Scrambled Omelet

I grew up in a household where nothing went to waste. You used everything, be it leftover food or that piece of cardboard that comes with a new dress shirt. Thus I have learned to be creative in finding ways to reuse things.

Especially food. Mashed potatoes get new life when added to soup or made into patties and fried or my favorite, spread on pizza or biscuit dough and covered with cheese... mmmmm... If I can't use something in a timely manner, it goes into the freezer for later.

This morning, the Small People requested I actually cook breakfast instead of them fending for them selves like usual. Heaven forbid they eat cereal... AGAIN... We are leaving on vacation soon so we are running low on groceries and my options were limited. Enter The Scrambled Omelet.

This is a GREAT way to get rid of that 1 piece of sausage left from breakfast 2 days ago... or that little bit of shredded cheese left from Taco Night. But most especially... it keeps the kids from fighting over who gets what. I have 2 kids and myself. Today I had 5 pieces of bacon. Seriously? We can each eat a pound by ourselves. Face it.. NOBODY wants just a piece and a half of bacon.

I fried the bacon in a large pan until very crisp (we are crisp bacon people- none of that flimsy flappy stuff here!) and put on some paper towels to drain. I poured off the bacon grease and added about 1/2 cup of chopped onion to the hot pan (left over from last weeks hot dogs). While those sauted, I broke 6 eggs in a bowl, added a dash of milk, dash of pepper and whipped until frothy. Once the onion was slightly translucent, I poured the eggs in and sprinkled in about 1/2 cup shredded cheddar. I then crumbled the bacon on top of that.

It's not very pretty, but it tastes great, uses up leftovers and fills you up!

I had 2 biscuits left from earlier in the week so I warmed them up in the microwave. VOILA! Breakfast is served.

***I take all my egg shells and throw them in my flower beds. WASTE NOTHING!!

Chicken and Rice soup

Even though the weather here has turned warm, I still enjoy a good bowl of soup. And chicken soup seems to be a great comfort food. Serve this with a side of steamed broccoli and some yeast bread.... YUMMY!

The Fat Lady's Special Chicken Soup (serves 9)

@3 1/2 -4 lbs chicken, bone in or out (bone in makes better broth!)

3 quarts water

2 bay leaves

2 large onions chopped

4 celery ribs chopped

2 chicken boullion cubes

2 parsley sprigs

1 garlic clove

salt and pepper to taste

2 cups finely chopped carrots (grated works too)

3 cups cooked rice

Bring chicken and water to a boil. Add salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Boil until chicken is done. Remove chicken. Pour broth through a strainer to remove the white chicken "scum" and bay leaf (this part is optional- I like the clear look to the broth so I do this). Bring broth back to a boil and add onion, celery, bouillon, parsley, garlic and carrots. Turn down heat to simmer. While that cooks, debone and chop the cooked chicken. Add this to the broth. Continue cooking about 30 minutes. To serve, put about 1/3 cup rice in a bowl and ladle hot broth over.