! It's simple, you just need rice, black beans, whatever veggies you have on hand, a few spices and eggs cooked your favorite way! It never tastes quite the same any two times. And we always have this with a steaming cup of coffee (notice our faded coffee mug we brought home from Costa Rica that we've been drinking out of for 6+ years) so we feel like we're back in Costa Rica.

Every year for Christmas my mom gives us a big bottle of Salsa Lizano, a Costa Rican condiment that makes this dish. It's available at Mexican grocery stores like the Latin Merchant at Pike Place Market. The salsa is a nice combination of tang and good spices, so when we don't have it I just add a few shakes of a balsamic based salad dressing (for the tang) and some hot sauce.

Six weeks old and chillin' while mom & dad cook breakfast

We made this for breakfast on Thursday in celebration of Graham turning six weeks old. I always make a big batch so we have leftovers and that night we used the veggie/bean mixture in our fish tacos when Beauty Jolie came over to meet Graham.

Having a cuddle with Beauty Jolie 

Costa Rican Breakfast

Ingredients: 
Rice, cooked (we use Thai Jasmine rice, but brown or any kind will work!)
Black Beans
Onion, chopped
Bell pepper, chopped
A variety of veggies, chopped (can include celery, sweet potato, kale, carrots, broccoli, spinach ... just throw in whatever you have on hand!)
Spices such as cumin, coriander and Salsa Lizano
Eggs, fried or scrambled
Cilantro and hot sauce for condiments
Coffee

Directions: 

First make a pot of coffee, then: 

1. Cook rice

2. Make a hash by combining all your chopped veggies with a can of black beans and season with your favorite seasonings. We use cumin, coriander, Salsa Lizano and Sriracha for spice.

3. Cook eggs to order
4. Top off your cup of coffee
5. Dish up rice and bean/veggie mixture

6. Top with a runny fried egg or scrambled eggs if you prefer.

Garnish with hot sauce and cilantro and we usually serve it on a bowl so we can break the egg and mix it all up.

7. Take a walk so you'll be hungry for your next meal!

March Food Theme: Breakfast

Ricotta Doughnuts {Recipe Below}

Breakfast: It's the most important meal of the day! I think breakfast tells a lot about a person... are you savory or sweet? Or are you like me and want the best of both worlds?

Weekend breakfasts used to be one my favorite things. Sleep in, brew a huge pot of coffee and spend time puttering around making favorites like sourdough pancakes or breakfast burritos. But with a newborn, sleeping in and leisurely breakfasts may be a thing of the past (for now) but I do intend to teach our little guy about cooking and weekend brunch! I'm sure in no time Graham will be requesting his favorites.

Here are some of our past breakfast posts. I'll look forward to seeing what new recipes the beauties and their friends come up with this month.

Dahlia Lounge French Toast

Perfect Hash Browns

Secret Ingredient Banana Bread Muffins

Ricotta Doughnuts

Avocado Breakfast Burrito

Huevos Rancheros

Breakfast Casserole