I love having a big breakfast on weekend mornings. When I was a kid my dad used to make pancakes, waffles, or omelets. It was a nice treat and felt like the ceremonial start to the weekend. Ryan and I try to do the same thing here and we sometimes make poached eggs, French toast and we were even on a short lived kick of making pancakes. And then I decided I wanted something different. I wanted something savory. I wanted something that would be ready all at once, instead of pancakes that are ready one by one. And then after a craving for Mexican food, I decided we should have a Tex-Mex breakfast casserole. 

Now, you might be thinking Tex-Mex for breakfast?! But I promise you, it’s a good idea. I mean, hello huevos rancheros are delicious.  And if I’m being really honest, I was inspired by the fast food restaurant Qdoba. Years ago when I worked at Ford’s Theatre I sometimes had to work on the weekends, and sometimes on those weekends I treated myself to a breakfast burrito from Qdoba. Not the healthiest way to start your day, but it was certainly delicious. Those burritos could have all kinds of things like beans, potatoes, cheese, cheese sauce…swoon. It was a really yummy and really hearty way to start the day. So I thought to myself, can I put all of that together in one casserole, that’s easy to make, and will give us a lot of servings?

I set to work, and the answer is yes, it’s totally possible and very tasty. What’s great about this casserole too is that it’s a protein power house filled with sausage, beans, and eggs. Eat a slice of this and you will be full and satisfied until well passed lunch. I actually took it to lunch a few times and I think it helped me blast through the mid-afternoon funk. You know that I mean, it’s 3pm and you’re snacky and want something sweet and/or caffeinated? We’ve all been there. But this, this is so filling and stating, you won’t need that unhealthy snack.

Anyway, this casserole is also great for serving to a big group for brunch. First, it’s good for a group because you’re making a big tray and everyone can be served together. But second, and possibly most important, you can make a lot of this ahead of time. All you have to do is make the filling the night before and set it in your baking pan. Then that morning, make the seasoned egg mixture, pour it over the filling, do some last bits of assembly, and then bake. How great is that?! Your friends will come over, you’ll be calm and organized,  like “oh yeah, I’m a hosting goddess I have it all together.” Because by making it ahead there won’t be a pile of dishes, or any stress, or any mess.

I used a recipe from Macheesmo as the base and then jacked it up with a lot of other ingredients and stuff.  However, Macheesmo had the idea for cutting up tortillas and letting them crisp on top. This idea is perfection and I wish I had made more. Ryan and I kept stealing pieces from other slices because the texture was so good and perfect for scooping up fallen pieces.  If you have extra tortillas cut them up and bake them along with the casserole. You will not regret it.

Messy level: Mildly messy. You will need one skillet to pre-cook some of the filling, you’ll need a bowl to beat the eggs, and you’ll need the pan to bake everything in. And of course there’s some amount of chopping and measuring to be done. So, there will be a fair amount of dishes but there will also be a ton of delicious food at the end so… win/win I think.

Tex-Mex Breakfast Casserole

 

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Prep time

40 mins

Cook time

35 mins

Total time

1 hour 15 mins

 

Serves: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 big red skinned potato (or 2-3 smaller ones), peeled and cut into bite sized cubes
• 1 pound package of chorizo or your favorite breakfast sausage
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
• 1 400g/14oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 4 large corn tortillas (use more or less to fit your taste and flour tortillas work too)
• 6 large eggs
• ½ cup milk
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese.
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C.
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot add the onion and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until the onion starts to soften.
3. Add the potatoes to the onion. Cook until the potatoes are browned on each side and softer on the exterior, 5-10 minutes. Don't worry though, you're not cooking them all the way through at this step.
4. Put the onions and potatoes into a large bowl and set aside.
5. Wipe out the skillet and put it back on the stove.
6. Remove the sausage meat from the casings. Add the meat to the skillet. Cook over medium to medium-high heat until the sausage is cooked through. Use a wooden spoon to break up the meat as you go. This should take 5-10 minutes.
7. Once the sausage is cooked, pat it with a paper towel to remove excess oil. Transfer the cooked sausage to the bowl with the potatoes and onions. If you have it, use a slotted spoon to make the transfer so you aren't getting so much grease in the bowl.
8. Add the red and green bell peppers, jalapeno, and black beans to the bowl with the potato and sausage. Stir until everything is all mixed up together.
9. Cut up your tortillas into thumb sized strips. Sprinkle about half of them on the bottom of a 9x13" pan.
10. Pour the sausage-potato filling on top of the tortillas. Use your hands or a spoon to spread the filling out and make sure it's evenly coating the pan.
11. In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, paprika, red pepper flakes, garlic, and cumin. Add salt and pepper if your desire.
12. Pour the egg mixture over the filling. Feel free to tilt your pan back and forth a bit to make sure everything is evenly covered by the egg mixture.
13. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the top of the egg mixture.
14. Sprinkle the remainder of the tortilla slices over the top of the cheese.
15. Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. The eggs should be just set and the tortialls will be crispy.

3.3.3077

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I realized when I wrote about Old Bay Crackers that I had never posted about crab dip. How could that be?! I am constantly writing about crabs and Old Bay, therefore this is a giant oversight. Although, if I’m honest this recipe is basically the inside of crab grilled cheese only with less cheddar and more cream cheese. Still delicious, obviously.

Crab dip is seriously easy to make, but because it’s crab it has a special fancy feeling. Sure, crab is a bit expensive but all the other ingredients are cheap so making this shouldn’t break the bank. I love making crab dip for parties because it’s the kind of thing people are excited to nibble on. It’s also great if there are leftovers because then I get to take it to work for lunch. And let’s be honest, isn’t it a great feeling when you get excited at work because of what is in your lunch?!

Making crab dip is seriously the easiest thing. You mix all the ingredients together in a bowl then bake it in a small-ish dish and that’s it. That’s it! Just a little stirring and time and you will have bubbling, warm, cheesy, crab dip. It’s so easy, and so tasty, you really could make this any time and not just for a party. And it’s just so… snackable. I had it on the counter with cut up bread next to it and every time Ryan or I passed by we’d just scoop up a little bit.

But, will you allow me to nitpick for a moment? I really wish that I had orange cheddar cheese. That might sound crazy, but hear me out. Orange cheddar cheese is the cheese of my youth and the color feels familiar. Here in London, cheddar cheese is absolutely delicious and perfect, but it’s white. Flavorwise it’s often the same, but I think the orange cheese gives an aesthetically pleasing color contrast.

Want to know why cheddar is orange? Grass fed cows can get beta-carotene through the grass that they eat. That can make their milk look a little yellow or orange, and that color gets transferred to the cheese. People began to realize that yellow/orange cheddar tasted better (and could fetch a higher price) so some cheese makers started dying their cheese with various food colorings to trick people. Today American cheddar is still being dyed orange and somehow it’s gotten carried too far because it’s way too orange. If you’re curious, you can read more about this here and here.

Regardless of your cheese color, this is guaranteed to be a hit. Serve with crackers or slices of a baguette.

Messy level: So clean. For prep you’ll need a knife, cutting board, bowl, and spoon – and all of that can be put in the dishwasher. Bake the dip in a dish you’re happy to serve from and that’s one less dish to use. Really, this dip is hassle and mess free.

Crab Dip

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

35 mins

 

Serves: fills an 8x8 pan

Ingredients

• 8 oz crab meat
• 8 oz shredded cheddar cheese (plus a little more to sprinkle on top)
• 8 oz cream cheese (I recommend chive cream cheese)
• 3 tablespoon mayonnaise
• 1 small white onion, finely chopped
• 1 spring onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon Old Bay (plus a little more to sprinkle on top)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C
2. Put all ingredients in a large bowl. Mix until everything is well coated.
3. Taste and adjust seasonings are fits your preferences.
4. Pour everything into a 8x8 inch dish and spread it out so the dip is about 1 inch thick. Alternatively you could use a smaller or larger dish depending on what you have. If you use something smaller add a little more cooking time. If you use something larger decrease your cooking time.
5. Sprinkle a little extra cheese and Old Bay on the top.
6. Bake for 30 minutes. It should be bubbling with a slightly darker crust on the top.
7. Let cool for a few minutes so you don't burn your tongue!
8. Serve with crackers, bread, or a spoon!

3.3.3077

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Traditionally my favorite thing to do for my birthday is to go out for a crab feast. When my parents still lived in Maryland I’d go over to their house, we’d cover the table in newspaper and dump the crabs, corn, and French fries on the table and go to town. Pair that with a cold beer and it was perfect summer evening celebration.

And, I’m sure I could’ve figured out a way to do that here in London. I’m sure I could have found a place that sells crabs. Or I could have found a fish monger to sell me crabs and I could’ve made them at home. But I didn’t do any of that, instead I decided to try to pack the flavors of a crab feast into one bite. One delicious bite of a cracker.

I got the idea a few weeks ago when I was shopping with my friend Sarah at Waitrose. Sometimes on Wednesdays she and I go to Waitrose so she can buy a sandwich before dance class and so I can buy ingredients for dinner. The thing is, Waitrose has such beautiful displays, foods and packaging that sometimes we wander around just looking at all the pretty stuff on offer. So she was looking at coffee and I was looking at crackers when I saw a box called Miller’s Ale Beer Crackers. Needless to say, I bought it.

But, the box got my creative juices flowing. A beer cracker? What would be good with that… cheese, Old Bay, crab… everything I love in one delicious bite. Yes. This cracker recipe doesn’t actually include any crab, but I think that’s ok – in fact maybe even preferred. I prefer it that way because you can use these crackers with crab dip. And really that’s the best option, because crackers either need to be topped with cheese or dipped in something. Also, crab dip is the best.

However, I did shape some of the dough like crabs using a tiny crab shaped cookie cutter I bought on Etsy. They look like a tiny crab army on the baking sheet and the finished product made both Ryan and me chuckle. For me personally, the crab shape is even more perfect because sometimes my birthday’s star sign is a Cancer (sometimes it’s a Gemini – it’s on the cusp) and crabs are the Cancer symbol. I also made some circles since those were better for topping with slices of cheese. Any shape you use they will hold their shape, but the dough will puff up a bit.

Adapted from Evil Shenanigans

Messy level: A really simple recipe because you only need one bowl for the preparation. It’s only messy when you roll it out because your counter will get floured and a bit sticky.

Cheddar & Old Bay Crackers

 

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Prep time

2 hours 30 mins

Cook time

12 mins

Total time

2 hours 42 mins

 

Serves: 3 dozen (depending on cutter size)

Ingredients

• 8 tablespoons/113 grams butter
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1½ tablespoon Old Bay
• 1 cup finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese (use small holes on a box grater)
• 3 tablespoons cold beer, plus more if needed (I used Sam Adams Boston Lager)

Instructions

1. Take the butter out of the fridge and cut it into cubes. Put the butter in a bowl and pop it back in the refrigerator. Leave it there until you're ready to use it. [Note: You want the butter cold, if you cut it right before using it your hands will have warmed it up]
2. In a medium bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, and Old Bay.
3. Add the shredded cheese to the flour mixture. Mix until the cheese is well coated
4. Add the cubed butter to the mixture. Using two knives (or a pastry blender) to cut the butter into the flour. Cut the butter up until the mix sand.
5. Pour in the 3 tablespoons of beer. Use your hands to mix everything together until you have a ball of dough and no dry flour bits remain. If it seems too dry add more beer just a teaspoon at a time.
6. Once you have a smooth ball of dough flatten it into a rectangle. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and store in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or up to overnight.
7. When you're ready to bake, take the dough out of the fridge about 10 minutes before to soften it a bit.
8. Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C.
9. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
10. Lightly flour your work surface. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough until it is about an ⅛" thick.
11. Using the cookie cutters of your choice cut out your crackers.
12. Place the crackers about 1" apart on the prepared backing sheet. Poke each cracker with a fork at least once. If you can be decorative about it go ahead.
13. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until puffed and the edges are just lightly darker than the rest of the cracker.
14. Let cool then serve with slices of cheese or your favorite dip.

3.3.3077

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There’s some differences between British and American words for foods. It’s easy to get used to the changes and say “rocket” instead of “arugula” or “courgette” vs “zucchini,” but the one I have a hard time with is biscuit. I just like cookie better. And recently my friend Sarah asked me to explain what “biscuit” means to me. So here’s what it means to me: it looks like a scone, but savory, buttery, and flakey; and it serves the same purpose as a Yorkshire pudding during Sunday lunch.  [If you’re not familiar with Yorkshire pudding, it’s a bready-like (well, made from a batter) side that you use to sop up gravy, meat, and sides.]

But I do miss American biscuits. I’ve only been to KFC once since I moved here and I was pretty disappointed. First, the three piece chicken came in a bag. Not a little closed box, but a bag. Second, and most importantly, it didn’t come with a biscuit. Who doesn’t love a cheap, buttery, albeit slightly greasy, biscuit?! It’s the best. Anyway, I may have gone on a bit of rant at work, about biscuits.

Obviously after this conversation with Sarah, I was in the mood for biscuits. Luckily that same day Food 52 posted a picture of these cheddar garlic biscuits on their Instagram, and I knew I had to make them. Because biscuits are great, and then add cheese and it’s even better. I was most pleased by the gorgeous well defined layers in these biscuits. Look at the picture at the top, there are layers!

For me, the epitome of layers are the Pillsbury Grands Biscuits. I know you probably shouldn’t compare something homemade to something store bought, but those Pillsbury biscuits are so satisfying. They are so “buttery,” the layers peel away so easily, and opening the canister gives such a satisfying pop. What I’m trying to say in this roundabout way, is that these biscuits have really satisfying buttery (and slightly cheesy) layers the flake away. I loved it.

Before getting starting, I have a few tips for this recipe. First, don’t overwork the batter. If you play with it too much you’ll melt the butter and overwork the gluten and make them dense and not very light. Second, you can use milk, buttermilk, or crème fraîche. I used crème fraîche fresh because I couldn’t find buttermilk, and I wanted more flavor and richness. Use whatever you like best and can get your hands on. And finally, eat them on the day you make them. Then, if you can’t eat them all, let them cool completely. I found if you put them away while they are warm they sink a little and lose some of the airiness. If you do have day-old biscuits heat them in the microwave for 20 seconds to refresh and moisten them. Serve with butter for even better buttery-ness.

Adapted, just slightly, from Food 52.

Messy level: The batter is made in one bowl, which is great for dishes and an overall lack of mess. However, you are going to have to get your hands in there (AKA get your hands dirty!) to incorporate all the dry bits of the batter and to form and shape the biscuits.

Cheddar Garlic Biscuits

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

25 mins

 

Serves: 12

Ingredients

• 2¾ cups flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 cup/226g cold butter, plus a little melted for brushing
• 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 cup milk, or buttermilk, or crème fraîche

Instructions

1. Cut the butter into cubes. Put the butter in a bowl and put in the fridge until you need it. (It is important that your butter is cold!)
2. Preheat oven to 425°F/220°C.
3. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, garlic powder, and baking powder.
5. Cut in the cold butter using a two knives or a pastry cutter. [Note: cutting the butter means using a utensil to break the butter up into the flour into pea sized pieces]
6. Add the in the cheddar cheese.
7. Pour in the milk and use a fork to stir it all together. Stir until it is a shaggy dough.
8. Once it is mostly mixed, use your hands to fold in any remaining dry bits. Fold over on itself until all incorporated. Try to use your hands as little as possible because their heat will melt the butter.
9. Lightly flour your counter. Turn the dough out pat it into a 1 inch-thick disc. Using a 2½" circular cutter cut out circles.
10. Place the circles onto the lined baking sheets.
11. Brush the tops of the circles with melted butter.
12. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges and cheesy bits get golden.

3.3.3070

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I’m planning a trip to go to Dorset next weekend with my friend Sarah. Dorset his her hometown and I’m really excited to get out of London, see a new area, and learn about where she grew up. But, thinking about her hometown made me a nostalgic for my hometown. I grew up in Maryland, just outside of Baltimore. I haven’t lived in Maryland since 2008, but I still feel a strong pull to my home state.

Maryland might be a small state, but it’s got a lot going on. Maryland has lots of waterside vacation spots from the Chesapeake Bay, Deep Creek Lake, and Ocean City. Sure, Ocean City isn’t the fanciest or classiest beach, but it’s a beach and that’s awesome. Maryland is the home of the Star Spangled Banner, major sports teams, the Wire, and Hairspray. Yeah, the Wire makes Baltimore seem a  little scary, but that show was amazing.  If you haven’t seen it go out and watch it immediately. Maryland has busy cities like Baltimore and picturesque ones like Annapolis. And finally, Maryland has a sweet flag, an awesome accent, one-eyed Natty Boh, and most importantly for me delicious food. See, I told you Maryland has a lot going on.

But most famously, Maryland is known for crabs. Steamed crabs, crab cakes, crab bisque, and crab dip…yum. All of it delicious. And then I got the idea for crab grilled cheese – which might possibly my perfect dream food. This sandwich has lots of cheese, Old Bay, crabs, and buttery bread. I’ve never put anything in grilled cheese besides cheese before – and now I’m not sure I can go back to plain grilled cheese.

This item is the kind of thing that I’d find on a menu of a fancy-ish, trendy-ish, dinner. It would cost like $12, and I’d think, “that’s a lot for a sandwich at a dinner,” but then I’d do it because I had to know. Then I’d order it, and maybe it wouldn’t be as cheesy, gooey, or as full of crab as I wanted. I’d scarf it down anyway, still enjoying it, and then wish I had more and feel sad.

Don’t worry, I’ve solved that hypothetical problem. Now I can make this perfect sandwich at home. When Ryan and I scarf down the first round too quickly, I can just make a second round and stack the ingredients higher. Ryan and I ate two sandwiches and afterwards he asked if there was more crab in the fridge. Yes, yes there was. So there will be more sandwiches this week. Are you jealous yet? If you’re still not sold, Ryan said this was the best thing I’ve ever made. Yes, he’s my husband and has to say nice things, but c’mon. That’s high praise.

A few notes on method. I used sour dough bread which I loved. The bread absorbs the butter and get perfectly golden and really crispy – which is delicious and good for the structural integrity of the sandwich. (Or more specifically, it won’t flop about as you hold it or bite it) However, if you have regular old sandwich bread in the house, use that – it’s what I’d use for an ordinary grilled cheese.

Second, how do you butter your grilled cheese? My friend might not remember this, and I don’t know why I do, but years ago when we lived together, I was talking with my friend Shadur about grilled cheese and she said she buttered the bread, and I said I buttered the pan. We both looked at each other shocked, both of us thinking “why on earth do you do that?” I don’t think it ever occurred to us that there was another way to butter the bread for grilled cheese. I think buttering the bread is most efficient and makes the pan less dirty. However, I still butter the pan because then I can go crazy with the butter, reapply butter easily if I need to, and because sometimes buttering bread rips it up. Do what feels right to you, it’s no biggie.

Messy level: Because of all the stuff you’re adding, this is messier than a regular grilled cheese. You’ll need a bowl to prep your sandwich insides and a skillet. There’s lot of opportunity for the sandwich to ooze out – which leads to a bigger mess – but in this case I also think it makes the food more delicious.

Crab Grilled Cheese

 

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Author: Cooking is Messy

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• ½ cup crab meat
• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 1½ teaspoons Old Bay
• pepper, pepper to taste
• 1 heaping teaspoon mince green onions
• ¼ cup shredded Gruyere, plus more for sprinkling
• ¼ cup shredded Cheddar, plus more for sprinkling
• 2-3 tablespoons butter
• 4 slices sourdough bread

Instructions

1. In a small bowl (the one you use for cereal is fine), mix together the crab meat, mayonnaise, mustard, Old Bay, a bit of pepper, and the green onions. Mix it well, then taste, and adjust as you see fit. (Most prepared crab meat is cooked so you can taste it)
2. Mix the Gruyere and Cheddar to the crab mixture. Mix until everything is coated.
3. Now take your bread. On two slices, sprinkle a little extra Gruyere. (The cheese is your glue to hold it all together)
4. Top each of those two slices with half of the crab mixture.
5. Top the crab mixture with a little extra Cheddar.
6. Place the second piece of bread on top. Press gently to squish it all together.
7. In a large skillet on medium to medium-high heat, melt 1-1½ tablespoons of butter.
8. Once the skillet is nice and hot, add the sandwich. Cook until the bread is golden brown. This will take a few minutes, and it's ok to lift it up and check it.
9. Lift the sandwich out of the skillet and melt the rest of the butter. Flip the sandwich and put it back into the skillet with the untoasted side down (golden brown, cooked side up).
10. Cook until the cheese is melted and the second side is golden brown. Adjust the heat as you go if you feel the bread is getting dark too quickly.
11. Remove from heat, cut in half, and serve.

3.2.2925

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So, I was elated when my friend Lisa bought me the wonderful cookbook Melt
for Christmas. It’s a cookbook entirely about macaroni and cheese recipes. Cheese? Pasta? TOGETHER!?! Let me step up my pasta game. 

This recipe is so good. Of course, it’s decadently cheesy and creamy. But it also had a smoky and spicy flavor. Not spice like when your taste buds explode after eating some hot salsa. It’s a friendly spice that makes your palate tingle with a warm, lingering heat. Ryan and I were really taken off guard by how yummy and special this dish was. We had it for dinner two nights in a row. The second night, we both came home excited for more mac and cheese. When we had our first bites, they were more delicious then our brains and mouths had remembered. It was like a wonderful surprise that surpasses all expectations. This is the kind of meal that makes you say “mmmm” over and over.

This recipe calls for two kinds of cheese: cotija and Lincolnshire Poacher. I’ve found cotija easily at Whole Foods, although it may not be in every grocery store. I could not find Lincolnshire Poacher, a specific type of English aged Cheddar. I even went to the specialty cheese stand in Eastern Market, but no luck. However, what’s great about the book is it names a few alternative cheese suggestions. I showed the recipe to the cheese monger in Eastern Market and she helped me pick out a good aged-cheddar. In short, use aged cheddar if that is what is easiest for you to find. If you do find Lincolnshire Poacher, tell me where!

Finally, I won’t be blasphemous and say something stupid like “this is too cheesy.” Because that’s impossible. But this recipe does make a ton of cheese sauce. If you’re getting squeamish about the cheese level, I’d recommend following the instructions for making the sauce, then pour the sauce slowly over the noodles until you’re at a level where you feel comfortable.  The hard things with macaroni and cheese is that in  restaurant you can ignore the creamy level, but at home you’re directly responsible and so may feel guilty about how much cheese is in there.

But I say, don’t worry about it. Sometimes you gotta treat yo self. This recipe is worth it. And you’re worth it.

This recipe is adapted from Melt.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound of chorizo (I actually used a 12 oz package I bought from Whole Foods)

1 tsp olive oil

1 lb box of penne rigate (this kind of penne has ridges, so it can catch hold of the cheese)

4 ounces cotija, shredded

1 1/2 cups whole milk

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

1/2 tsp chipotle pepper flakes

1/8 tsp ground cumin

1 pound aged cheddar

Ground black pepper

Minced scallions for topping (optional)

Directions:

1. Cut the chorizo out of their casings. Break them into bite sized pieces. Don’t get too crazy about this, you can also smash them up once you cook them.

2. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Cook the chorizo until well browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chorizo to a plate lined with paper towels, to absorb the oil.

3. Cook the pasta in salted boiling water until al dente (a little bit chewy, it doesn’t have to be fully cooked because it’s going to be baked later). Drain and set aside.

4. Preheat the oven to 350°. Butter a large casserole dish. I used a  2 1/2 quart dish, but I think my 9×13″ Pyrex would have given me more wiggle room.

5. In the dish, toss together the pasta, chorizo, and cotija.

6. Now to prepare the sauce! In a small sauce pan, heat the milk over medium heat. Heat just until it starts to steam and tiny bubbles form on the edge of the pan.

7. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and stir. The authors of melt recommend using a flat-edged wooden spoon. This will help you scrape the bottom of the pan and keep the roux (fancy name for the butter and flour mixture) from burning.  Heat and stir until it takes on a light brown color.

8. Slowly pour in the milk, chipotle peppers, and cumin. Stir constantly until the sauce thickens. The sauce is thick enough when you can draw your finger across the spoon and it leaves a clear path.

9. Remove from heat and add most of the aged cheddar. Leave behind some cheddar for topping. Stir until the cheddar is completely melted. Season with pepper to taste. Add some salt if you like also, but the cheeses are pretty salty on their own.

10. Pour the sauce over the pasta. Stir a bit to make sure it’s all well mixed. Top with the extra aged cheddar. Sprinkle scallions on top, if using.

11. Bake for 25 minutes.

12. Let cool a bit before serving. Then eat ravenously.

Messy level: Three spoons, maybe verging on four spoons. This one made a lot of dishes, although some of it might be my fault. I used the food processor to shred the cheeses (although I guess I could have bought already shredded cheese). I had to use the mortar and pestle to smash the cumin seeds (because why go out and buy ground cumin for just 1/8 tsp?). But, also I needed a pan for the chorizo, a pot for the pasta, two pots for the cheese sauce, and a casserole for baking. Also, there’s always the danger of pouring the hot cheese sauce that could lead to a molten cheese mess on my floor and counter. Luckily no such spilling occurred. Although there’s a ton of dishes, I only give it 3 spoons because there’s lot of time in between steps to do some cleaning so your kitchen doesn’t have to look like a disaster if you don’t want it to.

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And she’d look at me, in the smug way parents do when they know better, and she’d say, “yeah, I said the same thing to my mom when I was a kid.”

But then, the other day I had a craving for that very sandwich.

It’s definitely a sign of getting older when you realize you’re like your parents. I mean I’m not exactly like my parents but it’s sort of weird to notice the habits I have because of them. Both my brother and I hoard napkins in the glove compartment of our cars just like our father does. Because you just never know when you’ll need a ton of napkins while driving.  And I see my parents sometimes in the way I say a word, or the way my brother makes a gesture. As I’m saying something or doing something, I get this wave over me of, “whoa, that’s Mom.” or “whoa, that’s Papa.”

Photo by Marcella Treybig Photography

It’s not a bad thing, it’s just surprising to realize. And in fact, it’s comforting knowing I have my family with me even when they are far away. And I’m lucky to be like my parents, and especially like my mom. She’s freaking awesome. She recently won Scientist of the Year from HENAAC, which is super impressive and cool. And in general, she’s always been so loving and energetic and encouraging of everything I do. The picture I’ve posted of her is from my wedding. It’s my favorite.

Now, I’m sure my mom would rather I honor her with a splashier recipe, because she makes excellent apple pie and also a chocolate chip cheesecake. But this is the recipe that is just my mom’s and no one else’s.

Mom’s sandwich is well-known between Papa, Eric, and me because of the unusual combination of ingredients – cinnamon raisin bread, raspberry jam, and cheddar cheese. Yes, I know it sounds off-putting, but somehow it works. Toasted bread provides a light crunch, the jam is sweet and tangy, and the cheese is sharp and creamy. Surprisingly, the flavors meld together and it becomes a very satisfying breakfast. When I told Ryan about it, he wrinkled his nose a bit and gave me a look that said, “are you sure that tastes good?” And I can’t blame him for thinking that.

So it’s tradition. My grandmother weirded out my mom, my mom weirded out me, and I intend to weird out future generations, who will then ultimately crave the sandwich themselves.

Ingredients:

2 slices cinnamon raisin toast

Raspberry Jam

Sharp Cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Toast the bread to your liking. (I like a light toast, and also my bread was too tall for the toaster).

2. Slather one side of each piece of bread with the raspberry jam. Put on as much or as little jam as you like.

3. Cut big hunks of cheese and put them on top of the jam on one of the slices of bread. My mom recommends using huge hunks of cheese. Don’t skimp on this step!

4. Put the other piece of bread on top, jam side down. Cut in half. Eat it and be surprised.

Messy level:

This is the least messy thing I’ve ever posted about.  At least I think so. You can make this in 3 minutes and clean up so easily. It’s awesome and filling, and that’s sometimes hard to do at breakfast time.

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