I confess that Todd and I are not huge breakfast eaters. Most days we will have a bowl of cereal at most. Todd likes his porrige and I like my granola, enjoyed most days with a spoonful of yogurt and some fresh fruit.
We are not really egg for breakfast people. Normally we will enjoy them at the end of the day for a light supper. These English Muffin Breakfast Pizzas are one of the ways we enjoy them most!
A part of the reason we don't do large breakfasts is that I am always up about four full hours before Todd gets up. I have always been an early riser and I accomplish a lot more during those four hours on my own than I will the whole rest of the day.
I do get hungry however and so I will have my granola normally well before he shows his face. I like to munch on it while I work, be that a bad habit or not. Its just what I do.
Normally we will eat our big meal of the day around 1 pm. A lot of that has to do with natural light. Yes, I am a bit of a slave to blogging. But happily so, I hasten to add.
I like to take all of my photos using natural light. The optimum time for that is earlier in the day, usually around midday. Any later than that and I have to go outside and, to be honest, the UK is usually a bit wet and rainy for that to be very pleasant.
We do eat at normal times when we are having company. Don't worry if you are ever invited for dinner. You won't be required to show up midday! I normally don't blog about our "company" meals.
Thse English Muffin Breakfast Pizzas make for an excellent brunch dish. They are also a great light supper. Especially if you serve a salad on the side!
One thing I really like about them is that they use things I normally have in my larder, refrigerator and freezer. There is nothing complicated here.
English Muffins, eggs, sausage meat and cheese. That's basically all you need. By English Muffins I mean the type of muffin/bun that McDonald's uses for their Egg McMuffins.
I have actually made English Muffins on here before, earlier this year. You can find that recipe here. They are really quite lovely and easy to make!
Mind you, you will want to be making them the day before you make these Breakfast Pizzas. Not on the day. That would just complicate things overly much. And anyone who has been reading me for very long knows I like simple.
The muffins are split and lightly buttered with soft butter and then sprinkled with a bit of garlic powder. POWDER not salt. How much is up to you, but I do suggest that you not leave it out. It really adds a lovely flavour boost.
Over top of that you add some grated cheese. I used a mix of cheddar and red leicester cheeses today because I wanted you to be abl to see the cheese. Our cheddar is naturally white here in the UK, unless you buy dyed and it doesn't show up well in photos.
I do so love British Cheddar Cheese. They invented it and they make some of the best in the world.
I always, always use organic free range eggs and rspca approved if I can get them. The eggs I get from Ocado are always rspca approved. I want to eat happy eggs from happy chickens.
Chickens that have truly been allowed to roam around and peck in the dirt. The only way you can really guarantee that is to buy rspca approved. Most "free-rangers" still live in somewhat crowded conditions, albeit not even close to horrendous as caged hens.
I absolutely refuse to eat a caged hen's egg, or buy them either. I used to grade eggs when I was much younger and married to a farmer's son. I never saw the chickens. The hens were housed in a huge metal building.
I went into the grading room and the eggs would come through the grading machine, all washed and electronically sorted, on a conveyer belt. We had only to pop them onto the correct egg flats. It was tedious, boring and smelly work, but someone has to do it
This was a great many years before people developed a conscience about such things. I dare say had I known the conditions of the hens I might have been outraged, but I didn't and I wasn't. I was incredibly naive to say the least.
Not so anymore. I am much more conscious now of where my food comes from. I also try very hard in my own way to stick to certain standards of provenance when it comes to what I eat, drink and wear. In my small way, I like to think I am doing my best and that's what counts.
Back to the food. Eggs, always free range and always large. They just taste better. I think so at any rate. These are simply seasoned with salt and pepper and scrambled.
You will also need a good sausage. Nobody does sausage better than the British. I love British Bangers, and by that I mean good, Butcher sourced, quality British Bangers. Not cheap grocery store sausages that are filled with fat, fillers and chemicals.
Yes, you will pay more for them, but they are worth every penny. I hate the cheap nasty, pasty ones. I love rich meaty and plump quality sausage.
Just skin them, crumble them into a skillet, and scramble fry them until they are perfectly cooked through. And that's it.
Layer the eggs, sausage and more cheese onto the muffin halves and bake. That's it. They don't take long. About 15 minutes maximum! Just long enough for your coffee to brew if you are so inclined.
You can make as few or as many of these as you like! They will keep well in the refrigerator for up to 7 days, in an airtight container. Simply reheat in the microwave for 30 to 45 seconds.
You can also make them up to the point of assembly prior to baking, wrap well and freeze for up to three months. Ready to take out and cook when you want them. Simply pop into a preheated oven and bake as below.
prep time: 10 Mincook time: 15 Mintotal time: 25 Min
Quantities are given for two, but you can easily double or triple to feed more. These egg, sausage and cheesy breakfast pizzas are fabulously simple to make and incredibly tasty!
Ingredients:
2 English Muffins, split in half
2 breakfast sausages, skinned
3 large free range eggs
2 TBS softened butter
garlic powder to sprinkle
salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 cup (60g) grated strong cheddar cheese
minced chives to sprinkle (optional)
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4.
Split your english muffins and place them onto a baking tray. Spread each lightly with the softened butter and then sprinkle with a bit of garlic powder to taste. Top each half with 1 TBS of grated cheese.
Heat a small skillet over medium heat and crumble in the sausage. Cook, mashing it with a fork and crumbling it, until it is thoroughly cooked through. Remove to a plate lined with paper towel to drain.
Beat the eggs together with a fork and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Drain most of the fat from the skillet. Add the beaten eggs and scamble fry until just set. Remove from the heat.
Crumble half of the cooked sausage over the muffin halves, dividing it equally. Top each with 1/4 of the scrambled egg. Crumble the remaining sausage over top and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
Bake in the preheated oven until the muffins are lightly toasted and the cheese has melted, about 10 to 15 minutes.
Sprinkle with the minced chives, if using, and serve immediately.
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