One-To-Go: The BEST breakfast sandwich.

This Nashville secret will be your new hyperfixation.

More than a decade ago, I was introduced to the greatest breakfast sandwich to ever exist: The “One-To-Go” from East Nashville’s Sweet 16th bakery. This cozy little cafe was conveniently located near Keiko’s cousin’s home (wow, say that a few times), and was perhaps the greatest reason I’ve found to wake up early. With a line out the door and the frequent and family call of how many “One-To-Gos” were lined up for an order, you had a pretty good feeling that it would be decent, but few were prepared for just how good these sandwiches were. Flakey, cheesy, custardy and packed with flavor, these “eggy biscuits,” as we affectionately referred to them, were only available while they were available - which wasn’t long.

I refer to this in the past-tense because shortly around the end of October, 2022, the doors were shut for good, upon the passing of one of the owners, Dan Einstein, by his wife, Ellen. This became a problem for many because the “One-To-Go” wasn’t just scrambled eggs with a biscuit, but a custardy, spicy and cheesy egg souffle that was bright, acidic and full of flavor - and nobody knew their recipe.

Nostalgia, is my bread and butter, my interest and my brand with Retro Recipes Kitchen. Everthing I have interest in ties itself into knots, connected from ancient storylines, recipes, advertisements and images, so when Keiko’s cousin challenged me to figure it out, I knew I had a good challenge ahead of me. There was one problem - I hadn’t eaten one of these in years. The solution was leaning into Keiko’s incredible palette and impeccable memory. She was my tester through multiple batches of eggy biscuits and helped me refine things into the perfect bite.

So, whether you have had your fill of “One-To-Gos” or just want to see what living feels like, I think you found the right place, the right recipe and I’d encourage making these immediately and often, lest you wish to continue suffering from mediocre breakfast options. And the best part: you can wrap these up, refrigerate them and have them on the go, anytime you want.

Let’s get into the recipe.

One-To-Go Recipe, adapted from Sweet 16th.

Makes 12+ Breakfast Sandwiches
EGG SOUFFLE:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
6 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup AP flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
4 oz can of hatch chilies
1 cup cottage cheese, small curds
1/4 cup milk
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup yellow cheddar, grated
1 cup pepper jack cheese, grated
CHEDDAR SCONES:
2 1/4 cups AP flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon Diamond kosher salt
1/2 cup butter, frozen and grated
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup yellow cheddar
1 egg + 1 tablespoon water (egg wash)
Generous pinch of Flakey sea salt, (optional)

METHOD:
1. Preheat your oven to 400ºF/200ºC. Melt your butter for the egg souffle and pour into your baking pan - I prefer to use a 9x9” metal baking pan to make thicker souffles, versus thinner examples made in a longer pan. Grease the inside of the pan and/or add parchment as a liner for easy removal.
2. Combine your remaining ingredients together in a large mixing bowl, seasoning with salt and pepper, and whisk or fold together with a rubber spatula, until evenly mixed. Pour into your baking dish.
3. Bake at 400ºF/200ºC for 10 minutes, and then decrease the temperature to 350ºF/175ºC and open the oven door for about 5 seconds to allow the oven to cool faster. Continue to bake for an additional 30-40 minutes, or until the souffle has set and the surface is golden brown. This might seem unnecessary, but it offers the best texture of a crispy exterior and soft interior.
4. Using a food processor, or by hand, add your flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cayenne and salt together - pulse for 5 seconds to generally mix together. Add your cold, grated butter, your cheddar and your buttermilk and process in pulses until the dough begins to just pull together.
5. Turn the shaggy dough onto a lightly floured countertop and form into a thick, flat rectangle. Using a bench scraper, fold one end of the dough into the center, overlapping with the opposite side, “book folding” the dough. This process will laminate the dough, offering the most flakey biscuits without overmixing them. Repeat twice more by gently rotating the dough 90º, folding and pressing flat again.
6. You can allow the dough to chill for a bit, while you preheat the oven to 425ºF/218ºC. When ready to bake, simply use a sharp knife and cut square biscuits by pressing the knife straight down, rather than “cutting.” This way you won’t crush the lamination layers, which occasionally happens when using a ring mold and “cutting” the dough.
7. Create your egg-wash by beating an egg with some milk or water added and brush on top of each biscuit, topping with flakey sea salt. Bake for 12-15 minutes, allow to cool for 5 minutes, split with a serrated knife and fill with your egg souffle. Wrap in parchment and foil and buckle up.

There really aren’t enough words to properly express how much I love making these, but heed this warning, friend: You may struggle to eat only one of these, and you need to be okay with that.

This is not meant to be my claim that this is their recipe for the “One-To-Go” but simply my adaptation from some research, R&D and just making them over and over again. If Sweet 16th were still around, I’d encourage you to show love and support them, but for now, I think making these and spreading their goodness is paying it forward, too.
If you do decide to give these a go, please DM me on instagram, or leave me a comment below! And consider becoming a paid member for upcoming perks like weekly menus, meal-prep and one-on-one chats that are only offered to paid members.

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