Colin Joliat
Katie Nolan was asked to invent her own sandwich, and what came out of her mouth would make even Harley Morenstein hard. I present to you the Katie Nolan Epic Bacon, Egg and Cheese. It’s your typical bacon, egg & cheese, but with 100% more hash browns and sandwiched between two grilled cheese sandwiches. Ridiculous monstrosities aren’t my normal fare, but with her leaving us soon it seemed appropriate to grant her a last meal.
There’s nothing overly complex about making a Katie Nolan EBEC, but timing is a pain in the ass. Nobody likes cold eggs and a grilled cheese sandwich that’s no longer melty sounds terrible. In the interest of full disclosure, I royally screwed this up the first time and ended up eating two grilled cheese sandwiches and hashbrowns before my bacon had even begun to sizzle.
Colin Joliat
The most important thing is to start cooking the bacon long before anything else. It’s best cooked starting in a cold pan over a low-medium heat, so it takes longer than you might think to start actually cooking.
Colin Joliat
You can put this free time to good use constructing your two grilled cheese sandwiches that will serve as the bread. Melted butter and a grill brush are perfect for painting the outside of each slice. I used fresh french bread and three cheeses – mild cheddar, asiago, and romano – because I wanted you to think that I’m far classier than I am. They do work really well together though.
Colin Joliat
Once the bacon finally starts to get its act together, it’s time toss in some hashbrowns. I like making things from scratch, but I wasn’t about to sit there shredding a potato. I like Katie, but not that much. You can see at this point I’ve already flipped the hash browns and the bacon is just about ready too come off.
Colin Joliat
I started cooking the grilled cheese right after I flipped. I’m sorry to disappoint you if you thought I was going to make them in the bacon fat. While that’s a damn fine idea, I cheated and used a panini press. I wanted them to be a little more firm than you get in a pan because they were going to be acting as the two slices of bread. Plus, my mom bought the press for me years ago and I rarely put it to use.
MMMM……bacon. And more importantly, bacon fat. I may have passed on grilling cheese in the pan, but you can be damn sure my eggs are going in there. If you haven’t fried an egg in bacon fat, you’re doing breakfast wrong.
Colin Joliat
Colin Joliat
The cheese is grilling, the hash is browning, and the bacon is de-greasing. That means we’re just about done. The only things we need now are the eggs. I cranked up the heat and dropped in my eggs. Then I panicked when I realized my camera wasn’t ready. This is why people Instagram meals instead of food prep. Thankfully I managed just fine.
A little water in the pan and a lid on it finished of the top of the eggs perfectly while still keeping the yolks free to eventually rush down the sandwich like chicken fetus lava.
Colin Joliat
I love it when a plan comes together. I layered in order one grilled cheese, two strips of bacon, hash browns cheddar cheese, two eggs, more cheddar, more bacon, and the second grilled cheese.
Colin Joliat
It would be lying if I said it wasn’t damn near impossible to eat at first. Once I cut it in half though it was perfectly manageable. It even had a full yolk on each side, because obviously I planned it that way.
And there you have it, the R. Kelly approved Katie Nolan Epic Bacon, Egg & Cheese Sandwich.
Colin Joliat
INGREDIENTS:
4 strips thick cut bacon
1/4 bag of hash browns
2 large eggs
1/2 cup mild cheddar
1/2 cup asiago
1/2 cup romano
4 slices fresh french bread
butter
To make Grilled Cheese:
Melt butter and paint outside of 4 slices of bread. Layer 1/4 cup of asiago, cheddar, romano on 2 slices of bread and top with remaining two slices. Put on medium-high panini press for 6 minutes. Turn if necessary to ensure even cooking.
To make bacon:
Place bacon in cold pan over low heat. Turn frequently as it begins to cook to ensure even browning. You can occasionally dump grease some of the grease, but save it for use in other things. When bacon is cooked to desired crispness, allow to cool and dry on paper towel.
To make hash browns:
Add 1 tbsp vegetable oil to pan. Add potatoes in an even layer and press down with spatula. After six minutes drizzle with oil and flip. Cook another 6 minutes.
To make eggs:
Seriously? Just cook the damn eggs.
Previously on Boy the Baker: Oreo Lasagna, Jagermeiser Chicken Tacos