Breakfast for Dinner

Oh, boy do I love breakfast. Anytime, always. I also love breakfast for dinner. My Mom's favorite meal to cook growing up was breakfast, and she took any excuse to make it. Dad makes a mean omelet too, so breakfast was always a big deal for us. We loved breakfast, and pancakes or eggs for dinner was always something to look forward to. I have a few tried and true breakfast recipes that will always be some of my favorites which I'm sure I'll share eventually, including my mom's blueberry stuffed french toast...drool.  But then I found these miraculous things. They're savory pancakes with bacon and corn in them. Then they're served with maple syrup. Woah.

I love weird food. I really do. I'll try anything once, and I love different combinations (except things with whole tomatoes chunks. blech.). This is where Scott and I are very different. He eats because he has to. I eat because I freaking love food. Imagine my surprise when I made these bacon and corn "pancakes," and he actually LOVED them. I think he liked them even more than I did.

I made them with simple breakfast potatoes that had a poached egg on top. This was by no means a low calorie dinner, but it definitely hit the spot! They do have a really thick batter, but don't let that fool you, they cook up into a nice little savory cake. I'm already thinking about other combinations... ;)

My breakfast potatoes are more of a method than a recipe, but they're definitely my favorite way to prepare them.

Breakfast Potatoes

• 3 medium sized potatoes
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• Seasoning salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wash and dry potatoes and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes until tender. When done, chop into 1-inch pieces. You can either leave the skin on or take it off. I usually leave the skin on about half the potatoes.

2. Put oil in a skillet and heat over medium heat, add butter to oil and when melted add in chopped onions. When onions begin to brown, add potatoes. Season with salt and pepper (I've used Tastefully Simple's seasoning salt forever, but any kind works!) and toss with the oil, butter and onions. Pack the potatoes into a layer on the bottom of the pan and don't touch them for 8 minutes.

3. Using a spatula, flip over sections of the potatoes until all of them are turned over. If all the moisture is gone (the potatoes can be greedy suckers) add another pat of butter into the middle of the pan or some oil. Let the other brown for about 8 minutes. Done!

Now for the good stuff!

Bacon and Corn "Pancakes"
Recipe slightly adapted from Recipe Girl

• 8 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
• 1 cup frozen, canned or fresh corn
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar Jack cheese
• warm maple syrup, for serving

1. In a medium skillet, cook the bacon pieces until they begin to brown. Add the onion and cook until the bacon is crisp and the onion is softened.

2. While the bacon is cooking, combine the flour, chives, baking powder, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Stir in the milk, egg and oil, until just mixed. Stir in the bacon and onions, corn and cheese.

3. Heat and grease a griddle or large skillet. Pour a heaping 1/4-cup of the batter onto the griddle and cook until it is golden brown- 3 to 4 minutes per side. Repeat with the remaining batter.

4. Serve stacks of cakes topped with a good dose of warm maple syrup.

This recipe gave me 8 pancakes. Enjoy!


Also, I need to say Happy Birthday to my little cousin! Can't believe your 13!

Please ignore my soap and Splenda. I need some photo editing software!