Forget The Drive-Thru: Make A Polish-Style McMuffin With 4 Simple Ingredients

The McDonald's Egg McMuffin is a classic, but sometimes you just want something different. Maybe you'd prefer to skip the drive-thru and save a little extra money. Maybe you'd like something a little healthier, or a little more adventurous. Learning what people in other countries eat for breakfast is an excellent source of inspiration that can shake up your own routine. One of the most interesting ideas when you're looking for an alternative to the McMuffin in particular is what's on the breakfast menu in Poland. You may not be able to order it here, but that's exactly why it's a great idea to try making it yourself at home. 

At McDonald's locations in Poland, there's a McMuffin sans eggs, cheese, or meat. It features creamy, tangy cottage cheese; crunchy, piquant radishes; and fresh arugula piled onto the toasted wheat English muffin that's been buttered and sprinkled with spices. The texture and flavor mix sounds delicious, but it's definitely a new combination for most Americans. If you're curious, it couldn't be easier to whip up in your own kitchen. 

Simply toast an English muffin, lightly buttering each side and sprinkling on salt, pepper, and any other spices you like. Lay down a bed of greens, spoon on the cottage cheese, then top with sliced radishes. You can also mix the radishes right into the cheese, along with fresh dill, chives, and even horseradish. The result is a harmony of richness, herbaceousness, heat, creaminess, and crunch.

As tasty as this sandwich sounds, you might be wondering how cottage cheese and radish made it into the starring role of a breakfast sandwich at one of the world's biggest chains. It's based on twarożek, a Polish spread made from farmer's cheese that often includes radishes as well as scallions, dill, and other veggies, herbs, and/or spices. Twarożek is a traditional part of szwedzki stół, the Polish brunch spread. It appears alongside hearty rye bread, sliced vegetables, meats like kielbasa, and possibly salmon spread. Polish McDonald's locations have essentially created a portable sandwich version of the meal. This is one of those unique McDonald's menu items you need to try if you're abroad, but it's also one of the most approachable for making yourself. 

While twarożek is classically made from farmer's cheese, cottage cheese is more common in the United States and does the trick — it's what Polish McDonald's uses, after all. The main difference between farmer's cheese and cottage cheese is that the former is drier and thicker, like ricotta or cream cheese, compared to the latter's moisture and creaminess. Taste-wise, they're both milky with some tanginess and saltiness. 

Once you start making this sandwich, you may begin to feel creative when it comes to riffs and upgrades. Reach for ingredients best served chilled to work with the cottage cheese: pickles for acidity, lox for savory-meets-sweetness and salt, a squeeze of lemon juice for brightness, mint leaves for zest, or cucumbers for crunch.