Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Meal In A Muffin Pan: Eggs-in-hash-nests bake, corn muffins, fruit breakfast salads

Ever seen one of these?

IMG_2795.jpg picture by seshet27

These recipe card libraries were popular in the 70's, as was this unfortunate shade of green. As you may guess, this is the era from which this week's menu comes.

cornedbeefhash.jpg picture by seshet27

Meal in a Muffin Pan
1 can (15 1/2 ounces) corned beef hash
6 eggs
salt and pepper
1/2 package of our corn muffin mix

Heat oven to 400 F. Generously grease 12 muffin cups. Press about 2 tablespoons hash in each of 6 muffin cups, making deep indentation in center of hash. Break an egg into each hash cup; season with salt and pepper.


IMG_2791.jpg picture by seshet27

Prepare half package muffin mix as directed; fill remaining muffin cups 1/2 full. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until muffins are golden brown and eggs are desired doneness. 4 to 6 servings.


IMG_2793.jpg picture by seshet27

While the corn muffins and eggs-in-hash-nests bake, arrange mounds of jewel-toned fruits in one of the combinations below.

Fruit Cups: Combine watermelon, cantaloupe, or honeydew melon balls, cubes or slices in dessert dishes or cups. Or combine one variety melon with other fruits.

Fruit Plates: Arrange slices of melon, red plums and fresh peaches on small plates, then add small clusters of seedless green grapes.

Fruit Breakfast Salads: Cut canteloupe [yes, they spelled it two ways.] crosswise into 3/4-inch slices. Remove seeds and rind. Serve melon rings filled with fruits such as blueberries, raspberries, grapes or melon balls.

IMG_2789.jpg picture by seshet27

Verdict:

Eggs-in-hash-nests bake: I remembered canned corned beef hash through the rose-colored palate of my childhood, when we ate it a lot when we went camping. Man, that stuff was delicious. It led to the following incident in high school:

Giggling Boys: Hey! Hey Jana! Hey! HEYYYYYY. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. HEY.

Me: WHAT.

GB: Um, um, do you like hash? *snicker/elbow*

Me: Huh?

GB (now more confident): I said, do you like hash? I bet you do. You do, huh.

Me: Yeah, I love hash!

GB: WHAT.

Me: Yeah, my family has it all the time when we're camping. That stuff is dang good.

GB: ...........*look of shock and awe*

Me (hours later): Hey wait... OH! *facepalm*

Yikes. Anyway, having it again as an adult, this stuff is terrible. Salty pink pureed paste holding together tiny cubes of potato reminiscent of pork fat and this smell. This... I had to struggle through this. The first few bites I was carried by nostalgia, but after that, the real taste and texture hit me. Ron had to finish the last few bites for me, because the thought of bringing that fork to my face one more time made me worry that it might all come back up. You people know I've eaten some bad food in the course of this blog, but this, this is the worst so far.

Corn muffins: I used a Jiffy mix instead of Betty Crocker brand. The shame.

Fruit breakfast salad: It's kind of festive, isn't it? It tastes about like you'd expect.

12 comments:

Kathleen said...

Don't trash the hash, Jana. It's delicious. I keep a can in my cupboard. YOu have to fry it so it isn't pasty, but deliciously crispy. Betty Crocker is full of crap on this recipe, I'm afraid.

Jana said...

Maybe if it was Very Crispy Indeed...

Kristin said...

I have to support Jana's opinion. There is a REASON hash rhymes with Trash. Because that is what it tastes like... Sorry it didnt turn out well, but the concept is cool. Maybe you can figure out a better recipe for little breakfast cups for us and repost! Maybe eggs inside refrigerator biscuits or something..

Rachel said...

I had one of those recipe boxes, in a very lovely shade of orange. I moved it once, maybe twice, then tossed it because the recipes were icky. You are a brave woman.

Unknown said...

It could have been worse, the recipe could have called for Spam.

Jana said...

Hey, I like spam! Or... I did as a child... much like I liked corned beef hash in a can...

Rats.

Astrid said...

Agreed that hash can be delicious if crispy. I like the idea of this recipe, if the hash was crisped up some more... but we have hash with fried eggs a couple times a year anyhow. Not more often that that.
(There's a Swedish hash called Pytt i panna: http://scandinavianfood.about.com/od/potatodishes/r/Swedishhash.htm - I like mine with beets diced in. Mmmm.)

Jana said...

Now, that hash looks tasty. Especially the bacon. Yum.

wehrd1 said...

Instead of hash - use shredded hash browns sprayed with pam and pre-baked until almost crisp - to brown them a bit, then add the egg and bake some more

Unknown said...

I was just looking for a recipe. Mold the corn muffin in the cupcake pan and drop an egg in the center if it. Bake it like that. With mushrooms

Unknown said...

Looking for a recipe. Mold corn muffin in the cupcake pan drop an egg in it and bake it with mushrooms

Anonymous said...

I have been a fan of canned corn beef hash for years. When I saw the recipe, I thought OMG they are not frying if first to get the crispness. Frying is a must. If you don't you will have a greasy horrible tasting mess.