Let's Have Breakfast for Dinner!!

I love breakfast. However, five days a week my day starts too early to do it justice. It's usually cereal and yogurt with berries in my office, at my desk in the library before we open the doors. I made omelette's and other breakfast favorites on weekends. Since I began this project, other food preparation has taken most of the time I usually spent for those favorites. Restaurants offer 'big breakfast's' of juice/fruit, bacon, eggs, fried potatoes and other favorites. I decided this week to indulge myself and prepare several dishes I have been saving in a folder for a bit. Most of them a bit on the unusual side.

Scrambled Eggs in Potato Baskets
Jalapeno-Cornmeal Pancakes/Apricot Jalapeno Topping
Maple Bacon
Greek Yogurt Cheese with Rhubarb/Berry Sauce
Fresh Rhubarb Punch

I have not purchased prepared fresh hash browns found in the dairy case until now. They turned out to be a good thing. They potatoes are mixed with sauteed onion, salt and pepper and beaten eggs to bind the potatoes together. They are then spooned into sprayed muffin tins. When the cups are full a well is made with the back of a spoon. The nests are then baked until golden and set. Meanwhile eggs are scrambled with fresh chopped chives, tarragon and mascarpone cheese. Cook with a bit of oil until soft and creamy. Carefully remove the nests, plate and spoon the egg mixture into them. A bit of chopped parsley on top. This is a fairly simple preparation, but a pretty one. I think I overdid the tarragon a bit and would cut back on that herb next time.

These pancakes were a pleasant surprise. In addition to cornmeal batter mixture, seeded diced jalapeno, grated Parmesan cheese and chopped green onions are added. The small pancakes are cooked using 3-4 tablespoons of the batter. A sauce of apricot jam, orange juice, chopped green onions and seeded chopped jalapeno pepper is heated and spooned over the cakes. Bacon painted with maple syrup and baked in the oven is served along side.


I have recently become a fan of Greek Yogurt. It is less tart and much creamier. I placed a cup in a double layer of cheese cloth and set it over a bowl. The liquid milk solids drained out leaving a nice firm ball of cheese.

Rhubarb is a spring favorite and I cooked it with sugar and water until it was soft. It was divided and strawberries and raspberries added to half of it. This mixture was cooked until the berries are soft. The sauce is spooned over the yogurt cheese. Loved it! The texture of the cheese is much like softened cream cheese without all the salt and fat.

The remainder of the rhubarb sauce was put in a blender with pineapple and lemon juice and blended until smooth. Fill a tall glass half way with the sauce and top off with sparkling white wine. An alternative to the familiar mimosa. Really good and very refreshing.


I enjoyed this week ends offerings and will do breakfast menus again. I will be taking next week off. I will be attending my high school class reunion...50 th. Good grief! Have a good couple of weeks and enjoy the spring weather.