Tag: bacon

Main Dishes, Recipes, Salads

Awesome Kale Salad

Sarah

This kale salad is truly awesome. I mean, adding fried eggs and fried potatoes to kale makes it awesome, even if it sounds a little weird at first. You need to try this!

This kale salad is truly awesome. I mean, adding fried eggs and fried potatoes to kale makes it awesome, even if it sounds a little weird at first. You need to try this!

I’ve been making this kale salad pretty much non-stop since last July. Well, non-stop if you count the break from September to March. See, I found out in September that I was pregnant with Baby Volde and so I decided to nix fried eggs until the baby was born. I didn’t obsess over dietary stuff during pregnancy but uncooked eggs [not in cookie dough, mind you] kinda freak me out. But they’re delicious so I push through it for the joy, haha. And when springtime started coming and mama needed a good salad, I decided to live on the wild side and hope fried eggs didn’t make me sick. They didn’t, whew! But I’m not a doctor so if you’re pregnant or otherwise immunocompromised, proceed at your own risk. #disclosureover

Anyway, I love this salad for three reasons: 1) kale; 2) eggs; 3) potatoes. And also for two more: healthy and fried. Total opposites, I know… but kale is healthy… so are eggs and potatoes too. But they’re a little more unhealthy if you fry them… but the kale part takes away the guilt! That, and the potatoes are just pan-fried so that is mucho better than deep frying, right? Soooo, this salad is the BEST combination of healthy and fried, guilt free and delicious. Does that make sense to you? It makes sense in my head so I hope so!

This kale salad is truly awesome. I mean, adding fried eggs and fried potatoes to kale makes it awesome, even if it sounds a little weird at first. You need to try this!

You have to experience this salad to understand its greatness. At first Ben was skeptical. I mean, fried eggs on a salad? Bizarre. And, the runny egg part of the fried egg serves as the salad dressing. Another notch on the weird scale, but it works. Plus, the egg gives a little more staying power to the salad. Usually I have to have meat on a salad to make it filling, but not here. Though you could add bacon for some extra deliciousness. 🙂 Anyway you make it, you’re sure to love it!

Oh and before I go, I have to mention my silverware. Isn’t it so cool? I received a fork and spoon handstamped from Tattooed Silver, a great small business located in Ohio. Tattooed Silver is the business of a fellow Wittenberg University alum, and I’m excited that we started a lil partnership. You can find them on Instagram, Facebook, and Etsy. Her products are all so unique and fun, and would make great gifts too. 🙂

Enjoy!

one year ago: Cheesy Veggie Pasta
two years ago: Chocolate Cream Filled Cupcakes
three years ago: Double Chocolate Banana Muffins
four years ago: Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
five years ago: Crock Pot Santa Fe Chicken
six years ago: Potato Soup

Awesome Kale Salad

  • Servings: 4
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Inspired by the best parts of these salads from Jenna’s Everything Blog and We Are Not Martha, with my own additions too 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 1 bunch kale
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1/2 tablespoon honey, if desired
  • 1 teaspoon whole grain dijon mustard, if desired
  • 4 medium potatoes – 1 per person
  • chili powder
  • dried oregano
  • garlic powder
  • 8 eggs – 2 per person
  • optional additions: diced avocado, crumbled feta, chopped bacon, etc.

Directions:

Wash and dry kale, then cut into thin strips taking care to remove the middle stems. Place in a large bowl and massage with several glugs of olive oil and the lemon juice until kale softens, then season with salt and pepper. If desired, drizzle honey and dijon mustard on top and toss/massage that in as well.

Meanwhile, dice potatoes into bite size pieces [1 per person]. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add some olive oil to the pan. When hot, reduce heat to medium and add potatoes. Season with a little salt, a lot of pepper, and some chili powder, garlic powder, and oregano. Saute, stirring frequently, for about 10-12 minutes until potatoes are crispy and cooked through.

When potatoes are finished, remove to another dish and cover with foil to retain heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and fry eggs as desired [2 per person].

Serve kale in a big bowl or plate. Top with potatoes and fried eggs, along with other desired additions. Enjoy!

Breakfast, Egg Dishes, Recipes

Bacon, Potato, and Egg Casserole

Sarah

This hearty egg breakfast casserole is full of bacon, hashbrown potatoes, red bell peppers [my fave!], and cheese. It’s sure to please!

Bacon, Potato, and Egg Casserole - a delicious, hearty breakfast that is sure to please!

Weekends call for a delicious breakfast, do they not? While I’m a pancake-girl through and through, sometimes I don’t want to stand at the stove flipping pancakes for 30 minutes. Okay, it’s not always 30 minutes but sometimes it sure feels like it, especially when your family or friends are eating pancake after pancake while all you’ve had are the scraps. Haha, you laugh, but it’s true! 🙂 So what do you do to avoid that situation? Make a casserole, of course!

Bacon, Potato, and Egg Casserole - a delicious, hearty breakfast that is sure to please!

This breakfast casserole was part of my recent foray into eating up the food in my kitchen freezer so that I could move things out of the garage freezer in preparation for my freezer-cooking-before-baby extravaganza. Thank you, leftover half-pound of bacon! Thank YOU, half-bag of shredded hashbrowns! I know the bacon was recent, but those hashbrowns? Who knows! The freezer can be a sc-sc-sc-scaryyyy place. But the good news is, this casserole isn’t anything scary at all! It has all your favorite breakfast components packaged into one tasty treat. Since Ben and I can’t eat an entire pan of this goodness in one go, we parceled it out for breakfast all week long, making mornings a little easier. 🙂 I know this will become part of our regular rotation because it was mighty delicious and has endless substitution possibilities. Enjoy, and happy weekend!

one year ago: Curried Chicken Salad
two years ago: Coconut Curry Popcorn
three years ago: Dark Chocolate Crumb Bars
four years ago: Bread Machine Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Icing
five years ago: Chicken Pot Pie

Bacon, Potato, and Egg Casserole

  • Servings: 12
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from Taste of Home

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 pound bacon
  • 1 large red bell pepper, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 12 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill [or 1/2 teaspoon dried]
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil [or 1 teaspoon dried]
  • 16 ounces frozen shredded hash brown potatoes, thawed
  • 4 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

Grease a 9×13 inch baking pan with cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cook bacon on a skillet until crisp, then set aside on paper towels to cool. When cooled, chop into bite size pieces. Drain off most of the grease from the skillet, reserving about 2 tablespoons.

Add bell pepper and garlic to the skillet and cook until just beginning to soften, about 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.

Meanwhile, whisk together eggs, milk, pepper, dill, and basil. Add cooled bacon and peppers, stirring gently to combine. Fold in hash browns and cheese.

Pour into prepared pan, then bake for about 40-45 minutes or until set in the middle. Enjoy!

Casserole reheats well throughout the week, and individual servings freeze well too.

 

Beans, Breakfast, Egg Dishes, Main Dishes, Recipes

Tangy Sweet Potato Hash #FreshTastyValentines

Sarah

This sweet potato hash combines pretty much all my favorite things… sweet potatoes, black beans, red peppers, bacon, and fried eggs. Ginger and grapefruit zest give it an unforgettable special tangy flavor! 

This sweet potato hash combines pretty much all my favorite things... sweet potatoes, black beans, red peppers, bacon, and fried eggs. Ginger and grapefruit zest give it an unforgettable special tangy flavor! #FreshTastyValentines

I love recipes that work for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Hashes are one of those classic recipes that can work for any meal, especially when you throw a fried egg on top. I used to make these meals almost every week pre-pregnancy. If it wasn’t a sweet/regular potato hash, it was arugula salad with fried potatoes and a fried egg… or fried rice with a fried egg… or a fried egg sandwich… or… you get the picture, huh? These days, I eat fried eggs oh-so-rarely. I have really tried to not be paranoid about the dietary restrictions with pregnancy [I’ll admit to licking the bowl when baking, and over Thanksgiving I accidentally ate a cobb salad with cold deli meat on it without thinking] but I don’t want to take too many unnecessary risks. I’m too much of a rule follower for that! Not to mention how devastated I would be if something I chose to ate hurt the baby. I know you can’t prevent everything [listeria in peanut butter or salad, anyone?] but I can prevent eating too many fried eggs. I think. 🙂

This sweet potato hash combines pretty much all my favorite things... sweet potatoes, black beans, red peppers, bacon, and fried eggs. Ginger and grapefruit zest give it an unforgettable special tangy flavor! #FreshTastyValentines

So that being said, you know that if I chose to eat a fried egg [yes, singular… before baby it was two 😦 tear!] it’s gotta be for a good reason. And this sweet potato hash is a GREAT reason! It’s pretty much the best hash I’ve ever tried. [Umm, sorry if that sounds weird.] Sometimes hashes can get a little too mushy, but this one doesn’t because I had the *genius* idea to a) roast the sweet potatoes instead of cooking them in the pan, b) layer them with the black bean and red pepper mixture, and c) top it all with bacon and the said fried egg. #mmmm

This sweet potato hash combines pretty much all my favorite things... sweet potatoes, black beans, red peppers, bacon, and fried eggs. Ginger and grapefruit zest give it an unforgettable special tangy flavor! #FreshTastyValentines

If that’s not genius, then I don’t know what is! Oh wait, yes I do. 🙂 In the summertime, part of what makes a sweet potato hash so darn good is that you can put half of your herb garden in as seasonings. Well, we are dead in the middle of winter here so I used the next best thing: Gourmet Garden Lightly Dried Herbs and Spices! They’re one of our lovely sponsors for #FreshTastyValentines, and to spice up [ha] this dish, I used cilantro, ginger, and chili. So good! I also added some fresh grapefruit zest [love that lately!] for some zing.

This sweet potato hash combines pretty much all my favorite things... sweet potatoes, black beans, red peppers, bacon, and fried eggs. Ginger and grapefruit zest give it an unforgettable special tangy flavor! #FreshTastyValentines

That zing was intensified with the special sauce that took this already great hash out of the park! Not Ketchup is ANOTHER one of our amazing sponsors for this fun blogging event, and I have to admit that I was a wee bit skeptical of the Tangerine Hatch Chile sauce they sent my way. Until I opened up the bottle and tried a wee bit with a roasted sweet potato. Then I was in tangerine spice heaven! Unlike how it sounds, this sauce is NOT spicy, but is the best blend of sweet and savory tang. I thought about stirring the sauce into the hash from the get go, but the aforementioned soggy, mushy sweet potato hash I was trying to avoid nixed that idea. Instead, I drizzled a hearty helping over the hash after the egg had been broken, and OH MAN was it good! Out of all of the Not Ketchup flavors I’ve tried, this one is by far my favorite… and I love that it has no added sugar; it’s only sweetened with real fruit [tangerine, apples, dates]. It is so delicious! Hope you give it a try–with or without my sweet potato hash. 🙂

one year ago: Spiced Fig Turkey Mini Meatloaf
two years ago: Sweet Potato Pork Quesadillas
three years ago: Chewy Peanut Butter Brownies
four years ago: Caramel S’more Cups
five years ago: Bacon-Wrapped Feta & Almond Stuffed Dates

Tangy Sweet Potato Hash

  • Servings: 3-4
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Ingredients:

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Toss sweet potatoes with olive oil, cumin, garlic powder, and freshly ground black pepper. Spread in an even layer on a large rimmed baking sheet, then roast for 20-25 minutes, or until tender. Flip after 10 minutes for even cooking.

Meanwhile, fry the bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Drain almost all the grease from the skillet, then add diced onion and chopped red bell pepper and saute for 5-7 minutes over medium heat until tender. Stir in black beans, cilantro, ginger, chili, and grapefruit zest. Reduce heat to low, and heat through, stirring occasionally, for about 3 minutes. Season with black pepper.

At this time, prepare 2 eggs per person as desired–fried or poached would be best. Also, chop bacon into bite size pieces.

When ready to serve, place a layer of sweet potatoes on a large plate or shallow bowl. Top with a layer of black bean/veggie mixture, a piece of chopped bacon, and two eggs. Serve with Tangerine Hatch Chile Not Ketchup for dipping!

Be sure to enter our #giveaway here! And check out the other awesome recipes that our #FreshTastyValentines blogging crew have come up with at the link below. 🙂

Find Not Ketchup

on the web: here
on Twitter: here
on Facebook: here
on Pinterest: here
on Instagram: here
on Google+: here

Find Gourmet Garden

on the web: here
on Twitter: here
on Facebook: here
on Pinterest: here
on Instagram: here
on Google+: here
Disclosure: I received complimentary sauce from Not Ketchup and herbs & spices from Gourmet Gardens for my participation in #FreshTastyValentines. However, I was not required to write a positive review and I was not otherwise compensated for this post. The thoughts expressed above are entirely my own. Thanks to Not Ketchup and Gourmet Gardens for their sponsorship of this event!
Main Dishes, Pasta, Recipes

Baked Bacon-Blueberry Ricotta Pasta

Sarah

A luscious, creamy baked pasta with crisp bacon, succulent fresh corn, a pop of sweet blueberries, and a crunchy topping made out of a surprise ingredient. Intrigued now?

Baked Bacon-Blueberry Ricotta Pasta | an easy, cheesy baked pasta with a surprise topping! Find the recipe on thepajamachef.comAt my house, you can’t go wrong with baked pasta. Ben and I can eat an embarrassingly large portion of baked pasta at a single meal. Then after it’s wrapped up for the fridge, we are constantly opening it up and using a fork [or our fingers, sorry Mom] for another bite. There’s just something about baked pasta. From looking at the title of this recipe, Baked Bacon-Blueberry Ricotta Pasta, you’ve probably surmised that there’s at least something a little unusual with this pasta dish. Bacon and ricotta… pretty standard fare for Italian food. Blueberries? Now that’s a little odd, but it’s summer so sometimes berries creep into weird places. But then you look at that photo and you’re like, wait… is that oats? On pasta? Ummm, what’s going on? Well, that my friends, is granola. Granola?!?! Well, yes. That’s what my husband said too. Ha!

Baked Bacon-Blueberry Ricotta Pasta | an easy, cheesy baked pasta with a surprise topping! Find the recipe on thepajamachef.comI developed this recipe as my entry in the Golden Girl Granola Blogger Recipe Challenge. When I first received the package of Bluesberry Granola I planned to use it in a breakfast dish, such as french toast or breakfast quesadillas, or the like. But it’s a contest, and I figured everyone would do that. So I did something different! And guess what? It worked!

Baked Bacon-Blueberry Ricotta Pasta | an easy, cheesy baked pasta with a surprise topping! Find the recipe on thepajamachef.comThe sweetness of the blueberry, almond, and coconut granola [which is SO delicious, btw] is cut by the salty bacon, creamy ricotta, and the freshly grated Parmesan cheese mixed into the topping. I also mixed in some fresh sweet corn since I can’t get enough of that in the summertime, and a handful of herbs from my garden. Perfection on a plate! This isn’t your average pasta dish… it’s even better! Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

one year ago: Coffee Blondies
two years ago: Pineapple Cream Pie
three years ago: Grandma’s Blueberry Muffins
four years ago: Linda’s Caramel Ritz Bits Crackers

Baked Bacon-Blueberry Ricotta Pasta

  • Servings: 6
  • Print

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces pasta* [I used Trottole, a curly, thick, corkscrew shape but any small pasta would do]
  • *1 cup reserved pasta water
  • 4 strips of bacon
  • 15 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese
  • 1/2 cup corn [frozen or fresh]
  • 1 cup blueberries
  • 3 sprigs fresh rosemary, minced
  • a small handful of fresh basil, minced
  • a small handful of fresh lemon thyme
  • white pepper
  • sea salt
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 2/3 cup Bluesberry Granola – from Golden Girl Granola
  • 5-6 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 10 inch round casserole dish with cooking spray and set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook pasta to al dente according to package directions.

Meanwhile, cook bacon until crisp, then drain on a paper towel. Chop when cool.

Then, stir together ricotta cheese, corn, blueberries, rosemary, basil, and lemon thyme until combined. [If you don’t have these herbs, substitute about 1/4 cup fresh herbs of choice, or ~1 teaspoon dried herbs.] Season with white pepper and sea salt, then taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. Then add egg and bacon and stir again.

When pasta is finished cooking, reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain pasta. Fold pasta into ricotta mixture, adding reserved pasta water in 1/4 cup increments until sauce evenly coats pasta. Spoon pasta into prepared casserole dish.

In a small bowl, gently crush granola with the back of a wooden spoon until just broken down. Mix in Parmesan cheese, then sprinkle mixture over pasta. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until heated through. Serve immediately.

Disclosure: Golden Girl Granola sent me one bag of granola of my choice for the purposes of participation in this recipe challenge. I received no further compensation and was not asked or paid to publish positive comments. Please check them out on Facebook and Twitter. You can also find their products in various stores on the east coast. Thank you for the chance to try your granola!

Beans, Main Dishes, Recipes, Sandwiches and Wraps

Spicy Chickpea Bacon Burgers

Sarah

These chickpea burgers are amped up with bacon and Sriracha, making them a fabulous addition to your burger repertoire!

Spicy Chickpea Bacon Burgers | thepajamachef.comAre you scared of veggie burgers? If so, no shame necessary here… these aren’t TRUE veggie burgers! I say they’re close enough though. Legit vegetarians can use facon instead of bacon to make these tasty treats, and the rest of us can use the good stuff. 🙂 I have a long history with veggie burgers, though I am most certainly not a true vegetarian [though I do threaten to become one from time to time, just to agitate my husband]. Back in the day, I’d love to have some packaged veggie burgers or black bean burgers in the freezer at all times for an effortless, tasty dinner. But in recent years, I’ve made my own. I’ve tried alot of recipes online and have invented some of my own, with mixed results. While I’ve seen some highs in this veggie burger quest, I’ve also seen some lows. Some really, really deep lows. Ben would agree that the lowest point of them all was a sweet potato burger that I [secretly] hated but pretended I liked so I could convince him to eat them. What can I say? The recipe made a bunch and I HATE food waste. Oops.

Spicy Chickpea Bacon Burgers | thepajamachef.comI doubt you’ll have to waste any of these burgers though. They are good. SO good in fact, that you may not want to share them. I certainly didn’t. The burger itself is made out of chickpeas, so they’re kind of reminiscent of falafel, except with a spicy, meaty twist. They’re chewy and hearty, just as a burger should be. If spice isn’t your thing, omit the sriracha and things should be justtt fine. If you like spice, I would think some red pepper flakes or jalapenos might make a tasty addition. I like some spice, but not a ton, so I was happy with the recipe as written.

Spicy Chickpea Bacon Burgers | thepajamachef.comAs you can see from the above photo, I’m a ketchup-lover and I don’t care who knows it. I don’t style my food in ways that I wouldn’t eat it, and the naked bun looked plain so I added my condiments. 🙂 The original recipe suggested serving these burgers with a roasted garlic yogurt sauce [YUM], arugla, and red onions, all of which sounded amazing. But I used what I had, which was [a giant piece of] lettuce and ketchup. No matter how you serve these burgers, they are fab. I highly suggest you make them asap! Enjoy friends!

one year ago: Zin-Zen Chicken
two years ago: Guacamole Salsa
three years ago: Ham & Cheese Baked Pasta
four years ago: Oreo Truffles

Spicy Bacon Chickpea Burgers

  • Servings: 8
  • Print

from Running to the Kitchen

Ingredients:

  • 3 slices thick cut bacon [or 4 slices of regular bacon]
  • 3 cups chickpeas, drained and rinsed [from 2 – 15 ounce cans]
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 inch thick slice of onion [or a few green onions if you want a milder onion taste]
  • 3 tablespoons sesame seeds
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons Sriracha
  • 1/3 cup cornmeal
  •  1/2-1 teaspoon ground mustard
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • buns, optional
  • toppings: lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo, ketchup, Sriracha, honey mustard, etc.

Directions:

In a large skillet, fry bacon over medium-high heat until crisp. Place bacon on a paper towel to drain, and reserve bacon grease in the skillet. When bacon is cool, chop into small pieces.

Next, place half of the chickpeas in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times until roughly chopped. Remove to a large bowl.

Add remaining chickpeas, garlic, onion, sesame seeds, Sriracha, cornmeal, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and egg to the food processor. Process until smooth, then transfer to the bowl.

Stir chickpeas, chickpea mixture, and mayo together. Fold in bacon.

Form mixture into 8 patties, about 1/3 cup each. You can use a scoop or your wet, clean hands. Place on a lined baking sheet and cover, then refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

When ready to cook, heat skillet with reserved bacon grease over medium-high heat. When hot, cook for 3-4 minutes per side until crispy and golden brown.

Serve on a bun with desired burger toppings, or serve fritter-style with a dipping sauce [honey mustard, mayo + ketchup + Sriracha, garlic yogurt sauce, etc.].