THOMAS FAMILY BREAKFAST

Saturday morning breakfast is a tradition in the Thomas household, and it is entirely under my dad's supervision.  As I've mentioned before, his culinary purview is limited to french fries, grilling, and breakfast. His crispy hash browns are derivative of bubble and squeak, and the eggs are my creation, inspired by a family trip to Prague where we had sunny side up eggs with the bacon cooked right in.  The french toast my Auntie Ree's most acclaimed dish, and we all clamor for it whenever she visits. Why not wake up a little early this Saturday and surprise someone with a tray of the good stuff?  Enjoy!

Bohemian Eggs and Hash Browns:

Ingredients:

 4 large eggs

4 thin slices of pancetta

salt and pepper

olive oil

2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped

4 russet potatoes

3 cloves of garlic, minced

Directions:

Spear the potatoes with a fork a few times over the skin.  Pop the potatoes in the microwave and cook for 13 to 15 minutes, until the skin is pulling away and the potato is soft.  Grate the potato with the widest grate you have (if you don't have one wide enough, just finely chop the potato) and discard any large sheets of the skin.  Heat a large saucepan with about 1/4 cup olive oil and the garlic over a medium flame.  Add the potatoes and mix to combine, then press everything down, forming a sort of patty.  Salt and pepper them, then let the potatoes cook, untouched, for a few minutes, until just starting to get golden brown.  Flip the potatoes (as best as you can, it may fall apart a little), pat down and salt and pepper that side, and cook for a few minutes more until that side is golden brown.  Repeat this process until the potatoes are a deep golden brown and crunchy.  With the back  of your spatula, break the potatoes apart and stir around.  Done!  For the eggs, lightly oil a pan and cook the pancetta over medium heat until crunchy on one side.  Flip that pancetta and crack an egg over it.  Salt and pepper the egg and cook until the whites are no longer clear.  Sprinkle a little parsely over the egg and enjoy!

Auntie Ree's French Toast

Ingredients:

1 loaf brioche, cut into 1 inch slices

3 eggs

1 cup half and half

1 cup milk

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger

1/2 teaspoon cardamom

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, grated

pinch of salt

butter, for greasing the pan

powdered sugar, for dusting

Day old brioche works best, as it soaks up the mixture more.  In a bowl whisk together the eggs, half and half, milk, spices, and salt.  Heat a saute pan over a medium flame and grease with a little butter.  Dunk the bread so that both sides are well coated (not totally drenched).  Cook in the pan until golden brown, flip, and cook until golden brown on that side.  Dust with a little powdered sugar.  Enjoy!