CRESTVIEW — Dad did several things well in the kitchen, including preparing the most important meal of the day.
Encouraging a pair of young boys to eat his scrambled eggs and home friesneeded some marketing. The eggs, a scrumptious mix of sautéed onions and sometimes green peppers, became “Indian eggs.”
Dad didn't go for any PC nonsense.
The home fries, which practically cook themselves with minimal outside interference, were naturally cowboy potatoes. I guess today they'd be cowperson potatoes.
Together the two met in peace on the Great Plains of our plates.
Dad's bacon didn't need a fancy name. What more can you do with bacon, after all?
As my brother, Evan, learned from neighbors in Tennessee, where he now lives, there's bacon crack, with brown sugar and mustard.
Appalachia meets the Wild West in this breakfast for a family of four.
Bacon Crack
Ingredients:
1 pound thick-cut bacon
Approximately 1/4 cup brown sugar
Approximately 1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon or spicy brown mustard
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Lay the bacon strips on a rack set in a shallow baking pan and cook in the oven about 10 minutes so some of the fat cooks out.
Mix the mustard and brown sugar in a small bowl to a sauce-like consistency. Spoon the sugar sauce over each slice of bacon.
Bake the bacon until floppy-crisp. Watch it so the sugar won't suddenly burn. When it's finished, immediately remove it and place on a serving platter. As the strips cool, they tend to glue themselves to the rack.
Cowboy Potatoes
Ingredients:
6-8 large red potatoes
1 large white onion
Montreal steak seasoning to taste
1 tablespoon bacon drippings or olive oil
Peel the potatoes and onion, and then slice thin using a grater or a V-slicer. (If you use your V-slicer, for heaven's sake, use the hand guard. A visit to the emergency room is not the way to start your Fourth of July!)
In a skillet, melt the bacon drippings over medium-high heat. Toss the sliced potatoes and onions in the fat or olive oil. Season to taste, cover and cook on medium-low heat.
Periodically toss the contents with a spatula, allowing some of the pieces to brown. Cook until everything is tender.
Indian Eggs
Ingredients:
6-8 large eggs
1 green pepper
1 medium or large onion
Approximately 1/3 cup whole milk, half-and-half or cream
Garlic powder to taste
Seasoned salt to taste
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon bacon drippings
Check the bacon crack and the potatoes. They should be nearly ready.
Chop the onions and green peppers into quarter-inch bits. Put them in a microwave-safe bowl or measuring cup. Mix in the olive oil and coat all the bits. Microwave on high for 40 seconds and stir the veggies. If they are still too crisp, nuke 'em again for 20 seconds, but don't make them soggy. Set aside.
Break the eggs into a bowl, add the milk or cream, and beat with a fork until they are just combined. Don't make them frothy.
Melt bacon fat in a skillet. Sautée the veggies for about a minute and pour them into the egg-and-milk mixture. Mix well. Keep stirring to assure the eggs cook evenly.
When you detect the eggs are starting to cook — it usually takes a minute or so — dump in the grated cheddar cheese and seasonings and stir until the eggs are just cooked.
As your kitchen helpers put the bacon crack on a platter and the cowboy potatoes into a serving bowl, scoop the eggs into a bowl and serve immediately.
Ensure the oven and stove are off, and then dig in.
Contact News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes at 850-682-6524 or brianh@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbBrian.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: RECIPES: Family traditions yield down-home breakfast favorites