Breakfast Burrito: Desert Edition
You don’t actually have to make this breakfast burrito in the middle of the desert. That’s just the only time of year they get made in my family. Every year my dad goes camping in the middle of a wash up in Florence Az with a bunch of our friends with old jeeps. These burritos have made an appearance for about eight years now.
These breakfast burritos are made to travel, meaning you’re putting them in foil and going on your way. This also means that you can slap them on the fire in indirect heat to keep them warm and melt the cheese (my favorite part). Just be careful: foil gets hot and so does melted cheese.
Breakfast Burritos: Desert Edition
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chorizo sausage
- 12 burrito sized tortillas
- 12 eggs
- 6 russet potatoes
- 1 lb cheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
- Dice potatoes and cook them in a large skillet until tender. While potatoes cook, crack and whisk eggs in a separate bowl; set aside. Add chorizo and cook until browned.
- Pour in whisked eggs and cook, stirring everything together.
- Heat tortillas and store under a towel. Scoop about ½ to ¾ of a cup of potato mixture on tortilla; sprinkle with cheese and roll.
- Wrap burritos in aluminium foil and share. Serve with red sauce, sour cream or guacamole.
Salsa is a must have, even on the trail for burritos in general, but the toppings can go far beyond red or green sauce. You can serve these burritos with sour cream, guacamole, enchilada sauce. The opportunities are endless! Just remember to share, or else you’ll be eating your body weight in burritos for a month.
Whether you decide to cook these on the stove top, grill or a good old campfire, remember that building these is much better with friends and family. It makes the process go faster and you can share stories and a meal. Don’t forget to check out our Thanksgiving in the Desert process!
Breakfast Burritos: Desert Edition
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chorizo sausage
- 12 burrito sized tortillas
- 12 eggs
- 6 russet potatoes
- 1 lb cheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
- Dice potatoes and cook them in a large skillet until tender. While potatoes cook, crack and whisk eggs in a separate bowl; set aside. Add chorizo and cook until browned.
- Pour in whisked eggs and cook, stirring everything together.
- Heat tortillas and store under a towel. Scoop about ½ to ¾ of a cup of potato mixture on tortilla; sprinkle with cheese and roll.
- Wrap burritos in aluminium foil and share. Serve with red sauce, sour cream or guacamole.
Chorizo – The Arizona Way
Chorizo is a breakfast staple in my family, but the store-bought type just doesn’t sit right for cooking on the trail. We are no wimps in the southwest when it comes to spice, but spice comes in many forms. This recipe I’ve created (inspired by my high school lunch Lady Ms. Maria) has the perfect mix of spice, fat, and freeze-ability to act as an ice pack in the cooler.
We don’t always eat chorizo while camping, but it is a staple for it. When I make it at home I’ll serve it with hashbrowns and some scrambled eggs in a pan. It just tastes different in the kitchen versus from the tailgate of a jeep. So the serving is of course different. But here are some staple sides and toppings:
- Salsa (Jarred or fresh)
- Pico De Gallo
- Shredded cheese (fresh makes it better)
- Potatoes O’Brian
- Frozen Shredded hashbrowns
- Eggs
- Tortillas
I’m obviously no stranger to different styles of kitchen. But my main tip when you go to cook your chorizo is to have a well-seasoned cast-iron pan or a good non-stick pan because there is very little grease that comes off the meat. With that, if you cook anything in the same pan as the chorizo keep in mind that you may need to add some vegetable oil or butter.
This is a very scale-able recipe in the way of spiciness. If you like very spicy things, you can add more cayenne or pepper flakes. Or do like the southwest and have a spicy red sauce on hand.
Keep in mind here, my chorizo is usually made before hand and cooked at a campground, so the servings will vary. As well as varying by how big of a tortilla you use. Feel free to see the full burrito recipe here, it makes enough to share so plan accordingly.
Chorizo – The Arizona Way
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 t garlic powder
- 3/4 t red pepper flake
- 1/8 – 1/4 t cayenne pepper
- 1 T dried onion flake
- 1/2 t hot pepper sauce
- 1-1/2 T chili powder
- 1 T white vinegar
Instructions
- Combine ingredients into a large bowl. Mix with clean hands.
- Portion into freezer safe bags. Freeze for up to 6 months.
Sticky Buns
This post contains affiliate links where I earn a commission on purchases.
Nothing beats hot, fluffy, sticky buns on a chilly fall morning. Thank good ol’ Betty Crocker in the 1970s for this one because my mom has been making these for at least my entire life (definitely longer, but shh). Filled to the brim with syrup, sugar and raisins (or fruit if you’re healthy like that). Who am I kidding? There is nothing healthy about these things; there’s literally a half a pound of butter.
Sticky Buns are a Thanksgiving tradition in my family. My mom would wake up at 2 or 3 in the morning to make them so that they’d be ready to eat by the time the Macy’s Day Parade was coming on. While it’s been a few years since she’s done that because of her work schedule, I want to bring that tradition back.
In my family, there are many “best ways” to serve sticky buns. Dad-man prefers thick slabs of butter on top after they’ve cooled a little bit. I personally like them right out of the oven, or microwaved if it’s the next day.
Sticky Buns
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 package active dry yeast 1/4 oz
- 1 t sugar
- 1/4 c warm water 110 deg
- 1/3 c sugar
- 1/3 c butter melted
- 1/2 c dairy sour cream room temperature
- 1 t vanilla extract
- 1 t salt
- 3-1/4 -3-3/4 c all purpose or bread flour
Maple Topping
- 1/2 c pure maple syrup
- 1/4 c packed brown sugar
- 1/3 c butter
- 1/4 t salt
Filling
- 1 c raisins
- 2/3 c packed brown sugar
- 1 t cinnamon
- 1/2 c finely chopped pecans optional
Instructions
Dough
- In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 teaspoon of sugar in water. Let stand until foamy, 5 go 10 min. Add 1/3 cup of sugar, eggs, butter, sourcream, vanilla, and 1-1/2 to 2 cups of flour. Beat 200 vigorous strokes, or 2 min by electric mixer.
- Stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Clean and grease bowl. Knead dough for 4-6 min or until smooth. Dough will feel soft and buttery, but not sticky.
- Place dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover with a slightly damp towel. Let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, until it has doubled in size, 1-1/2 hrs.
Buns
- Punch down dough; knead for 30 seconds. Cover and let stand for 10 min. Prepare 18 in of waxed paper with butter and set aside. Generously grease a 13 in X 9 inch baking pan.
- Prepare topping and pour it into the prepared pan; set aside. Prepare the filling and set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough into a 24 in X 12 inch rectangle. Rub with butter, leaving 1 in not buttered on one side. Sprinkle evenly with filling.
- Beginning with the buttered, long side, tightly roll up the dough, jelly roll fashion. Pinch the seam to seal. Cut the roll into 24 equal pieces. Arrange rolls, cut side down, in the prepared pan.
- Cover with the buttered waxed paper. Let them rise in a warm, draft free, place until doubled in size, about 1 hr.
- Preheat the oven to 350 deg. Remove waxed paper and bake for 30 to 35 min or until golden brown. Let stand in the pan for 1 to 2 minutes; invert baked rolls onto a platter or a wire cooling rack set over wax paper. Spoon any remaining topping back over the rolls. Let stand for 5 minutes. Serve warm. Separate rolls by gently pulling them apart with two forks.
Filling
- Combine all ingredients into a small bowl.
Topping
- Combine all ingredients into a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture begins to simmer.
