Breakfast on a Bagel

The Cooking Ladies

For our 50th anniversary we collated a series of RV recipes from the Cooking Ladies.

This article appeared in volume 39-7.

Breakfast on a Bagel

INGREDIENTS

3 ounces (85 g) cooked smoked ham, bacon or sausage patty
1 egg
1 bagel, sliced through
butter
1 slice processed cheese

(makes 1 serving)

DIRECTIONS

Cook the ham, bacon, or sausage patty.
Fry the egg. Flip the egg to cook it through and break the yolk to ensure the egg will not be runny on the bagel.
Lightly butter the bagel on both sides. If a dry-toasted bagel is preferred, do not butter. Place the bagel in a hot frying pan or on a griddle, with cut, buttered sides down. Press down on the bagel halves to toast and heat the bagel.
Trim the edges of the egg to fit the bagel. Pile the trimmings on top of the egg.
Build the breakfast on the bagel by layering the meat, egg, and cheese on the bottom half of the bagel.
Place the bagel top on the cheese to form a sandwich.

A different kind of Christmas morning

Early in the morning on December 25, 2010, while many Canadian and American children were dreaming of brightly-wrapped presents and plumply-stuffed turkey, thousands of poor Mexican children were standing in a long line waiting to receive gifts of food and toys from Canadian and American volunteers, known as Los Amigos de los Niños de Mexico – The Friends of the Children of Mexico.

In 2002, we were among the volunteers and we have often referred to the experience as possibly the best Christmas of our lives. The opportunity arose again in 2010 when early in the morning we crossed the bridge over the Rio Grande River between Weslaco, Texas, and the small Mexican town of Nuevo Progreso. We joined about 300 other volunteers to hand out 6,000 toys, pencils, bananas, oranges, apples, can-dies, peanuts, boxes of animal crackers, juice, rice, beans, and Tootsie Rolls.

As a child in line reached out their hand to us, we took it and walked with them to a table where they received a bag of beans and a bag of rice for their family. Their other hand clutched a grocery bag already filled with presents and treats. Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus greeted every child, calling some by name, if we were able to obtain a name in the few seconds we shared with them. Holding each little hand was the best Christmas gift we could receive.

Children waiting in line for their beans and rice.

We watched as our charges re-grouped with their mothers or grand-mothers or fathers or older siblings. Some were alone. We hurried back to the line of volunteers until it was our turn to reach out to another child’s extended hand.

One of the food items that each child received was what the “Amigos” aptly named a Progreso hot dog, a wiener wrapped in a tortilla. They discovered the children were not accustomed to eating the white bun that came with a traditional hot dog so the “Amigos” rolled the wieners in tortillas much to the delight of the children who promptly gobbled them down.