I needed a hearty breakfast today. I was meeting up with friends for a hike, and I opted to let my favorite pre-hike brunches of the past inspire me: breakfast at Ravens in Mendocino. So I made a simple sweet potato hash with spring onions, green garlic, and red bell pepper, with a little arugula wilted in at the end for good measure. But protein was also required, so I marinated thick strips of tempeh in a thin broth with apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, minced garlic, tomato puree, hot sauce, liquid smoke, and a tiny bit of coconut nectar, then pan-fried them. A little of the marinade was drizzled over the hash to help the arugula wilt (and add flavor); more was added to the pan with the tempeh after one flip and allowed to cook all the way down, to better infuse the flavors.

The hike was worth it.