Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Green Eggs and Yam



I view breakfast as my chance to start it all off right. A lot rides on this meal, and I take it seriously. I'm only sort of kidding- I find that if I somehow miss breakfast, I tend to over-snack and if I eat something too sweet or full of white flour, sugar cravings plague my day.



There are a few things I aim to include in my morning spread. Not every meal includes them all, but hopefully at least one or two. Here goes:

Greens- preferably hearty (think kale and spinach). Brain food.
Turmeric- for a morning antioxidant boost.
Flax (or hemp/chia)- to get in those pesky little Omega-3's.
Protein- usually in the form of eggs or raw nuts. Thanks chickies!
Fiber- to fill up that fasting belly!

Today's meal has the hearty greens, protein and fiber thang goin' on.




The chickies say "hi" It was a bit grey out for their taste today, but they're troopers and are enjoying a free-range recess.



Fair warning: If your kale is anything like mine right now, it might have some freeloading' caterpillars hanging on tight. Extra protein? (Ew, no. For me, this means quadruple washing those buggers until there is no chance one remains).


I've been trying to take a bit more time composing my visuals lately. It is actually a lot of fun. The downside? My blog meals usually end up a bit cooler than intended by the time I sit down to eat. The upside? They look so pretty on my plate! Other things I have noticed: breakfast posts usually involve a few more cups of coffee than normal. I mean, it has to be steaming right? Today I had four. Oops.

Green Eggs and Yam
Serves 1

Ingredients
1 tbs. butter (or oil), divided
1/2 a small yam, about 1/4 cup sliced
1 large kale leaf
1 tbs. guacamole, or smashed avocado with a pinch of salt, dash of lime and smidge of minced garlic
1 farm fresh egg
1/8-1/4 tsp. salt
favorite hot sauce (I made this Creamy Chipotle Sauce, which I am kind of obsessed with)

Directions

Melt 1/2 tbs. butter over medium heat in a large frying pan. Wash yam and slice into 1/2 inch slices. It is important to keep these slices thin, so they can cook fairly quickly.

When pan is hot enough to sizzle when spritzed with water, add yam circles. Leave to cook for 10 minutes, or until beginning to brown. Flip and cook until tender, another 5-10 minutes. Remove from pan, set aside and sprinkle with salt.

Wash kale well, remove stem, and chop finely. Turn up heat, add kale and stir-fry until wilted. If you spread it out thinly and let it cook for a few minutes untouched, it will begin to crisp on the edges, which is how I like it. Add 1/8 tsp salt and guacamole and stir to incorporate. Push to the side of the pan. Add remaining 1/2 tbs. butter to the clean half of the pan, crack egg and cook as desired (I like mine over medium).

To serve, plate guaca-kale, egg and sweet potato slices, drizzled with your favorite hot sauce and season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Relax. Eat Well.