Homemade Hash Browns

Breakfast for dinner is one of my favorite dinner meals. I'm not a morning person so about all I can muster for breakfast in the morning is oatmeal or cereal or toast. I just don't have it in me to make eggs or pancakes or French toast. So we have breakfast for dinner--cheesy eggs, bacon, and homemade hash browns. I've tried making hash browns myself before, but they've always come out mushy, never crisp. This time I did a little research and then had Eric do the actual frying because he's a thousand times better at frying stuff than me. The result was perfect hash browns.

Homemade hash browns, bacon, and cheesy scrambled eggs.

Ingredients:
2 large russet potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Directions:
Crispy hash browns depend on getting the starch out of the potatoes--as well as excess moisture. Peel the potatoes. Using a grater, shred the potatoes and place them into a container of cold water. Stir a couple of times to dissolve the excess starch. Change the water and repeat.

You can drain the moisture a few different ways. If you own a potato ricer, place the shredded potato in there to squeeze out the liquid, just don't squeeze the potatoes through the ricer. Or place the shredded potatoes in a salad spinner. However, if you don't own any of these gadgets (I don't) you can still make crispy hash browns. I put my shredded potatoes in a mesh colander and used a small plate to press the water out of the potatoes. Then I used paper towel to squeeze out the rest. This process worked very well for me.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the shredded potato, spreading it out across the bottom of the skillet and making sure it's not more than 1/2 inch thick. Once the bottom has become a gold brown (about 5 to 7 minutes), flip the potatoes over. To make flipping easier, Eric cut the hash browns into quarters and flip each slice separately.

Once both sides are a golden brown, transfer hash browns to a paper towel lined plate to absorb any excess oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy!

~Krissy

More Breakfast Recipes:
French Toast in a Mug  
Individual Bacon and Cheese Quiches
Monkey Bread Muffins  
Pumpkin Oatmeal
Quiche in a Mug

Individual Bacon and Cheese Quiche

I made this recipe because I had limited food in the house (it is once again time to go grocery shopping--I hate grocery shopping) but I happened to have everything I needed to make these mini quiches. Little did I know just how freaking amazing these things are! Cream cheese and eggs, a match made in heaven! When I asked Eric what he thought of them, he just looked down at his empty plate, chewing his last bite, then looked up at me again. Enough said.

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
5 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
1 can Pillsbury Grands refrigerated biscuits (8 count)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add eggs and milk and continue to beat until well combined. Stir in cheddar cheese.

Roll out each biscuit into 5-inch rounds. Place a biscuit in a muffin cup and firmly press the dough to the bottom and sides of the tins. Sprinkle half of the crumbled bacon in the bottom of each muffin cup. Divide egg mixture evenly between the cups.

Bake for 21 to 26 minutes or until the egg filling has set and the edges of the biscuit cups are a golden brown. Sprinkle the remaining bacon on top of the mini quiches, lightly pressing it into the centers.

Remove cups from pan and serve.

Since I was only feeding Eric and myself, I didn't really want to make 8 individual quiches so I halved the recipe and made 4 quiches and 4 monkey bread muffins--dinner and dessert!

Enjoy!

~Krissy

More Quiche Recipes:
Ham and Broccoli Quiche
Spicy Sausage and Spinach Quiche
The Pizza Quiche
Quiche in a Mug

French Toast in the Mug

Warning: This is highly addictive. When I was little, I remember my mom asking my brother and me if we wanted pancakes or French toast for dinner (breakfast for dinner, is there anything better in this world?). Ken would always say pancakes. I always voted for French toast. Now I can have French toast for breakfast, dinner, or just a snack with incredible ease.

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
2 slices of bread, torn into bite-size pieces
1 egg white
1 1/2 tablespoon milk
1-2 drops of vanilla extract
cinnamon, to taste (I probably use about a tablespoon but I love cinnamon!) 
cooking spray
maple syrup, optional

Directions:
Spray the inside of a coffee mug with cooking spray. Add bread to the mug. You'll have to mash it down a little. In a small bowl, combine egg whites, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon. Pour over the bread. Let the mug sit for about a minute so the egg mixture and sink down and absorb into the bread.

Microwave for about 1 minute 20 seconds on high. However, all microwaves cook different. Start at 1 minute and progressively add 10 seconds until cooked. Add syrup if desired. Allow to cool before eating (I burnt my tongue because I was too impatient).

As it cooks in the microwave, it smells just like regular French toast.

Enjoy!

~Krissy

Check out these other mug recipes:
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread in a Mug
Quiche in a Mug
3-Ingredient Gluten-Free Mug Cake
Chocolate Chip Cookie in a Mug!
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Mug Cake
Chocolate-Hazelnut Mug Cake
Chocolate Peanut Butter Mug Cake
Fluffernutter Mug Cake
Pumpkin Mug Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting 

Quiche in a Mug

I love eggs. But I hate cleaning eggy pans. Of course, I hate cleaning pans, period. Doesn't everyone? One of the great things about this quiche in a mug, no clean up. You make it, cook it, and eat it out of the mug. Talk about a quick easy breakfast (or lunch or dinner). Now, since there isn't a crust, I guess this doesn't technically qualify as a quiche. But that's what it reminds me of. And you could add cubed bread for a deconstructed quiche. This is also a very basic recipe. You can change it up by adding different ingredients to have different eggs every morning.

I can't even begin to tell you how much I wish I knew about all these mug recipes when I was in college. I would have eaten so much better.

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 1/2 tablespoons milk
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
cooking spray
cheese, optional
onions, optional
peppers, optional
ham, optional

Directions:
Spray the inside of the mug with the cooking spray. Scrabble the eggs and milk in the mug. Salt and pepper to taste. Add whatever other ingredients you'd like. Thyme, oregano, basil, rosemary . . . I always add cheese--cheddar being my favorite. If you have some green onions or peppers lying around, dice them and toss them in. Or if you have any leftover ham, sausage, or chicken, add it too. Just make sure it's all precooked. I love using quiches as a way to recycle leftovers into a new dish. They're also fun to experiment with.

Microwave on high for approximately 1 minute 20 seconds. All microwaves cook differently so you may need to cook it a little longer or a little shorter. I recommend starting with 1 minute and go up by 10 seconds from there.

Here are some quiche ideas to inspire you:
The Pizza Quiche
Spicy Sausage Spinach Quiche
Ham and Broccoli Quiche

Enjoy!

~Krissy

Check out these other mug recipes:
French Toast in a Mug
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread in a Mug
3-Ingredient Gluten-Free Mug Cake
Chocolate Chip Cookie in a Mug!
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Mug Cake
Chocolate-Hazelnut Mug Cake
Chocolate Peanut Butter Mug Cake
Fluffernutter Mug Cake
Pumpkin Mug Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting