Soyrizo and Vegetable Egg Scramble

Wow. I have been MIA. We have been been house hunting every weekend and it has certainly kept us busy. Luckily this morning I had some time to pull together and delicious breakfast. I recently heard about Soyrizo, which is basically fake chorizo, and I was very intrigued. I read reviews from meat eaters who were obsessed with Soyrizo. I’m not a vegetarian and I don’t plan on becoming one, but I do try to eat healthy and a nice weekly vegetarian meal can help me achieve that.

Ingredients:
Soyrizo (as much as you want, depends on how many eggs you’re cooking, but several tablespoons would be fine)
3 eggs
1/2 of a red pepper, diced
1/4 of an onion, diced
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1/2 an avocado

Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Saute red pepper and onion until soft, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Incorporate the Soyrizo and saute for several more minutes. While the Soyrizo cooks, whisk your eggs in a small bowl (you can add some milk to make them creamy if you want). Add the eggs to the pan and scramble everything together until the eggs are cooked through. Serve in a bowl, for easy eating, and top with sliced avocado. I also topped the finished product with several dashes of Texas Pete, because I pretty mush put Texas Pete on everything.

This was delicious. The Soyrizo did not disappoint. You get all the flavor and spices with none of the grease or fat. The red peppers and onions are flavorful and bring a freshness to this dish. Everything marries together to make a very satisfying breakfast. This kept me full through a tough workout and all the way through to dinner. I hope you enjoy!

Restaurant Review: Raymond’s Montclair

Well I didn’t really cook too much this weekend, but I did eat. Jason and I woke around 7:30 AM on Saturday. Wait, no. Only Jason woke up that early, but misery loves company, so alas I awoken too.

We decided there was nothing edible in the house and would therefore have to procure nourishment at a public establishment. We settled on Raymond’s because we had never been and this restaurant is always packed. However, it was 8:00 AM on a Saturday and we didn’t expect there to be too many people waiting for a table that early. We were right! We sat outside and enjoyed the rain-less morning over some delicious eggs and avocado toast.

Jason ordered the Eggs Benedict, which looked delicious, but I didn’t pay too much attention to it because this Avocado Toast was everything. The eggs were poached perfectly. The avocado was creamy with a bit of freshness from the citrus and topped with a delicious pico de gallo. The dish was also served with several sauces and relishes. I tasted them but deemed my meal perfect so I mostly ignored them.

If you every find yourself in Montclair, NJ you can’t miss Raymond’s. Go early, beat the crowd, and leave with a belly full of happiness.

Stay tuned later this week for some more Blue Apron dinners. I can’t wait to try these recipes!

Honey, Almond Butter, and Love

This is one of my favorite photos from last summer. We were down in Arkansas and the light was beautiful.

I woke this morning to the sounds of birds chirping outside my window. It was still dark outside but the birds were waking. It’s finally spring. The weather is warming and so is my heart. I dreaded leaving the comfort of my blankets just to sit in an office for 9 hours. However the thought of staying in bed all day was even more depressing and just enough motivation to propel me into my shower. The prospect of breakfast also helped.

I listened to The Decemberists while putting on make-up and preparing for the day. Everything seemed to sharpen and focus. Sometimes it just takes a little while for the clouds to clear.

One of my closest friends is in town for the next two weeks. She lives in Hong Kong so I cherish every moment I spend with her. I’m looking forward to spending the next couple of weeks with her and feeling the love. Best friend love is therapeutic and I could use a little therapy right now.

I found this quick no-frills recipe on another’s blog and I, for the life of me, cannot remember what blog it was on. I was quickly browsing blogs and for a fleeting moment stopped on one that mentioned the delicious combination of Plain Greek Yogurt, Honey and Almond Butter. I can’t get enough of this. It’s so delicious, sweet, creamy, and full of protein. It keeps me full until lunch.

Ingredients:
1 cup of Plain Greek Yogurt
1 tablespoon of honey
1 tablespoon of almond butter (or any nut butter)

Directions:
Mix and thank the Gods for these ingredients.

Sometimes you just need a little honey, almond butter, and love!

Slow Cooker Breakfast Casserole

Look at this! Another breakfast post! Who knew…

For my 30th birthday trip we headed to Charlottesville, VA with some of my absolute favorite people. They made me feel so special and loved. I couldn’t ask for a better group of friends. The weekend was full of delicious dinners, wine tasting, beer flights and a cake that featured a Unicorn pooping sparkles!

I knew we would be spending a lot of money this weekend so I wanted to make breakfast one day to try to cut back on the cost a little. I decided that a Slow Cooker Breakfast Casserole was the best option for breakfast for a group. I put everything together right when I got into town and then before we went to bed I whisked the eggs and added the cheese! All you have to do is hit start and you wake up to a delicious and easy breakfast.

Ingredients:
10 eggs, whisked
1/2 a cup of milk
1 package of spicy turkey breakfast sausage, casings removed
1 red pepper, diced
1-2 red potatoes, diced
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
salt & pepper

Directions:
Brown sausage in a large skillet with a little bit of olive oil. Drain any extra fat/oil. Add potatoes to the bottom of the slow cooker with sausage on top. In another layer add the red pepper and cheddar cheese. Toss to combine. In another bowl whisk the eggs, milk, salt & pepper together. Pour the egg mixture over all the ingredients in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

This turned out great! It was perfect to grab something easy in the morning before we hit the road for wine tasting. If you ever find yourself in Charlottesville, VA I highly recommend trying Kings Family Vineyard. It was beautiful and I can only imagine how lovely it will be during the warmer months.

My wonderful husband, Jason 🙂

Love these ladies!

Cheers!

Egg Scramble with Mushrooms, Onions and Gruyere

Well today has been…interesting. We have some pretty heavy snowfall happening in the NYC Metro area, so I decided to stay home and avoid the headache of NJ Transit. Sounds like a good idea, right? Wrong. I had WiFi and computer problems all day. Finally this day is ending and I figured I should get a post in before the weekend! We are heading to Charlottesville, VA tomorrow for the weekend. Two of my best friends and their significant others are driving up from North Carolina to join us. What’s the  occasion you ask? Just turning 30, no bid deal.

Egg Scramble with Mushrooms, Onions and Gruyere Cheese

Ingredients:
3 eggs, whisked with a tablespoon of milk
3-4 white button mushrooms, sliced thinly
1/2 an onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/4 cup of gruyere cheese
1 teaspoon of butter
Salt & pepper

Directions:
Melt butter in a large saute pan. Saute mushrooms, onion and garlic until cooked down and soft. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Season eggs with a little bit of salt & pepper and then pour over the mushroom mixture in the same saute pan. Sprinkle with gruyere cheese. Scramble the eggs for about 3 minutes or until fully cooked. Garnish with a little bit of shredded gruyere. Serve immediately!

This was a delicious breakfast on a snowy day. It hit the spot. I love the combination of mushrooms, onions and cheese. This cheese is especially buttery and nutty in flavor which pairs perfectly with the mushrooms and eggs! So simple to throw together but it tastes like it took a long time to cook.

Enjoy! Have a lovely weekend!

Yogurt Topped with Blackberries and Honey

I hardly post breakfast recipes. I’m pretty basic when it comes to breakfast. When I’m looking for something filling but light I look to yogurt. I recently read an interesting blog on foodbabe.com about what yogurts are best for you. She recommends choosing a plain organic yogurt and adding your own toppings. I thought this was a GREAT idea and found my new favorite combination of simply blackberries and honey.

I love honey. It’s a natural sweetener and it’s just so delicious. It mixes perfectly with the tart yogurt. You can really add whatever fruit you want. Blackberries are my favorite berries but I also think that bananas would be a delicious addition. You could even add some raw chopped nuts for added protein. This keeps me full all the way to lunch. However if I’m super famished, I might gobble down a hard boiled egg too. What do you like to start your day with?

Christmas Brunch: Sausage-Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole

Oh my goodness. This has been a LONG week down in North Carolina. I’m sad that it has come to an end; however, I am very happy to be home. I think the kitties are happy too, they won’t leave us alone… This past week was spent with some of my most favorite people in the world. I am feeling very blessed this Sunday evening to have so much love and laughter in my life :).

This Christmas I wanted to cook brunch for my family. I always help my lovely mother with the big Christmas dinner, but this year I wanted to do brunch on my own and she was more than happy to oblige. I looked through a couple of breakfast casserole recipes and settled on the Sausage-Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole from Southern Living. This was so easy and so delicious. I was cooking for 5 and this recipe serves 10 which was actually perfect because we ate leftovers the next morning. This re-heats very well. The eggs are not rubbery at all. The best part about this casserole is that it is so simple!

You simply brown the sausage in a large skillet while also cooking the hash browns in another large skillet. Drain the grease from the sausage and mix the hash browns, sausage, and 1 cup of cheddar cheese (I also think that pepper jack would be fantastic) in a large bowl. Pour into a large oven safe dish and then pour the beaten eggs and milk over the top! Bake at 350 degrees for 35 – 40 minutes. Easy!!! I would highly recommend using an organic chicken or turkey sausage instead of pork as it will cut down on a lot of fat. I served this casserole with toasted English Muffins, Avocado and a delicious Mimosa!

Perfect breakfast casserole for Christmas or New Years Day. I hope everyone had a lovely holiday and is looking forward to a healthy New Year!

Later this week I will be posting another recipe review of the yummy Cilantro Lime Chicken and Rice that I whipped up for us tonight.

Happy Eating!