Happy Birthday Harley - The Perfect Bacon Egg and Cheese Sandwich

Photo: Credit: Warner Bros.

Margot Robbie gets a lot of deserved praise for her portrayal of Barbie in last year's blockbuster movie. But for me, she will always be Harley Quinn, the former psychologist turned Batman villain from the movie "Suicide Squad". Robbie was that film's highlight and breakout star, earning her a spinoff, "Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)". At one point in this film, Robbie's character hopes to lift her spirits by getting her favorite breakfast sandwich from her local bodega. While you may not find yourself on a wild adventure after eating one, most New Yorkers (where the sandwich originated and was perfected) would tell you it's the best way to start your day. In honour of Mrs. Robbie's birthday, here is the recipe for this cinematic culinary delight.

Ingredients

3 slices of bacon
2 eggs (if you're allergic to chicken eggs as Robbie is, duck eggs can be used)
2 process cheese slices
1 sandwich roll (plain, kaiser, potato, poppy seed - whatever you prefer)
melted butter
hot sauce
kosher salt

1. Cook the bacon over medium heat in a skillet until it's crispy. Drain the excess fat into a clean container (save it for future use) and dry the cooked bacon on a paper towel-lined plate. 
2. While the bacon cooks, slice the roll in half lengthwise along the side, and set it aside. Heat another skillet over medium heat. Brush some melted butter on the cut side of the roll and place it face-down on the skillet after it gets hot. Press down on the roll with either a grill press or something heavy like another skillet. Toast the roll for about two minutes before transferring it to a cutting board.
3. Brush one of the skillets with melted butter and crack the eggs as close together as possible. Season with kosher salt. Flip the eggs when the whites are almost entirely set, then top with the cheese slices.
4. Place the bacon on one of the halves of the roll.  When the edges of the cheese melt, place the egg and cheese on top of the bacon.
5. Add two dashes of hot sauce to the top of the sandwich. Finish the sandwich with the other half of the bun and slice it in half before serving.

Hot Dog Helper

If you're going to eat a hot dog, don't limit yourself to the usual ketchup, mustard, and relish.  Up your frankfurter game with these topping hacks that work whether you like your tube steaks boiled, grilled, pan-fried, or microwaved.

The Breakfast Dog

1 egg
shredded Cheddar cheese
salsa

1. Cook your hot dog any way you prefer. 
2. Scramble an egg.
3. Top the hot dog with the scrambled eggs, some cheese, and some salsa.

Tomato-Feta Dog

Tzatziki sauce
halved cherry tomatoes
cucumber slices
crumbled feta cheese
fresh dill

1. Cook your hot dog any way you prefer.
2. Place a hot dog in a bun and top it with the remaining ingredients.

BLT Dogs

15 grams mayonnaise
15 grams sour cream
2 pieces cooked bacon, crumbled
1 small tomato, seeded and chopped
1 green onion top, thinly sliced
dill pickles, diced
lettuce leaves, thinly sliced

1. Mix the tomato, bacon, pickles, mayonnaise, and sour cream in a bowl; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 4 hours to allow the flavours to blend.
2. Cook your hot dog any way you prefer then place a hot dog in a bun and top with the remaining ingredients.

Pineapple-Basil Barbeque Dog

barbeque sauce
fresh chopped pineapple
red onion, finely chopped
fresh basil, finely chopped

1. Cook your hot dog any way you prefer. 
2. Place a hot dog in a bun and top it with the remaining ingredients.

Bacon-Wrapped Hot Dog

bacon
cooking oil (for frying)

1. Wrap a hot dog with a strip of bacon and secure everything with a toothpick. Place the hot dog in the refrigerator.
2. Heat the cooking oil in either a deep fryer or a large saucepan. When the oil reaches 175 ºC, place the 175C until the bacon is crispy and browned, about 2 to 5 minutes. 
3. Drain the hot dog on a paper towel-lined plate and serve hot dogs in toasted buns.

Breakfast Popcorn

Popcorn is great as a light snack. But did you know it can be used as a part of a delicious breakfast? I'm not talking about adding milk to a bowl of popcorn as a cereal substitute if you don't have a box of Corn Pops in the house, though that can and has been done. I'm talking about using your popcorn in the same way tortilla chips are used in chilaquiles. With popcorn already being used in salads, it shouldn't be that surprising to see the snack food make its way from the movie concession stand to your breakfast table. So give the recipe a try if you're looking for a unique way to add a tasty texture to an otherwise standard breakfast item. 

NOTE: The recipe below is legit - this is not an April Fool's Day gag.

Ingredients

2 cups popped popcorn
2 eggs
7 g cold butter, grated or microplaned
5 g butter for the pan
salt and pepper to taste

1. Whisk the eggs with the grated butter.  Heat the remaining butter in a nonstick skillet over medium heat.  
2. When the butter starts to foam, mix the popcorn gently into the eggs to coat, but don’t let the popcorn get soggy.  
3. Scramble to your desired doneness, and garnish as you please.

Sin City Breakfast Tacos

"Remember - not knowing how to cook is like not knowing how to fuck."
Robert Rodriguez

With Remembrance Day behind us, it is time to turn our attention to the hype and hysteria that is the Christmas shopping season. For the comic book or pop culture fan on your gift list, consider the holiday edition of Ottawa Comiccom as a one-stop shopping spot. And what better way to fuel up for your shopping trip than to eat food that fueled director Robert Rodriguez and the actors of one the best comic book movies ever made, "Sin City". As mentioned in the DVD extras, Rodriguez would whip up a batch of these tacos in between takes and editing sessions. They work as a great breakfast or as a snack while reading graphic novels or watching your favourite comic book come to life on the screen.

Ingredients: TORTILLAS (Note: You can use store-bought flour tortillas, but Rodriguez recommends against it, as he considers them "garbage".)
475 g unbleached white flour
175 mL warm water
60 g butter, softened to room temperature or 30 g butter and 30 g lard
2.5 g salt
2.5 g baking powder
bacon drippings (optional)

Ingredients: TACOS OR MIGAS FILLING
5-6 eggs, lightly beaten
2 corn tortillas, cut up into strips slices
1 large potato, peeled and diced small
1 large tomato, diced
1 medium white onion, peeled and diced
1 green jalapeno, minced
corn oil, for frying
butter, for frying
salt and pepper, to taste

1. In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix in the butter (or butter and lard) using a pastry blender or by hand until everything is incorporated and coarse, like wet sand. Add 3/4 of the warm water and using your hands or a fork, form the mixture into a dough that's not too sticky and not too dry. If it's too sticky, add more flour; if it's too dry, add more water.
2. Knead the dough on a floured surface for a few minutes until it's no longer sticky; the dough should feel smooth, elastic and not dry. Divide the dough up into 8-10 golfball-sized balls and arrange them on a baking sheet. Lightly dampen a tea towel with warm water, cover the dough and let it rest for 20 minutes while you make the taco filling.
3. Heat up about 30 mL of corn oil in a non-stick pan on medium heat and fry the potatoes until they're soft but not crispy. Season the potatoes with salt and pepper to taste, then transfer them to a paper towel-lined plate. In the same pan, heat up another 30 mL of corn oil and fry the tomato, onion, and jalapeno until the onion begins to soften. Remove everything from the pan, set the food aside and keep everything warm.
4. In the same pan, heat up some more oil (30 mL) and fry up the corn tortilla strips until they're crispy. Set the tortilla strips aside on a paper towel-lined plate and let them drain. Using the same pan, heat up about 30 g of butter and lightly scramble the eggs. Combine the tomato mixture, corn tortillas strips and eggs on a platter. Set aside and keep warm.
5. Using a combination of your hands and a rolling pin, shape the flour tortillas into thin round circles about 15 cm in diameter (now would be the time to use a tortilla press if you have one handy). Heat up a cast-iron skillet on medium heat (if you have some, you can add a small amount of bacon drippings to the skillet to cook the tortillas). Cook the tortillas until bubbles form and brown specks appear, about 1 minute. Turn over and cook the other side for about another minute. Continue cooking all the flour tortillas in the same manner. Keep tortillas warm, stacking them one on top of the other until ready to serve. Do not allow to dry out - use a dampened tea towel or a tortilla warmer if you have one to keep the tortillas pliable.
6. To serve, divide the potato/egg mixture onto the flour tortillas. Fold in half and eat.

Grits Redemption

Bag of grits

I don't get the hype about grits. I was curious about them ever since I saw Luis and David eating bowls of them on "Sesame Street" decades ago. When I finally had the opportunity to try grits,  I was underwhelmed both times. The first time was in a greasy spoon near a youth hostel I was staying in when I was in Miami for the 2000 New Year's celebrations; the other time was ten years later at a Denny's in Las Vegas after I went to a gun range. Both times I remember the experience as being similar to eating a side order of flavourless phlegm. How can that stuff be something both foodies and chefs rave about? I must be missing something. So to satisfy my curiosity, and in honour of Black History Month, I'm willing to give grits another chance. It's time to take things into my own hands and see if I can make a better version of this soul food classic than the poor examples I've received.

As part of my grits redemption, I started by finding out what the heck exactly are grits, other than something black people apparently love to eat. Grits is corn ground into a coarse meal and then boiled, and can be used to make cereals, snacks, and beer. As beloved as they are in the American southern states, grits are hard to find in this part of the Great White North. I heard Chef LeRoy of Detroit Soul Food fame gets his grits from Herb and Spice, but were are out of stock when I went, so I got mine from Little Latin America. And while I did make something that tasted better than my first two samplings, I'm still not sure what the big deal with grits is. If you 're looking for something different for breakfast that's savoury and filling, grits are the way to go, but as a comfort food, I guess this is one that you had to grow up on to fully appreciate.

Ingredients:

145 g white grits (not instant, you're looking for something that looks similar to unpopped popcorn)
90 g cheddar, coarsely grated
75 g torn collard greens leaves (the original recipe uses Swiss chard, I made the substitution just because)
15 g tablespoons unsalted butter
7 mL Sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
8 slices of bacon, coarsely chopped
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 Fresno or another red chile, thinly sliced into rings
1 shallot, finely chopped
Freshly ground black pepper
Kosher salt

1. Fill a medium-sized saucepan halfway with water, add a couple pinches of salt, and bring it to a boil. Whisking constantly, gradually pour in the grits. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the saucepan, and let the grits cook, whisking occasionally and scraping the bottom of the saucepan to prevent your grits from sticking, until they are tender, thick, and creamy,  depending on coarseness. You may need to add more water in case it all boils off.
2. Cook the bacon in a medium skillet over medium-low heat, stirring often, until it's crisp. Transfer the bacon to a small plate with a slotted spoon. Combine the chiles and the vinegar in another small bowl, and set aside.
3. Pour off some of the fat from skillet, and cook the shallots, stirring often for about three minutes, until they are softened. Add the greens in batches, letting them wilt slightly before adding more, and cook, tossing, until everything is completely wilted. Remove the greens from heat and season them with salt, pepper, and some chile-soaking vinegar.
4. Bring 750 mL of water to a gentle simmer in a medium saucepan. Crack an egg into a small bowl, then gently slide the egg into the water. Repeat with the remaining eggs, waiting about 30 seconds until whites are opaque before adding the next one. Poach the eggs for aboutthree3 minutes until the whites are set but the yolks are still runny. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the eggs to paper towels and set them aside.
5. Remove the grits from the heat and season with salt and lots of pepper. Add butter, then gradually add the cheese, whisking until everything is melted and combined; thin the mixture with a bit more water if it is too thick for your liking. Divide the grits among bowls, and top with the greens, the poached eggs, bacon, and chiles. Season the eggs with salt and pepper.

March Break Meals: Breakfast

Parents often scramble to find activities for their children to do during the annual week-long spring break in the school year. If registering them into a day camp is not an option, this can be a good time to show how to cook some meals. Letting children help with meal preparation is a great way to spend time with them, and it also shows the effort involved in making what is put on the table every day. Here is a breakfast recipe that is easy to make and is something that kids like to eat:

X
Ingredients: C-3PO's Pineapple Pancakes

237 mL milk
75 g unsalted butter
30 g brown sugar
30 g baking powder
7.5 g salt
2 cans of pineapple rings
2 large eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 120° C. Open up the cans of pineapple and drain off the juice. Set the pineapples aside.
2. Put the butter in a small saucepan and put it on a burner at low heat in order for the butter to melt. Once the butter has melted, turn off the heat and let the butter cool for a bit.
3.  Pour the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt into a mixing bowl, and allow your child to stir everything up until it is well mixed.
4. Break the eggs in another mixing bowl (you know better than me if this is something your kid is capable of doing). Add the milk and about 60 mL of the melted butter and whisk everything until it is well mixed. Slowly mix in the flour mixture until everything is blended - what part(s) you want your child to do here is up to you.
5. Pour the remaining melted butter in a frying pan and spread it around to coat the cooking surface. Put the pan on the stove and switch the heat to medium-high. When the pan is hot after about a minute or so, pour in some of the batter. Cook the pancake until golden underneath and bubbles burst on the top, about three minutes.
6. Have your child place a pineapple ring in the middle of the pancake. With a spatula, carefully flip the pancake. Cook until the pancake is golden brown on the second side, about two minutes. Transfer the pancake to a baking sheet, and put the sheet in the oven.
7. Repeat steps 5 and 6, adding butter to the skillet as needed. Serve the pancakes warm and butter and syrup.

This and other kid-friendly recipes can be found in "The Star Wars Cookbook".