Today I have another very special guest, my dear friend Alisha from The Ardent Epicure. It is always such an honor having her here. She has been a great friend, one always ready to help out and support me in anyway. Like the previous friends who help celebrate my 3 year anniversary, she too is someone who’s friendship I cherish. Her blog of course is one of my favorites because of her gorgeous and fantabulous recipes. Please help me give Alisha a very warm welcome, and afterwards make sure to stop by The Adent Epicure.
Hello everybody, my name is Alisha (aka Magic of Spice), and I am the co-author of The Adent Epicure. My site is primarily vegetarian and typically loaded with local fresh and organic ingredients, with a few specialty finds thrown in.
I am so happy to be here sharing in the celebration for my dear and amazingly talented friend Nancy. I first met Nancy through a food community Foodbuzz very early on in my blogging days, and we have remained friends ever since that first connection.
To help celebrate I have prepared a breakfast or brunch dish with a very special salsa. The salsa is pear and apple based, with just a couple of possibly surprising additions. I mean who doesn’t like to start off their day with a little espresso, cocoa and fruit? :)
The addition of espresso and coaco, with just a hint of raw sugar, really perked this salsa up. In fact I did make a more traditional salsa as well with some lovely orange and yellow vine tomatoes, but everybody just kept digging into the fruit version. I will just be doing the fruit version here today, but any salsa would complements these little guys well…
For the taquitos I kept it simple with fresh scrambled eggs, black beans, a few lovely mushrooms and a bit of Queso Fresco. But you can stuff them with any of your favorite breakfast goodies…
For the tortillas I used a combination flour and corn, but any will do. And the black beans I used were leftover from some burritos I made the day before, so you can use canned of fresh, whatever your preference.
What you will need:
For the breakfast salsa
2 ripe pears, diced
2 apples, diced
½ bunch cilantro, chopped
1 habanero, finely chopped (seeded and deveined for less heat)
2 limes, juiced
½ lemon, juiced
1-2 teaspoons grapeseed oil
2 tablespoons prepared and chilled espresso
1 teaspoon raw sugar, ground
1-2 teaspoons cocoa nibs, ground
For the taquitos
12 small tortillas
Oil for frying
12-15 ounces black beans, prepared
3-4 ounces mushrooms, chopped
8-10 ounces Queso Fresco
6 extra-large eggs, lightly whisked
A few splashed of cream
1-2 pats of butter
2 tablespoons fresh herbs, finely chopped
¼ teaspoon pepper, ground
¼ teaspoon sea salt, ground
Let’s get cooking:
For the breakfast salsa
Place diced pears, apples, habanero and cilantro into a large mixing bowl. Add lime juice, lemon juice, oil and chilled espresso, tossing to incorporate. Now season with ground cocoa nibs and ground raw sugar.
Allow the salsa to sit a room temperature for at least 20 minutes, tossing occasional. Note* if the salsa needs more liquid by this point, add a bit more espresso or juice. You can serve this at room temperature or chilled.
For the taquitos
Place eggs into a mixing bowl adding a splash or two of cream, whisk until incorporated. Add mushrooms, herbs, salt and pepper. Scramble your eggs until they are just underdone to your taste.
Layer each tortilla with warmed, slightly mashed beans. Then add scrambled eggs and cheese roll into tight tubes, and place ½ of a toothpick to hold them together.
Add oil to a hot pan and immediately add taquitos, frying for a few minutes on each side until golden. Drain on paper towels and serve with salsa.
Enjoy~
Thank you so much Alisha, you are a wonderful friend and a super talented chef.
Recipe and photography by Alisha and The Ardent Epicure.com
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What an amazing combination of flavors and textures! I’d love one of these taquitos for breakfast. I love Alisha’s work – great guest post!
Hi Laura,
I totally agree, Alisha always has the best combinations. Thanks
A great guest post and wonderful recipe! Those taquitos look amazing.
Cheers,
Rosa
Thanks Rosa, I agree:)
refreshing platter there alisha- always a pleasure to see your recipes; thanks for sharing Nancy !
Hi Priya,
It is always a treat to see and read Alisha’s recipes. Thanks
Your food photography is always nonpareil. Every screenshot is a pleasure and the recipes are always of the highest caliber. Keep up the marvelous work!
Breakfast at Alisha’s house;-)
Congratulations on a beautiful and scrumptious guest post, love The Ardent Epicure:-)
Yes, let’s all invite ourselves over to Alisha’s:)
Thank you for sharing dear Nancy!
It’s my pleasure hosting my foodie friends. Plus a talent like Alisha’s should be shared with everyone:)
I love fruit salsas – this version looks particularly nice. And I’ll eat taquitos any time, although this sort of spicy breakfast fare is particularly satisfying. Really nice guest post – thanks for sharing.
I agree, I love spicy breakfast and brunch…well and dinner too:) Thanks for stopping by!
These sound SO incredible!!
I agree Steph:)!
Thank you everybody, and thank you so much again for letting me share in the celebration!
Thank you my dearest friend. Your taquitos and salsa are out of this world!
I follow alisha’s blog too and i am always blown away by her unique recipes and photographs! Great guest post :)
So glad to hear it, and I totally feel the same way. Thanks!
This looks amazing! Great breakfast ide, as I haven’t tried taquitos yet!! Thanks!!
Oh you should try them:)
Alisha is simply amazing cook and photographer. I really enjoy her detail explanation of ingredients with dramatic ingredient shots and then move toward recipes. By the time she talks about recipe, I’m so ready to “eat”… lol. You and Alisha have similar power over food. You two are really an amazing cook/photographer. Thanks Nancy for inviting Alisha and we get to see her delicious recipe! I’m off to bed thinking about her food…. :-)
Hi Nami,
I agree Nami, our friend Alisha is so super talented. I also enjoy her walkthroughs and explanations, can’t tell you how much knowledge I acquired because of her blog. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you had sweet dreams of taquitos and salsa:)
A very original flavour combinations…I love it! Great post :)
Yes, it really is:) Thanks!
Alisha’s pictures and recipes are amazing! Having this for breakfast would set the tone for a perfect day.
I agree Sandra:)!
What a wonderful guest post by someone as yet unknown to me [that will be repaired soonest :) !] Absolutely love the recipe, but will be making this for High Tea, as mornings are definitely not my cooking time :D ! Definitely some unusual ingredients – shall look forwards to the finished product!!
Thanks Eha, and do stop by The Ardent Epicure!
these look so wonderful! i love scrambled eggs on tortillas, and adding all the rest of this good stuff can only make it more divine.
I agree!
Thanks for introducing me to Alisha’s blog though I have come across it before some time ago. She has great photography tutorials there – yours included.
Thanks Suzanne!
I live in Berlin and a week ago I’ve met a friend from USA that I know from internet thanks to my food blog. It’s amazing how easy it is to make friends nowadays, and distance is not important anymore. I love your salsa with fruits :)
The internet can be such a great place. Happy for your friendships:)
Awwww…. I love a good blogger friendship! This is a great guest post and wonderful recipes!! You both are awesome!! Great job ladies. :)
Thanks Ramona!
What a wonderful guest post! Alisha always has such imaginative recipes and lovely photos. Great choice for your guest post!
Hi Lisa,
Yes she really does:) Thanks for stopping by.
So happy to see Alisha on your lovely blog, Nancy! This would be a breakast to be truly excited about waking up to. I could absolutely eat that salsa with a spoon…I love the addition of espresso and cocoa nibs!
Thanks for stopping by Faith!
Congratulations on your 3rd year anniversary Nancy! That’s exciting! I obviously have missed a lot so I need to go back and check out some of your earlier posts. What a wonderful brunch by Alisha! Always unique and beautifully photographed! Both the salsa and the taquitos look irresistible. Love the addition of the haberno and cocoa in the salsa. YUM!
Thank you MJ!
These are probably the most appetizing taquitos I’ve seen in a long time. I would be so happy to have these breakfast…or lunch or dinner, really. The salsa is just special.
So nice to see you here, Alisha. Nancy, another wonderful guest post. :)
Thanks for stopping by Jean!
Great guest post with a terrific recipe. The taquitos are unusual and interesting.
Thanks Victoria!
Happy Third Anniversary, Nancy! Breakfast and brunch are my favorite meals, and Alisha has made these taquitos something to dream about with this extraordinary salsa!
Thank you Bonnie! Yes, she really did a fantastic job with the taquitos and salsa.
I love the sound of that breakfast fruit salsa – and who could resist this for breakfast!
I don’t think anyone could:)
Alisha is amazing, this is an exquisite recipe for a guest post.