Caribbean Crab Cakes with a Key West (Lime) Touch

I have been in the mood for Crab Cakes for quite some time.  Finding decent fresh crab meat is not that easy though, so it has been almost two years since I have made them at home.

After the Komen Race, I walked around the West Palm Beach Green Market with friends. You can find vendors with anything from fresh bakery goods, seafood, local produce, orchids and other plants.

My friends stopped at a Seafood Vendor’s booth and inquired about the crab meat. It appeared very fresh. It better have been. The Jumbo Lump crab was 23 dollars a pound! 

I have found a lot of the crab being sold comes from Vietnam. No offense to the country but I don’t trust crab meat from Vietnam. I have read too many bad things about the handling of seafood from this country, including this article from November 2010 http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/40198123/ns/today-today_health/

The crab meat we considered buying was not from the US either. It was from Brazil. Now I don’t know if that makes it better or worse, but I haven’t read any bad press about it.

My friends did buy some of the Jumbo Lump. I just couldn’t resist, but instead of the Jumbo, I bought the “poor man’s” regular lump crab. It is fine for crab cakes and only 16 dollars per pound (maybe it is really poor man’s because of how your pocket feels after buying it! Empty.) I can rationalize a bit of extravagance once every two years!

Upon returning home with my “find” I had to decide how I wanted to enjoy it. Something healthy might be good. Then again, when was the last time I had an extravagant meal? Hmm. Caribbean Crab cake Benedict for breakfast on Sunday sounded like a good reward for my not so famous Komen run/ walk.

My mother has a very easy recipe for Hollandaise Sauce using a blender. She was kind enough to share it with me. Hollandaise isn’t something I use frequently. I can almost feel my arteries complaining just thinking about it. It’s has enough butter to make Paula Deen smile!

 

I had saved a recipe for Caribbean Crab Cakes Benedict from an issue of Coastal Living.  I used it as the basis for my happy fat breakfast (oh, ok I will stop…if it makes you happy it must be healthy, right?).

I must admit that as always I didn’t follow either recipe exactly. I only used as much as was necessary of the mayo, the oil (I used canola) and the breading.

I wanted more of an Island style Hollandaise so instead of just lemon juice, I used ½ lemon juice and ½ lime juice. I also took a chunk of ginger and pressed it into a garlic press just to extract some juice. I added a little of the ginger juice to the hollandaise and a little more to the crab cakes. I also put a little lime juice into the crab cake mixture in place of the powdered ginger.  The added ginger and the lime juice were really the special touches that made this recipe outrageously good.

Finally, I skipped the avocado although that sounds pretty good. I put the crab cake on top of a whole wheat English muffin half and then topped it with the poached egg and some sauce (not a lot, you don’t want to drown it.)

I hope you will take the time one Sunday (or Saturday) and make these for your special someone and you. Put on some nice morning music, pour Mimosas or brew up some rich espresso coffee, share the Sunday paper and have a relaxing day.

Then get your rear up and get some exercise! Enjoy!

Caribbean Crab Cakes Benedict

Yield: Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

• 3  saltine crackers
• 3  (1-ounce) slices French bread, torn
• 1  pound  fresh lump crabmeat, drained
• 1  cup  mayonnaise
• 1  egg white
• 2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
• 1/2  teaspoon  ground ginger
• 1/4  teaspoon  ground red pepper
• 1/4  teaspoon  seafood seasoning
• 1/4  cup  peanut oil
• 2  tablespoons  unsalted butter
• 2  avocados, peeled and sliced
• 6  large eggs, poached
• Key Lime Hollandaise (recipe follows)
• Cracked black pepper
• Garnish: diced red bell pepper

Preparation

Place crackers in a blender or food processor; process until finely ground. Place bread in blender or food processor; process until finely ground.

Combine crabmeat, mayonnaise, cracker crumbs, breadcrumbs, egg white, and next 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and chill 8 hours.

Shape crab mixture into 6 (4-inch) patties. Cook crab cakes, in batches, in hot oil and melted butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat 4 minutes on each side or until golden.

Place avocado slices and poached eggs on crab cakes, and top with Caribbean Hollandaise Sauce and pepper. Garnish, if desired.

Julia Dowling Rutland, Coastal Living, NOVEMBER 2003

Sheila’s mother’s easy Blender Hollandaise with Sheila’s Key Lime touch

½ lb butter, melted

4 egg yolks

2 tablespoons lemon juice (or 1 tablespoon of lime and one of lemon juice)

½ tsp salt

Dash of cayenne or more to taste

A few drops of fresh squeezed ginger juice for Sheila’s variation

Put all the ingredients but the butter in the blender. Turn the blender on then slowly pour in the warm melted butter until incorporated.

If you need to keep it warm, you can put it in a thermos or keep it warmed in a double boiler over simmering water, stirring to keep it from breaking.

Herbes de Provence

I attended a week long cooking class at The Culinary Institute in Napa Valley some years ago. The class was in French Provencal cooking. During the class, I was introduced to Herbes de Provence. It is an herb blend I was not very familiar with. What a wonderful blend it is!

Herbes de Provence traditionally is a blend of herbs grown in Provence. There is no set blend or formula. The traditional version is sold in crocks or small packets to tourists in France and does not contain lavender.

To please the US tourists that identify the region with the local lavender, the Herbes de Provence in the US contains lavender and I am happy about that. I love lavender. Still it is an herb that needs to be used in moderation; otherwise it can taste like soap. A little goes a long way.


I have made my own blend, using the recipe I learned at the Culinary Institute. It comes from the cookbook by Richard Carrier, “Feasts of Provence”it and includes lavender and dried orange peel. There are many variations. Recently I bought the McCormick brand. I don’t see lavender on the ingredients list and cannot smell it, so I assume it is a more traditional recipe. I like if for most recipes. If I was going to use the blend with a tomato base, I might prefer my homemade blend with the orange peel.


Herbes de Provence pairs well with many different wines depending on it’s usage, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, White Burgundy to name a few.


You can use Herbes to Provence in many recipes. It matches well with a lot of foods. You can match it with:

Chicken dishes (think La Madeline Rotisserie chicken) http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Herbes-de-Provence-Rotisserie-Chickens-238794
Lamb :http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Wine-Braised-Lamb-Shanks-with-Herbes-de-Provence-109263 or
http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/sauteed-lamb-chops-herbes-de-provence.aspx
Goat Cheese: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Scalloped-Potatoes-with-Goat-Cheese-and-Herbes-de-Provence-2999
Fish:
Trout. Sprinkle inside of Trout with Herbes de Provence. Top with slices of lemon and bake en papillote (in parchment paper or foil) or with
Cod http://miahungrylongtime.com/2010/03/07/cooking-with-paper-cod-en-papillote/
Grilled Salmon Filet Sandwich http://www.herbcompanion.com/cooking/herbes-de-provence-salmon-fillet-sandwiches.aspx
Vegetables: Sweet corn risotto http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cat-cora/sweet-corn-risotto-with-herbes-de-provence-recipe/index.html
Roasted Vegetableshttp://www.sacfoodcoop.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=726:roasted-vegetables-with-herbes-de-provence-&catid=47:side-dishes&Itemid=59


Other ideas for using Herbes de Provence:


Use in combination with Goat Cheese in omelets, scrambled eggs or with roasted red or Yukon gold potatoes or as above.


Black olive tapenade- http://recipes.wuzzle.org/index.php/54/1067


Pizza- The best pizza I have ever had was in Geneva, Switzerland. I am not sure what cheese they used (maybe Swiss cheese? Not quite but it was a white cheese!) but it was topped with Herbes de Provence and was fabulous! You could use it in place of oregano and top a traditional pizza with Kalamata olives and roasted red bell pepper, (ok you can throw a little cooked Italian Sausage on if you must).


On baked caramelized tomatoes- Core tomatoes and slice in half horizontally. Place on a baking sheet cut side up. Mix some olive oil, garlic, Herbes de Provence and salt and pepper. Pour over the tomato halves and bake for about 2 hours at 325 until collapsed and well carmelized. These are great on their own, but I sometimes put them over pasta.


My two newest favorite uses are in grits (for all the French cowboys!) and on a vegetable Panini.


For the grits, I take a packet of quick cooking (I use Quaker butter flavored) grits, add ½ cup of milk, some dollops of goat cheese and a sprinkling of Herbes de Provence. Microwave the grits on High for 1 minute 40 seconds. Add some light butter and enjoy.


For the vegetable Panini, cut serving size pieces of either foccacia or a nice sourdough bread. Take 3-4 medium sized asparagus per serving and put them on a toaster oven sheet mixed with olive oil. Bake for about 10-12 minutes at 400 degrees until cooked to desired doneness.


Divide bread in half as for a sandwich. Spread a light coating of goat cheese on one side of the bread, top with cooked asparagus and either roasted red onion slices (can roast with asparagus) or sliced Portobello mushroom. Throw a few leaves of basil on top. Spread the top piece of the bread with some goat cheese then sprinkle with Herbes de Provence and place on top of the vegetables to complete the sandwich. Lightly grease a preheated George Foreman grill and cook the Panini until done. Alternatively, cook on medium high in a lightly oiled skillet. Weigh down the bread to compress as in a Panini. Remove and enjoy.


I hope you will try some recipes with Herbes de Provence. 
Read more:  http://ptbcooking.blogspot.com/2011/02/herbes-de-provence.html

Visualize the Size of the Starbucks Trenta Cup

Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps

 People are always raving about the Lettuce Wraps at PF Changs. I did try their vegetarian version a number of years ago, and although I liked the idea of it, I found them kind of salty and greasy.

I hadn’t really thought much about it until I ran across a recipe that sounded as if it would be tasty.  I can’t tell you where I got this. I found it last year in a magazine at the local library. I am one of those obsessive types that collects recipes from everywhere and can’t always remember the original author or sometimes where I put them!

My sister came over for dinner last night and since she is the perfect guinea pig, I decided to try the recipe on her (and  also on me..the other perfect guinea pig!).

We loved them and the best thing about them was they were easy to make.  The wraps were fresh, light and flavorful.  For a couple of small women like us, it was a great meal. More hearty eaters might want to add more to the dinner menu than just the wraps.

I did change a few things and would change another if I was to make them again. The recipe called for ¼ cup of crushed red pepper flakes in the sauce. I am sure I wrote that down wrong. It sounded like too much. I added about a teaspoon.  Instead of jicama, I used water chestnuts. I couldn’t find jicama at the store and water chestnuts sounded more authentic anyway. I also put a few drops of sesame oil in the wok along with the canola oil.  I like the flavor.

The lettuce used was romaine, but romaine isn’t very flexible. I would use a butter lettuce next time.  The recipe was not enough for 12 lettuce leaves. It really just served 2 people with 2 Romaine leaves each. Double the recipe for 4 people if it is for dinner rather than an appetizer.

 I followed the rest of the recipe with success.

 How I made them:

I put together the ingredients for the wrap and stuck it in the fridge while making the sauce and the brown rice. While the rice was cooking, I threw the sauce ingredients into the blender, blended them then put it in a bowl. While the rice was cooking, I cleaned up the kitchen.

When it was time to eat, I pulled out the mix, stir fried it, added the sauce and that was it. When all was done, there was very little clean up, which to me is a big plus.

Ok, for you non-tofu lovers, feel free to substitute something else. I think some chopped up cooked shrimp would be a good substitute but you decide on that. 

You can serve these with hot Green tea or you might try a Zentini or Saketini 

http://www.thenibble.com/reviews/main/cocktails/zen-green-tea-liqueur.asp
(by the way The Nibble is a great newsletter too)

Tofu Lettuce Wraps- Serves two dinner size portions

Sauce:

¼ cup tamari sauce (low sodium if you prefer)

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tbl minced shallot

1 tbl packed light brown sugar

1 tbl plus 1 tsp rice vinegar

¼ cup plus 2 tbl water

1 tbl plus 1 tsp cornstarch

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

¾ tsp peeled and minced fresh ginger (a fine microplane works great for grating both the ginger and the garlic)

Put all of the sauce ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth.

Wrap ingredients:

½ cup diced carrots

½ cup sugar snap peas diced

½ cup diced jicama (or substitute water chestnuts diced)

½ cup pineapple diced

¾ lb extra firm tofu, diced

A drop or two of sesame oil (optional)

Canola oil spray for stir frying

½ cup unsalted peanuts (I used salted because I had them on hand)

12 romaine lettuce leaves (or substitute boston lettuce) See note on this. I only used 4 leaves

1 1/3 cup cooked brown rice

Toss together the carrots thru the pineapple in a large bowl. Mix in the tofu.

Heat a wok sprayed with canola oil on high heat (I added a drop of sesame oil for added flavor)

Add tofu mixture and stir fry briefly (30 sec to a minute). Stir in enough sauce to moisten well and cook another minute or until the sauce is just thickened.

Serve with the lettuce to wrap, the peanuts, rice and whatever leftover sauce there is.

Fill lettuce leaf with some of the mix, put some rice on top, then some peanuts. If you want, a little extra sauce is good too. Wrap and eat. Messy but fun and tasty too!

Fresh orange slices would be a great dessert.

I hope you enjoy these and would love to hear about it.

Food Safety

I get the Men's Health newsletters and enjoy reading them. Today they sent me a link to an article about the "10 Dirtiest Foods You are Eating". You really should read it. Some of the foods that can make you sick might surprise you!
http://www.menshealth.com/mhlists/foodborne_illness/

Review: The George Foreman Indoor Grill

I spent the past week at my mother's house while she visited my sister in San Diego. I looked forward to cooking in a big, expansive kitchen and using my Coleman gas grill which I keep at her house.

I have considered buying a small indoor grill since my apartment does not allow my gas grill. I so miss outdoor grilling. Excited about the prospect of using "my" grill, I thought I would cook some kabobs for my sister and I on my last night at the house. Of course, as things go, it decided to pour rain that night. It was beautiful weather the whole week prior! I guess planning a grill night is like getting your car washed. That is the time the sky opens up and let's you know who "really" is in charge!

My mother has a George Foreman indoor grill and I have always wanted to see how well it worked for vegetables and fish. This was my chance.

I cut up some green pepper, yellow squash, mushrooms and onion then marinated them in an Italian Vinagrette (I chose whatever my mom had in her fridge!).  I also took some already cooked and cleaned shrimp that she had in her freezer and defrosted them in water, then marinated them in a combination of Sonny's Barbecue Sauce mixed with a Mango Sauce she had on hand (obviously my mother has a well stocked fridge!).

So here is what happened.... I put the vegetables on the grill first. I don't think I preheated it enough and the first thing I noticed was, I had forgotten to put down the drip pan. Between the the water in the vegetables and the vinagrette, I had to rush to contain the drippings! Not only that but the vegetables were sliding down the grill.

Once I was able to slow down the sliding vegies and close the grill, all seemed in order. You know the saying, "a watched pot never boils" ? Well checking the vegies constantly does not help the grilling process.  Not only that, but with the lack of preheating,  they seemed to be stewing not grilling.

Having a degree of ingenuity, I came up with a not so healthy but equally tasty solution, garlic butter.  Yes, my mother also had a tub of Land o Lakes Garlic butter in her fridge (she's such a thoughful mother!). I melted a bit of it and brushed a little on the vegies. Voila' my vegies quit stewing and started browning, leaving some very attractive grill marks.

I did try putting some vegies on a skewer but that didn't fare too well. The grill didn't close down enough to create enough heat.  So, when the (loose) vegies were done, I simple replaced the grill pan with a plate and slid them onto it.

I did skewer the marinated shrimp. With them all arranged in the same direction, they were flat enough for the grill. I added a little...yup..here it is again...garlic butter to the marinade, (Paula Deen would be proud of me) brushed a little on each shrimp and grilled them to perfection.

In the meantime, I cooked the only rice my mother had available (you didn't think I was actually going to the store for anything did you?), long grain "white" (blasphemy) rice.

Dinner was delicious! Once I get the hang of it, I think old Georgie will be a great addition to my pescatarian lifestyle. A little butter won't kill me. Will it?

Try a great nutrition bar and feed a hungry child

http://twodegreesfood.com/about/

No cooking today

It is my birthday today! Happy Birthday to me!

Tree trimming 2010

Tree trimming 2010

Since I was away the first week in December and had the flu upon my return, I didn’t plan a tree trimming party this year. So, it was a quiet year as parties go. 

It occurred to me that I am clueless as to how to decorate my tree, much less put an artificial tree together. Since I have a party every year, other people have handled the details. My job has always been the food and drink.

I still trimmed my tree this year and I still had guests, but only those close to me, my mother, my sister and Steve. I had invited a couple other close friends but both were under the weather.  I was very happy Steve came over because my mother’s interest was watching the football game. My sister thought that was a grand idea too.

Steve and I trimmed the tree, he being in charge of the lights and both of us sharing ornament placement. I must admit I was impressed with Steve’s prowess at putting on the lights, especially since we were a bit short on lights. We also did a darn good job at trimming the tree all by ourselves. Designers watch out!

I normally make “from scratch” food for my parties. This time, with little advance notice,  I took some shortcuts and made some “from scratch” food too.  I made chocolate cookies from a mix, and the same was true for the lemon bars.

I am here to say, it’s just not the same. For most people the sweets would be acceptable but for a foodie that loves to cook from scratch, the mixes really fall short. The cookies were good but not great. The lemon bars didn’t even taste like lemon, they were just sweet.  I had to squeeze fresh lemon juice over them to get even a little discernable taste of lemon.

I also made rosemary walnuts. Those were from scratch and although they are very salty, I really love them.  Normally I use rosemary from my garden.  This year, no fresh rosemary so I used the dried version.  Fresh is much better.

Rosemary Walnuts

2 cups shelled whole walnuts

2 ½ tablespoons butter, melted

2 tsp crumbled dried rosemary (use more if using fresh)

1 ½ tsp salt ( I use less)

½ tsp cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place walnuts in a single layer in a shallow pan. Mix together the remaining ingredients and pour over walnuts. Roast in the oven for about 10 minutes, until browned, shaking occasionally. Yield 6 servings

From The Pink Adobe cookbook by Rosalea Murphy

One thing I did enjoy without disappointment was the dinner I made, Santa Fe Pasta Sauce. You will find it in a previous blog called Southwestern Pasta sauce. It came from a Cooking Light recipe. Several years ago it was among the top rated Cooking Light recipes. It is healthy, filling and tasty.

I normally make changes to the recipes I use. The changes I made to this one are minor. Because I was serving it buffet style, I chose not to use fettuccini. I wanted a pasta easier to handle.  I used a mixed grain, higher fiber curly macaroni.

I was unable to find fresh jalapenos after visiting several stores and sliced pickled peppers just doesn’t work for a former Texan.  I guess this isn’t Texas, but Brazilians have their own hot peppers. I chose some red Brazilian peppers without knowing if they were sweet or hot.  Just so you don’t have the same surprise, they are HOT! They are really good though. I think I like them better than jalapenos (but don’t tell my Texas friends)!

I did not make the chicken as I wanted this to be a vegetarian meal.  The sauce is better after it sits for a day, so don’t be afraid to make it ahead of time. I hope you try this and enjoy it. For the runners out there, it would be a good healthy carb meal.

Helado de Coco

Costa Rica and Beyond

I just returned from my week in Costa Rica, a day late.  My flight was canceled and I was diverted to Dallas overnight. I am happy it was Dallas rather than Houston but would have loved to stay longer and visit friends.

I did manage to have some time with Cory though. He happened to be returning from a Colorado trip so we spent some quality time together and he drove me to the airport. Seeing an old and comfortable friend was a nice way to end my vacation.

In any case, I had been interested to learn about the food in Costa Rica. I had visions of eating all kinds of Central American dishes with lots to report back. That isn’t exactly how things went.

I did have some wonderful fruit. I couldn’t get enough of the juicy, sweet pineapple. I think Costa Rican sugar pineapples are the best in the world (sometimes available at Costco). Although papaya isn’t my all time favorite, I really enjoyed it with some lime squeezed over it. I don’t think the mangoes were in season. They were small so we didn’t buy them.

Guanabana

I did try a Guanabana (Soursop) smoothie  

and enjoyed it. I find it hard to describe the flavor, maybe pineapple or unsweetened coconut. If you have the chance, it is worth trying a smoothie. I got my coconut fix the best way I knew how, coconut ice cream! It’s lucky I don’t have this at home or I would weigh 300 pounds.

Coffee…now that is top notch in Costa Rica and my teeth are ready for a bleaching after all the cups I consumed. It is very rich and strong. Loved it!

Pizza…ha..yes there was a lot of pizza in Costa Rica. French fries too. I had expected Rice and Beans and Plantains. It seemed whenever we asked where to find a good place to eat we were directed to a restaurant that had great pizza! French fries were a favorite side to many meals.

Gallo Pinto is considered the National Dish. I tried it a few times and for a vegetarian that is a good choice only if it isn’t made with meat.  There are versions of Gallo Pinto (http://costa-rica-guide.com/travel/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=282&Itemid=489) all over the Caribbean but with different names, beans and rice, pigeon peas and rice and even Hoppin’ John in the Southern US.  Gallo pinto is made by cooking black beans then frying them with rice, onion, red pepper, spices and cilantro. They are often served with eggs.

I did have eggs and they tasted somewhat different than my home bought Omega Eggs. Given the number of chickens in Costa Rica, I would expect they were free range and quite fresh!  The red peppers are also different, a bit softer and very sweet.

Speaking about birds, Gallo Pinto translates to Spotted Rooster in English. There are a lot of roosters milling around the country. Many which seem to enjoying sending out a Cock a Doodle Do at about 4:30 am when you have your windows open and had planned to sleep in. The hundreds of wild dogs, Howler Monkeys and other birds kick in not to be outdone! You know the “if a tree falls in the jungle” question? Well if it was a Costa Rican jungle, somebody would hear it, I guarantee. It would probably be followed by a monkey howl, a dog bark, some birds singing and possibly a cock a doodle do or two.

One of the foods I really enjoyed eating during my trip was whole fish grilled. My sister and I shared our lunches and this was a special treat. I must say however, the meal I liked the best during my visit was cooked by Shay’s friend Mike. He is on a special anti-inflammation diet and this meal was one of his specialties.

The meal consisted of Mahi-Mahi coated with a rub that was given to him by a friend from New Mexico. It was a  combination of ground dried peppers, spices and who knows what from their farm.  It was delicious on the fish.

Alongside the Mahi, he made a salad of avocado, tomato, cilantro and lime. I watched him make it and it looked like all he did was coarsely mash the avocado, add chopped tomato, chopped cilantro and a good squeeze of lime. He may have added salt and pepper but I don’t remember him using it.  The meal was muy delicioso (don’t be impressed, had I not had my sister with me as translator, I would still be lost somewhere in Central America!)!

My foodie experience in Costa Rica may not been the one I had fantasized it would be, still it was an experience as was my whole adventure. I had a great time but I am glad I am home eating my local favorites.  Still, I will dream about the Helado de Coco http://youtu.be/zxKDDP2c9ts . Now those are Spanish words I won’t easily forget!

A healthy approach

They should just call me the breakfast and soup lady, since I really like cooking both. Here is another healthy breakfast for 2 that is quick and tasty. I found some  yellow corn tortillas that I really love. They taste like the fresh baked tortillas I had in New Mexico. The brand it La Tortilla Factory.  http://www.latortillafactory.com/products-8.aspx  It is a blend of wheat and corn. If you are in South Florida, I bought them at Fresh Market.  They are soft and pliable and don’t dry out quickly. Very tasty.  They are part of my motivation for making this recipe.

Southern California Tortillas

2 egg (I used high Omega eggs, buy egg whites would work just as well)

½ jalapeno chopped (more to taste)

2 slices low-fat sharp cheddar or co-jack cheese,  broken into pieces

A sprinkling of chili powder (Gebhradt https://www.mildbills.com/p-105-gebhardt-chili-powder.aspx  is my favorite)

2 Really good corn tortillas

6 thin slices avocado

4 grape tomatoes sliced or cut into 4ths

Cilantro sprigs if you have them

Cooking spray

Spray 2 custard size bowls with cooking spray. Put an egg in each bowl and beat them. Mix ½ the jalapeno and cheddar pieces with a sprinkling of chili powder in each bowl. Microwave egg mixture individually on medium power, checking at a minute and a half then every half minute until done. If you only have high power you can check the eggs at a minute and go from there until cooked but the eggs will be a little tougher. Alternatively you can scramble the eggs over medium heat on the stove.

Meanwhile warm the tortillas in a skillet or toaster oven.  When the eggs are done top each tortilla with the mini egg omelets sliced . Divide and top the eggs with the avocado, tomato and cilantro sprigs if desired. Add salt and pepper to taste. Wrap and eat with some fresh fruit and a cup of green tea.