Brinner

Breakfast + Dinner = Brinner

I don't know how it originated, but brinner is one of the best inventions EVER! There are so many options for brinner, the possibilities are endless! Pancakes, french toast, omelettes, you name it!

One of our favorite brinners is a concoction of eggs, cheese, sausage and some sort of veggie - usually peppers, but last night I changed things up a bit.

Here's a picture of last night's masterpiece (well, actually the leftovers from last night, which were very yummy the 2nd time around)

No, it's the not the prettiest looking meal I've ever made, and I should have taken a picture when it was still in the casserole dish (note to self), but! It's pretty simple to make, and my husband loves it, which is another plus.

Here's what I used:

-Organic Valley eggs (5 - I only had 5 left in the container, otherwise I might have used 6)

-a dash of organic milk (the S&S kind)

- Hans All Natural Skinless Chicken Breakfast Links (6)

(These can be found at Whole Foods - they come in a package of 14 for about $5)

- Cascasdian Farms Broccoli Cuts (I only used half the bag, so about 8 oz. worth)

(bought at S&S in their Nature's Pride section)

- Shaw's brand Mexican blend shredded cheese (the only shredded cheese I have on hand currently!) I didn't measure this out. I used enough to cover the egg/broccoli/sausage mixture. Next time I'll pay more attention!

And here's how I threw it all together:

-I cooked the sausages over medium heat til they were browned on both sides (about 8-10 mins) While I was doing this, I defrosted the broccoli and cut it up into smaller, bite-sized pieces.

-Using a medium casserole dish (I have no idea how much it holds, but it's oval shaped and has a cover and I love it!) I added the eggs and milk, whisking together.

-I cut up the sausage into pieces, added that and the broccoli to the egg/milk mixture.

-I sprinkled the shredded cheese on top of everything and then cooked it (covered!) in the microwave (yes, you read that right!) for 10 minutes. Well, 8 minutes, actually because I took it out, poked at it with a fork and realized a section of it still hadn't cooked all the way through, so I put it back in for another 2 minutes and it was perfect!

It came out of the microwave very hot, so I let it sit for a minute or 2, then scooped it into a bowl and served it - delish!

I like that it's quick to make, and I usually have all the ingredients on hand. I've never tried it with broccoli - as I said earlier, I tend to make this with peppers - I get the frozen tri colored ones, either from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's. But the broccoli worked just as well - I'm sure you could use other veggies too and probably different meats.

I realize I didn't give a stellar recipe, but I don't always follow recipes and this was just one of those meals that's sort of evolved over the past year.

I hope this is the first of many "experiments" that I blog about too!