Make Ahead Breakfast Burritos

Did you ever see something that you wish was your idea?

These make ahead breakfast burritos are that idea.

When I saw that the lovely Lindsay had an idea to create her own frozen burritos, for heating up at a later date, the proverbial lightbulb went off and I had to try it out, immediately.

I am all for the make ahead breakfast. As I mentioned yesterday, I don't often eat breakfast at home, instead choosing to grab somethng and go, typically heating something up once I arrive at the office. And so, these make ahead breakfast burritos seemed like the perfect idea.

And they were!

Shaun and I had these for the last two weeks, and we have been loving it! I mixed up eggs, egg whites, turkey sausage, peppers, onions and a little bit of cheese, loaded it all up into 6 medium sized tortillas, froze those bad boys...and delicious, easy peasy breakfast was born.

 

Here's how I did it.

First, I chopped up some peppers and onions and sauteed them until soft.

Then, I cut open and removed the casings on a package of turkey breakfast sausage. I added it to the pan and cooked it through.

Meanwhile, I cracked open a whole lotta eggs. 12 in total. I used about 6 whole eggs and 6 whites to keep it on the lighter side, but you can feel free to use whatever you'd like! I mixed in some seasoning salt, pepper and about 1/4 C reduced fat cheddar cheese.

Then I cooked them up!

Make sure to cook the eggs until just underdone. They will continue to cook as they cool.

Let both the eggs and sausage cool slightly, then gently mix altogether in a big mixing bowl. Lay out 6 medium sized tortillas. I used Mission Life Balance Whole Wheat. Fill them up with the egg mixture and top with a little bit of cheese. Make sure to drain as much liquid out of the mixture as possible!

Roll it on up. Shaun helped me with this part.

Package in waxed paper and aluminum foil.

Then place all in a gallon-sized zip top bag.

When you want to reheat them, simply wrap in a paper towel and microwave for 1 1/2-2 minutes or until warmed throughout!

Enjoy! I really love this because you could make so many different combinations to keep it fresh!

Thanks to Lindsay @ The Lean Green Bean for this great idea! And if you haven't already, be sure to check out her great blog!

Questions of the Day:

Do you like breakfast burritos?

Do you have any make-ahead breakfast recipes?

I love frittatas:

and baked oatmeal:

He Speaks: Poached Egg & Bacon Muffin

Good morning! I'm so excited for today's post because it's coming at you from Shaun! If you've been reading for a while, you know all about the story of how we fell in love, how we got married on a beach in Aruba, how we spend the holidays...and just daily life that I often talk about with my wonderful husband. Shaun and I cook together all the time and I'm thrilled that he's finally doing a guest post. We definitely share a love of food, of eating, and of all things culinary...so without further ado...

Hi, I'm Shaun... Rachel's husband . I have followed this blog from its inception...taste testing Rachel's latest creations, reading over her shoulder as she writes each morning and have always wanted to write a post for it. I have long been a food fanatic and was enticed to write a post because The Avid Appetite combines articles I like to read... food knowledge and food science with a smattering of pop culture and Rachel's interests.

I believe (although it may be disputed by Rachel) that I got us started on this culinary ride, and it only made sense (very little at most, since Rachel is the brain and skill behind the blog) that I contribute something every once in a while since I also love getting in the kitchen, trying out new recipes...and playing ultimate taste tester. Today I'm excited to share a recipe and how-to. I recently learned how to poach eggs and it's too good not to share. So here's my recipe for a little poached egg sandwich...I hope you enjoy my very first post!

Raise your hand, paw or claw if you have ever poached something before reading this article.  From what I can see, it looks like less than half of you have your hands up (and I think that most of you with your hands up are confusing poaching with boiling). 

Most of us have tossed broccoli or cauliflower into a pot of boiling water, walked away, poured ourselves a glass of wine, fallen asleep on the couch and realized that the stove was still on.  We lumbered over to the stove top to find the broccoli or cauliflower done...done to death.  Watery, mushy and vapid.  Well, that's not really even remotely what poaching is all about.  Poaching is all about using the warm, comforting embrace of heated water to cook delicate foods to perfection.  Delicate foods like eggs, that had in previous times been fried, broiled, or scrambled.  I assure you that there is nothing warm and comforting about being scrambled or fried. 

 

It took me a while to work it all out, but let me show you a delectable breakfast recipe that incorporates a toasted English muffin, one slice of cheddar cheese, two slices of bacon and one deliciously poached egg.  Kinda reminds me of a mainstream fast food breakfast sandwich but with a lot more flavor.

 

Poached Egg & Bacon Muffin

Ingredients:

 

1 egg (I prefer chicken eggs)

2 slices of thick center cut bacon (there is absolutely no harm in using turkey bacon or fakin' bacon instead)

1 Thomas' Light Multi Grain Muffins (This recipe will work with any muffin or sandwich thin.  You can always go sans buns for a super low-carb option as well)

1 slice of Cheddar or American cheese

1 mini pinch of salt (applied to the poached egg once it has been cooked)

1 Tbsp white wine vinegar

water, about 2-3 C

 

How to get things done:

This recipe can of course be scaled up to make as many sandwiches as you need, but I strongly urge you to not overcrowd the pan.

- In a small saucepan, bring at least 3" of water to a simmer.  That's where it has those little bubbles popping up on the outside.  CAUTION: Not a rolling boil

- Once water gets to a simmer, keep it there and split your muffin in half and drop it into the toaster

- While the muffin is toasting, lay down a layer of paper towel on a microwavable plate and slap your bacon down.  Cover with another layer of paper towel and microwave on high for 2.5 minutes.  Microwaving bacon seems like it should be illegal, but there are a number of benefits. 

1.  The microwave cooks it more evenly than on the stove top. 

2.  Cooking it with the paper towel on top save not only the microwave from becoming a disaster zone but also keeps your stove top from becoming a giant pain in the ass to clean.  (If you have an electric range this does not pertain to you but then again, if you have an electric range you might have other concerns.

- Add 1 Tbsp of white wine vinegar to the simmering water

- Once your muffin is done toasting and your bacon has been crisped, take the bottom half of the muffin and place it on a plate.  Add the one slice of cheese to the muffin, snap the bacon slices in half and add that on top of the cheese...now on to cooking the egg.

- Break one egg into a bowl (I actually use a teacup because it's easier, we never use them and it has a wide mouth (that's what he said) which makes it easier to drop the egg into the pot of simmering water without breaking the yolk which is the goal.

- Set your timer of preference for 2 minutes, remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel covered plate to rest for 30 seconds.

- Add newly poached egg to the already assembled muffin bottom, cheese and bacon setup.  Cover with remaining muffin top...and consume.

It's perfectly velvety, runny and delicious. And I've decided to never go back to fried eggs again! Hope you like this recipe, photos of your poached creations would be much appreciated.

Questions of the Day:

Have you ever eaten poached eggs? Or made them?

What's your favorite way to eat eggs?

psst...Christine is telling us about her tips for managing breakouts on The Peach & The Pit!

Mushroom + Onion Frittata

Don't forget to enter our blogoversary giveaway! Enter to win a copy of Rocco DiSpirito's Now Eat This! cookbook, one of my personal favorites. And it has nothing to do with the many photos of an attractive-looking Rocco strewn throughout the book.

So as you know, Shaun and I are going meatless for a week. So far, I've been cooking up a storm for our lunches and dinners (we typically don't include meat at breakfast, so no change there) and I'm psyched to share some of my ideas with you. I think I found a good one.

I knew that to keep us on track, I'd have to arm us with all the tools to keep our food fun, exciting and most importantly, delicious. So on my day off for MLK day, I made a loose menu plan, a big list of goodies and went shopping. I am happy to report that 75% of my shopping cart was filled with fruits and veggies. Booyah! So to kick things off, I eased us into dinner with a little frittata with a side of sauteed broccoli and cauliflower.

Hold the phone. Eggs...for dinner? Yep, I went there. And if that's wrong, I don't want to be right.

I have one word for this dinner: yum. Though I had never tried one in the past, I've seen many a frittata made on Food Network by some of my faves (Giada, Tyler) so when I came across a delectable looking version in this month's Food Network magazine (obsessed much?) I knew this was a must for meatless week. Not to mention that Shaun loves all things eggs and requests them every Saturday and Sunday morning. Personally I prefer pancakes, but eggs are ok too :) Anyhow, the point of my story is that this frittata is light, delicious and even easier than scrambled eggs if you can believe it.

Mushroom + Onion Frittata
*Adapted heavily from Food Network Magazine
3 eggs
4 egg whites
1 C smoked mozzarella cheese, grated (or cheese of choice, but smoked is recommended)
2 C sliced mushrooms, I used about one package of baby bella's
1 clove garlic, minced
1 onion, cut in half and sliced
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 tbsp parmesean cheese + more for dusting
splash of skim milk
olive oil
light butter

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a non-stick oven approved skillet, heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and a little scoop of light butter. Add the onions and cook on low heat until they are soft and browned, stirring occasionally. Low and slow is key here - don't let them burn! Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk. Season with kosher salt and pepper. Once combined, whisk in the mozzarella, parmesean and basil.

Add the garlic and sliced mushrooms to the onions and continue cooking just until the mushrooms start to soften and break down. They will continue cooking in the oven, so don't overcook them here!

 

With a silicon brush, I coated the sides of the pan with olive oil. Pour in the egg mixture, evenly over the mushrooms.

 

Cook over medium heat, without mixing or touching it in any way, until a crust starts to form in the pan, about 2 or so minutes. Run your rubber spatula around the edges to make sure it has set. Transfer to the oven for 7-10 minutes or until lightly cooked through.

Cut into wedges and serve that bad boy up! We enjoyed this along with a bag of frozen broccoli and cauliflower that I sauteed in a tiny bit of olive oil and season with salt, pepper and parmesean cheese. Belissimo.

Though the original recipe called for cottage cheese, I, of course, did not read the entire recipe before food shopping and forgot this ingredient. I don't know what it would taste like with the cottage cheese, but I don't need to find out. This was pure perfection without it. The smokiness of the cheese coupled with the earthiness of the mushrooms was a fab flavor combination all on its own, if I do say so myself.

So there you have it. Our meatless, eggy dinner that Shaun immediately said he 'hated' (our inside joke for when something is over-the-top yum) which also lead to cleaning his entire plate and going back for seconds. And taking another serving for breakfast today. So what do you think? Do you believe in eggs, or any breakfast, for dinner? I personally think it rocks my world!