Me? Stubborn?

There are a few food words which bring hoots and howls at our house. Most houses have them - hoots of approval at the uttering of words like dessert and candy and howls of despair for things like brussel sprouts and liver. Some of ours are expected - marshmallows and chocolate cake for instance. But sometimes I am completely unprepared for the odd howl of distaste. 

Sometimes, I alter the plan to make the offending food item more desirable. Sometimes, I stand very firm and declare that the choice is to eat it or to forfeit the after supper treat. Rarely, if ever, do I remove it from the menu.  Not even when it is Stephen doing the howling. In fact, I just dig my heels in a little further and determine to make him like whatever it is.

And so it was the other day when I returned home with a carton of sauerkraut. He looked at me like I had three heads and he tried to refrain from making gagging noises, his kind and loving version of culinary heckling, while Poppy was in the room. This did nothing but strengthen my resolve.

So, I set about cooking the offending sauerkraut. I tossed it in a pot with some carrots, some turnip and stock. I left the sausages out because there is something about sausages cooking in a pot of liquid that, ironically enough, makes me howl with disgust. As the cook, I get to do that though. I popped the pot of sauerkraut and veg in the oven and left it there for a couple of hours. I made some really good and buttery mashed potatoes and grilled some Lunenburg sausage for my carnivorous husband. 

Then, I sat down at the table and awaited the verdict. Still, he was not loving the sauerkraut and, I suspect, had Poppy not been there, he would not have eaten it and the gagging noises would have been our supper soundtrack. 

Consequently, we had leftovers. I still wasn’t ready to give in but I waited a couple of days to launch my second attack. The container of sauerkraut sat in the fridge and he knew it was going to reappear at some point, he just wasn’t sure when. I was still determined to make him want seconds if not thirds. I also knew that I had a couple of other weapons up my sleeve in the form of half a dozen fresh eggs and some double smoked bacon.

Sauerkraut Bubble and Squeak with Double Smoked Bacon and Fried Egg

2 cups leftover cooked sauerkraut (and any other cooked veg you need to use up)

3 cups leftover buttery mashed potatoes

Olive oil 

12 slices double smoked bacon

4 eggs

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix the sauerkraut and potatoes. Form into eight cakes. Heat a frying pan, add a tablespoon or so of olive oil and fry, on low to medium heat, the cakes until golden on each side.

Cook the bacon using your preferred method. I like to do it on a baking sheet in the oven at about 400ºF.

Fry the eggs the way you like them, sunny side up lets the yolk at as sauce to whole thing.

Serve a couple of bubble and squeak cakes with 2 or 3 slices of crispy bacon and an egg on top.

The verdict?

Sometimes it is better to suffer through something the first time, just for the leftovers.