a.m. enthusiasm

Last night, Gabe and I stayed up with a couple of six packs (they were all out of my sunset wheat, said it was SEASONAL, the bastards) (also, I was drunk as hell from four of them. FOUR! I haven't been drinking much at all this week. Actually, not at all. I've felt sort of sicky, plus the self-plan causes my brain to see drinking beer as eating a snack, and I'll never get ANYWHERE with my goals snacking away my nights!).

When I awoke after 9.30 this morning, my only thought (besides putting some clothes on) was breakfast food. When I travel farther out into the foreign world, I anticipate being let down by their morning meals. You just can't top an American breakfast anywhere (looking at you, all other countries). I mean, come on. My best friend tells me to make stir-fry for breakfast, says I gotta get over my meal-specific hangups. Not today, hungry hater! No rice or soy this early in the day!

When I think of a big weekend breakfast, I immediately start with the Potatoes O'Brien, which starts with frying some bacon. Making breakfast is so much more than "I'm starving, this should taste good". It takes a decent chunk of mental planning to pull off a timely morning meal that tastes like something other than sugar or grease (unless you're into that, then my all means, keep not giving a shit and eat it your way, as I always say).

Potatoes O'Brien is quintessential big breakfast fare in my house, as I assume pancakes are in any other American kitchen (not the biggest fan, need to work on that. Maybe do pancakes next week? MAYBE MAKE SATURDAY BREAKFAST BLOG DAY?). I start with this dish due to the long time the potatoes take to cook, and the bacon makes my house smell heavenly:

POTATOES O'BRIEN

·                     5 or so potatoes (depending on how many you're feeding/how hungry you are)

·                     water or stock (i had some vegetable stock in my fridge)

·                     an onion

·                     garlic clove(s) (three or four cloves is how I like it, but I'm notably overzealous about garlic)

·                     an onion

·                     a green pepper

·                     a pack of bacon

·                     garlic powder

·                     pepper

1.             Always start by preheating your oven, should you be baking (and I am, biscuits!), or you'll feel like an idiot. Turn your stove fan on; cooking bacon smells amazing but it's hell on your skin, ladies.

2.             Cut the potatoes into bite-size chunks, rinse and cover with water or stock. Cover container and nuke until potatoes are soft. I usually zap it for four minutes, try squishing a spud with my fork, then zap it again for four more minutes, until the chunks are tender.

3.             While the potatoes are softening in the microwave, get a big-ass pan (it needs to fit all the ingredients) and heat it up. Fit as much bacon in the pan as you can (the three or so pieces that won't fit can be cut up and set aside, to be added later). Cook bacon until crispy (I like my almost burnt), pull out finished pieces and place on paper towel. Turn the range down, but leave the grease in the pan (that's my secret ingredient! Bacon grease + potatoes = holy fuck, dude) 

4.             Cut up the onion, garlic, pepper and raw bacon, add to the hot grease in the pan. As these brown, scrape the pan to get all the bacon bits sticking to the bottom (I use a little of the water/stock from the spuds when i check on them). While the vegetables were cooking, I opened a can of biscuits and put them in the oven (turn the light on, if you have one, it makes it easier to remember to check them, and if you're like me, you hate burnt biscuits. it's like your breakfast calling you a failure).

5.             Drain and add the potatoes (I saved my broth in tupperware for another time, I was considering brewing a vegetable soup later on this week as a break between Dad's birthday tomorrow (cake and barbecue) and Thanksgiving on Thursday (which I am stoked about, can't wait to cook my ass off, autumn-style. Screw your nutted squash! I'm making ham and stuffing, bitches!). Cook until crispy. 

You may want to pour out some of the bacon grease before cooking the vegetables; i halved it, saving the unused portion for my scrambled eggs. I got the idea from a Gordon Ramsay video tutorial on creamy egg scramble. The brits are odd, they eat tomatoes and mushrooms with their eggs. Meh. I like to room temp my eggs (I set them on the counter before cutting my potatoes), whip like six of them vigorously in a bowl to lighten them up, then add to a low-temp pan. The trick is to keep stirring, and keep taking it off the flame, on, off, on, off, never letting up on stirring. Add some cheese, if you like. I personally love American cheese, but I only love this high-processed bright orange phenomenon in my eggs. Weird, right? Anyways, add that (like a slice per two eggs, unwrap the bastards before cooking or you'll burn your eggs), stir stir stir until the eggs aren't shiny from yolk, add to a plate et voila! Saturday Brunch :)