One of my favorite breakfasts of all time is Huevos Rancheros. Sunny-side up eggs, refried beans, a tortilla, maybe some rice and some sauteed ground chorizo - nothing like it. The first time I had it was on vacation with my mom in Cancun, in 1984. We ate Huevos Rancheros every morning in La Paz on our vacation earlier this year (see above), which served as both fuel for the day ahead and a cure for the night before.
When we went to Cabo San Lucas for our 10-year anniversary, we discovered another breakfast treat - chilaquiles. It's basically pieces of tortillas cooked with salsa and eggs - very simple and delicious. Surprisingly, good chilaquiles are hard to find in San Francisco, and bad chilaquiles are such a disappointment - no one should have to endure that first thing in the morning.
So, we taught ourselves to make them at home. All that you do is take a large handful of good tortilla chips (stale is fine), crush them slightly and add them to a frying pan with a little bit of oil or butter. Add your favorite salsa and cook until they start to soften. Meanwhile, fry 2-3 eggs until they just start to turn opaque (I do this in the same pan, moving the chips/salsa to one side), and then incorporate them into the chips mixture, cooking until the eggs are done. Serve with refried beans, guacamole, sour cream, hot sauce, or whatever you wish. If you can get the white, slightly dry Mexican cheese (or "farmers cheese"), it's great crumbled on top.
I made these this morning with a great heirloom tomato salsa from Swank Farms, eggs from the farmer's market, and Mission tortilla chips. The thing that's great about making chilaquiles at home is that you are using the ingredients that suit your palate, especially when it comes to the salsa, which can make or break this dish as far as flavor. I'm planning to make these for our 15-year wedding anniversary party, coming up this weekend, as it's easy for a crowd and we will probably have all of the ingredients on hand. It will be a nice ode to our Mexican vacation 5 years ago - another time of being surrounded by friends, a beautiful environment, and simple, delicious food.
