My bloggy friend Jen over at Balancing Beauty & Bedlam (gotta love the name of her blog) has been running a regular Tasty Tuesday theme for a while now. I keep meaning to join in, but always seem to be posting bits about my own cooking adventures on Fridays or Mondays--not Tuesdays. SO, I saved one up for today, and am officially joining in on the Tasty Tuesday fun!
My Dad has been holding a vintage Sunbeam electric skillet for me that I got to bring home after our visit over Father's Day Weekend. He always has said that you can't have better pancakes, grilled cheese or French Toast than this skillet can make. This one is actually my Mom's. He found another one in an antique store box for a $1.00--so this one is now mine. ALL MINE.
As you can see it has been lovingly assisting with meal preparations for years. For this installment of Tasty Tuesday I am going to highlight a simple and cheap dinner idea--Vintage Skillet French Toast. (We tend to have breakfast a lot for dinner in our house). This is by no means a complicated meal, nor an expensive one! (Jen promotes frugality on her blog, so I know she'll like this one!)
I used a loaf of IGA white bread that was on sale for $1.29, and a dozen eggs that were on sale for 99 cents. I already had butter from my weekly local dairy home delivery. (Okay, so the generous amount of local maple syrup that I pour all over mine is not cheap. Let's not even go there. But the good stuff is worth it!)
Start by whisking 3 eggs and a couple of cups of milk and some cinnamon and a pinch of salt together. (I made 8 slices). Get the skillet heating (mine was on 380 degrees). Toss in a generous slab of butter and you are on your way!
Since the IGA bread was pretty thin, I just want to pace it in the egg mixture briefly, turning once to coat. For a heartier, homemade bread you would definitely want to soak it. Lay the slices in the skillet and listen to the yummy bubbling!
Flip when they have reached the desired doneness. I was being overly cautious since I was going to be giving a slice to Ella.
Move to a warm plate, add butter and local maple syrup and dig in!
Seriously folks, my Dad is so right--my French Toast never cooks this evenly in a regular fry pan, nor does it get the great crunchy edges that it has here. Can you see those crunchy edges? Can you smell the French Toast goodness??
I think James liked them!
Ella did too!
Mmmmmm . . . . just . a . moment . I . am . chewing . my . last . golden . buttery . bite . . .
YUM!!!!!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Tasty Tuesday - Vintage Skillet French Toast
Friday, June 5, 2009
Grill A Summer Vegetable & Black Bean Salad!
I have been itching to put together a favorite recipe for my bloggy friend's Tasty Tuesday project. I'm a little early, but since the weekend is here, I though some of you might want to try it!
First, get your grill heating up. For my salad I start with a bunch of my favorite veggies--fresh corn on the cob is available here now (the corn I planted is just now peeking out of the ground, so that will be a long while before it makes it into this dish!) I also grab some Vidalia onions, a Pablano pepper. green peppers, cherry tomatoes and squash.
Slice them up and place on a tinfoil covered sheet (for easy clean up). Spray with cooking spray or brush with olive oil on both sides. Place on the grill, and be mindful of any pieces that you may have sliced really thin, as they could burn easily.
After everything starts to smell good (like one of those Sausage and Pepper vendors at the fair) and there is a decent char on the veggies, take them off the grill.
Next, I shave the corn off of the cob. This step always reminds me of when I was a kid and had braces. This is how my Dad had to prepare it for me! What an agonizing few summers, not being able to eat my corn on the cob with typical typewriter action!
Next, rough chop the rest of the veggies.
Throw everything in a bowl, and add black beans. Rinse them first (some people don't, but I always have.)
Next, I salt and pepper liberally, and add olive oil (a few turns around the bowl) and balsamic vinegar. This is a great step in the recipe to experiment: I have used Newman's Italian Dressing here and been very pleased with the result as well.
Voila! Isn't it beautiful? You could add chopped basil or cilantro, serve it as a topping for fish tacos, alongside steak, or mix it with pasta. 
I scooped a little in my bowl for lunch, and then topped with Feta cheese.
Summer perfection in a bowl! Now, it will truly be perfect once my own basil, tomatoes and corn are in it!
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Thank You Alton, Bobby and Emeril!
We started the day with Alton Brown's recipe for Blueberry Buckle.
It was the ground ginger that really made this special.
which was featured on an episode of
Throwdown with Bobby Flay called Arroz con Pollo.
Emeril used crushed Oreo Cookie wafers.
Many thanks to these Food Network stars for making it a yummy day!
