Breakfast of Hippies

I tend to live life by the motto, "everything tastes better with avocado and bacon."  Most of you already know this, but I don't know if you truly understand the extent to which I love these two items.  Blake and I most likely keep the grocery store alive and well just from the sheer amount of money we spend on bacon and avocados.  I see nothing wrong with this... it could be something much much worse.

My best friends family, and basically my second family like to go to a restaurant when she comes home, where they have a fantastic California Eggs Benedict.  This is where I got the idea from.  I like to think of it as the "breakfast of hippies" instead of the breakfast of champions.

I found a really easy and quick recipe for a Hollandaise sauce that can be made in a blender at Simply Recipes, so go ahead and click the link and it will take you right to the webpage you need.



INGREDIENTS:
Toast/bread
Eggs
Avocado
Green Onions
Paprika

1.  There really isn't a recipe here, but I would recommend cooking your bacon first, and making the Hollandaise Sauce.  Once the bacon is done, begin toasting your bread of choice.

2.  Place the toast, then bacon, then avocado.  After prepping that, poach your eggs (have the water boiling and ready to go). 

3.  Top your toast with an egg and top with Hollandaise and a sprinkle of Paprika, then ENJOY!

Risotto Summer Salad

Once Blake and I find something we love, we tend to stick with it.  When I first started this venture of cooking and writing about it, I discovered my skill at making salad dressings and our love of salads that don't actually have lettuce in them.  Now that spring is on it's way, I'm getting back in the mood to cook.  (I wasn't feeling it this past month).  No fear, the sun and fresh blooming flowers are officially getting me back to being motivated.  One of the staples of every picnic is pasta salad.  Just the other day, I was trying to think of a unique pasta salad that my mother in law could make for my shower next month. Truly, how many different pasta salads can you make?  Don't answer that.

On my way home from work today, I was thinking about things I already had in my kitchen, and it hit me... Risotto!  It's not pasta, but it's delicious, so why not!?  The cooking process is a bit different, but other than that, go about it the same way you would any other pasta salad you make.  I'll post my ingredients below, but feel free to adapt them to your personal flavors.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 Cup Risotto
3 Cups Water
1 Bell Pepper
6 Scallions diced (just the bottoms)
10 Cherry Tomatoes - halved

DRESSING
1 Tbs. Dijon
1 Tbs. Honey
1 Tsp. Lemon Juice
1/4 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar (or anything you like)
Salt and Pepper
1/4 Cup Olive Oil

1.  Begin by adding the 1/2 Cup Risotto and 3 Cups water into a medium sized pot.  Bring to a boil and continue to let the Risotto cook until the water is just below the pasta.  Stir occasionally. You do not have to continue stirring it like you would when you cook Risotto the traditional way, just make sure it is not sticking to the bottom of the pot.  Turn the heat down to low, and put a lid on allowing the Risotto to cook for about 5 more minutes.

2.  While the Risotto is on the stove, mix together the ingredients for the dressing.  Start with the first five ingredients mixing well.  While mixing with one hand, drizzle the Olive Oil in to the rest of the mixture to ensure it is well combined.  Place in the fridge until you are ready to dress the entire salad. 

3.  Once the Risotto is fully cooked,  remove it from heat and spoon into a large heat safe bowl.  Drizzle with 1 extra Tbs. Olive Oil and stir.  Season with salt and pepper, and place into the refrigerator to cool.

4.  While Risotto is cooling, prep the rest of your ingredients.  Cut up the bell pepper and tomatoes, and dice the scallions.  When the Risotto is cooled down to at least room temperature, add in the veggies and the dressing.  Stir together and refrigerate until ready to serve.

To help you get in the summery mood, I've attached a beautiful Instagram of my mother's backyard Peonies.  They were in full bloom the other day when I stopped by!

Mini Sweet Potato Gratins

I found this really cool recipe by Martha Stewart (or whoever works for her), where she made potato gratins in a cupcake pan.  I had some sweet potatoes that needed to be used up, so I figured I would adapt her recipe to fit what I had in my refrigerator.  You can check out her original, less delicious recipe here.

Potato Gratins are made with very thinly sliced potatoes, cheese, and cream.  This recipe was so easy, and I snazzed it up by adding a Ricotta cheese mixture and switching up sweet potatoes for Russet potatoes.

INGREDIENTS
1-2 Large Sweet Potatoes (I used one for one pan and had left overs)
1/4 Cup Ricotta Cheese
1/4 Cup Shredded Asiago Cheese
1/3 Cup Parmesan Cheese
1/2 tsp.  Rosemary (dried or fresh minced)
1 Tbs. Heavy Cream per each Gratin
1/4 Tbs. Room Temperature Butter
Salt and Pepper

1.  Begin by preheating the oven to 400 degrees, and greasing the cupcake pan with the softened butter.  After peeling the sweet potato, slice it as thinly as possible.  If you have a mandolin, you may use that too.  

2.  Begin layering the sweet potatoes into the cupcake pan.  Put two layers in, top with 1 tsp. cheese    mixture and top with salt and pepper. Top with another two layers of sweet potatoes and sprinkle with more salt and pepper and a bit more Asiago cheese.

3.  Continue this process until the cupcake pan is filled. Then, when the oven is ready bake for 30-35  minutes or until the top potatoes begin to turn golden brown and bubbly.  Remove and let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.