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Sweet, savory carrots

I am not the world's best vegetable eater. I know this about myself, but I also know they're, you know, vegetables; I need to find ways to make them taste good to me. And friends? I have found the way with carrots. I am in LOVE with these. I've eaten them with lunch every day this week. This is HUGE. I started with bacon, because so many good things start with bacon. I fried it up in a pan, then added some carrots (I used baby carrots because I had them; any kind will do). I poured in some chicken broth I had in the freezer and let them simmer a long time, because I'm Southern and I like my vegetables cooked a long time. I salted them and they were really good, but could maybe use something else, so I was digging around the fridge looking for inspiration and I found it: apricot preserves. Seriously, one tablespoon simmered in with the chicken broth and they were heaven on a plate. Please try it and let me know what you think!

Sweet, savory carrots

Ingredients

• two slices bacon
• half pound carrots, cut however you like them
• 2 cups chicken broth
• salt, to taste
• 1 Tbsp. apricot preserves

Instructions

1. In a shallow pan, fry the bacon till crispy, then add in carrots, chicken broth, and salt; simmer, covered, till the carrots are as soft as you like them
2. Add in apricot preserves and simmer with the lid off, stirring periodically, till preserves are all melted in and sauce is slightly thickened
3. Serve with a little sauce spooned over the top (these are awesome served over rice so the rice can soak up a little sauce as well)

Baked egg sandwiches

School is back in (already?!) and Kiddo is off to first grade. And by "off to" I mean "off to the dining room" where we homeschool. :) Since time is a little more of the essence than in the lazy summer mornings, I've been trying to think of a quick breakfast that still gets some good protein and fat in us. When Michael Ruhlman posted about baked eggs in a mini-cocotte, I had my answer. Unfortunately, I don't own a mini-cocotte (quelle tragedy). I do, however, own this petite pie plate from Le Creuset, and I figured that was just about the right size for what I wanted anyway. Add a couple slices of whole wheat bread, and that's a pretty healthy breakfast! The best part is how customizable this is -- you can add anything you want to it, baked in or as a topping, to keep you from getting bored with it. Here's my favorite method:

Baked egg sandwiches

Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 1-2 tsp. olive oil
• Salt, pepper
• Hot sauce
• 1 slice cheese
• 2 slices whole wheat bread

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F (I do this in the toaster oven)
2. Coat the pie plate with olive oil and crack the egg into the dish. Leave it alone if you like it like a fried egg; I like it more like scrambled so I poke at the yolk a little till it spread out into the whites
3. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, hot sauce, or whatever floats your boat
4. Bake 5-8 minutes until egg whites are cooked through, then switch to broil for about two minutes until the yolk is as cooked as you like it
5. Top with cheese and build your sandwich!

Notes

Variations!

Use butter or bacon grease instead of olive oil

Add in blue cheese crumbles Top with crispy bacon Sprinkle in red pepper flakes Add some chopped veggies Serve over mashed avocado Add sliced tomatoes Top with buffalo sauce What other variations sound good? We have a steady supply of eggs from a farmer friend of The Yankee's, so all suggestions welcome. :)