Danny's Country Duo

This is an experimental break fast with two rules.

1. make "country scrambled" eggs with a veggie (keep meat separate)
   
2. only use two spices when seasoning.

I used to work at a diner in South Carolina and we had a customer who'd always order "country scrambled" eggs. I don't know if that's his own name or a more popular name, but it basically means "scrambled eggs that are scrambled in the pan." The result is, eggs that aren't completely yellow, they still have bits of white in them and hence have more than one texture.

Next is my second rule, two (and only two!) spices. This comes from our recent visit to France. Our friend, who was hosting us, said, "in the U.S. they put on many different types of spices or 'toppings', but in France that gets looked down on. If you order ice cream, you order 1 -maybe 2 toppings, but not 3! As soon as you order 3 they will roll their eyes at you and think 'Americans!'" Of course I, being an ignorant American asked, "why?" He told me it was because as soon as you add more than two spices or toppings, you can't taste the food anymore."

So rule two is about learning to taste your food and the spices you experiment with. Many people default to salt and pepper with their eggs, but today, try dropping one or the other and look at your spice rack for something new to replace it. Stay away from your habit combination (mine is garlic, oregano and black pepper OR garlic, basil, and parsley, which I put in nearly everything :), instead stick with two, not more than two. And lay it on a little *thick,* --let this experiment make it undeniable what these two spices taste like together.

Here I've used a fairly good amount of black pepper and a lot of thyme.


I tried to choose mild veggies (a mix of corn, peas, carrots, and green beans) and got the pan going with just the veggies, olive oil, and my two spices. Note: NO MEAT. Meat is so over powering that it might as well be considered as another spice. If you want meat with your breakfast, cook it in a different pan --not with the scrambled eggs. One of the reasons we're using eggs for this experiment is that eggs have such a mild flavor and it helps you taste your two spices, as soon as you add meat, you will taste mostly meat.

When the veggies are tender or browned to your liking, break an egg right into the pan. I used *wooden* chopsticks to scramble the egg in the pan because I like my pans and wouldn't want to scratch them up with a metal spoon or anything.


As you can see, I skipped the breakfast meat this morning because I just wasn't in the mood. However I did top it all off with some toast, fruit and a nice steaming Hot lil Pepper mug :)

Have fun!
~Danny