Since a lot of people seem to be finding my blog after searching for terms like “gluten-free breakfast” and “what do gluten-free people eat for breakfast?”, I thought I would write an occasional series on what I eat for breakfast.
I normally sleep late and eat late these days. I eat “breakfast” at lunch-time, sometimes breakfasty foods, and sometimes not. I have always cooked breakfast, and I have always been open to eating different foods.
If you have decided to go gluten-free, I cannot recommend strongly enough that you move on from the past and open your mind to the foods that are available to you. Food substitutes and analogs are a poor imitation of the foods you can no longer eat. Let them go and find new foods and new ways to prepare the ingredients you can eat.
What you see in this photo is this morning’s breakfast. I had home fries, thinly sliced beef sauteed in butter, an omelet with red pepper sauce, and fresh strawberries with a little cream poured on them.
So you say you still need biscuits, and bread things to go with your breakfast? You can have it both ways. The best are made fresh at home.
What I did was to chop a clove of garlic and an inch of leeks very finely. (Day 2 potatoes had sweet red peppers sauteed in with the leeks, as you can see in the photo.) I sautéed them in chicken fat—use butter, oil, or whatever fat you prefer— gently until soft, adding freshly ground black pepper and ground or crushed red pepper if desired. Mix in with leftover mashed or smashed potatoes. These will be better if there is fat in the mashed potatoes, but it will still work if the potatoes were mashed without fat. Taste to adjust for seasoning, adding salt if necessary.
I recently started zapping my potatoes in the microwave to mash them. Just put them in a deep, covered casserole and microwave until soft. It couldn’t be easier, and they cook up properly for mashing. You’ll see I’ve got what looks like a ceramic glazed cast iron dutch oven. It’s not. Actually, it’s a ceramic casserole with a nonstick coating that I got on one of those special promotions at the supermarket. It’s made in China, oh-oh…
Butter or grease a cold non-stick Belgian waffle iron. Pack in enough cold seasoned potatoes so that when you lower the top and squish it closed, the grids will be filled without coming out the side. Now plug it in and put it on high. Check after 5 minutes, giving more time if necessary until it is golden brown. If you have more potatoes to do, keep the first batch in a warm oven, loosely covered with foil while waiting for the remainder to bake. I think with a large waffle iron you can probably make four generous servings in one cycle.