Breakfast is served

Are you a breakfast person? Do you start each and everyday with a meal to get you on your feet? My husband is a die hard breakfast man and while I didn't used to be a daily breakfast person, he's shown me the light and made a breakfast believer out of me! I especially love the weekend breakfasts- they can be a bit more leisurely, be eaten at a restaurant, and it's more appropriate to have something like french toast on a Sunday than a Wednesday. The great breakfast debate for me is sweet or savory?? It's a really hard decision and though I usually feel better after eating a savory breakfast, it's just really delicious to indulge in banana pancakes or I don't know- croissant french toast (yes, that exists, yes you should try it...we can talk about it later!) with maple syrup and a little pat of butter. However, Mexican breakfasts tend to trump any other kind of breakfast in my book and a good breakfast sandwich doesn't fall too far behind (I'm looking at you BLD)!

We stopped by Grub in Hollywood recently and had one of those nice leisurely Sunday morning breakfasts on a gloomy day and in need of something warm, a cup of coffee, and a little bite of comfort! I had been wanting to go for quite awhile, because as you know, if a Top Chef contestant is in the kitchen, I can't stay away for too long. The restaurant itself is a converted bungalow that couldn't be cuter or cozier. I took the pancake route on this day and had a few nibbles of my husband's breakfast burrito. There menu is a little more limited than I had hoped, but I liked our food quite a bit and would love to definitely go back- the egg sandwich and the french toast sound incredible!

I love that you sit down and are greeted with a bowl of fruit loops!

Berry, Berry Good Pancakes with granola cooked in

Mamacita's breakfast burrito with chorizo for the man

What do you like to eat for breakfast? What is your favorite breakfast/brunch to indulge in on the weekends?

Salt's Cure

After not hearing a single bad thing about Salt's Cure (except that it sometimes gets hot in there, which is not a deterrent) for months, it was only a matter of time before I'd check it out. I was surprised to see such a small menu, but figured since it's small, everything just must be very good. That was a safe assumption. The dishes on other tables all looked pretty solid. R wanted the Eggs, Ham, and Cheese which sounded awesome, but because of my self imposed ban on ordering the same thing as my dining partner, I had to come up with another dish. Oatmeal girddle cakes it would be. Deeeeeelicious choices all around! The ham in R's meal was so good and of course, house cured. I've never had an oatmeal griddle cake and it was such a treat- crispy edges, but oatmeally goodness on the inside.

Open Kitchen

Eggs, Ham, and Chese

Oatmeal Griddle Cakes with Apple Cinnamon Butter

As usual, R cleans his plate and mine

Have you gone to Salt's Cure? What did you think?

Carmelized Banana and Pecan Waffles

Celebration- I found my George Foreman Grill. It's one of the multi purpose grills with various plates, including a waffle griddle. I was unable to find my grill for awhile, but stumbled across it about 2 weeks ago and knew waffles were in order for the weekend. Once again, thank you Trader Joe's for providing me with your multi grain pancake and waffle mix for me to make the waffles with. Crucial note- when making waffles- butter or cooking spray on the waffle plates is not a step to be sacrificed... messy things happen when you don't do this!

Once the waffles are underway- it's banana and pecan carmelizing time! I took 2 bananas, sliced them into bite size pieces and rolled them around in some sugar. I heated up just a bit of butter in a skillet and in went the sugary bananas. You'll know when they start carmelizing. They get golden and a most heavenly banana caramel smell fills the air. Let them get a golden bottom and then flip them and throw in some pecans. Caramel will fill up in the bottom of the pan and can coat the pecans. Take them out when they are nice and golden.
They tend to get a little disintegrated and mushy, although still delicious, when you leave them in for too long. Spoon them over some waffles with some butter and or syrup and breakfast/brunch is served!

Huevos en los ramekins

It's Saturday morning and the man says "What's for breakfast?" Looks through fridge. Thinks. Possibly feels stumped. Ah ha! Revelation! I love mexican breakfasts and was onto a good idea. Baked eggs with enchilada sauce, cheese, black beans, green chiles and some homegrown cilantro. I haven't quite mastered the world of baked eggs. It's tricky to tell when their done, but I go by the gelatinous-ness of the egg. I baked in small ramekins in a pan filled with water about half way up the side of the ramekins for about 20..maybe 30 something minutes. Muy bueno!