The Betty Crocker Project : Potato, Bacon & Egg Scramble

Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler. - Albert Einstein

I almost feel guilty posting this recipe. It is extremely easy and takes about 10 minutes to make. . . But we are cooking our way through Betty and it would be wrong to skip the easy ones. 

Sunday morning, we had this scramble with some toast points and coffee. The baby birds are flying all around the Holly trees in the courtyard of our apartment building these days. We watched them and talked about how the Celtics were doing in the Playoffs and what we would make for dinner to go with the Wrath of Pecant beer we got on Saturday when we took The Dogfish Brewery Tour with the always adorable & charming yet controversial Bruce and Alka. 

It was pretty much an awesome weekend. . . Bruce and Dan owned the Beer Quiz, we ate HUGE onion rings (they were like something from Sleepers) and Netflix sent my next disks of Supernatural (I get giddy when I get my fix) . . . We enjoyed the simple pleasures of life. . . like this recipe which is pretty awesome and simple.

• 6 Red Potatoes (small and cubed)
• 1 Package of Firm Tofu (drained)
• 6 Peices of Fake Bacon (We used LightLife - But Tempeh marinated in Liquid Smoke or these Tempeh Bacon Strips would have been better) 
• Olive Oil for Cooking
• 1 Splash of Liquid Smoke
• Salt for boiling water - I wouldn't add more than 2 teaspoons.
• 4 Medium Green Onions (chopped)
• 1/2 of 1 Red Pepper (sliced)
• 1 1/2 Teaspoon Cumin
• 1 Teaspoon Thyme
• 1 Teaspoon Basil (dried)
• 1 Teaspoon Paprika
• 1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric
• 1 Teaspoon Braggs
• 1/4 Cup Nutritional Yeast 

In a cast iron skillet, heat the Olive Oil at a medium heat. 

Heat salted water to a boil in a pot large enough to fit all the Potatoes without the water overflowing. Once the water starts to boil - add the Potatoes and cover the pot. Remove the Potatoes once they are tender.

Fry Fake Bacon and when it reaches a desired crispiness remove from the skillet and place on a plate on top of some paper towels - to help soak up some of the oil. Cut into strips small enough to sprinkle of the Scramble.

Add one splash of Liquid Smoke to the Olive Oil in the Skillet. Add the Potatoes and fry. Don't stir them continually. Let them start to get crispy on one side before flipping. 

In a large bowl - Mash Tofu and then mix in Nutritional Yeast, Cumin, Basil, Thyme, Paprika, Braggs and Turmeric. Normally I wouldn't tell people to mash the Tofu - I like my Tofu Scramble with big pieces of Tofu. . . BUT. . . We are trying to recreate liquid eggs and are trying to cover the vegetables with the Tofu mix - SO it is OK if it is pasty - Actually pasty is GREAT! 

Before the Potatoes are the desired crispiness, pour Tofu Mix in over the Potatoes and add Red Peppers. Mix in the Skillet till the vegetables are covered. You may need to add a TINY bit more oil then but not more than 1 Teaspoon. Let it cook and flip/ stir occasionally. Add Green Onions. 

You are now cooking off the moisture from the Tofu and the vegetables. Once you reach a desired texture, remove the Scramble from the skillet and sprinkle the Fake Bacon Strips. 

Then sit back and enjoy a little Thoreau or SportsCenter.