Tempeh Bacon & Sauteed Potatoes

Breakfast is seriously one of my favorite meals.  I cannot get enough of it and sometimes even want breakfast for dinner, although surely the Hubby would not be too happy.  He is always telling me that he wants something "strong" for dinner, which translates to something hearty and filling.  Now that summer is almost over (sad!!), I think I should start heading back into the kitchen a little more, even though it is still hot hot hot and all I want to do is make and eat veggies (too hot to turn on the stove and oven!)  Unfortunately, I have a hubby to think about and I know that would not fill him up.  Did I mention that he is a very sporty kind of guy that stands at 6'3?  Yeah, I know - feeding him is like feeding two people, seriously!

Back to breakfast - for a while I had been preparing brunch for us every Saturday.  Since I love breakfast, it makes sense that I also love brunch, but because it's been so hot, I've not been making it as frequently.  After making this super simple but super delicious breakfast, I decided I need to get back into my weekend brunch plans.  We'll see how well it goes, but I am definitely going to try!


Potatoes with Peppers & Onions, Tempeh Bacon

Serves 2

Sauteed Potatoes:
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced - keep them uniform
1/2 green bell pepper, small diced, about 1/2 cup
1 small onion, small diced, about 3/4 cup
1 jalapeno pepper, minced, about 1 1/2 tablespoons
2 generous pinches chipotle pepper powder
3/4 teaspoon sea salt, or as desired
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Marinated Tempeh Bacon, about 8 slices for 2 people:

1.  To make this breakfast a quick affair, I cooked the potatoes first before sauteing them.  Fill a medium pot with lukewarm water: not warm and not cold.  Place the peeled and chopped potatoes inside.  Place the pot over medium heat and cook until just tender.  If they still have a slight bite, that is fine, because they will continue cooking as they saute. 
2.  As the potatoes are cooking, start preparing, then sauteing the veggies.  Place a large saute pan over medium-high heat.  Add the olive oil and allow it to become hot.  Once it is hot, add the green and jalapeno peppers and the onion. Cook, stirring frequently until nicely browned and cooked. 
3.  The potatoes should be cooked by now.  Drain them over a large colander in the sink and allow all of the excess water to drain.  Add to the saute pan and stir.  To give the potatoes that nice crispy outside, the trick is to keep the heat up and not to stir the potatoes too much.  The more you stir them, the more they break up and the less time they have to create that nice crispy edge.  Once they have been cooking for about 5 minutes, add the salt, pepper and chipotle.  Stir to coat.  Season to taste with additional sea salt, as necessary.
4.  To cook the tempeh bacon, place a tablespoon of olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat and allow to become hot.  Once hot, add the sliced of marinated bacon to the pan, being careful to shake off the excess liquid  from the slices, or they will cause the oil to splatter on you.  Cook for a couple minutes on each side until nice and crispy, and drain on paper towels. 
5.  Serve the potatoes on one side and the bacon on the other.  The hubby slathered it in ketchup and was happy.  I sometimes like to put bbq sauce on the side and dip the potatoes in it.  I have also topped the potatoes with shredded daiya as soon as they come out of the pan - the heat of he potatoes melts the cheese and it is so delicious!  Now that I think about it, I should have done that!  Oh well, next time!

Enjoy!

-K