Survival Sunday 6

So, this past week gave me one of the best mornings I've had in a long time. I got to wake up peacefully, have my coffee, and even make breakfast, all on my own schedule - no one was hurrying me along. Of course, that's a unicorn of a morning, so I had to record it for you guys in photo form... also, I just wanted eggs. I really, really wanted eggs.

There are vegan substitutes for eggs, so if that's your bag, go for it! I'm not a vegan, though I love a lot of vegan food, so this breakfast may not be your thing. And then I went and "ruined it" at the end, apparently. Because I wanted a breakfast that 7-year-old me demanded daily.

Behold, internet: Strangled Eggs and instant mocha

You'll need:

• 1 packet instant hot chocolate mix
• 1 spoonful of instant coffee
• Hot water (don't let it boil!)
• Some half-and-half creamer (optional)
• As many eggs as you want to eat (I used 2)
• Cooking spray
• Salt & pepper to taste
• Pure Evil (according to the internet) (also optional)

Step 1: Assemble your ingredients (leave half-and-half in the fridge until you need it - it could go bad, especially if you're taking pictures like me...)

I just used what brands I had on hand. And yes, that's a Frugal Gourmet pepper mill. It's my mom's.

Step 2: Assemble your instant mocha powders in your favorite mug and start your kettle heating. You don't want the water to boil. If, like me, you do not have an electric kettle, put some water in a nice teakettle on the stove and get it hot. You can see the steel spout of ours peeking out of the right side of the photo above.

I like to do cocoa first...

and instant coffee on top!

Step 3: Crack your eggs into a bowl. Everyone cracks eggs differently. I can't take pictures and crack at the same time, since I'm using my cellphone and I only have two hands and very poor coordination. Make sure you don't leave shell bits floating around in the eggs, because it is no fun to bite down on something unexpectedly... crunchy.

And lo, the breakfast stared back...

Now might also be a good time to check on any "kitchen helpers" you may have and make sure they haven't wandered outside to terrorize the neighbor's chickens...

This butthead did just that yesterday. For over 3 hours. What a tool. I love her.

Step 4: Time to scramble those eggs. Er. Strangle. No, it's really just scrambling. My siblings and I just called them strangled eggs as kids. Basically, just deflate the yolks by poking them a few times with a fork, then use the fork to mix the eggs together. I use a rapid folding motion to do this, but you may find a different way to make it work for you!

"You'll put your eye out!"

Whip it. Whip it good.

Step 5: Now we season. You should add salt first, from what I hear, but... it doesn't really matter if you're only adding salt & pepper and maybe a splash of half-and-half for sinful creaminess and then whipping again...

adding pepper

pepper added

adding salt (I used iodized, you can use any kind you like)

I find the half-and-half makes the eggs a little easier to maneuver and taste a little better.

Eggs & seasonings all whipped together and... ah, the kettle has begun to steam!

Step 6: Add hot water to the instant mocha.

Add the water slowly - you don't want to splash or overfill

My S/O says this is already overfilled. Sorry Z.

Store-brand creamer is absolutely good. I love this kind.

Even though the carton was extremely full, I'm proud to have not spilled on the counter!

Step 7: Now that your coffee mix is done, set it aside. This next part takes no time at all. It's time to spray up your non-stick pan with cooking spray. Yes, even thought it's already non-stick. The spray makes it much easier to toss the eggs around.

I'm a late riser. Also, yes, generic spray is 100% ok. It works just like the rest of the sprays out there.

ALWAYS follow the instructions on the can. I couldn't photo and spray, so this is an after-photo.

Step 8: Keep your heat on the low end of the spectrum. You don't want to burn the eggs. Burned eggs are nasty and do not make for a happy morning (or evening - we do this for dinner sometimes around here...)

This is too high. I learned that because when I added the eggs, I had no time to take a pic...

Step 9: Add your eggs and pretty much immediately start mixing them around with a non-metal spatula or whatever you're using. Don't use anything that will scratch the pan's finish. You don't want that stuff inside you.

This took maybe 15 seconds.

Step 10: Plate it up! Your eggs are done!

Why yes, that IS a Muses of Modern Science mug. Carl Sagan is holding a pot leaf.

And here's where I make an enemy of the internet. The only thing that separates Strangled eggs from Scrambled eggs is what you put on top:

Yes. That's ketchup. Fight me. Actually, please don't.

Oh yeah. Ketchup. Breakfast of champions, baby! Usually, I'd have this with toast, but we were pretty much out of bread, and I just wanted to eat at this point. I lugged my breakfast into the living room to plop on the couch and watch some YouTube (ProJared is playing Illusion of Gaia right now!) with my awesome Adventure notebook.

That's a piano stool I'm using as a table. That notebook looks like the Atari cartridge for Adventure!

That's all from me for now, except to give you the SPICE OF THE WEEK!

AKA: MY MOUTH BURNS OH GOD

Cayenne pepper is not for the faint of heart. Do not use this if you are allergic to nightshades in general or peppers specifically. This is basically dried heat in a bottle. Why is it only a 1 oz container? Because if you used the whole thing you'd strip the lining off your stomach, probably. You don't need too much at a time. I use it in chilies and spicy Mexican or Thai foods. Do not use this if you cannot take heat. It is hot. 30k-50k scovilles hot. That's hotter than Tabasco and Chipotle, but not quite as hot as Thai peppers or Birds Eye chillis.

Basically, this is hot. Don't say I didn't warn you. But it's also tasty as heck. Smoky, sweet, and blasting heat. Aw yeah.

Alright, folks,

Go Enjoy Something! Or Make Something! Or Make Something and then Enjoy it!

FC