Chef Tom’s Cure for Boring Breakfasts

Breakfast does NOT have to be boring. Once you get familiar with how to prepare and assemble these breakfast bowls, with their interchangeable ingredients, you can get creative and switch out ingredients to your little tongue’s desire.

Go to Africa with eggplant and peanuts. Go to Mexico with guacamole and chilies. Go to Eastern Europe with Bulgarian feta or grated Kashkaval cheese, and some sautéed cabbage and caraway. Go to Asia with seasoned rice vinegar in the scrambled eggs, roasted bok choy, and a drizzle of sesame oil and Hoisin. 

Middle Eastern Savory Breakfast Bowl

Middle Eastern Savory Breakfast Bowls

Serves 6

Ingredients:
12 eggs

8 oz. feta, crumbled

1 pound cooked bacon

1 bunch kale

1 pint cherry toms

3 firm-ripe avocados

1 pound sweet potato, cut into ½-inch chunks

1/2 large onion

1 whole lemon

6 tablespoons pomegranate seeds

good olive oil

good hummus

za’atar bread

Directions:

Remove tough stems from the kale and slice the leaves into ½-inch ribbons. Sautee the kale in a little olive oil until well-wilted and soft. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Thickly slice the onion. Chunk the sweet potato. Add onions and potatoes and a bit of olive oil together. Season and roast at 350 until soft and brown. Keep warm.

Roast the cherry toms with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper, in the same 350 oven, until soft but not collapsed.

Halve the avocados and peel. Spritz with lemon water.

Soft scramble the eggs and add the feta last minute.

Heat six big cereal bowls.

Assemble:

Soft Scramble with Feta

Sweet Potato with Onions

½ avocado, drizzled with good olive oil

2-3 slices Bacon

Roasted Tomatoes

Sautéed Kale

Dollop of good Hummus

Pomegranate seeds for garnish

Serve with toasted za’atar bread (slice of crusty bread, buttered, sprinkled with za’atar).

Savory Oats and Eggs

Savory Oats and Eggs

Serves 6

Ingredients:
2 cups oats, cooked according to package

Chicken stock

6 soft poached egg

3 avocados

6 small roasted tomatoes

1 cup feta cheese

6 tablespoons toasted pumpkin seeds

12 slices crisped bacon

Some good pesto

Directions:

Cook the oatmeal according to directions, but replace the water with chicken stock. Add a bit of salt to taste. Set aside.

Poach 6 eggs until firm-soft, and spoon out with a slotted spoon onto a clean kitchen towel to drain. Roast off the tomatoes, seasoned with olive oil and salt and pepper, in a 350 oven for 5 minutes or until starting to soften. Remove and set aside. Turn off oven.

Halve the avocados and slice into ½-inch slices. Dry toast the pumpkin seeds in an empty frying pan over medium heat until fragrant and starting to brown.

Warm the cooked bacon in the cooling oven.

Build your (pre-heated) bowls:

Savory oatmeal
Sliced avocado

Tomato

Bacon

Egg

Top with cheese and nuts and a dollop of pesto

Spring Breakfast Salad Bowl

Spring Breakfast Salad Bowl

Serves 6

Ingredients:
3 avocados, halved and sliced thin

½ pound asparagus

6 poached eggs

1 cup cooked fresh peas

1 bunch radishes, trimmed, halved and roasted

1 large sweet potato, cut into ½-inch chunks

12 pieces cooked bacon

1 large head of butter Lettuce

Juice of one lemon

good olive oil

salt and pepper

Directions:

Roast off the sweet potato with a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper, in a 350 oven for 15 minutes, or until easily pierced with the sharp tip of a knife.

Roast off the radishes, tomatoes and the asparagus in separate piles on the same tray, seasoned with olive oil and salt and pepper, in a 350 oven for 5 minutes or until starting to soften. Remove and set aside.

Poach 6 eggs until firm-soft, and spoon out with a slotted spoon onto a clean kitchen towel to drain.

Place peas in a small bowl, cover with water, and nuke for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Rinse the lettuce and dry carefully, but well. Tear leaves into 1-inch pieces. Toss with a drizzle of olive oil, the lemon juice, and season with salt and pepper.

Build your (pre-heated) bowls:

Seasoned lettuce

Asparagus

Tomato

Radishes

Sweet potato

Bacon

Avocado

Top with a poached egg

=CTH=

Chef Tom is currently Resident Chef for a small tech firm in San Francisco. He also teaches cooking classes, caters small parties and leads overseas culinary tours. His specialty for the last twelve years has been cooking for people with food allergies and sensitivities. His motto is “Food should give you pleasure, not pressure.”

Check him out at www.hippkitchen.com