Bacon Egg and Cheese Hashbrown Cups

These cups came out delicious. 

Next time I am adding sausage for more flavor!

Bacon Egg and Cheese Hashbrown Cups

6 large eggs
1/4 cup sour cream 
1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 20 oz package refrigerated hash browns
2 Tbsp butter, melted
6 slices bacon, cooked and finely crumbled
1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded 

1/2 cup sharp cheddar, shredded for topping

Preheat the oven to 400°F and spray a regular 12 cup muffin tin* with cooking spray. Set aside.

In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, sour cream, garlic and black pepper.

Add the hash browns, melted butter, crumbled bacon and 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese. Mix well.

Divide the mixture between the muffin cups. I used an ice cream scoop to fill the cups.

Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese on top.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden. Rest for 5 minutes, then run a knife around the edges to loosen.

Top with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of bacon crumbles if desired.

* I used my jumbo muffin pan which makes 6 muffins. 

Bacon Egg and Cheeseburger on a Tater Tot Waffle Bun

I was looking for a picture today and ran across this one. I know what some people will say, but I don't make this one often. My hubby loved it and would love one every week! I dusted off the waffle maker and used tater tots to make a waffle bun**. Thus the Bacon, Egg and Cheeseburger on a Tater Tot Bun was born... at my house at least! Here's a good, but different burger mix to incorporate some sausage into your burger.

Beef and Pork Burger Patties

1lb Italian Sausage, de-cased
1lb ground beef

Salt, Pepper and Garlic Powder
16 small slider buns, dinner rolls or Tater Tot Waffle Bun

Onion, diced very small

2 cups cheddar cheese, grated

In a large bowl, combine sausage and beef. Using your hands, blend the two meats together.* Spread the onions on a heavy duty cookie or baking sheet. Using your hands, crumble and spread the meat mixture over the onion and press down. If you try to spread it by pushing the meat, the onions move and gather on the ends. Sprinkle generously with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 15 minute. Cooking time will vary according to your preferred doneness. Internal temperature should be 160˚F for medium. Remove from the oven and pour off the excess grease. Sprinkle with cheese and return to oven long enough to melt the cheese. Let rest for a minute, then slice into squares using a pizza cutter or knife. Slice the rolls and top the sliders with your favorite condiments. 

*Or form into patties and cook or grill. Use the burgers as the base on a tater tot waffle and top with bacon and egg.

** For the waffle bun...
Defrost some tater tots a bit. Preheat your waffle maker. Spray down top and bottom with cooking spray. Place tater tots on the cooking surface on the bottom. Close tightly and lock. Cook until golden brown as pictured above.

Salt Cured Egg Yolks

I am participating in a year long Food In Jars Mastery Challenge hosted by Marisa from Food in Jars, and the February challenge was Salt Preserving! There were a host of ways to use salt. I have several ways that I used it, including this method of salt curing egg yolks! Salt curing egg yolks, solidifies and preserved the yolk. There is no definite "shelf" life, but in the recipe/instructions I followed, the author commented that he had some he had stored up to a year. The yolks were still good.

There really isn't a need for a recipe. You just need a container, eggs, salt and cheesecloth. I followed the instructions provided by Hank Shaw of Hunter~Angler~ Gardener~Cook. It is a very simple process. The hardest part is waiting which takes patience, something I am short on sometimes! 

Separate the yolks from the whites.
(Save the whites for another recipe.)
Pour a bed of salt, and nestle the yolk in the salt.

Cover completely with salt, cover loosely

and refrigerate for a week.
I put a lid on the bowl and only sealed one side.

After a week in salt, the yolk is firm,
but still a little sticky.
I brushed the salt off of the yolk, wrapped it in cheesecloth
and hung it from a shelf in the refrigerator.

The second egg is much darker than the first!

I rinsed this one, wrapped it in cheesecloth
and hung it from a shelf in the refrigerator.

I didn't rinse the first cured yolk

before completing the drying process,
so you see some salt in the yolk.

Rich Grated Cured Egg Yolk
I sprinkled some on some buttered toast.
Some suggest sprinkling over pasta like cheese.
Delicious!

Ham & Cheese Biscuit Pie

This pie is wonderful to use up leftover biscuits and ham. You can substitute your favorite biscuits, meats and cheeses! The combinations are endless! You can even change the savory flavors to sweet ones! The choice is yours!

1 package Bisquick Garlic Cheese Biscuits,
   (prepared following package directions)

10 slices Ham, chopped

1 cup Cheddar Cheese
¼ cup Parmesan Cheese

1 cup milk

2 eggs, beaten

2 T butter, melted

¼ tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp Worcestershire sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a 9inch pie pan with cooking spray. Cut biscuits in half and line the pan with the bottom slices. Fill in gaps with pieces of the tops. Sprinkle hams pieces over the top, then sprinkle with cheddar and parmesan cheeses. Mix milk and eggs and pour over the pie. Crumble the tops of the biscuits and spread over the pie. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the egg mixture is set. (or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean) Mix butter, garlic and Worcestershire sauce. Drizzle butter mixture over the biscuit crumbles and bake another 2-3 minutes. Serve warm.

Sausage and Cheese Mini Quiche

1 lb Mild Sausage
1/3 cup Onion, chopped
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1/4 cup Italian Bread Crumbs
5 Eggs
3 tsp Dijon Mustard
1/2 tsp Sweet Basil, dried
2 cups Mozzarella Cheese
½ cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
Salt & Black Pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook sausage, onion and garlic in a heavy skillet over medium heat until meat is brown; drain. In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs, meat mixture, egg, 3 tsp mustard, parsley, cheeses, salt and pepper. Spoon meat mixture into mini muffin pans. Baked for about 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.

Note: Serve with your favorite hot mustard or horseradish…

Breakfast Bowl... Cheese Grits with Sausage and a Fried Egg!

Very easy breakfast for supper! 

1 cup stone-ground grits
4 cups beef stock

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese

6 sausage patties, cooked and chopped

1 egg, fried over easy, per bowl

Make the grits in a large heavy saucepan. Bringing 4 cups of beef stock to a boil. Whisk in the grits a 1/4 cup at a time. When you have added all the grits, reduce the heat to a very low simmer and cook over low heat for 35 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally at first and more frequently toward the end. When done, taste and add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in cheese and sausage. Place each portion in a bowl and top with a soft fried egg.

Deviled Eggs

A few weeks ago, I had a request to make deviled eggs for a lady at church. She presented me with a dozen eggs. I told her, "You do know that makes 24 deviled eggs?" She said, "Yeah! What's your point???" LOL She has always said that she loves my deviled eggs! I guess so!!!

6 eggs, hard cooked and peeled

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon yellow mustard

1 teaspoon sweet pickle relish (optional)**

pinch of salt 

fresh ground black pepper

Cut eggs in half. Arrange egg whites cut side up on a serving plate and put the yolks in a small mixing bowl. Mash yolks with fork then stir in mayonnaise, mustard, pickle and salt and pepper. Mash and stir all ingredients together well. 

* I insert a plastic bag into a cup or plastic container...

 Seal the bag releasing all the air...

Clip a corner of the bag with scissors and squeeze to fill each egg.

 Oops! The bag split... LOL

Bunches of eggs... on a mission! 

Ready to be packed up and go to Miss Cyndi's house! :-)

*If you are doing a small batch, just spoon a little bit of the mixture into each egg white half. Sprinkle eggs with red pepper or paprika, if desired. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.

** Tip of the day... If you have someone that doesn't like the pickle chunks, or kids that just don't like green stuff. Use pickle juice instead of the pickle relish. I do it all the time and noone ever notices! They even comment that they like mine because there isn't any pickles in it! You can do the same thing with onion!

Cornbread Pudding

After my hubby's Grandmother passed away, two different churches in the family brought food over to her house which is a tradition in the South. One of the dishes that was most talked about was the Cornbread Pudding. My daughter-in-law asked me about it, and asked if I could get her the recipe. I decided it was the perfect recipe to share here! It is an awesome casserole!

Cornbread Pudding

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 can whole kernel corn, drained

1 can cream-style corn

1 stick of butter, melted

1 package Jiffy cornbread mix

Salt and Pepper, to taste

In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Stir in cornbread mix and seasonings. Pour into a greased 13X9 baking dish.

Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center. Serve warm. 

Old Fashioned Lemon Pound Cake with Lemon Glaze

Every time I bake, my kitchen dies a little. It usually turns out alright. It's never a pretty site! These cakes fell, but my hubby says that it only makes room for frosting! :-)

1 pound Flour* = 4 cups
1 pound Sugar = 2 cups
1 pound Butter = 4 sticks
9 Eggs
1/2 teaspoon Lemon Extract

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a large mixing bowl. Cream the butter and sugar to the texture of whipped cream. Add one egg at a time until 5 have been added, beating each egg 2 1/2 minutes. Add the others 2 at a time, beating 2 1/2 minutes. Add lemon extract. Fold in flour, a cup at a time. Grease and flour cake, bundt or loaf pan. Bake at 300 degrees for 1 1/2 hours. 

* Use self-rising flour

This recipe made 2 loaf pans and a 5-inch cake pan full!

Lemon Glaze:
1½ cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, finely zested

In a small bowl mix the confectioners' sugar, lemon juice and zest together until well blended. Use a toothpick or skewer, poke holes in the cake for the glaze to soak into.
Using a large spoon, spoon the glaze onto the cake and spread it around using the back of the spoon.

Chicken Salad Sammies

Chicken Salad for Sandwiches

One of MY favorites to make and eat!!!

3 cups chopped cooked chicken

4 Eggs, boiled and chopped

1 Tbsp. sweet pickle relish

1/2 cup mayo (or more)

1/4 cup sour cream

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp basil

pepper, to taste

Mix until well blended. Store in airtight container in the frig.

For a sandwich... choose your favorite bread. Slice some tomato. Tear some lettuce leaves and assemble! Now rock out! :-)

Thanks! The Hubby took good care of me! LOL

I want to thank everyone that has wished me well this last few days. I've been out with the flu. I stayed in bed for about 62 hours straight. (I did have the flu shot back in December, which as the Dr said, may have helped shorten my recovery... but I still feel rough.)

As many of you suggested, "The Hubby" took good care of me. When I woke up sick, running a 101.5 fever, he and my son decided that this was the perfect time to build the boat they've been planning for some time now. The hubby came in stood in the bedroom doorway hollering, "Ya need anything honey??? OK, well Elliott and I will be working out back (on the back of our property). We'll have our cell phones, so call if you need anything!" All I wanted was Kleenex, a thermometer, medicine and something to drink! The next day he made me bacon, eggs and toast before going out back to work on the boat. I kept seeing a glare down the hall. He brought my plate, placed it on the far side of the bed, and tells me that he has taken a picture for me to have something to post... AND to prove that he is taking care of me!

"Anything else? Well, we're off to work on the boat for a while. We'll have our phones!"
I called down the hall, "Craig?"
He came back in, "Yes?"
"Is it the plan that the two of you stay out side until I get over this?"
He smiled and sweetly said, "Pretty much!"

BTW... Elliott took the picture of the boat in progress for me!

Simple Breakfast Food

Yesterday, I posted a picture of an egg and a piece of toast on my Facebook page, and I received 88 comments so far. For the most part, the comments were nice and positive, but some were rude and negative. I received 384 'like's and 30 people shared this simple picture of a soft fried egg and a piece of pan fried toast.

I was told that this is toad in a hole, eggs in a nest, poached egg on toast and one eyed jacks. Actually, I made French Toast for my son and had a tiny bit of egg mixture left in the bowl. It only partially covered one side, so it's basically pan fried toast. I fried the egg because I don't care for syrup with French Toast. The picture above is of what I called:

 "A farm egg and buttered white bread toast... salt and pepper.It doesn't get any fresher, simpler or better... and I love runny eggs :-)"

I received several comments of 'yuck', 'ewwww' and one 'gross'. I had to laugh. I know that the runny or 'dippy' eggs are going to cause a knee jerk response, add some people even commented on a gag reflex problem. Again, I had to laugh, until a guy questioned the southern-ness of my dish. He labeled himself 'my Yankee self' and said... 

"Not particularly southern though. My Yankee self ate this long before moving here."

What did I say about the knee jerk reactions of earlier comments? LOL If you know me... I like to laugh! I like to be funny! But, I am a Southern Belle and us Southern Belles are a loyal and passionate lot. However, I'm not about to get into a debate on who invented the egg! I simply posted this picture with this heading:

"Someone said something earlier about me and my food not being "Southern". This is my daughter-in-law, and she didn't like that!!!"

Hee Hee Hee!!!

Here's a picture for the guy that told me that I forgot the bacon. I was out of bacon, but here's some bacon and some sausage too!

I never thought a picture of a simple fried egg and a piece of toast would cause such controversy! LOL 

If you'd like to check out more breakfast recipes here at Southern With A Twist, you can use the search at the upper right of this page or check out the links attached to these pictures...

Breakfast Pie

French Toast Casserole

Easy Peasy Cinnamon Rolls

Enjoy and have a great morning!

Lynn

Spaghetti Pie

I've had a lot of people asking for the recipe for this one, so here goes...

 Filling:
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese
1 cup Mozzarella Cheese
1 lb Spaghetti Noodles, cooked and cooled

Mix eggs, sour cream and cheeses well. Toss in noodles. Place in a greased 13X9 casserole dish.

Sauce:
1 1/2 lbs Ground Chuck, seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder, browned and drained
1 - 24oz can Spaghetti Sauce, your choice
1 - 12oz can diced tomatoes, drained
1/2 tsp basil
1/4 tsp oregano
salt, pepper and garlic powder, to taste

Combine the above ingredients and simmer 15 or 20 minutes. Cool and top the noodle mixture with the sauce.

Top with an additional 1 1/2 cups Mozzarella Cheese

and 1/2 cup Cheddar Cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes

or until golden brown and bubbly.

Slice and serve... maybe with a salad and some toasty garlic bread!

Chicken n Dressin' Casserole

I wanted to share a very simple, but tasty Chicken and Dressing Casserole recipe. It is Thanksgiving in a dish! When mixing you may think that the mixture is too wet, but it cooks perfectly! This is a dressing casserole that is so moist it doesn't even need gravy... but I love gravy, so I fix some on the side anyway! 

Chicken -n- Dressin' Casserole

4 chicken breasts cooked and cubed
1 8x8 pan prepared cornbread, cooled and crumbled 
4 eggs, boiled, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 cups chicken broth
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup (I use cream of mushroom if I don't have chicken.) 

Combine all ingredients and place in a 13x9 baking dish. Bake at 350 for about 30-45 minutes or until set.

Add sage if you like, but my family cannot have it because of Crohn's and reflux triggers. 

Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf

Good down home cooking... just about every household has it's own meatloaf recipes. The possibilities are endless. This is a good basic recipe with a twist at the end. Yeah, I know I can never leave well enough alone!

Meatloaf mixture...

2 pounds ground chuck

2 eggs

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon mustard

2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

1 (1 ounce) package dry onion soup mix

1 cups Italian-style dried bread crumbs

salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

Place in the center...

1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese

1/2 cup bacon pieces
Add a sprinkle of basil, garlic powder and pepper

On top...

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Mix meatloaf ingredients in a large bowl. Place half in a loaf pan or bread pan. Make a trench in the center and place cheddar cheese and bacon inside. Cover with the other half of the meat mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes.

Remove meatloaf from oven at 40 minutes... drain off an oil/juice standing in pan and top with 1/4 cup of Parmesan Cheese. Return to oven for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and golden brown.