Sunday Breakfast Skillet

Some of the best stuff I cook (according to my husband) is when I fry a bunch of stuff together in a skillet on the stovetop. 

I love to cook breakfast on the weekends. After 5 days of microwave oatmeal and toaster waffles, it's fun to put some actual time and care into a meal.

So last Sunday, courtesy of CK farms and my weekly installment of local produce and farm-fresh eggs, I put together a breakfast skillet.

I started by frying up some chicken sausage with diced onion and green pepper. I made sure to season with salt and pepper, but also added (few shakes each) of some garlic salt, thyme and sage.

 I also put some red potatoes in a pan with olive oil, garlic salt and lots of pepper. When the potatoes were almost cooked through, I added fresh chopped garlic for a few minutes. (Adding it too soon can burn the garlic and cook out all the flavor).

I used to add the scrambled eggs straight to the pan with the sausage and veggies, but my husband Ted taught me to scramble the eggs separate and then add the sausage mix at the end. The eggs don't get too broken up or watery that way. 

I topped with a bit of shredded cheddar and served with fruit and toasted Dave's Killer bread. It was a hit with my family!

Old-fashioned Spiced Apple Pie

When we moved into our house a few years ago, the previous original owners (from 1960) left this cookbook behind:

I love to look through it and see Alice's notes. She would date the recipe she tried, then add little phrases like "not bad..." She was the quintessential homemaker and home cook.

Now that I am on maternity leave with our second kid and home with lots of time to be domestic, I am channeling Alice and trying out new recipes.

I'm lucky to be home during the fall again. I think the fall harvest is my favorite: Hearty root vegetables and tree fruits. There have been lots of apples in my fall CSA box from CK Farms (just outside Eugene in Creswell) these last few weeks, so how better to use them than to cover them in sugar and bake in flour and butter. :)

I decided on the Taste of Oregon's old-fashioned spiced apple pie. It seemed different than an average apple pie, but not so different that I had to buy extra ingredients. Here is the recipe:

Save yourself some time and buy (many thrift stores or garage sales have them) or borrow a Pampered Chef apple peeler and corer. So much fun to use!!

The spices in this pie really transform the apples. It has a strong, bold taste that goes really well with light whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. 

I made sure to add the date and "really good" next to the recipe in the book.