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~ My love of gardening, making home comfortable and entertaining friends and family.

Garden, Home & Party

Monthly Archives: November 2010

Favorite Christmas cookies, 3 recipes

29 Monday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Dessert, Food, Party Planning

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, Molasses Sugar Cookies, Russian Rocks

Years ago, when our boys were very young, two of my dear friends and I would meet at one of our homes in mid-December and bake cookies.  Gretchen and Linda are sisters (Linda was my Maid of Honor at my wedding) and the three of us have known each other since our days as Disneyland employees (just before automobiles were invented).

Those years of cookie baking have created some of my fondest holiday memories and the recipes we used are still some of my favorites.  I thought I’d share them with you all (all 5 of you!).

Molasses Sugar Cookies

These cookies turn out every time and make a great gift.

Molasses Sugar Cookies

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Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup melted shortening
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup molasses
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

In a medium bowl, blend the shortening, sugar, molasses and egg. Add the

baking soda, flour, clove, and ginger, cinnamon and salt; mix well.

Form into 1 inch balls and roll in granulated sugar.

Place on cookie sheets 2 inches apart and bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool on a rack.

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

This cookie is just the right amount of chocolate and a little powdered sugar.

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

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Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup shortening
  • 1 2/3 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ powdered cocoa
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • powdered sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°

In a medium bowl, blend the shortening, sugar and vanilla; beat in eggs and cocoa.

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt and add to sugar mixture alternately with milk.

Chill dough for 3 hours; form 1” balls, roll in powdered sugar.  Place on greased cookies sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

Makes 2 dozen

Mexican wedding cake cookies

This may be my personal favorite of the 3 recipes.

Russian Rock Cookies

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Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons water
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 cup chopped pecans

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F

In a medium bowl, cream butter and sugar; add 2 teaspoons water and vanilla.  Mix well.

Blend in flour and nuts.

Chill 4 hours.

Shape into balls and bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 325° about 20 minutes.  Remove and roll in confectioners sugar while cookies are still warm.

I’d love to hear about your favorite holiday cookie!  Happy baking.  By the way, these freeze if need be.  Sometimes we have to plan ahead.

Thanksgiving planning and menu 2010

24 Wednesday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Dessert, Entertaining, Food, Party Planning

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Tags

recipes, Thanksgiving

Cayley and I met the other night and went over our menu ideas for Thanksgiving Day.  As I mentioned in an earlier post, we’ve cooked together on this holiday in years past with great success.  Cayley has saved the menu that I usually print on fall paper each year so we used the 2009 menu as a guide.

I like the fresh produce mixed with flowers for a fall table---bountiful!

We will both prepare an appetizer—to be determined.  Additionally, Cayley will buy some mixed nuts for munching.  I lean towards an appetizer that isn’t too filing for obvious reasons.

I appreciate the mix of silver and pewter and the black furniture piece make the vignette pop.

We’ll salt the turkey per the Los Angeles Times Food feature of November 19, 2008.  This, for scientific reasons I don’t fully understand, works better than brining, see recipe HERE.  We tried the method in 2009 and the bird was moist and delicious.  I’ll be responsible for make-ahead Creamy Mashed Potatoes and I’ll use Pioneer Woman’s recipe HERE.  I’ll also prepare Maple-Roasted Sweet Potatoes (recipe HERE).  We’ll buy Costco’s pre-made gravy—don’t judge, it just keeps stress out of the kitchen on a food/recipe intensive day!  I’ll also prepare a recipe for Gulliver’s Cream Corn (I promise to post this recipe before Christmas because it’s a favorite and pretty easy).

I'm loving the white with natural accents, its great that pumpkins come in so many colors!

{the above picture via Slim Paley’s recent post, “Forget the Turkey, What about the Table?” HERE}

Dessert will consist of pecan pie (thanks to Cayley) and *pumpkin pie and Dreamy Apple Pie, recipe HERE with Hard Sauce from Pioneer Woman HERE.

Another great example of a fall table setting sans orange.

{the above image via French Kissed.  There are lots of ideas for setting a beautiful Thanksgiving table  in her post, “Imperfect Perfection”

*I use the Libby pumpkin pie recipe off the can—family traditions die hard.  I found the recipe at All Recipes.com HERE.

Pumpkin soup, anyone?

Cayley is preparing (in addition to her appetizer) the turkey, stuffing, green salad, green beans, cranberries and pecan pie…oh, AND all the other work and shopping involved in having a dinner for 10-12 guests!  I’m sure she will share the recipes with me and I’ll post links as I find them.

This post is making me hungry.

Have a Thanksgiving filled with love, gratitude and lots and lots of good food and football!

It’s a small world…after all

22 Monday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Gardens

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

English gardens, Petersham Nurseries

The world of blogging has taken me to some amazing sites where talented and enthusiastic folks write (blog) about home, garden and entertaining.  I find it almost overwhelming (in a good way) at the number of creative individuals living in our world, and there are hundreds more that don’t even use a computer!

I recently visited one of my favorite blog sites, Trouvais, and marveled at the beautiful magazine photographs she posted on this particular day—her question was “who do you think lives in this house?” and the home in question was grand, by my standards.  I say that because I’m aware that there are people who participate in blogland that might in fact believe the house was no different than their own homes or that of their neighbors.

Vogue Living Australia

Imagine...

images via Trouvais via Vogue Living-Australia

As I scrolled down and took in the beautiful details of each room I thought to myself, well this is probably a U.S. East Coast “country manor house” where a) a successful businessman and his lovely wife live or b) a 5th generation blue blood and his lovely wife live.  In my fantasy they are always happily married!

So when Trouvais revealed who owned the house,  Gael & Francesco Boglione the name meant nothing to me.   There was a link to their business and I was still in the dark (for a second) because I first saw that the Petersham Nursery and estate was located in Richmond (so I was thinking of the U.S., Richmond, Virginia.  Then it dawned on me, they live in England.  What surprised me is how the internet has made our world smaller—I believe that can be a good thing.  And trust me, I realize this is a huge “duh” to most of you, but when I think of what you can see, sort of up-close and personal, with the click of a mouse it astounds me and makes me very happy.

Petersham Nurseries

an excerpt from Petersham Nurseries website…“If the nursery itself wasn’t photogenic enough, it is set at the centre of an Arcadia created in the 18th century. Just over one hundred years ago, threatened with development, an “Indignation” Campaign ensured the view from Richmond Hill, of which this Arcadia was key, became the first and only view to be protected by Act of Parliament. Running alongside the Thames, this exquisite area of woodland and water meadows has inspired poets, writers, composers and artists such as J.M Turner and Sir Joshua Reynolds”.

In addition to the beautiful estate and the breathtaking nursery, they own Petersham Properties—a company that rents out manor houses for holiday for ordinary folks like you and me—well, maybe.  I’ll have to check the prices and get back to you on that.

Petersham Properties

This lovely little country house in the Cotswold sleeps 8---yes, please!

Where in the world would you like to visit today or over the Thanksgiving weekend?

Note:  When hubby and I were first married we worked at Disneyland—hubby wore the cute straw bowler hat and was supervisor for the Fantasyland ride, It’s a Small World!

Cottage living…Moody cottages

19 Friday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Architects & Builders

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Moody cottage

The Los Angeles Times newspaper featured a piece on cottage living last Saturday.  Specifically they wrote about cottages designed and built by the Moody sisters HERE.

Moody cottage, L.A. Times feature

Moody Cottage, staircase

I love the history behind the four sisters; Harriet, Mildred, Brenda and Wilma were all born in the 1890’s.

They were ahead of their time with their use of salvaged windows, doors and beams from large homes that were being torn down after the depression.  These ladies were making use of recycled parts to enhance the cottages they built long before the days of shabby chic!

Many of the historical Moody cottages are located in Montecito and Santa Barbara along the central coast of California.

It is reported that a majority of the owners love the quirky details of these small homes such as narrow staircases and landings, “built-in shelves that are set too close together for many books to stand upright”.

What’s not to love?!

The charm these homes impart is unmistakable and so they are always in high demand, few come on the market.

For more of the history and detail visit HERE.

{ all photographs by Ricardo DeAratanna, L.A. Times}

Are chicken coops just for farmers?

17 Wednesday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Outdoor living, Trends

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

chicken coop, raising chickens

In addition to always wanting a small studio/playhouse/garden cottage in the back yard, another outdoor adornment I’ve always recently wanted (in the sense that I’ve given it some thought) is a chicken coop.  Wouldn’t it be great to wander out your back door and pick up fresh eggs?

These images from this post on Velvet & Linen got me thinking about having your own coop.  This particular coop is on the grounds of  a beautiful home owned by Penelope Bianchi.  Read more HERE.  Don’t be surprised if you get lost in the beauty of this home—the chicken coop is nothing compared to the rest of the grounds.  Brooke of Velvet & Linen takes you on an amazing tour of the Bianchi home in Santa Barbara (complete with chicken coop).

Ahhh, mommy chicken with her chicks.

I’ve seen several magazine articles on the trend and if it weren’t for the fact that our fair city will NOT allow chickens and/or livestock of any kind (except where zoned which as far as I can tell is NO WHERE in my city), I’d have a couple of hens roaming my backyard.

Eastside Cafe

These little chickens won my heart in Austin's Eastside Cafe

When I visited Austin, Texas earlier this year, I was treated to lunch at a wonderful restaurant that had a bit of land planted with vegetables and herbs as well as a chicken coop filled with many varieties of chickens.

In this feature in Country Living Eleanor Mondale has a chandelier in her kitchen coop.  Now that’s my idea of style!

Doesn't this look like fun...cute chickens and chandelier in your chicken coop!

{images courtesy of Country Living}

The Mondale farm even has a pet miniature pony...I've always wanted a pony. {kidding}

Martha Stewart even hosted a show where guests brought their chickens with them to the show—I didn’t see it but wondered what kind of havoc that would have created.

Chickens seem to come in a variety of colors, even the eggs.

A neighbor and former kindergarten teacher at the local elementary school used to have a couple of hens she had obtained by way of one of her class lessons.  In the spring the class would follow the progress of eggs in an incubator.  Once they hatched the teacher would keep a couple of the chicks.  She said they (chickens did a great job of keeping the snail and slug population in check).  Unfortunately, the city made her get rid of the chicks.

Maybe I’m naïve but the southern California girl wouldn’t mind living on a farm!  Is it like wishing for snow—honey, you don’t even know how much work farming is!

What will I want next…

{image courtesy of Pioneer Woman}

Do any of you have your own chicken coop?

A magical nursery…Rogers Gardens

15 Monday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Flowers, Gardening

≈ 11 Comments

Tags

nursery, Rogers Gardens, seasonal plants

I live in Orange County, California where the sun shines 365 days a year…at least that’s what the Chamber of Commerce would have you believe.  As a native SoCal resident I’m here to tell you we are pretty lucky with our weather and we do have seasons of a sort.  It takes practice, but you can detect season-to-season if you’ve lived here all your life.  (I was born and raised in the state and apart from a 2-year stint in Arlington, Texas hubby and are natives).

Rogers Gardens

In the background, through the trees (in this picture), you can see the gazebo that Roger's is famous for. It was built and modeled after the gazebo at Disneyland.

Image via Rogers Gardens website.

One of the jewels in the crown of “the O.C.” (does anyone remember that TV drama/soap series?) is Roger’s Gardens.  According to their website under History of the Nursery,

“The original Roger’s Gardens (in Costa Mesa) was opened in 1965 by Roger McKinnon. Retaining the name, Roger’s Gardens, Gavin Herbert Sr. became the new owner in January 1970 and moved the business in 1975 to its current location in Corona Del Mar, California.  Sitting upon seven acres across from Fashion Island, Roger’s Gardens has grown to be known as ‘America’s Most Beautiful Home and Garden Center’”.

In addition to blood-pressure lowering vistas this nursery offers events (artists display their plein air paintings, Halloween and Christmas previews) but they offer free classes on specific interests such as growing roses or perennials.

Plein air paintings are often featured in the gift Gallery at Roger's.

So, after deciding I’d procrastinated long enough on getting practice to improve my photography skills, or lack thereof, I drove to Rogers Gardens on my lunch hour and took a lot of pictures, hoping to capture the beauty of the place—I’m sorry to report the pictures I took don’t compare to those of their website so this post features some of both…sorry.  The photography student isn’t ready for prime time yet!

Roger’s does an amazing job with flower baskets.

I was going to try to take primarily Autumnal photos but it was already “Christmas” at Roger’s and there were dozens of Christmas trees decked out with ornaments for sale in the fabulous gift Gallery.  Not to mention the LGB train (a larger scale train) that circles the most amazing array of evergreen trees and seasonal plants.  Rogers manages to create a completely detailed fantasyland of beauty for all to see.  I’ll go back later and try my hand on some “winter wonderland” shots.

You will find so many interesting and uncommon plants at Rogers. The planting materials they stock are the highest quality plants and almost always perform beautifully in the garden.

In addition to their stock of amazing bedding plants, perennials, shrubs and trees, they have a florist studio where (for a price) you may have any kind of centerpiece or house plant arranged in a decorative planter of your own or one you have purchased from the nursery.  I’ve actually hired them to create a planter for a dinner I was giving in 2009 and the plants and planter still look great—the annual color I had them add has been removed but they do such a good job it is worth the dollars you will spend.

I love sunflowers and this arrangement reflects the season.

The gift Gallery always has great gift ideas whether you need something for a specific holiday or just want to spoil yourself.  The prices on most items seems very fair to me—there are some spectacular antique pieces where the items are displayed with flair.  The nursery has a complete line of patio furniture from Kingsley Bates teak to Lane indoor-outdoor wicker and dozens of others.

During the holidays the place is lit with tiny white lights from the trees surrounding the nursery to every large evergreen tree on the grounds inside the nursery.  I’ll have to go back to take more pictures/get more practice!

By the way, I don’t work for Roger’s Gardens and they do not give me anything for these compliments…darn, wish they did! 🙂

Do you like to work in your garden—do you have a favorite place to buys plants or just to get inspired?

Busy turkey-day planning…easy recipe

12 Friday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Food, Party Planning, Simple Meals for the Avid Cook

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

planning, recipe, Thanksgiving

Summer in Southern California was unusually cool this year and we’re now in our typical fall mode…days of rain have been followed by a Santa Ana condition (dry, windy, warm).

This image sums up the season nicely.

{Image via Censational Girl}

Pioneer Woman has been busy in her kitchen for some time now perfecting recipes for Thanksgiving dinner.  When I read that I thought, Thanksgiving is ages away—then I realized that there is only about 2 weeks until the great turkey (or whatever you enjoy for that special day of thanks) feast!

Image via Martha Stewart

Tasks that are currently on my list in anticipation of Thanksgiving:

Doesn't this look delicious, presentation is important. We eat with our eyes first.

{Image via Country Living}

Start searching food sites and magazines for new possibilities for the feast.  As I mentioned last week, we are going to our good friend’s house and we will share the planning and cooking duty.

I love the natural decorations that represent the fall season so well.

Image via the talented Jermaine, host of French Kissed.  She has beautiful ideas for every season!

So, in light of the planning, racing around and probably even looking towards the gift-buying time of year I thought I’d leave you with this super easy, very delicious recipe from Trader Joe’s.

Easy and yummy. Perfect for the hectic days of holiday racing around.

Trader Joe’s Tortilla Soup

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Ingredients

  • 1 12-ounce jar fire roasted chili salsa
  • 1 pint heavy cream (or for less calories, half and half) I’ve not tried this with low fat milk.
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 zucchini, chopped
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • ½ package frozen corn
  • 1 32-ounce chicken broth
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Cheddar cheese, grated (for top)
  • Tortilla chips, crushed (for top)

Preparation Instructions

Sauté onion in butter until soft; add zucchini to cook al dente.  Add salsa, chicken broth, and frozen corn and allow to heat through.  Stir in cream and serve topped with grated cheese and tortilla chips.

Serves 4-6

Canada love…Tommy Smythe

10 Wednesday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Decorating, Designer

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

designer, Sarah Richardson, Tommy Smythe

It may have started with my first and only visit to Canada.  I was 8 years old, equipped with my very own Kodak Brownie camera (for those too young to have heard of such a camera it would be like saying “Canon EOS SLR digital camera”…at least for me).  My parents took me on vacation to Niagara Falls, the Canadian side, during the spring; I can remember swaths of tulips in full bloom near the falls.

My interest in Canada must have waned because when asked if I’d like to join my mom and step-father on a vacation to Victoria in June, the year I graduated from high school, I passed on the all-expenses paid trip (my loss).

So…many years later (please don’t do the math, I’m not really that old)…I was referred to a mystery series of novels written by Louise Penny titled Inspector Gamache series.  The murders often take place in a village called Three Pines (Quebec) not to far from Montreal.  I don’t know whether the village truly exists or is imaginary but it sounds so charming!  The descriptions of the village and its characters, many speaking French, what’s not to love?

The latest intrigue with Canada came in the form of an HGTV program called “Sarah’s House”.  This show is new to me and it follows the renovation of houses owned by Canadian designer,  Sarah Richardson.  Her partner in all things design related is Tommy Smythe.  I love what Tommy does with rooms large and small.  He’s funny and talented and I enjoy watching him.  His current apartment in Toronto is amazing (pictures below) and only 700 square feet!

The landlord lives above Tommy in this beautiful apartment. I love the iron gates.

I wonder if this was once a single family home?

I love the gallery of pictures and the Union Jack pillow! The living room feels big.

The hardwood floors are rich and with his use of white paint, stand out.

I imagine this is a dual purpose desk/kitchen table. When you only have 700 square feet of living space a lot of things have to do double-duty.

I love the chest, I believe it's an antique.

The chandelier is a nice touch in the bedroom, don't you think?

The arbor leads to the back yard---very beautiful.

Click HERE if you’d like to see Tommy’s apartment prior to this beauty.

Tommy Smythe contributes to Canadian House & Home magazine and this kitchen came up during my search

I love the lantern and the black French doors.

Isn't this pretty? I wish I had the issue so that I could see the rest of the article.

{sigh, kitchen love}

It’s so much fun to find a new (to me) designer who’s style and flair you admire and can strive towards borrowing for your own home!

Identifying your style

08 Monday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Decorating, Misc

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

decorating styles

Do you know what your ‘style’ of decorating would be called if your home was featured in a magazine?  I don’t.  I know what I like and I’ve tried to be objective about the rooms in my house but labels seem to elude me.  Sometimes words get in the way.

This was the image of the house Peter Dunham (House Beautiful, November 2010) had recently decorated...they identified the house as a 1920 "Classic American" house. I love it.

I have a vague idea that my ‘style’ is “eased-up traditional” a term I found in an interview of Peter Dunham in the latest House Beautiful magazine.   {love that term}  The house had touches of French and British Colonial among others.  I love French  ‘Country’ (I believe that just means a little less formality) and I love English (again, more ‘country’ than the highly polished/preserved furniture).  Our home is small (relatively speaking) so I often refer to it as cottage.  I occasionally pick up magazines that declare themselves “cottage” or “romantic” living publications and often only see one or two rooms I like…what’s that about?

This was the young girl's bedroom in the Dunham house---French bed with bamboo accents, isn't it pretty?

I really like the stone table and fireplace. (Dunham house)

My natural affinity for furniture and accessories that are MUCH less than perfect, even slightly beat-up or tarnished, makes me wonder what style that might be.  Words can conjure up an image based on experience or exposure that sometimes is unfavorable as a descriptive.

This Cabbages & Roses room would be French, I believe. I've really grown to love the gray paint they are showing.

Industrial style is really popular now...where does that fit in the grand list of styles---modern, traditional with a twist?

{Above image was recently shown on the blog site Greige}

An example of this whole “words creating an image” backfired when,  some years ago, hubby and I talked to someone about landscaping our back yard, including some changes we wanted to make to the patio area.  Some of you may know, I used to have a landscape business but I wanted an outside perspective.  So we were going to pay an “expert” for plans and then implement them ourselves. After a detailed walk through the yard and showing him some of the pictures I’d saved from magazines (which I believe reflected an English cottage-garden look with a formal knot garden) he looked at me and said, “So, what you want is a “funky” look, right?”  Hubby said I visibly blanched and needless to say I never called him back.  For some reason “funky” for me equates to a disorganized, mismatched, even cluttered or junky look, which I don’t believe is anywhere near the look I was going for.  Is it me?  It’s him right?

I love English pewter and dark oak furniture.

Not sure what "style" this is but I thought it was interesting...the walls are lined with birch bark. Rustic but really effective.

If you Google “design style” you will find plenty of entries that address the styles that are considered ‘standards’ but as one design blogger stated, there are as many combination’s of styles as there are designers and they (styles) are as individual as the person doing the room.

I thought this John Jacob designed kitchen area was a great mix of traditional and classic. The black pieces and classic black and white floors are striking.

The neutral palate of A Country Farmhouse makes me re-think the meaning of "country" design...her rooms are so fresh and welcoming.

{If you’ve never visited A Country Farmhouse blog site I think you might be surprised}

I guess that’s what makes this hobby in decorating so much fun for me;  to see how individuals communicate their style and the “rules” are often not applied.  That’s the way I like it!  What about you, do you have a definitive style?

Cote de Texas featured this room at an estate called Balderbrae...the room is beautiful and it hasn't changed too much in 10+ years.

{Visit Cote de Texas for this post HERE}

Breakfast for dinner

05 Friday Nov 2010

Posted by Karen B. in Simple Meals for the Avid Cook

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Back to Basics cookbook, Ina Garten

The time change this weekend will mean when I get off work at 5:00 p.m. it will be pitch black.  No more coming home to walk the doggies in the hills near our home (too many scary critters might be lurking up there) or a little quick garden maintenance after work.

Okay, no, I don't live or work on the water, but wouldn't it be nice to leave the office or the house and see this?

That said, being the kind of gal that looks for a silver (or brushed nickel) lining in any perceived negative (not that Pacific Standard time is a negative but I do love the extra hours of daylight) the time change will mean I come home from work, change into workout pants (I know, elastic is a waistline’s enemy), start a fire in the fireplace and pour a glass of Chardonnay.  Dinner plans will ensue and one of the menu items always welcome in the winter months is breakfast for dinner.

Do you ever prepare scrambled or poached eggs and toast for a simple dinner?  The recipe below is a favorite of mine and hubby.  It’s from Barefoot Contessa, Back to Basics cookbook Note:  I ordered the new “How Easy is That?” for a friend but haven’t ordered one for myself yet as I’ve been advised Christmas is only a couple of months away and that there might be a few people interested in something like this as a gift for me.

Since I prepared this for hubby and I the size of the recipe worked well.  If you have to serve more than 2 I’d suggest using 2 oven-proof skillets.

You could probably divide this in to quarters unless you have a hungry man in the house that you've convinced this is a one dish meal!

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon good olive oil
  • 3 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 cup Yukon Gold potatoes, unpeeled, 1-inch-diced
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 5 extra large eggs
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1 tablespoon fresh chives, chopped

Cooking Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Heat the olive oil in a 10-inch ovenproof omelet pan over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook for 3 to 5 minutes over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is browned but not crisp. Take the bacon out of the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside on a plate.

Place the potatoes in the pan and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Continue to cook over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until very tender and browned, tossing occasionally to brown evenly. Remove with a slotted spoon to the same plate with the bacon.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, beat the eggs, milk, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together with a fork. After the potatoes are removed, pour the fat out of the pan and discard. Add the butter, lower the heat to low, and pour the eggs into the hot pan. Sprinkle the bacon, potatoes, and chives evenly over the top and place the pan in the oven for about 8 minutes, just until the eggs are set. Slide onto a plate, divide in half, and serve hot.

Since I’m always interested in easy meals on weeknights I would love to hear what some of your favorite ‘go-to’ weekday meals are.

Happy Friday!

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Top Posts & Pages

  • {Home} Cozy and other adjectives that describe home
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  • {Home} Adieu Pierre Deux
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  • {Home} Paneled walls
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  • Atlanta Designer, Dan Carithers
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