Meatless Monday: Basic Breakfast Scramble

This basic breakfast scramble is a morning staple at our house. I end up making it twice a week, and there are usually leftovers that reheat nicely the next day. This is a vegetarian dish containing eggs and dairy. The dairy ingredients could be substituted with non-dairy alternatives or left out. If you're already comfortable "scrambling" tofu, the eggs can be replaced with tofu. This makes 4-6 servings. This breakfast takes about 40 minutes from gathering the ingredients to serving time, so it's best for mornings when you have plenty of time.

What You'll Need:

• 4-6 Eggs (I like mine less eggy, so I use 4, but you can use 6 or even more if you'd like!)
• 4-6 Small potatoes (or 2-3 large potatoes)
• 2-4 Vegetarian "Sausage" patties
• Veggies of your choice (I used mushrooms and a green bell pepper this time around. Zucchini also works well, as do onions, asparagus, or broccoli.)
• Milk of your choice (about one tablespoon per egg)
• Cooking oil of your choice (Choose coconut!)
• All purpose seasoning of your choice. (I like Bragg Organic Sprinkle)
• As much shredded cheese of your choice (I use sharp cheddar) as you can stand.

What You'll Do:

• Heat a few tablespoons of cooking oil in a large skillet or frying pan over Medium-High heat.
• Cut the potatoes in half, then in half again lengthwise, then thinly slice them. When the oil is heated, add them to the pan, tossing or stirring to coat. If you're using an onion, dice the onion and add that to the pan first. Allow the potatoes to cook for about 5 minutes, tossing or stirring occasionally. 
• Dice up the green pepper (or whatever veggies you're using). Add them to the pan. Toss or stir to coat. 
• There are few different ways to handle the "sausage". You can either add the frozen patties to the pan, using a wooden spoon to break them up as they cook, or pre-cook them. I prefer to zap them in the microwave for about 20 seconds, then flip and zap another 20 seconds, then cut them up into small pieces and add to the pan. If you prefer not to use mircrowaves, you could also precook them in a separate small skillet, but at that point, you might as well just head back to the beginning of this bullet point and add the frozen patties right to the pan.
• Allow the veggie/sausage mixture to cook for 5-10 minutes, until sausage is heated through and the potatoes begin to soften. Reduce the heat to Medium-Low and allow the pan to cool down before...
• In a bowl, combine the eggs, milk, and all-purpose seasoning, using a fork or whisk.

•  When the pan has cooled down, scoot the veggie mixture over to one side and pour the egg mixture into the now-empty half of the pan. Allow to cook for a few minutes (more if you've let your pan cool enough, less if you didn't and like eggs with a brown crust on them) until the eggs start to firm up.
• When the eggs start becoming firm, begin to "scramble" the eggs together with the other ingredients. Continue to cook until the eggs are cooked thoroughly.
• Smother with as much cheese as you'd like. Cover the pan and keep an eye on it, it will take a minute or two for the cheese to get melty and awesome.
• Serve immediately and enjoy a hearty, filling, delicious way to start your day!

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