Recipe #57: Migas

One of my New Year's goals for this blog is to blog better.

I know it sounds like a cliche goal, but both of my blogs began because of my passion for writing. This blog simply mixes that passion with another: my love of food and everything food related.

However, I find that sometimes I fall into the blogger mentality of just trying to get SOMETHING posted that I'm not always putting out writing that is of the quality that I want to represent.

No longer.

That said, hold on to your butts for the final five posts of my Pioneer Woman Cooks recipe challenge and then the final summation.

Recipe: Migas

Source: The Pioneer Woman Cooks

Time: 1 hr

Ease: 3

Taste: 5

Leftover Value: 4

Down the Drain or Keep in the Strainer: Keep in the Strainer

I like this recipe. 

I know, great way to start off better blogging, right?

Yet, it must be stated.

You must understand that I really, truly did like this recipe before I go any further because, unfortunately, for as much as I like this recipe, I also dislike it.

At breakfast time, I am not ordinarily coherent enough to be giddy with excitement over a meal that has more than three steps. 

There are several, as in more than two or three, vegetables that require dicing for this breakfast.

Then, if all the dicing weren't enough, there are eggs to be mixed and corn tortillas to be fried and then cut into strips.

While dicing and frying aren't quite so complicated, (and I fried the tortillas in the same pan I eventually made the migas in--so there wasn't a too-many-pans issue) it is all very time consuming.

For breakfast.

Early in the morning.

With a cranky chef who would rather be still ducked under the covers than getting to work chopping, dicing, and frying.

Naturally, the veggies need time to soften a little.*

*Right here, right now, I'm going to rat myself out.  There are no red peppers in this dish.  There are supposed to be.  The rule was no substitutions, but red peppers make my heart throb and pound in my chest--and not in a swoon! type of way.  So, I used extra green pepper.

Here is the even more time consuming part of this dish:

After spending all that time dicing, after frying the tortillas, after waiting for it all to cook together, the eggs are poured over it all, gently mixed, and left alone to set.

I'm the type of person that stands over a pot of water as if my presence will make the water boil faster. 

That said, by this point, I couldn't contain myself and had to help the eggs along a little bit by mixing them a little and raising the heat a tad.

I made these on Christmas Eve Eve and Hubby had work to get to so I may have been a little anxious and served the eggs a little too soon.

They weren't horribly runny, but they could have gone a little longer.

The cheese, which is added at the very end, adds a nice punch of flavor to the mixture.  The dollop of sour cream was absolutely necessary and I'm not too proud to say that I added another heaping scoop to my bowl after I snapped this picture.

All in all, this was a fun way to experience eggs. I was afraid the jalapeno would be overpowering, but it added an interesting little kick to the eggs without too much heat. Hubby ate his eggs with the sour cream and hot sauce.

My only note would be to make these on a morning where you have a healthy hour to spend on breakfast.

The I'm-Being-Good Brownie

Recipe: Dark Chocolate Whole-Wheat Brownies
Source: 100 Days of Real Food
Time: 30 minutes
Ease: 2
Taste: 4 
Leftover Value: 8
Down the Drain or Keep in the Strainer: Down the Drain

Here is my point of view on making substitutions for wonderful things like white sugar, white flour, butter, and eggs: If it works, let's do it!*  I've said time and time again my feelings on whole-wheat flour and how anymore it simply is not allowed in my kitchen.  However, I'm still debating my stance on white whole-wheat flour.  It's not quite as cardboard-like as your regular whole-wheat flour, however, it isn't exactly as smooth and inviting as good ole' unbleached white flour.  

*And of course, if your health dictates that you can't have these things, then of course, make substitutions!!

I've substituted applesauce for eggs, black beans for butter, and I've even half and halved my flours to incorporate some of the good stuff.  In the end, in my humble unprofessional opinion, there is no perfect substitute for the basics in the traditional world of baking.

With that said, enter Dark Chocolate Whole-Wheat Brownies.

I sensed these brownies were not going to be perfection, but I wanted my guilty conscience to feel better about the continual snacking that I do.  These brownies use white whole-wheat flour, coconut oil, and offer a choice between honey or maple syrup.  I thought the maple syrup would be too... mapley...so I used honey the first go 'round.

When I started mixing I ran into an issue with an ingredient in the ingredient list: 1 to 2 eggs.

What is that supposed to mean?  Shouldn't the recipe's creator have known what is best regarding the number of eggs?

I knew from the hundreds of times that I have punked out and made boxed brownies that the difference in the numbers of eggs used will be the difference between a fudgey vs cakey brownie.  Because of the high amount of coconut oil and honey (1/2 cup each!) I thought a more cakey brownie would better spread those flavors.

I was wrong.  That extra egg made the brownies the densest, driest, blandest brownies of my entire existence.

Not to be outdone by a simple brownie, I decided to make them again, this time with only one egg and maple syrup instead of honey.  In the first version, not only had they been drier than the dessert sands, the honey flavor overpowered the brownie, even more so than the flavor of chocolate.

With the maple syrup and one egg they came out to have a better consistency, but it was still not a fudgey brownie.  The flavor throughout was much more enjoyable, but ultimately they were still rather dry and unexciting.  I suppose if you were on a strict diet and couldn't eat traditional brownies these would certainly work to feed the craving.  Since that does not exist in my life, I'm letting these bad boys go down the drain.*

One positive about them was that they were super easy to cut into squares.  I'm sure you've experienced cutting brownies and having their edges move with your knife as you attempt to slice a line down the pan.  These brownies stayed put, allowing me to make a beautifully clean cut each time.

*Note: My sister-in-law, Mallory, who is currently on a major health kick (she lost over 20 pounds using My Fitness Pal**) loved these brownies.  Of course, she has cut a lot of unhealthy fats and processed foods out of her diet so her tastes I'm sure have changed a little thanks to her healthier lifestyle.  That said, don't expect to be in chocolate heaven with these.

**My Fitness Pal is pretty much my favorite app for tracking my daily calories.  If you are looking to lose weight it is a fabulous way to hold yourself accountable and to see results.