Life...

So I just looked and realized I haven't blogged since Tuesday. I don't really have a good reason obviously since it took me until today to realize it.  I don't have an inspired idea for a blog post except that Sunday morning breakfast could be a great family tradition to start. In that vein, you might not want to get up and cook a full breakfast first thing, so here's a grand idea. Prep it before you go to bed and throw it in the oven when you get up.  In the time while it's baking, you can get the rest of your morning routine out of the way.

French Toast Strata

Ingredients:
4 c. day old French/Italian bread, cubed        1/3 c. raisins        3 oz. cream cheese, cubed
3 eggs                1 1/2 c. milk              1/2 c. maple syrup                 1 tsp. vanilla
2 tbsp. sugar      1 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

1. In a 11x7 pan, add an even layer of bread.
2. Sprinkle raisins and cream cheese.
3. Beat eggs in a bowl.
4. Add milk, 1/2 c. syrup and vanilla.
5. Mix well and pour over bread.
6. Refrigerate overnight (min. 4 hrs.)
7. Combine sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over bread.
8. Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.
9. Enjoy!

So, even though i took a few days off for "life", I'm back to remind you to have fun while you cook!

Coffee in your Morning Routine

When I say coffee, I'm not talking Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks. I'm not even talking a hot or cold beverage. Coffee is a great baking tool!  I love mocha flavored stuff and I love espresso and cappuccino, so adding them to some muffins gives you a great flavor change, which coincidentally would go great with a hot or cold cup of coffee!

Cappuccino Muffins

Ingredients:

Muffins:  2 c. flour          3/4 c. sugar      2 1/2 tsp. baking powder           1 tsp. cinnamon
              1/2 tsp. salt      1 c. milk            2 tbsp. instant coffee granules  1/2 c. butter, melted
              1 egg. beaten   1 tsp. vanilla    3/4 c. mini chocolate chips

Spread:  4 oz. cream cheese, cubed        1 tbsp. sugar       1/2 tsp. instant coffee granules
              1/2 tsp. vanilla                             1/4 c. mini chocolate chips

Directions:

1. In a food processor, combine the spread ingredients.
2. Cover and process until well blended.
3. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
4. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
5. In another bowl, stir milk and coffee granules until coffee is dissolved.
6. Add butter, egg and vanilla and mix well.
7. Stir into dry ingredients just until moist.
8. Fold in chocolate chips. 
9. Fill greased on paper lined muffin cups 2/3 full.
10. Bake at 375 for 17-20 minutes.
11. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.
12. Serve with spread.

I had something similar to this when I worked in Boston at the coffee shop across the street from the State House.  It was one of my favorite things! I highly recommend these, especially if you are a coffee lover.

As always, have fun!

Easter Morning Breakfast

It's Easter morning. You've got kids who want to get into their Easter baskets and go on egg hunts. You have food to prepare for that crowd coming in the afternoon.  The last thing you want to think about is breakfast I'm sure. However, considering how busy your day will get, I think a nice Easter breakfast is a great tradition to start.  This sweet and savory casserole is super quick to fix and won't take long in the oven, so dig in!

Maple Bacon Oven Pancake

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. bisquick                        1 tbsp. sugar                3/4 c. milk                    2 eggs
1/4 c. maple syrup                     1 1/2 c. shredded cheddar              1/2 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled

Directions:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine bisquick, sugar, milk, eggs, syrup and 1/2 c. cheese.
2. Mix well.
3. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan.
4. Bake, uncovered, at 425 for 10-15 minutes.
5. Sprinkle with bacon and remaining cheese.
6. Bake 3-5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.
7. Serve with additional syrup if desired.

Happy Easter everyone - enjoy your day! And as always, have fun!

Rainy Days Bring Breakfast for Dinner

Spring is headed our way finally. The snow banks are slowly melting away, getting some help from the rain today. Of course rain when it's still mildly cold is kind of grey and depressing.  A perfect excuse for a nice warm "breakfast for dinner" night. Nothing fills you up like pancakes and this recipe is certainly no exception. I'm not a huge pancake girl but I like this because it's sort of a deep dish pancake instead of those flapjacks that immediately come to mind. No syrup necessary!

German Apple Pancake

Ingredients:
4 eggs                3/4 c flour                  3/4 c milk               1/2 tsp salt             1/4 c butter
2 medium apples, thinly sliced            1/4 c sugar              1/4 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400.
2. Put 2 9 inch round cake pans in oven.
3. Beat eggs, flour, milk and salt on medium.
4. Remove pans from oven.
5. Place 2 tbsp. butter in each pan and rotate until it covers bottom and sides.
6. Arrange half the apple slices in each pan.
7. Divide batter evenly between pans.
8. Mix sugar and cinnamon.
9. Sprinkle 2 tbsp. over batter in each pan.
10. Bake uncovered 20-25 minutes, until puffed and golden brown.

Simple, yes?  I agree but oh so tasty. I find you really can't go wrong with breakfast foods.

As always, have fun!

Sunday Morning Breakfast

So, I'm notoriously never awake enough to do real breakfast in the morning. My only hopes are either breakfast for dinner (huge fan!) or getting ambitious on the weekends. Even still, ambitious might be a strong word. I'm a bacon freak so you would think I would be all over my favorite bacon recipes for this. However, I went in a different direction. My east coast upbringing failed to introduce me to this special breakfast treat. It was only when I got out to Indiana that I discovered the joy of biscuits and gravy!

Anytime we go out to breakfast, I pretty much pick anything that will give me biscuits and gravy as part of my meal. Or I have to add it in on the side. I don't know why I am so obsessed but I am. This recipe is super quick and super cheap to make. In fact, it can be ready to go in less than a half hour!

Drop Biscuits and Gravy

Ingredients:
Biscuits:   1 c. flour   1 1/2 tsp baking powder   1/8 tsp. salt   1/2 c. milk   1 tsp. butter, melted
Gravy:      1/2 lb. bulk pork sausage                  1 tbsp. butter                    3 tbsp. flour    
                 1 3/4 c. milk                                      1/8 tsp. salt                       1/2 tsp. pepper

Directions:

1. Combine flour, baking powder and salt.
2. Combine milk and butter and then stir into dry ingredients just until blended.
3. Drop by rounded tablespoons on a greased baking sheet.
4. Bake at 450 for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
5. In a saucepan, cook the sausage over medium heat until no longer pink.
6. Stir in butter until melted.
7. Sprinkle with flour.
8. Gradually stir in milk, salt and pepper.
9. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes.
10. Serve over biscuits. (4 servings)

Trust me if you've never had this - it's so worth it! I might just be a breakfast whore. Oh well ... there are worse things in life I suppose. I still refuse to eat grits. I have my limits.

As always, have fun!

Breakfast on the Go!

I talked in an earlier post about not being a full breakfast in the morning kind of girl. But, especially in winter, I find you should have an option to get something in your stomach on the way out the door. This is why I have numerous muffin and bread recipes. On a night where I want to destress from work or on the weekend or even on a snow day, I can totally dig getting into baking mode, often doing multiple recipes so I have choices when I’m on the way out the door.

In this vein, I give you two muffin recipes that should catch anyone’s taste buds.

Ham ‘n’ Cheddar Cups

Ingredients:

2 c. flour     1/4 c. sugar     2 tsp. baking powder     1 tsp. salt     1/4 tsp. pepper

6 eggs     1 c. milk     1/2 lb. fully cooked ham     1/2 lb. cheddar cheese shredded

1/2 lb. bacon, cooked and crumbled     1 small onion, finely chopped

Directions:

1. Beat eggs and milk.
2. Stir in dry ingredients until well mixed.
3. Stir in ham, cheese, bacon and onion.
4. Fill well greased muffin cups 3/4 full.
5. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
6. Yields about 20 cups. Paper lined muffin cups are not recommended for this recipe.

Pint Size PB & J Muffins

Ingredients:

1 c. flour     1 tsp. baking powder     1/2 tsp. baking soda     1/8 tsp. salt

1/2 c. brown sugar     1/2 c. vanilla low fat yogurt     1 tbsp. vegetable oil

2 tbsp. peanut butter     2 egg whites     2 tbsp. your favorite jelly

Directions:

1. Combine first 4 ingredients and make a well in the center of the mixture.
2. Combine sugar and next 4 ingredients – beat on low until blended.
3. Add to dry ingredients and stir just until moistened.
4. Spoon batter in 24 miniature muffin cups coated with cooking spray (1/2 full).
5. Top each with 1/4 tsp. jelly and top with remaining batter.
6. Bake at 400 for 12 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean
7. Yields about 24 minis – if you use a regular muffin tin, it will be more like 12.

You’ll find when I flip my entries from cooking to baking that I do not tend to provide as many short cuts or diversions from the recipe at hand. There’s a pretty simple reason for this – baking is far more scientific than cooking.  If you add too much flour or not enough sugar, often times you’ll end up with something fairly inedible. With cooking you do run some of that same risk but there are many ways to counteract a mistake along the way or, in fact, your “mistake” might turn into something even better!

As always, have fun!

Sweet? Savory? Both!

I like pie. I’m the first one to stand up and say that loud and proud. I have a whole section of pie recipes in my baking recipe box. Yes, I have multiple recipe boxes. That’s a conversation for another blog post. I like choices for myself and it’s also a handy resource if you’re ever looking for a good recipe – I usually have it and several variations.

For this post, it’s not one of those feel good Thanksgiving pies or even the hubby’s favorite, cherry pie. This is one is a breakfast pie.

Breakfast -I don’t know about you, but I don’t often have the time or desire for a full breakfast in the morning. This is precisely why breakfast for dinner is popular in my house.

This pie is the best of both worlds -sweet and savory – something I often struggle with. I love toffee peanuts and chocolate covered pretzels and of course anything chocolate peanut butter. I know many people are the same way – it’s that sweet and salty combo that makes our taste buds go wild.

Breakfast Sausage Apple Pie

Ingredients:

1 lb breakfast sausage links     1 pie crust     1 can apple pie filling     1 c. cheese     1/2 c. brown sugar

Directions:

1. Cook sausage and drain.
2. Bake pie crust for 10 minutes at 375.
3. Pour in apple pie filling.
4. Arrange the sausage on the top.
5. Sprinkle with cheese and then brown sugar.
6. Bake for 25-35 minutes.
7. Serve warm.

Yes, this recipe is just that simple. It’s also one I bet you could play around with depending on taste. Our go to cheese is cheddar jack as I can get big blocks of it cheaply at Sams Club. But, you could spice this up with a pepper jack or go in a different direction with a provolone or mozzarella. And it seems to me that you aren’t limited to apple pie only. My gut says blueberry would work well  -  and I’ve used cherries in a lot of different ways. Perhaps the tartness of the cherries would blend well with the spice of the sausage. Of course, there are different flavors of breakfast sausage links so your mix and match potential is endless.

As always, have fun!