Camping Meal: Bagel Breakfast Sandwiches

One of my favorite breakfast meals is a fried egg sandwich.  Toast some whole wheat bread, fry up a few farm fresh eggs (break the yolk) topped with salt and pepper, lightly melt a slice of cheddar over the eggs - oh yeah................... Ok, I'm back.

My husband doesn't like fried eggs, so I've modified the fried egg sandwich for a camping breakfast, and it's still scrumptious!  We enjoyed this tasty treat during our recent two week adventure to Glacier National Park, Idaho, Southeastern WA and Central Cascades.

4 slices bacon
2 bagel thins, lightly buttered on the inside
4 eggs
Dollop of heavy cream (or 1/2 and 1/2)
salt and pepper
2 slices cheddar

Heat a grill with a cast iron griddle on top, cook bacon.  While bacon is cooking, scramble the eggs with cream, salt and pepper then pour into a heated, oiled skillet.  As eggs start to set, lift edges and tip the skillet so the egg on top fills in.  Continue doing this until most of the egg is set.  Cut in half, then fold in half so you have a piece that fits onto each bagel, continue cooking over low - medium heat until egg is cooked inside and set.  Turn off the heat and place a slice of cheddar over the top of each egg piece.  When bacon has finished cooking, drain on a paper towel, remove the griddle and toast the bagel, top first so the butter on the inside melts into the bagel, then turn and toast the insides.  Assemble your breakfast bagel sandwich and eat outside by the campfire!

Another variation we came up with was the breakfast grilled cheese:
Prepare the eggs the same way as above;
Have the bacon already made and the griddle cleaned off;
Set up a traditional grilled cheese sandwich, but add the egg and bacon
 
Oh, and another thing I added was some crumbled fresh goat cheese to the eggs just before they were finished cooking (that's what the white spots are).

~ Enjoy ~

Italian Beef

My husband is from Wisconsin, and he loves a good italian beef sandwich.  He used to frequent some of the greats like Portillo's and Martino's.  Once he moved to Arizona, it was hard finding a place to get this great sandwich.  Dad's Dog House (now closed) in Mesa was the best he'd found.  Now we're in Washington state and rather than hunt down a good Vienna Beef hot dog joint, we decided to make our own 'gravy' recipe.  This is a pretty common meal while camping since it's quick and doesn't dirty a lot of dishes.  While it is not Vienna Beef, I think we've perfected a pretty darn good substitute.  Are you a fan of italian beef?  I would love to hear your thoughts!

Chicago Style Italian Beef
3 cups water
1 tablespoon beef base
1.5 tsp black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp - italian seasoning (or oregano)
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

1 pound london broil roast beef, deli sliced
4 Italian deli rolls (or outdoor rolls)
8 slices Mozzarella/Provolone Cheese
**1/2 cup olive relish (see below)

Combine top 7 ingredients, bring to a boil and let cook for about 10 - 15 minutes until all seasonings are fully incorporated.  Add beef and let cook for about 5 -10 minutes.  My husband likes his bun layered with meat, cheese and relish.  I like mine cheese, meat, relish.  Make sure to use the 'gravy'.  The traditional way to eat it is 'wet'.  Either drown the bun or dip (like a french dip). 

**Italian beef sandwiches are traditionally served with giardiniere, but we didn't have any so we tried an olive relish since we had the ingredients on hand.  It is just as good as using giardiniere.  You will need one thing to make the relish: Mezzetta: Napa Valley Bistro - Italian Olive Antipasto.  Finely chop each of the items found in this jar to make the olive relish (I omit the pepperocini since I don't like them).

~ Enjoy! ~

Chicken Pecan Salad

I love a good chicken salad sandwich.  When I lived in Arizona my favorite lunch spot was Paradise Bakery for their Chicken Walnut Salad on molasses bread.  Sadly, they aren't in Washington and they said (in an email reply to my begging they come here) there will be no stores here.  So, I had to find my very own recipe.  I didn't measure anything; I'll attempt to give you an idea of how much I used... but make it to your own taste.  Here goes:

• About 2 cups shredded chicken (I buy a whole rotisserie bird from Costco and shred it)
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup mayo
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup plain greek yogurt
• 2-3 ribs celery, diced
• 1/4 cup dried cranberry
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup apple, chopped (I prefer skin on)
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup pecan, chopped (or walnut)
• Salt and pepper to taste

This goes way back to when I was a kid, we would lightly toast bread for tuna sandwiches.  I never liked tuna, I had to put so much mayo and 'stuff' in it to drown out the taste.  Anyway... to build my sandwich, I (you probably already guessed it) lightly toast my whole grain bread, add a small amount of mayo and mustard, a slice of havarti and 3-5 tablespoons of salad.  On rare occasion, I'll add a slice or two of bacon.  Delish!

~ Enjoy ~