Wednesday 17 August 2011

Good things for breakfast

I have not been shy about admitting my love for a good breakfast. One of the things I look forward to all week is a leisurely and delicious brunch on the weekend - sometimes I get my brunch idea on a Monday and have to be patient until the Saturday when the idea comes to fruition.


This sujuk pide was not one of my carefully considered ideas. It was the product of an empty fridge. I wanted something hot and savoury, but we had no eggs or bacon. What I did have was a ball of pide dough in the freezer, a tub of sujuk, also in the freezer, a the remains of a jar of roasted peppers, a jar of pickled jalapenos and a piece of cheese. I didn't quite manage the torpedo shape of a proper pide, but my leftover creation certainly hit the spot.


We were watching Thomasina Miers' new series Mexican Food Made Simple a few weeks ago, and Paul commented on how she cooked eggs - in a lot of hot fat, spooning the fat over the yolks so that they were still runny inside, but without any snotty albumen. He said that was how he wanted his eggs. So I fried some of my homemade chorizo, added some beans and chopped tomatoes to it and used it to top a soft flour tortilla. And added fried eggs.

Paul announced that actually, that wasn't how he liked his eggs at all and that he still wanted them cooked all the way through, with no runny yolk. Like I usually cook them, in fact. Contrary bugger.


This is another dish from Mexican Food Made Simple - which you may have guessed is my new favourite cookbook. Plums poached with vanilla and rose syrup. I didn't have rose syrup so I added rosewater to taste. I piled them onto French toast. Absolutely gorgeous.


I think I made a mistake in my presentation of this one - I had a big plate piled with my delicious pea and halloumi fritters, but we ate off little bread and butter plates. Which makes it look like a mahoosive fritter, but actually it was about the size of the palm of my hand. The serving suggestion in the recipe was roasted tomatoes, but I thought it was a good excuse to revisit the tomato and bacon hash (originally Nigella's, discovered by me at Esi's blog) which I ate constantly for a while and then forgot.

The leftover fritters were also a delicious snack eaten at room temperature.


This omelette was another product of an empty fridge. I'd had a great idea for Sunday brunch (it needed to rest in the fridge overnight) but had neglected to consider the hungryness of Saturday. I had eggs and I had a bit of home-smoked trout in the freezer. So I flaked the fish into the eggs, added pepper (no salt - the smoked trout is salty) and chopped parsley and made a big fat omelette to share.


Lest you fear for our arteries - sometimes there is fruit. Melon sprinkled with mint sugar...


... or this particular concoction to which I am addicted and Paul doesn't fancy at all. It's based loosely on the Indonesian fruit salad Rojak, but it is generally a combination of whatever fruits and vegetables I have in the house (as long as one of them is banana and one is a citrus) with a sweet/spicy/hot dressing and some chopped peanuts. It's gorgeous and satisfying and makes me feel ridiculously healthy.

14 comments:

Suelle said...

I wish I had the commitment to make breakfast a proper meal! These all look delicious.

leaf (the indolent cook) said...

I just had dinner and you're making me hungry for breakfast already. ;)

Alicia Foodycat said...

Suelle - on the weekends we only have 2 meals usually, so we try to make them sustaining!

Leafy - breakfast is good!

hungryandfrozen said...

I love fancy breakfasts. And also the word mahoosive ;)
I am, however, hopeless at poaching eggs, Tim's not bad, but I usually save that for buying from a cafe. Everything else I can do pretty well...

Simona said...

Paul and I will have to agree to disagree on yolks: I think that a runny yolk is pure delight. A nice set of ideas for breakfast. Pea and halloumi fritters sound quite good and so does Rojak.

Su-Lin said...

I had to laugh at your egg story! I love them just as your husband hates them. I love the idea of breakfast but only when someone else is making it!

mscrankypants said...

The fritters look lovely, and I'd more than happily tuck into your Indonesian salad mix!

Alicia Foodycat said...

Laura - I am also bad at poaching eggs. Boiled, fried or coddled for me!

Simona - a runny yolk is the whole point of an egg, if you ask me!

Su-Lin - he is good about most things, but not snotty eggs.

Cranky - for you I would leave the fishsauce out of the dressing!

grace said...

my stars, that's a lot of good-looking food on one page! your poached plums over french toast excites me most of all, though there's not a single plate i'd turn away. :)

Joanne said...

So many good breakfast ideas all in one post! I'm drooling here!

kat said...

Some good looking breakfasts. We don't cook many big breakfasts at home anymore & I miss them. Matt is a great breakfast cook.

Caroline said...

They all look lovely. I can never really be all that bothered with thinking about breakfast and tend to have the same thing most days.... your breakfasts look far more exciting!

Alicia Foodycat said...

Grace - the poached plums will definitely get another go.

Joanne - not a lot for the careful eater, but it did taste good!

Kat - if we lived somewhere where we could get a good brunch out, then we wouldn't cook them at home!

C - during the week my breakfasts are like that. These treats are strictly for weekends!

Deb in Hawaii said...

I'll take the eggs with the runny yolks that Paul won't eat. ;-) I am not good about being creative with breakfast. I may have to move in.
;-)

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