Scrambled eggs + bacon (or ham, sausage, veggies, etc!) + lots of melty cheese all stuffed inside a crisp tortilla = the breakfast quesadilla. It’s a quick and easy breakfast/lunch/dinner option that is filling and delicious. I love adding fresh chopped chives (they go so well with eggs) and cilantro and pickled jalapeños to mine. My kids don’t love the “green things” inside but they will request a pile of sliced avocado on the side. Salsa and sour cream are also a must.
Breakfast Quesadillas
INGREDIENTS
large (I used 10-inch) flour tortillas butter eggs (I used 2 large eggs per tortilla), whisked salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste bacon, cooked and crumbled (or diced ham/Canadian bacon/sausage or make it vegetarian with sautéed spinach, mushrooms, red pepper or black or pinto beans, etc.) Mexican cheese blend, shredded (or cheddar, Monterey/Pepper/Colby Jack, etc.)
for serving: salsa or pico de gallo or hot sauce sliced avocado or guacamole sour cream
DIRECTIONS
To scramble the eggs, melt a bit of butter in a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Add the eggs and cook, stirring frequently, until the eggs are just set. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Set the eggs aside and wipe the pan clean. Return the pan to medium heat and place a tortilla in the pan. Sprinkle the surface of the tortilla with shredded cheese. Top one half of the tortilla with scrambled eggs and bacon (or ham, etc.) and any other add-ins such as cilantro and chives. Once the cheese has started to melt, fold the other side of the tortilla over the eggs. Continue cooking, flipping the tortilla partway through, until the cheese is melted and the outside of the tortilla is golden and crisp.
Remove the quesadilla from the heat, slice, and serve with salsa, avocado, sour cream, etc.
The weekend before I had tried a cookie recipe that sounded so promising and was just so disappointing (overly sweet, crumbly and dry, blech) so I was thrilled when I took my first bite of these crisp on the outside, soft and buttery in the center, packed with chewy coconut cookies. The dough was totally delicious as well. My husband claims to hate all things coconut but ate quite a few. My kids went nuts for them too.
A couple things to note: Don’t try and use shredded sweetened coconut here, you want the unsweetened coconut flakes. You can make these cookies bite-size and petite or huge (I went with something in the middle and yielded ~2 dozen)- approx. baking times for different sized cookies are listed below. And see the explanation in the note as to why we’re adding a little water to the dough, and how to adjust yours if needed.
INGREDIENTS
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter 2 Tbsp. water 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp. sugar 3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar 1 large egg 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract 1 1/4 cups + 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour 1 tsp. baking soda slightly heaped 1/2 tsp. flaky sea salt (such as Maldon) or 1/4 tsp. table salt 4 cups dried, unsweetened coconut chips (I used these)
DIRECTIONS
In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. It will melt, then foam, then turn clear golden and finally start to turn brown and smell nutty. Stir frequently, scraping up any bits from the bottom as you do. Don’t take your eyes off the pot as it seems to take forever (more than 5 minutes) but then turns dark very quickly. Once it is a deeply fragrant, almost nut-brown color, remove from heat and pour butter and all browned bits at the bottom into a measuring cup. Adding 2 tablespoons water* should bring the butter amount back up to 1 cup. Chill browned butter in the fridge until it solidifies, about 1 to 2 hours. You can hurry this along in the freezer, but check back and stir often so it doesn’t freeze unevenly solid.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat.
Scrape chilled browned butter and any bits into a large mixing bowl. Add both sugars and beat the mixture together until fluffy. Add egg and beat until combined, scraping down bowl as needed, then vanilla. Whisk flour, baking soda and salt together in a separate bowl. Pour half of flour mixture into butter mixture and mix until combined, then add remaining flour and mix again, scraping down bowl if needed. Add coconut chips in two parts as well.
Scoop dough into 1 or 2+ tablespoon size balls and arrange a few with a lot of room for spreading on first baking sheet; use the back of a spoon or your fingers to flatten the dough slightly. Bake first tray of cookies; 1 tablespoon scoops will take 10 to 11 minutes; 2 tablespoon scoops, 12 to 14 minutes, the 2-inch scoop used at the bakery, 14 to 16 minutes; take the cookies out when they’re deeply golden all over. If cookies have not spread as much as you see above, stir 2 teaspoons more water into cookie dough, mixing thoroughly, before baking off another tray. (See note below for full explanation.) This should do the trick, but if it does not, repeat the same with your next batch. Once you’ve confirmed that you have the water level correct, bake remaining cookies.
Cool cookies on baking sheet for 1 to 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Cookies keep for up to one week at room temperature. Extra dough can be stored in the fridge for several days or in the freezer for a month or more.
*About the water: Browned butter is one of my favorite things to eat in cookies like things and least favorite things to write cookie recipes for, because when you brown the butter, water volume is lost, but not all types of butter contain the same amount of water. I find that for most standard American grocery store butters (I was using Trader Joe’s store brand here, but the equivalent would be any non-European style butter), 1 tablespoon of water per stick (1/2 cup) of butter is a sufficient replacement. However, should you find that your first batch of cookies is too thick, a little extra water is all you’ll need to get the texture right. It sounds scary, but I promise is as simple as can be.
Makes 1-3 dozen cookies, depending on size.
(Recipe from Smitten Kitchen, originally from The City Bakery)
These tuna melts are another frequently made dish around here that I’ve never shared before. I haven’t included amounts because I never measure and it all depends on how many people you’re serving and how much they eat. (And how you like your tuna- light or heavy on the mayo, extra pickles or onion, etc.) About the pickles… trust me on this one- diced dill pickles make tuna salad so much better! My husband is the one who first convinced me to add them and now it’s the only way we make it.
I’ve actually had an aversion to tuna since my last pregnancy (which ended ~2 1/2 years ago). Usually my many aversions ware off quickly after delivery, but for some reason tuna still isn’t very appetizing to me. So I make these same melts with canned salmon (I usually buy it at Trader Joe’s, which is where I also get our favorite kosher dill pickles) and they’re just as, maybe more, delicious!
Tuna (or Salmon) Melts
INGREDIENTS
canned tuna (or salmon), liquid drained mayonnaise (I often use half mayo and half plain Greek yogurt) kosher dill pickles, diced + pickle juice freshly chopped chives (if I have them) salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste English muffins, lightly toasted (or sandwich bread, sourdough, etc.) tomato, sliced Cheddar cheese (or Muenster), grated
DIRECTIONS
Place the tuna (or salmon) in a medium bowl and break it apart with a fork. Add just enough mayonnaise (and yogurt, if using) to coat the tuna and mix it together with the fork. Stir in some diced dill pickles and a drizzle of pick juice (trust me, it adds great flavor!) and fresh chopped chives (optional, but recommended). If the mixture seems a bit dry, add more mayonnaise. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.
Preheat oven broiler. Place the lightly toasted english muffin halves on a baking sheet. Top each with the tuna mixture, then a slice or two of tomato, and sprinkle with grated cheese.
Broil for 1-2 minutes (watch them closely so they don’t burn!) until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Garnish with extra chives (optional) and serve immediately.
I love a good egg sandwich and this is my fancy English muffin version! (Yes, sometimes I just butter an english muffin and throw on a fried egg and cheese and that’s delicious too.) Although they’re messier to eat, I prefer scrambled eggs for my breakfast sandwiches because you get a bit of yolk with every bite and the eggs are softer and creamier. These scrambled eggs get topped with melty cheese and paired with ham (or bacon, avocado, your choice…), tomato, arugula, and a lemon-chive-mayo, all piled on a toasty english muffin.
My Favorite English Muffin Breakfast Sandwich
INGREDIENTS
2 english muffins, toasted 1 tsp. butter 2- 3 large eggs, whisked (I find that 3 large scrambled eggs for 2 english muffin sandwiches is just right) salt and freshly ground black pepper , to taste 1 Tbsp. mayonnaise squeeze lemon juice fresh chives, chopped 2 slices ham (or Canadian bacon, bacon, or avocado, etc.) 2 slices sharp Cheddar cheese (or a fancier cheese like Manchego) tomato, sliced handful arugula salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
DIRECTIONS
Melt butter in a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Add the whisked eggs and cook, stirring frequently with a spatula, until the eggs are scrambled and just cooked. (I turn off the heat while they are still a little wet to avoid over-cooking.) Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper and sprinkle with chives.
Meanwhile, lightly toast the english muffins and prepare the mayonnaise by combining the mayo with a squeeze of lemon juice and pinch of chives.
Preheat oven broiler.
Spread half of the mayonnaise on the bottoms of the english muffins and top each with a slice of ham (or bacon, avocado, etc.), half of the eggs, and a slice of cheese. Place under the oven broiler for about a minute, just until the cheese is melted.
Spread the remaining mayo on the top halves of the english muffins. Top the melted cheese with sliced tomato, a bit of arugula and the top of the english muffin. If needed, broil the entire sandwich for another 30 seconds to toast the top. Serve warm.
These next few recipes are some of our house favorites (the things we make so often that we don’t actually need a recipe). They’re simple, but I figure worth sharing since we think they’re delicious enough to eat on repeat. Starting with the most-requested pizza around here- pepperoni, mushroom, and black olive. Homemade crust and freshly grated mozarella and Parmesan, as well as really good pizza sauce (I recommend Rao’s) make it extra delicious. (And of course, I too use store-bought flatbread, pita, etc. when I’m not in the mood for making dough.) I admit, I’m more of a veggie pizza girl so my favorite veggie pizza recipe will be coming soon as well!
Pepperoni, Mushroom, and Black Olive Pizza
INGREDIENTS
1 recipe pizza dough pizza sauce (we love Rao’s marinara or Rao’s pizza sauce) mozarella cheese, shredded (~ 8-oz. per pizza) sliced pepperoni sliced mushrooms (button or cremini) sliced black olives freshly grated Parmesan cheese (or Pecorino Romano) crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Spread pizza sauce on top of prepared crust. Top with pepperoni, mushrooms, black olives, mozarella, and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Bake pizza for 10-12 minutes until the crust is puffed and golden brown and the cheese is bubbling. Slice and serve with crushed red pepper flakes (optional).
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