Bacon and Fried Eggs

The next two food items in our sequential list recur over and over throughout the seven Harry Potter books: bacon and fried eggs. First referenced is bacon, when Aunt Petunia makes Harry cook breakfast on Dudley's birthday:

"Well, get a move on, I want you to look after the bacon. And don't you dare let it burn, I want everything perfect on Duddy's birthday" (Sorcerer's Stone 19).

Fried eggs show up two pages later, when the birthday boy shows up on the scene, preparing to count his numerous gifts:

"Harry was frying eggs by the time Dudley arrived in the kitchen with his mother" (Sorcerer's Stone 21).

Since fried eggs and bacon go together like peanut butter and jelly (a combination which, by the way, most British people I know were disgusted to learn about), we shall prepare them together! And of course, I will be cooking the vegetarian version, as I haven't eaten bacon since I was about 14 years old. So here we go, in case you've never prepared this breakfast staple:

You Will Need:
Vegetarian Bacon (Morningstar Farms is an excellent choice, as is Lightlife Smart Bacon)
Eggs
Butter/Margarine/Cooking Spray
Also a skillet or frying pan and a metal spatula

1. Heat your skillet on the stove over medium heat.
2. Depending on what you're using, either spray your skillet with cooking spray, or put a tab of butter/margarine into it and slide it around so the surface is covered with your chosen oil.
3. Crack an egg (or two) into the greased skillet.
4. When then white of the egg has turned opaque but is still runny, add your "bacon" slices to the skillet. Note: Vegetarian Bacon can be just as easily be cooked in the microwave and is just as delicious that way (and it gives you more room in the skillet to flip your egg!).

5. Cook the bacon until it is heated through and has reached your desired texture, flipping it once. Check the packaging for specific recommendations. Dinah Bucholtz includes an excellent "done-ness" guide for fried eggs in The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook:

"For sunny side up, cook the eggs for 4 minutes or until the white is set and firm. For 'over' eggs add the eggs to the pan and let cook for 3 minutes. Carefully flip the eggs using a spatula and cook as follows: over-easy... 2 minutes on second side; over-medium, 2 minutes 15 seconds; over hard... until the yolk is firm" (Bucholtz 3).

6. Use a spatula to transfer your eggs and bacon to a plate and enjoy!