Hash Brown Casserole

It was at a diner in. . . .Florida maybe?, where I had a life altering breakfast.  You know the type - you take a bite and think, "OMFG, why doesn't EVERYONE serve this EVERYWHERE?!"  It was basically all my brekkie favorites - eggs, cheese, meat and hashbrowns - cooked into a casserole dish.  Soft, ooey, gooey, flavorful HEAVEN.
I've only dreamed of it for oh, four years or so and have yet to try to make it on my own.  Between Paula Deen (my arteries slammed shut just thinking of what her version would be like), Cooks.com, and everywhere else  you can find a recipe, you're sure to find some variation (bacon!  sausage!  ham!  potato chips?!) you'll be dying to try.  I'm tempted to give it a whirl now because I just had my step grandmother's amazing scrambled egg Christmas morning casserole and thought I could try out the hashbrown version for a hungover January 1st.

Breakfast Casserole
3 cups of potatoes O'Brien, thawed  (you can use the cubed type hash browns if you can't find O'Briens)
1/2 cup milk - I used heavy whipping cream because I had it and also because wow, but I wouldn't normally!
5 eggs
1/3 cup chopped onion (use 1/2 cup if you're not using O'Briens)
1 1/2 cups of shredded cheese (I have a swiss and Gruyere mixture ready to go, but use your fave)
sliced ham, cooked & crumbled bacon, or cooked & crumbled sausage
breadcrumbs
salt & pepper

Beat the eggs and milk and season with salt & pepper (feel free to try paprika, onion or garlic powder, or celery salt here as well).  Stir in onions, 1 cup of cheese and the ham or sausage (the bacon I'd keep to crumble on top so it stays crispy, but you could stir it in if you'd prefer).
Put the hash browns into a baking or pie dish and pour the egg mixture over the top.
Sprinkle with the rest of the cheese and put into oven.  Turn heat on to 350 and allow to cook for 35 minutes or until set.  About five minutes before it's done, add the bread crumbs and bacon to make a nice crispy crust.

Rosti

A coworker is in Switzerland right now, which made me think of one of my favorite Swiss treats - no, not fondue, that's the other one.  No, not chocolate either.  Rosti!!
Mmmm, starchy potatoey carbs.
Traditionally, rosti is just potato, salt, pepper, and butter or oil.  You can do that too, but the rosti I had in Lauterbrunnen had onion and ham, and how can you NOT add cheese when given the opportunity?!

Ham & Cheese Rosti
6 large potatoes (if you're feeling like Sandra Lee you can use the pre-grated hashbrown type potatoes)
1 shallot or 1 small onion, minced
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary (or 1/4 tsp dried)
2-4 tablespoons butter
8 ounces Swiss cheese (I'd suggest Jarlsberg, Gruyere or Emmentaler), grated
1 cup diced ham
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons hot water 
optional: 1 large egg (to make it a bit "breakfastier" and to help the potatoes stick together, you can coat the potatoes in a beaten egg before adding to the skillet; just beat the egg, and add stir it into the potato mixture)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Drain, and put in the fridge to cool. Once cool, peel and grate potatoes. 
Mix potatoes in a large bowl with the onion, rosemary, salt and pepper, ham, and cheese - you can reserve 1/4 cup of the cheese to sprinkle on top if you'd like.
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in large nonstick skillet, add the potato mixture.
Sprinkle 2 tablespoons hot water over the top layer, cover and saute at low to medium heat until bottom layer browns. Turn with spatula, add remaining tablespoon of butter, and brown again. (you may have to flip the rosti onto a plate, and then back into the pan)
This will probably take about 7 minutes per side.
Drain on paper towels before serving.

South Beached Rosti
1 pound sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
6 ounces crumbled goat cheese
2 eggs, beaten

Preheat an oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). 
Peel and grate the sweet potatoes; place in a clean cloth and squeeze out the excess liquid; transfer to a large bowl. 
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook the onion and garlic in the hot oil until soft; transfer to the bowl with the drained sweet potato; add about 2/3 of the goat cheese and the beaten eggs; mix well. Divide the mixture into 4 even portions and shape into balls with your hands and then flatten them to about 1/2 inch thickness. Arrange the patties onto a baking sheet. 
Roast in the preheated oven until golden brown; about 25 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining goat cheese over the patties and return to oven to melt the cheese, about 5 minutes more. 

Or you can try a "fancy" rosti with brie and apples.

Ultimate Mexican Burger

Okay you guys.  If you know me, you may have followed my travels (and eats) throughout my stay in San Miguel de Allende.  If you did that, you know that there was a street food cart that served up life altering hot dogs and hamburgers.  I may not be able to crack the mystery of the taco cart (mmmmm, bistec, al pastor  . . . . tacos y gringas. . . . drool. . . . ), but the burgers, I have recreated (light shines and angels sing).

If you have ever read any of my other posts here, you know I tend to go with healthy, South Beach type recipes quite frequently.  This is NOT one of those recipes.  This recipe is covered in delicious, awesome, drippy, flavorful bacon fat.


Mexican Street Cart Burger
1 lb ground beef
6 or so strips of bacon (or more!); cut into bite sized pieces
American cheese
buns
sliced ham (Oscar Mayer is just fine)
pickled jalapenos
white onion - diced
Roma tomatoes - diced
ketchup
mustard
crema - optional
egg
breadcrumbs
garlic powder
(tater tots with melty cheese sauce optional Fat American add-on)

Make your patties - crack in the egg, add 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs or so (depending on how wet the meat is - you want it to stick together into patties; if it's not, add a bit more bread), a tbsp or so of garlic powder and mix.  Form four patties and set aside.
In a large skillet (or on a nice big griddle if you have one), cook up the bacon til crispy then remove to a plate.  Pour off the bacon fat, but keep it!!!  You want to leave a little bit in the pan to keep the burgers from sticking, and may need to add more as you go.
Depending on the size of your skillet, add a patty or two (your griddle might fit all four burgers you lucky duck).  After a few minutes when the first side is cooked, flip the burgers.  Top with a slice of American cheese and a piece of ham.  In Mexico, they put the ham and then the cheese on, and somehow manage to flip the burger again and sort of crisp up the cheese or something - I was not capable of this.  My cheese just went all liquidy goopey and turned into a big mess so I didn't even try.
When the burgers are almost done, nestle the buns into that yummy bacon grease too to heat up and get a nice little bacony crust (adding more bacon fat bit by bit if you need it).  Plate the burgers onto the buns, and cover with the bacon pieces, ketchup, mustard (crema if you like it), the diced onions and tomatoes, and the jalapenos.
Repeat with remaining patties serving to your new faithful servants who will do just about anything you ever ask of them as long as you promise to make them these burgers again.