Breakfast Nachos

      A few years ago we paid a quick visit to Martha's nephew Max and his wife Jen in their cool San Francisco neighborhood as the start of a family spring break vacation.  We met Lily their boxador and they served us fresh pea soup from their Vitamix.  We had a lovely time, but Monday came and they were not on vacation.  So they directed us to a nearby breakfast place to fuel up before our drive south to Big Sur.  I can't remember the name.  It was a couple blocks away.  I poked around on a Google map but came up empty.  Maybe it's not there anymore.  Anyway...
     We were seated near a table at which an African American woman I recognized was finishing her meal with a couple friends.  (Your chances of seeing someone famous are much higher in a cool San Francisco neighborhood than in Madison.)  I pointed her out, and Martha agreed she was somebody, but we couldn't agree on a name.  The kids couldn't help.  Finally I said, "Joan Armatrading," and that seemed to fit.  Martha wasn't sure.  I thought it was pretty cool that we could tell people we saw Joan Armatrading at breakfast in San Francisco.
     We selected our meals, gave our order to the waiter, and he collected the menus.  Joan and her friends left.  We talked about Big Sur and the drive ahead.  We told the kids who Joan Armatrading was.  Our plates came and, just to confirm, I asked the waiter if Joan Armatrading had been here.  He said, "I don't know, but Tracy Chapman just left."

It is infinitely less cool to be wrong about seeing Joan Armatrading than it is to be right about seeing Tracy Chapman.  I'm not an idiot white guy am I?  So I was feeling kinda dopey; a feeling I wish was a little less familiar.  Am I allowed to say we saw Tracy Chapman now?  I don't think so bumpkin.

     Our son Owen had ordered a dish called "Breakfast Nachos."  The idea is to replace the tortilla chips with skillet potatoes and top with bacon, cheese, a fried egg and chopped scallions - sour cream and salsa on the side.  He loved it.  As he was finishing the last bite I said, "You know, I can make that at home."  He looked up at me.  His eyes widened a little and he said, "Really?"
     I'm not an NBA forward, or a rapper, or a female supreme court justice.  But I can cook.  And things are going to be OK.

Breakfast Nachos

Use any large skillet with a lid.  We have a stainless steel lid from another pan that fits our cast iron, which is ideal.  If bacon is a non-starter for you, please read the last paragraph.

Ingredients

Adjust quantities to the size of your skillet and preferences.

• Potatoes, skin on, scrubbed and cubed
• Onion, chopped
• Bacon
• Black pepper and Chili powder
• Cheddar cheese, shredded
• Eggs for frying
• Chopped scallion (Cilantro is good.)
• Sour Cream
• Salsa  (Frontera is good.)

Method

Heat the skillet, cut bacon crosswise into  1/2" pieces, and cook to your preferred level of crispness.  Remove cooked bacon to a paper towel.  Remove some bacon fat if what remains seems like too much.  Add the onions and get them started.  Then add the spices.  When the onion starts to soften, add the potatoes, a little salt and stir well.  (Remember there's salt in the bacon and cheese.)  Turn the heat to medium low and cover.  Continue to cook, stirring with a metal spatula, about every 10 minutes.  You're trying to get the potatoes cooked through without over cooking the onion.  If everything seems like it's browning too much, add a little water.  When potatoes are browned and getting close to done, get a second pan ready for frying eggs and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  When the potatoes are done distribute the bacon and cheese over the top and slide into the oven, uncovered.  Fry your eggs.  When the cheese is all melty, serve nachos on a plate topped with an egg, scallions and/or cilantro, sour cream and salsa.

Enjoy this while listening to something by Joan Armatrading...  or Tracy Chapman...  or, you know...  whoever.

Protein substitutions:  Kill the bacon and start this dish with some olive oil.  You could use no additional meat at all, but leftover pot roast, steak, barbecue, or roast chicken would be awesome.  No meat?  Cubes of baked marinated tofu would be yummy, with or without the egg.