~ Sausage and Everything Bagel Breakfast Sandwich ~
It's been said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I whole-heartedly believe it, but, I also have strong opinions about it. The first: A protein-packed breakfast is better than a sugar-shocked one. I love pancakes, waffles and French toast as much as the next person, and indulging in them occasionally is divine, but, on a daily basis, I don't believe them to be the best way to start the day. The second: In today's busy food world, folks will put down the sweet pop tart in exchange for a savory sandwich if it can be made in advance, or several days in advance.
A work week of made-ahead breakfast sandwiches.
Sausage, egg and cheese bagel sandwiches are my specialty. I make ten of them every Sunday, wrap 'em in plastic and stack 'em in the refrigerator. Monday thru Friday (the work week), these tasty ten sandwiches are breakfast for my husband and myself. When I tip-toe down the stairs in the dark (at the ungodly hour of 4:20AM), I take one out and let it warm up on the counter for about 30 minutes. After 1 1/2 minutes in the microwave, I'm eating my breakfast. I repeat the process in the daylight, when my husband makes his appearance in the kitchen.
10 high-quality New York-style same-day-baked everything bagels, the kind bought at a bakery rather than found in the bread section of the average grocery store
10 sweet sausage links
10 large, medium or jumbo eggs
10-20 slices yellow cheddar cheese (1 or 2 per sandwich)
~ Step 1. Using a pair of kitchen shears, remove the casings from ten sweet sausage links and form each link into into a 4"-round patty. Place five sausage patties in a 12" skillet. Over medium heat, fry the sausage patties, until cooked through and lightly-golden on both sides, using a spatula to flip them over once during the process, about 8 minutes per side. Remove sausage patties to a paper-towel lined plate and set aside. Repeat this process with the remaining five sausage patties.
~ Step 2. Crack 10 eggs into the sausage drippings remaining in the skillet. Lightly-season tops with salt and pepper. Over medium-high heat, fry the eggs to desired degree of yolky doneness. Towards the end of the process, I like to place a lid on the skillet for about a minute to form an opaque and protective skin atop the still jiggly yolks. Remove the skillet of eggs from stovetop, cover and set aside.
~Step 3. To assemble the sandwiches, using a serrated bread knife, slice all ten bagels in half horizontally. Depending on the size of your toaster, lightly-toast one or two bagels. As bagels emerge from the toaster, top the bagel bottoms with one or two slices of cheddar cheese, a still warm sausage patty and an egg. Add the top of the bagel, wrap each bagel sandwich in aluminum foil and set aside -- wrapping the warm sandwich and its warm components in foil steams the bread to the perfect texture. Repeat process until all ten bagel sandwiches are assembled and wrapped in foil.
~Step 4. Starting with the first sandwiches you wrapped in foil and working your way to the last sandwiches that got wrapped, remove the foil and tightly-wrap each sandwich in plastic wrap (preferably commercial food service film which is heavier and higher-quality than ordinary Glad- and Saran-type wrap). Stack the sandwiches neatly on a shelf in the refrigerator. To reheat, remove a sandwich from the refrigerator and set it on the counter for 30-45 minutes. In the meantime, take a shower, put the coffee on, check your e-mails -- whatever. Place the plastic wrapped sandwich in the microwave oven on high power for 90 seconds. Unwrap and eat.
The perfect protein-packed & savory start to the workday...
... & hearty enough to eat one half & share the other half:
Got guests coming for the weekend or a large crowd to feed? Sausage & Everything Bagel Breakfast Casserole:
Sausage and Everything Bagel Breakfast Sandwich: Recipe yields 10 breakfast sandwiches.
Special Equipment List: kitchen shears; 12" nonstick skillet w/lid; nonstick spatula; paper towels; cutting board; serrated bread knife; toaster; aluminum foil; plastic wrap
Cook's Note: Another one of my favorite everything bagel sandwiches, the ~ Smoked Salmon & Folded Omelet Bagel Sandwich ~ contains all the components of a classic bagels and lox presentation. The folded omelette that goes atop this sandwich, is a great substitution for the fried eggs featured today.
"We are all in this food world together." ~ Melanie Preschutti
(Recipe, Commentary and Photos courtesy of Melanie's Kitchen/Copyright 2024)
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