The back of our Subaru was heavy with home-canned green beans, pasta sauces, and meats, rice, wheat, dried potatoes, raw honey, plenty of spices, and an entire ice chest full of frozen goods. My mother and grandma-in-law had sent us home with food to last us quite some time.
When I was young, I remember hearing stories from my parents when they were in college and first married, not having enough income to buy each other Christmas presents. Their cupboards were pretty scarce, yet they were able to make due by focusing on the importance things in life. Fast forward 21 years later to 2012. As a newly married lady with my husband working full time in the Army and myself working part time as a skating coach, we fared well. There was always money to do what we wanted while also saving for the future. I had not yet experienced that feeling of living paycheck to paycheck.
4 years later we have found ourselves in a different scenario. We are both back in school without a consistent income. Now I am living the awesome experience of having to literally not buy things because well, the check book just can't handle it. This is in no means a pity-party, nor am I looking for sympathy. It's actually a reawakening for myself as I realize that we have always been looked out for. When we were earning a comfortable income, we saved a good chunk of it, for times like this. It has been hard for me to dip into our savings account to pay rent and such, but I am SO GRATEFUL we have those savings in the first place!
It was the good heart of my husband's mom and grandma to give us so much of their food storage to help feed us. While we did have some food storage when we moved to college, we had already gone through most of it, so having more was a gigantic blessing. Upon returning home from visiting my in-laws, I was putting away the food and saw the dehydrated potato slices. The gears in my mind immediately began to turn and I concocted a breakfast bake to feed us for the next three mornings. It was just perfect to have on hand because my husband could take it with him to school at 6 AM and I had something to feed my hungry body each morning. It isn't a perfect product and could use some tweaks, but it was sure tasty and not bad for just making it up on the spot and using food storage. Here is proof that food storage can taste good!
Breakfast Bake
4 cups dehydrated potato slices (you could use 4 fresh potatoes, sliced thin)
8 farm-fresh eggs (about 1 1/4 cups)
1 1/4 cup bone broth
3 small fresh zucchini or summer squash
3 cups chopped bell peppers
1 onion, chopped
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup packed fresh basil, chopped
1Tbsp coconut oil or butter
Place potato slices in a medium bowl and pour enough boiling water over them to cover. Set aside.
Heat coconut oil or butter in a medium skillet over medium heat until hot. Add in onions and cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add in the bell peppers and summer squash and a dash of salt. Cook until soft, about 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, beat eggs, nutmeg, and salt together. Mix in broth and basil.
Butter a 9X13 inch glass baking dish and turn the oven to 350°F. Drain the potato slices and put plumped potatoes into the prepared dish. Put cooked vegetables on top of the potatoes. Evenly pour the egg broth mixture over the vegetables. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until set. Let cool for 10 minutes.
Serve with fresh tomato slices or salsa.
Can be eaten cold.
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