Dollar Tree Country Breakfast

Sometimes the stars align and all the ingredients appear at one time as it does for my latest cheap$kate recipe Dollar Tree Country Breakfast.

A typical Country Breakfast is a combination meal and more than an easily and quickly made Bacon and Eggs with Toast. Going by region, a Country Breakfast can include grits, biscuits, ham, eggs, gravy, pancakes, hash browns, and more.

The Country Breakfast I grew up with in Texas consisted of Cream Gravy with Sausage, Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits, and Eggs.

I have a Dollar Tree  right down the street from where I live and usually get, on a regular basis, 6 to 8 eggs for a buck, breakfast link sausage and regular ground breakfast sausage, and milk. Sometimes flour shows up, and flakey-style biscuits in the cold case, too. That's everything I need for a quickly-made Country Breakfast.

The Dollar Tree eggs are usually the medium size and that's okay with me. 

The Farmer John Sausage Links, or Classic Pork Sausage, are a bit on the fatty side, but the flavor is there -- it's easy enough to remove rendered pork grease, but don't drain it all, as that is a great flavor.

Add flour to milk and you have Cream Gravy, but add bacon or sausage grease and you have Country Gravy. This is an artery-clogging start to the day, but I don't make it very often so it's a welcome decadent breakfast on a lazy weekend morning.

I like my eggs sunny-side-up, which are cooked on one side only until the white is done. It takes a little longer than over-easy (cooked on both sides). It's also idiot-proof since you don't risk breaking the yolk when you turn the egg over to finish frying. If you like your eggs scrambled then go for it. Country Gravy mixes well with scrambled eggs on the fork. 

 

I prefer homemade Buttermilk Biscuits, but deli case canned (cardboard-wrapped) flakey biscuits are fine in a pinch. They are like a croissant, with visible pastry layers, quite different than the Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits I grew up with down South. 

Buttermilk Biscuits are cake-like when sliced. They are easier to crumble and soak up gravy beautifully. I can get premade ones though, on sale at my local grocery chain store, Ralphs. 

Dollar Tree also sells a dry mix to make a homemade Buttermilk Biscuit. If you don't want to spring for flour you can get a Country Gravy mix, too.  

My latest Cheap$kate Recipe only uses ingredients from the Dollar Tree, so I'm sticking with the flakey deli case biscuits. And they are easy and quick to use only taking 15 minutes to bake brown - about the time it takes for the Country Gravy and Sunny Side Up Eggs to finish cooking.

99 thanks to Dollar Tree for all the tasty ingredients for my Cheap$kate Dollar Tree Country Breakfast. And you can bet your bottom dollar it's really easy and quick to do, so get to cookin' -- and after this meal, you can skip lunch, believe me!

Country Breakfast - Video      Play it here. Video runs 3 minutes, 13 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here. 

Ingredients (about 2-3 servings)

• 1 to 2 Eggs - Fried eggs over easy or sunny-side-up. Okay to scramble eggs your way.
• 4 to 5 Biscuits - I used ready-to-bake canned that hold 5 biscuits. Okay to use your favorite biscuit recipe or mix.
• Breakfast Pork Sausage - about 8 ounces, links or ground pork. If you buy cooked links or patties, cook sausage for a minute or so to heat and render some of the fat then follow gravy directions.
• Milk 2 cups - whole or low fat. 
• Flour 1/4 cup - white or wheat. 
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Directions

Start by baking canned biscuits according to package directions, usually bake at 350 degrees in the oven for about 15 minutes until the biscuits brown.

It takes about 15 minutes to prepare the gravy - about the same time it takes to bake biscuits. So you can start both at the same time. If the biscuits take longer to bake, you can keep the gravy at low heat, until ready to eat (stir in a tablespoon of milk at a time if the gravy thickens too much).

While biscuits bake, in a large pan or pot, over medium heat, add raw pork breakfast sausage. As sausage browns, break it apart into smaller pieces. It's okay to use formed sausage patties or links, just break them up as they cook. 

It's best to get the sausage nice and brown, at least on one side. The caramelization adds a lot of flavor to the gravy. Cook the sausage all the way through for about 5 minutes (depending on the size of the sausage pieces).

 Breakfast sausage tends to have a lot of fat, so it's up to you how much-rendered grease you want to keep in the pan. It's okay to pour out some grease to lower calories, but do leave a tablespoon of grease for extra richness and flavor.

Next, sprinkle on a quarter cup of flour. Stir into the cooked sausage and saute for 2 to 3 minutes. 

Slowly pour in the milk and stir to mix well. Keep stirring so any flour lumps break down. Once the gravy is brought up to a low simmer, it should begin to thicken in a couple of minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Once the gravy is thick and hot it is ready to pour over the biscuits.

My gravy recipe is for a thick one. You can add a tablespoon of milk at a time to thin it out if that's the way you like it.

Fry or scramble eggs any way you like. I would cook eggs after the biscuits and gravy are done, as they can sit for around a couple of minutes while cooking eggs.

Serve hot biscuits covered in my delicious Homemade Sausage Gravy. Some like to tear their biscuits apart first, then spoon on the gravy. I just lay out a couple of them and cover it all with sausage gravy.

My Country Breakfast barely takes half an hour to make. And it's enough for a couple servings so invite a friend!

Fried Egg Sandwich - Breakfast Recipe

When I'm lazy in the morning and coffee is working too slow, I don't want to think about breakfast too much so I'll make a Fried Egg Sandwich. 

Just get the egg to frying, pop some bread in the toaster and get out the mayo. Sometimes I'll stop there...that's enough for an Egg Sandwich. If I have a tomato then I'll slice off some and if I have lettuce then that's added too. You can make your own Egg Sandwich any way you like.

Lately, eggs have come up in price, I used to get a dozen for 99 cents, but now at my local Dollar Tree I get  6 to 8 eggs for a buck -- still a great deal. They're one of the cheapest ingredients to start your day. 

Lately, I fry my eggs so the sandwich can be a bit messy with yolk spilling out, but I do like it that way as a raw semi-cooked yolk is quite yummy. It's okay to scramble an egg if you like it that way. 

If you have a grocer bakery look for day-old bread. My Ralphs grocers have a "bargain bin" and I'm always on the lookout for bread deals. 

I've got everything from grainy Mill Bread to pungent Marble Rye. If they have a nice sourdough or wheat, then I'll get that - mix it up I say!

Now it's not fresh so it doesn't hold up to just slicing it for a sandwich, usually day-old bread is not soft, so I always toast the bread. Day-old bread holds up really well as toast - you can't tell the difference between fresh and day-old bread when toasted.

It's okay to use any favorite bread you find on sale or regular price.

I like mayo on my Egg Sandwich. I still get mayonnaise cheaply at my local  Dollar Tree. I can get tomatoes and lettuce cheap enough.

Start your day with my Fried Egg Sandwich -- it's so good and goes down perfectly with coffee.

Fried Egg Sandwich - Video           Play it here, the video runs 1 minute, 32 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients

• 1 egg - fried or scrambled to your taste. 
• 2 slices of bread - I like to toast mine. Okay to use bagel, croissant, or any favorite bread you like and find on sale.
• Tomato slices - I like cherry tomatoes too.
• Lettuce leaf - spinach is a tasty addition.
• Veggie oil for frying egg.
• Salt and pepper to taste - for the fried or scrambled egg.

Directions

You know how to fry an egg right? I heat the pan, add some oil and break the egg into the pan.

I don't move the egg at all. I just let it cook until the whites are solid, usually about 3 minutes, depending on the heat of the frying pan. 

If you like your yolks semi-done then break the yolk and it will cook that way.

It's okay to scramble the egg as well if that's how you like it. It's always best to cook the egg the way you like it.

When the egg is halfway done, I'll start toasting the bread. I'll also slice the tomato and wash off the lettuce leaf. 

When the egg is done and the bread is toasted then assemble the sandwich. As I mentioned above I like mayo on my sandwich, it's okay to add any condiment you like.

Swamp Chef Plays Golf - The Fried Egg

From Fried Egg to Birdie? Yep, it's another wacked-out Swamp Chef video and it has nothing to do with cooking, except in the title, The Fried Egg. And click on any highlighted Golf Lingo to read the definition.

When the Swamp Chef swings he often strikes out, but when golfing its game on! 

FYI a Fried Egg in golfing terms has to do with the appearance of a golf ball half-buried in a Sand Trap.

In lush and damp Louisiana Golf Courses are the greenest, with trees and lakes scattered throughout. 

A chip off the old block who doesn't take Duff, the 99 Cent Chef's brother from another daddy, the Swamp Chef, plays a mean green, on and off the golf course that is. So who's your Caddy?

The Mossy Putter knows his way around 18 holes, but unfortunately, his golf ball is a Bunker magnet as you will see in the golfing video below. But don't count the Swamp Chef out, he has a surprising Stroke left. 

So check out my latest video in the rough and watch the Swamp Chef Duck Hook the ball and land a Birdie or was that an Eagle?

The Fried Egg - Video

Rice Bowl with Chicken & Veggies

For all my university dorm room dwelling visitors I have a cheap and quickie meal for you. And it's even nutritious! So get out the hot plate and cook up my steamed Rice Bowl with Chicken & Veggies recipe. This tasty meal is cheap too.

And it's a one pot meal that only takes the time to cook a cup of rice. And as for vegetables, I add a frozen veggie mix. There are a lot of different types, so you can use any favorite, like: Oriental Stir Fry, California Blend, and Cauliflower, Broccoli, Peas, Corn and Carrots. You can even combine almost any other veggies you find in your local grocery frozen case.

For protein I add a small can of cooked chicken. It's about the size of a can of tuna. If you prefer cooked roasted chicken from your neighborhood grocery, then use some of that.

If you want to kick the meal up a notch, then top it all with a fried egg. Many Eastern cultures top an entree with a fried egg. Mix in a creamy yolk with the Rice Bowl and you'll see and taste why.

One pound packages of frozen veggies are cheap at any grocery store or Dollar Tree. You know how inexpensive rice is. As for chicken I get small cans of it from my local 99c only Store.

If chicken is too expensive then top the cooked veggies and rice with a fried or scrambled egg. Of course, you can keep this meal vegetarian and leave out the chicken and egg.

You can drizzle on my Rice Bowl with Chicken & Veggies a favorite condiment, like soy sauce, chili sauce, sweet and sour sauce, hot sauce, or anything you have on hand.

So just dump in those cheap ingredients into a pot and and get to cooking. You and your dorm roommate can devote your new found time to studying (yeah, right) while my simple and tasty recipe cooks away.

Ingredients (about 2 servings) 
1 cup of rice - white or brown rice.
1 package of frozen veggies - about 1 pound. Okay to use any favorite type, like:  Oriental Stir Fry, California Blend, and Cauliflower, Broccoli, Peas and Carrots. You can combine any you have in the freezer.
1 small can of cooked chicken - I used a 5 ounce can. Okay to use any leftover cooked chicken, included roasted chicken from your local grocery deli department.
1 1/2cups of water - for cooking rice. Normally it's 2 cups of water, but frozen veggies also provide liquid, so less water makes for less mushy rice.
Pepper to taste - I leave out salt, as the canned chicken has enough salt for me, but you can add some if you like.
Optional - Add a fried egg on top of finished rice bowl.

Directions
 In a pot or rice cooker add water, rice, chicken and frozen veggies. You can add the liquid from the canned chicken too.

Cook according to rice package directions. Usually, bring water to a boil. Cover pot and reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 20 minutes. Let the rice rest covered for 5 minutes more.

For extra protein, while the rice is resting, fry an egg to top your Rice Bowl with Chicken & Veggies.

Hindsight
You could use raw chicken, but cut it into small bite-size pieces, so it cooks all the way through. And mix chicken into the rice and water. When done, cut into largest piece of chicken to make sure there is no pink color.

To fry an egg, like they do for a Japanese rice bowl, just add a tablespoon of oil to your egg pan over a medium heat. Crack an egg and add it to pan, careful not to break the yellow yolk. Now just let it cook until the white is cooked solid and the yolk is still soft. No need to turn the egg. When egg is done gently scrape it loose from the pan. Place the fried egg on the Rice Bowl when serving.

This meal is easy to reheat in the microwave the next day, too.