Breakfast!!!

Ok folks, I figured that since this Blog is brand-new, maybe it'd be a good idea to throw something out there for the crowd.  In the spirit of new beginnings, we start of course with breakfast.  It is the most important meal of the day, after all.

Here's a quick recipe to get you started.  It's very simple and doesn't involve anything more than some chopping, slicing, and then applying heat to what you've chopped and sliced.  Besides, you should start honing your knife skills so that you spend more time cutting your ingredients rather than yourself.  I have the scars to prove it, my friends.

The great thing about this recipe is that it's totally mix-and-match.  You can add or subtract whatever ingredients you personally prefer to make a scramble that's right up your alley.

Aaron's Morning Scramble (serves 2 to 3):

Ingredients:
4 eggs, beaten
2-3 medium potatoes, scrubbed and diced
Half an onion, diced
Assorted peppers (green, yellow, red), diced
1-2 Jalapeno or serrano chiles, diced (optional to taste)
1 tablespoon of fresh rosemary, chopped (also optional, but I love rosemary!)
Half a cup of shredded cheese, dealer's choice
Salt and ground black pepper

Directions:
About the dicing part; just about a quarter-inch dice will do.  Anything bigger and you risk not cooking the potatoes all the way.  In a medium skillet, heat 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat.  You can test how ready it is by putting one piece of potato in there and if it sizzles, it's ready.  Add the potatoes and stir to coat with the oil.  Keep them moving or they'll stick, and that's no good.  Season with salt and pepper as you're doing this.  Once the potatoes get about halfway done, you can add your vegetables.  Why not add them at the beginning, you might ask?  Because they'll be mushy and gross if you cook them as long as the spuds.  By the time the potatoes are cooked all the way, you should have soft but not disintegrating veggies in there.  Of course, if you like a little more brownness on your spuds, wait longer to add the veggies.  When you've got about a minute or two left, add the rosemary (if desired) and check the salt and pepper level by tasting.  Add more if you want.  Drop the heat a little now and add your beaten eggs.  Let them set up a little initially, and then stir until the rest of them are set.  You can tell they're ready when they don't look wet and shiny anymore.  Then kill the heat and stir in your cheese.  The residual heat will melt it just fine.  Then all you have to do is serve it up and enjoy!  I like to add some ketchup and Sriracha chili sauce to mine.

Of course, you can tweak the veggies and seasonings to your liking.  Some things you may want to try are Italian seasoning blends (typically basil, oregano, and thyme) or kick it up with some cayenne pepper or habenero chiles.  Sometimes if I'm feeling froggy, I'll just dump this whole mix into a flour tortilla and - Voila!! - Breakfast Burrito!!  The sky is the limit!

If you've got questions or comments, I'd love to hear them.  Enjoy your breakfast!

Aaron