Monday, February 19, 2018

Not necessarily a food blog

First off all of you know that this is not necessarily a food blog, although we do like food and have been known to talk about it, Cindy and I have been known to sometimes review restaurants that we love, and sometimes even have a Mixed Review on those that only half of us like.

My wife Cindy and I frowning at the camera while dining out
Cindy and Jimmy's sometimes mixed reviews
On my last post Guinea pigs...maybe? I mentioned an egg casserole that Cindy's Uncle Larry thought was fabulous even though his wife had never even made it yet. But to her credit she did possess the recipe.

I have been completely overwhelmed with requests for this recipe since that post, and to not disappoint the both of you who asked, here is my interpretation of Cindy's newly acquired recipe from how I took it, and also the actual recipe in Cindy's words as read from her Aunt Midges newly acquired recipe card.

And since Cindy has never made it yet I have no problem sharing the same recipe that Midge had never made before she cooked it for us. Because I am here to tell you that it was really good, and the recipe looks really simple even for a food taster/not food cooker like myself.

After I had to get down onto my knees and beg for Cindy to share her new recipe before she had tried it out for herself. I was sure that she would gladly give it to me, but at first she said No, there is no way I'm sharing this recipe so soon, but when I said Valerie asked about it and then Patti also wanted to know if we would share, Cindy said "Why didn't you say that in the first place!" And told me where she had the recipe secretly hidden right there in plain view. I hate to admit that I had looked for the recipe earlier when she was gone to town, but I never thought to look right there in plain sight.

Here is my take on what to do with this recipe:

Hearty Breakfast Egg Bake according to Jimmy:

First thing you do is to gather up the fixins, the day before you want to serve this dish.

You will need about a pound and a half of bulk sausage or ground turkey,  3 cups of thawed out frozen hash browns, 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese, 8 eggs, a can of cream of mushroom soup, and about 3/4 cup of canned milk.

A red flaming skillet sitting upon a white stove
Be careful to not overcook the meat
Now you take the meat and throw it in a skillet, cook it up till it looks good to you and I'd drain off any grease. Now you put the cooked meat in a baking dish. I'm not much on hash browns but they are really good here, so this is where you layer the hash browns and cheese on top of the meat.

Take everything else and whisk it all together, you can get creative here with extra ingredients if you want, but I have been told to follow recipes the first time and adjust the next time, but I like green chilies so I'm tempted to add some into the mixture. Now you pour this mixture into the baking dish and place it into the refrigerator and leave it right there until morning.

The next morning or afternoon you take the dish out of the fridge and set it on the counter for at least half an hour before cooking it. Don't be tempted to cook this dish cold! Cindy has suggested something about an explosion of cold egg if you do this, I don't know if she is kidding or not but I don't think it's worth getting egg on your face to find out, and you have waited since yesterday anyways so you should be able to make it another thirty minutes. Just set it on the counter and walk away.

After the proper wait time you now uncover the dish and place it into the oven. Cook it at 350 for a little less than an hour, or until it looks good, you can check it with knife and when the blade comes out clean and not slimy or wet when you poke it into the dish, this means it's done.

Now let it cool on top of the stove or on the counter for at least ten minutes before cutting it, it should be ready after you place it on the table and gather everyone around, you know just getting everyone sat down at the table will take more than ten minutes.

This is supposed to serve 8, but you know as well as I do this all depends on the portion sizes, and how many helpings everyone takes.

Now for those of you who want the proper version that Cindy provided, this is what Cindy's recipe looks like.

Egg Casserole in a clear baking dish ready to be served
Egg Casserole ready to eat.
Hearty Breakfast Egg Bake

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pound - Bulk pork sausage / or Ground Turkey

3 cups - frozen shredded Hash brown potatoes (thawed)

2 cups - Shredded cheddar cheese

8 - Eggs

1 can - Cream of mushroom soup (10 3/4 oz)

3/4 cup - Evaporated milk

Directions

Cook Sausage or Ground Turkey, and transfer to a greased 13" x 9" x 2" baking dish.

Sprinkle the meat with the hash browns and cheese.

Whisk the remaining ingredients together and pour over the top.

Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next day when you are ready to begin the baking process:

Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes. It is done when a knife inserted comes out clean.

Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.

Yield: 8 servings.

Now for the best part, serve it up and enjoy!

Cindy also was the one who suggested adding green chilies, onions, or other similar ingredients to taste as an option.

I hope you enjoy the recipe and if I were you I'd most likely use Cindy's recipe over mine, because as I said earlier I'm more of a food taster than a food cooker.

30 comments:

  1. I'm happy to admit I was wrong thinking I might like this. I appreciate that you all do and I hope Val and Pattie do too, but it's definitely not for me. For starters, I hate hash browns.
    I'll stick with my own version, which is usually yesterday's left over veggies mashed together, or just sliced, mix in 2-3 beaten eggs and a half cup of grated tasty cheese, pour into ovenproof shallow pan, I use a non-stick one, sprinkle extra tasty cheese on top and bake at 350 until set.

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    1. Like you I have never really cared for hash browns but they weren't overwhelming in this recipe, I am sure that substitutions can be made to eliminate the hash browns too.

      I like the sound of your recipe version, it is a perfect way to deal with leftovers.

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  2. Wow, I can't wait to get started but first I have to go shopping. Like River I do a lot of what the English call bubble and squeak, which is what she described. I will let you know how I get on with the new recipe when the shopping order is delivered.


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    1. Valerie, I look forward to hearing your opinion on this recipe, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Like I said to River your Bubble and Squeak sounds good to me, like a recipe that I would really like.

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  3. Yummy! I like the idea of adding some green chilies and/or onions. Thanks for going to the trouble to make this and share the recipe.

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    1. Annie, I think green chilies and onions too will be a perfect addition to this recipe, I have a feeling that when Cindy makes it this is exactly what she will do.

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  4. The mushroom soup in the recipe surprised me but I can see how it could work well with the other ingredients. Sounds very good.

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    1. Jean, Cindy said the exact same thing you did about the cream of mushroom soup when she first got the recipe too, good thing we didn't try to recreate the dish without a recipe ha ha.

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  5. It sounds really good and this is a wonderful way to do breakfast. I'm in. Thanks for the recipe.

    Have a fabulous Presidents Day. ☺

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    1. Sandee, I like the idea of breakfast mixed all together like this myself, you are very welcome my friend.

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  6. I've made many variations of egg casseroles. Another one involves using crescent rolls as a base, but without the hash browns. I usually only use a half pound of sausage or ham in my recipes, but add veggies to make it more healthy.

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    1. Bijoux that sounds like a really good variation, especially if you aren't fond of hash browns, and adding some veggies in works for me too.

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  7. It sounds like 'breakfast in a dish' which means it sounds pretty darn good.

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    1. "Breakfast in a dish" I like the sound of that Delores, I do like breakfast anytime.

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  8. Ooh, ooh, thank you Cindy and Jimmy so much. Got it bookmarked. This sounds perfect for some company I am expecting. Love the idea of assembling the night before. Guess I will have to make them guinea pigs also for that would be a lot for one person as a test subject.

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    1. You are so welcome Patti, you are correct this would be a lot for a one person test, I have had a lot of good luck being a guinea pig and I have a feeling your test subjects are going to be very happy.

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  9. I'm sure it's good, but I'm too hungry in the morning to wait that long.

    Funny how women stick together, one mention of a few lady bloggers and she cooperates. Mrs. Cranky has some wonderful recipes, but no one can read them.

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    1. Joe, it would be good for breakfast but the cooking time makes it a better brunch dish, heck I'd even eat it for supper.

      Yes Sir those girls do stick together...always it seems, and I'm willing to bet that they can even read Mrs. Cranky's writing.

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  10. If I wasn't on a diet I would make that! It sounds good. (Much better than its title.)

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    1. Liz, I wonder if a name change is in order or if this is an official name? I bet the name has changed as many times as some of the added ingredients have :)

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  11. This is one of the funniest recipes I've ever had the good fortune to read :D

    It sounds wonderful to me - I love anything with cheese and egg in it, and mushroom soup is always a good addition. Thanks, Jimmy and Cindy, for sharing!

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    1. Jenny, I am happy that you enjoyed the humor we tried to add, there is no sense in having a boring recipe in my opinion. We were actually glad to share with you all.

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  12. It sounds pretty good, but I don't know if I'd put that much effort into breakfast. I'm more likely to toss out a Little Debbie Swiss Roll, and save my culinary efforts for supper or lunch. That reminds me, I should put Little Debbie Swiss Rolls on my shopping list. I haven't bought them since both boys went off to college.

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    1. Val, Lunch or supper would be a good time for this dish, and if you had any breakfast leftovers (Little Debbie Swiss Rolls) then dessert would be made too.

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  13. I love everything in this. I mean, you had me at hashbrowns but then you lost me at let it sit for 30 minutes before cooking.
    Now im hungry.
    Lisa

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    1. Lisa, I have been told that the thirty minute wait is an important part, so I wouldn't skip this part. Besides it is well worth the wait.

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  14. My cooking skills are limited to microwaves, toasters, and being able to lay something on a pan at the right temp and time

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    1. Adam, This recipe is easy enough I think you can handle it Buddy.

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  15. I love this recipe and definitely plan to give it a try, along with adding some extra cheese! Thanks for sharing! Hugs...RO

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    1. RO, That is one great thing about this recipe, you can make so many different adjustments to suit your taste and it's still going to be good. I'm happy that it is one you will like.

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