NMS Covenant: Expatriate Toast

It was that time again. The family was coming inside from doing some lawnwork. It was three o'clock, and we needed something quick to eat. Mom sat down to a sandwich. Noooooooo!!!

I remembered the NMS Covenant and decided to get creative!  

Mom was laying out pieces of bread for her grilled cheese sandwich and an idea came to me. Hey, why not try French toast? But I couldn't just whip up the usual cinnamon-with-maple-syrup kind of French toast. It had to be different. And certainly not sandwichy. Then I saw that Aaron was eating chip dip and salsa. Bingo.

So was born "Expatriate Toast"--French toast with some serious relocation issues. I whipped up an egg and added some milk, then liberally sprinkled the mixture with Mexican seasoning and cumin (I adore cumin). Then I heated a little butter in a skillet, coated an insipid slice of sandwich bread with the egg stuff, then fried it up. I did this with two slices of bread, stacked them one on top of the other, and then slathered on the goods: melted colby-jack cheese, homemade salsa, and a dollop of sour cream. I sprinkled it with a bit more cumin, then splashed mild taco sauce over everything but the floor.

Perhaps this sounds a bit gross to you, the concept certainly disgusted my mother, but you have to believe me, I thought it was delicious. Trust me, would I recommend something to you that I didn't really like?

There are so many ways you could jazz this up. If I'd had thicker bread on hand (French bread, Italian bread, Greek bread, cornbread, homemade bread, any kind of bread other than store-bought sandwich bread) I might have attempted a yummy stuffed French toast. I could definitely see stuffing some authentic Mexican cheeses, chorizo, Ro-tel, grilled peppers and onions (have you figured out that I like onions, yet?), and if Aaron hadn't just polished off all the refried beans in the house I might have incorporated some of those too. 

And the possibilities for Expatriate Toast are practically endless! Think of it:

• Italian French Toast (tomatoes, basil, mozzarella)
• English French Toast (clotted cream and marmalade)
• Bulgarian French Toast (a variant on moussaka with sautéed tomatoes, eggplant, and minced meat)
• Peruvian French Toast (quinoa and chili peppers)
• Tibetan French Toast (yak yogurt and spicy potatoes)
• French French Toast (fruit preserves, foie gras, and champagne)  

Got any more ideas for quick and simple NMS meals? I'm dying to hear them!

                                                                                 

                                                                                                                             Cheers,