Sunday Contemplation

"If It Makes You Smile, Buy It or Marry It."

Breakfast Cure

I love the food blog In The Kitchn. Their recipes are spot-on and fit a busy lifestyle. The following Bean Chilaquiles with Avocado & Queso Fresco is a great example of how ease of preparation does not necessarily sacrifice great flavor and it now has top billing on my regular breakfast rotation. At first glance the recipe looks like a jumble of leftover taco ingredients, but I promise the resulting dish is anything but...This is for you KT xoxo. Enjoy!

Bean Chilaquiles with Avocado & Queso Fresco

Serves 1, but can easily be expanded for any number of people

1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 small corn tortillas, cut into triangles
1/2 cup salsa
1/4 cup pinto beans, black beans, or other leftover beans
1 large egg
1/4 avocado, cut into slices 
2 tablespoons crumbled queso fresco (or substitute your favorite cheese) I used feta cheese.
Hot sauce, optional
Roughly chopped cilantro
Pour the oil into a cast iron or stainless steel skillet and warm over medium-high heat until shimmery. Add tortilla triangles and fry, stirring and flipping constantly, until browned and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes.
Pour the salsa over the tortillas, and cook, stirring, until the tortillas soak up most of the salsa, about 1 minute. Add the beans and stir to heat.
Push the chilaquiles to one side of the pan and lower the heat to medium. Crack the egg toward the middle of the pan. Partially cover the pan and cook until the egg whites are set and the yolk is as done as you like it. Alternatively, whisk the egg in a bowl before adding it to the pan and make scrambled eggs instead.
Use a thin spatula to carefully scoop the fried egg and the chilaquiles onto a plate. Garnish with the avocado slices, queso fresco, hot sauce, and cilantro. Eat immediately.

Recipe Notes:

• Chilaquiles are a great way to use up any little leftover bits in your fridge, like shredded chicken or pork, crumbled bacon, roasted vegetables, and tofu.
Recipe originally published August 2006

Sunday Contemplation

                                                                                                                                                            ©Quinnton Barringer

How did it get so late so soon? It’s night before it’s afternoon. December is here before it’s June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?
~ Dr. Seuss

Tax Deja Hell

Haven't heard from me? Imagining me on some exotic vaca?? Or perhaps busy in the studio working on my commission (due in May!!)....maybe working out a new recipe I am mastering to share on the blog? Guess again and this time picture me caught up in a swirling cauldron of tax insanity. Yep, that would be accurate. Say a tax prayer would ya?

Sunday Contemplation

                                                                                                                                                 Photo credit - Victoria Copeland

"The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time is now."            
                                                                                  - Old Proverb

Sunday Contemplation

"My life is full of mistakes. They're like pebbles that make a good road" 
                             - Ceramic artist Beatrice Wood