People have asked what made me decide to structure my diet around the South Beach and keto diets, and when it came down to it, the answer was simple: breakfast.
I tried a number of different things to lose all the weight I put on when I was pregnant with Marcus, but I was really unsatisfied with the breakfasts. I just was not all about having some kind of cold shake, cold cereal, or unappetizing bar in the morning.
When I was growing up, we spent a lot of time on my grandmother’s ranch. When we were there, we were up early, tucked in a big hearty hot breakfast, and then either went to work on the various ranch chores or headed off to school and the sports practices that came with it. Those big platters of fresh ham, scrambled eggs, hot biscuits, sausage, sauteed peppers, fresh avocados, and butter have been permanently lodged in my memories.
I don’t work like I used to and I definitely don’t have the metabolism that I used to, but I’m still pretty active and I like a hearty breakfast. A hot breakfast.
My solution? A skillet scramble.
There’s no getting away from the lift an egg can give you in the morning. Most keto diets tell you to avoid potatoes, but if you’re not dead set against a few carbs in your life, Yukon Gold potatoes are lower calorie potatoes than most, are fat free, are rich sources of potassium, and provide an additional 3g of protein, about half of what you get from an egg.
Add in some shallots, seasoning, cream, cheese, and salsa and sour cream to top it off and you’ve got one heck of a hearty and delicious breakfast for those days where you’re going to need the extra boost.
This definitely isn’t an every day breakfast for me – I’ve been making us plates of scrambled eggs with tomatoes and goat cheese and a side of vitamin rich fruits lately – but it’s definitely what I want when I know we’ve got a lot of hiking, building, or other activities to do.
Cheddar Potato Skillet Scramble
Serves 2 really hungry people, or 4 if you offer other sides.
What You’ll Need:
- 6 eggs
- 3 slices bacon, cooked
- 6-10 baby Yukon Gold potatoes, sliced
- 6 green onions
- 1 large or 2 small shallots
- 1/4 cup cream
- 1 cup grated cheese
- 3-4 tbsp butter
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- salsa
- sour cream
How to Make Them:
1. Start with your prep. Scramble the eggs in a small bowl. Cut the potatoes in a large dice. Peel and thinly chop the shallots. Remove the white ends of the green onions and thinly chop the greens. Chop and crumble the bacon. Season the potatoes with salt and pepper.
2. Melt the butter in a large pan or skillet. Add the potatoes and cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. At about 5 minutes in, add the shallots. At 8 minutes in, add the green onions. When the potatoes are fork tender and the shallots are becoming translucent, stir in the cumin and garlic powder until mixed.
3. Whisk the cream into the eggs until well combined. Pour the scrambled egg mix over the vegetables and stir lightly. Let cook, gently lifting the edges of the cooked egg so that the uncooked egg can run under it and cook. Continue until the mixture is mostly set, or 4-5 minutes.
4. Sprinkle with bacon and grated cheese and let cook 2-3 minutes, or until the cheese is slightly melted.
5. Spoon into a wide dish or bowl and serve!
Note: The salsa and sour cream is optional – unless you’re me, because I will put salsa and sour cream on anything I can. And avocado, when I have it. It’s the California in me.
How about you guys? Yay or nay on the hot breakfast?
