Category: BRUNCH

BANANA RAISIN FRENCH TOAST







BANANA RAISIN FRENCH TOAST
8 slices raisin bread
2 medium ripe bananas
1 cup milk
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 JUMBO eggs
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons vanilla
powdered sugar garnish

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Spray a 9×9 baking dish with PAM.
  • Layer 4 slices of bread in the bottom.
  • Slice the bananas over the slices of bread.
  • Top with the other 4 slices.
  • In a food processor blend remaining ingredients until smooth consistency and pour over bread.
  • Let stand 5 minutes or overnight.
  • Bake 40-45 minutes or 50-55 minutes (if it was refrigerated) until knife comes out clean.
  • Let stand 5-10 minutes before cutting.
  • Sprinkle with powdered sugar and maple syrup.

Next time I will puree the banana layer.

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Beignets – or How to LIE to your Guests

One year… I figure I now owe the cooking gods one full year in purgatory.

To be fair, I got the idea for this from Mary at DEEP SOUTH DISH, one of my all time favorite bloggers (How has she not been found by the Food Network yet???). So, Mary is my Fagin to my innocent Oliver Twist… Mary, for the record, I am easily led astray. Be careful when you put temptation in my path…

A while back, Mary did an excellent post on making your own Beignets. You know, those New Orleans treats most often associated with cafe Du Monde in the French Quarter. Anyone and I suspect everyone who has visited the city knows of and sampled these treats. Squares of sweetened dough (extra sugar and evaporated milk), covered with generous amounts of powdered sugar. You can find her post on making AUTHENTIC Beignets by clicking HERE.

But she also gave a “cheater” version that I thought was funny at the time… And then Eve and the apple and Satan and temptation began working it’s ugly way with me. I had all the supplies on hand to make the legit Beignets. I did. I had company last week that I could make them for and I wanted to. I wanted to be authentic… I should have been authentic… But I wasn’t.

Get thee behind me Satan is what I should have said…

Temptation, thy name is DEEP SOUTH DISH MARY.

I beg for absolution. I beg the gods for forgiveness… As a penance, I must confess in full…

Here’s what I did…

Oil for frying…
Powdered sugar for generously dusting

and..

I can’t say it…

But I must confess in full…

and…

the final ingredient is…

A tube of refrigerator buttermilk biscuits.

I am so ashamed.

What would Bobby Flay say??? Paula Dean… Alton Brown… All would condemn me, and justifiably so.

But Bobby, Paula and Alton, it was so easy… Just cut each biscuit in half…

Fry in the oil and dust with the sugar…

And if you get up on the last morning your guests are staying, after force feeding them RUM Drinks night after night… after night after night; you can make these and hide all the evidence before they stumble out of bed (or floor if that was where they passed out).

I served these, and accepted the praise due a scratch baker. Without exception, these were accepted as authentic Beignets.

I am A squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner.

Bobby, Paula and Alton… Bless me chefs for I have sinned.

!Dave here from MY YEAR ON THE GRILL. I am ashamed that i can declare… I CAN COOK THAT! But then, who couldn’t???


Don’t do as I did… save yourself the guilt. Make from scratch. Ignore the needs of time and the desire to just wanting to get something on the table. The guilt is just not worth the convenience and great taste… Spend those hours in the kitchen. Ignore your family and guests and resist the temptations that are put in front of you.


OK, let me take my tongue out of my cheek for a second and do a little advertising for a GREAT FUN site…


I love bloggers! I was new to the world of blogging (and to cooking) just a few months ago. I went from hamburgers and hot dogs once a month to a 3 meal a day, 7 days a week cook. I needed help, and I found it. I am always thrilled to find new blogs. Without bloggers who provide insight you do not get from books, I would not be as brave as I am in the kitchen. Last month I was introduced to a wonderful opportunity. TASTE & CREATE is a cultural exchange program for bloggers. Click on the logo to the left, but the premise is simple…Once you sign up, monthly, you are paired with another blogger. Hopefully, someone you have never seen before. You take a look at their blog, hunt down a recipe that you find appealing and cook and post the results. You are introduced to a new recipe, and at the same time, because you dig a little deeper into a new blog, you find bits of personal information that gets you a new blogger buddy!


So, at the least, one day out of next month, you will have a topic for your blog. But at best, you get a new blog buddy, you get to try a new recipe and look at blogging from another person’s shoes!


In the next two days, match ups for this month happen. NOW is the time to sign up. Live on the wild side, it is a challenge, and it is rewarding… Contact Min at –

cowgirlmin07@gmail.com
She does the matchups and is handling the cyber paperwork. If you have any questions, drop Min a line. She would be thrilled to have some “New Blood”! It is a month by month commitment. So if you don’t care for the experience, dropping out is easy. But, you may just get hooked like I did… Click HERE to see the fun I had.





HAM & CHEESE QUICHE

I have used this same recipe for traditional quiche for years and adapted it today to use what I had on hand. It was a pleasant success.





1/2 pound diced ham
1 cup finely grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 shallot finely chopped
4 eggs
2 cups whipping cream
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 deep pie crust

  • Preheat oven to 425°.
  • Pre-bake the pie crust and cool before filling.
  • Lightly saute shallot and ham.
  • Sprinkle the ham and onion and grated swiss cheese evenly into crust.
  • Beat the eggs, whipping cream and seasonings until well blended. Pour over mixture in pie crust.
  • Bake 15 minutes and then reduce heat to 300° and bake an additional 35-45 minutes or until just golden and knife comes out clean.
  • Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

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QUICHE LORRAINE – THE PERFECT SUNDAY MORNING PIE


1/2 pound bacon, crisply fried and crumbled
1 cup finely grated swiss cheese
1 large bunch green onions finely sliced
4 eggs
2 cups whipping cream
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 deep pie crust

Preheat oven to 425°.

Prebake the pie crust and cool before filling.

Sprinkle the crumbled bacon, finely sliced onion and grated swiss cheese evenly into crust.

Beat the eggs, whipping cream and seasonings until well blended. Pour over mixture in pie crust.

Bake 15 minutes and then reduce heat to 300° and bake an additional 35 minutes or until just golden and knife comes out clean.

Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake: Lovin’ From the Oven

My sister in law makes a killer coffee cake.  It has a ripple of cinnamon through the center.  The cake is buttery and moist.  It’s really wonderful and my husband adores it.  She has never shared the recipe.  I have asked.
So.  I have had to search high and low for something similar.  This is attempt 2,538 in twenty years.  It’s as close as I have ever come to replicating it.  I am not sure I am done trying, but this is a good fall-back.
Sour Cream Coffee Cake: 
Cake

3 cups flour
1 heaping tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups sour cream
Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.  Cream the butter and sugar.  Add the vanilla and eggs.  Alternately add the dry ingredients and the sour cream. Pour  half of the batter into a greased 9 inch pan.  
Topping:
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 stick butter
Combine ingredients in a bowl with a pastry blender or fork until crumbly.  Sprinkle half of the topping onto the batter in the pan.  Top with the other half of the batter and then sprinkle on the remaining half of the topping.  Bake 350 degrees for about 40 minutes.  Tent the cake with foil and bake another 30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

SLUMBERING VOLCANOES






Recently I was reading a novel and it mentioned some interesting recipe titles. I decided to see if they were real recipes or contrived and was pleasantly surprised to find they were real. So over the next few Sundays we can experiment together. My additions to each recipe are in green and the deletions in red.
4 large tomatoes
4 artichoke hearts
2 large button mushrooms, chopped small
4 eggs
4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
4 slices Gruyere’ cheese (tonight I used a jack cheddar combo)
4 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs seasoned with:
1 teaspoon dill
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 green onions, minced
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Carefully scoop out insides of tomatoes and drain juices from the shells.
  • Place tomatoes, hole side up, in baking dish and put in oven for 8 to 10 minutes.
  • In a small bowl mix together Parmesan, breadcrumbs, dill, garlic, and onion.
  • Remove tomato shells from oven.
  • Into the center of each put one whole or 1/2 artichoke heart.
  • Break one large egg over each artichoke heart and then sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of Parmesan and seasoned breadcrumb mix.
  • Place “volcanoes” back into oven and bake for approximately 20 minutes. (Time depends on how you prefer eggs cooked… if you want hard yolks, bake for 1/2 hour.)
  • Top with cheese and cook 5 minutes more.
  • Serve hot with side condiments of sour cream, chopped chives, green chili salsa, or others of your imagination!

Next time I’m going to add some crab to the mix!

And have you heard about CSN stores?

I was recently made aware that there is a wonderful online shopping experience available right from your desk top.

Remember all these wish list posts I did about all the wonderful quality kitchen dreams and wishes I have? Well, all the items I’m dreaming about to complete my dream kitchen are available from these sites.

Seriously, you really need to go check out these sites
www.allmodern.com
www.diningroomsdirect.com
www.cookware.com
www.moremailboxes.com

Look for my review of this beautiful multi-purpose LeCruset casserole in the very near future. I truly wonder how I ever got along without it!

I’m envisioning an awesome POT ROAST & ROASTED VEGGIES in the very near future as well as TROPICAL GLAZED PORK TENDERLOIN and OATNUT SOURDOUGH HERB DRESSING and TURKEY TETTRAZINI and RITZY CARROT & BROCCOLI CASSEROLE and…

The uses are going to be endless. The durable finish resists chipping, scratching and staining. It has sure grip handles for easy handling from the oven onto the table to create a beautiful table presentation.

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Fully Loaded Potato Muffins

My favorite comfort food is potato. When I was a little girl and didn’t feel well, my mother would make me mashed potatoes and carrots. This was the ultimate in comfort food because it was associated with recuperation and feeling good. This is better than chicken soup and we all know that chicken soup is the ultimate or so they say.
Since, I was eating alone, I took two medium potatoes and baked them through in a 375 degree oven, after a thorough cleaning.
To my surprise, at the end of an hour, they were cooked through but the skin on one had a gaping hole in the skin. This is one dish that the skin is a must.
I was going to make one stuffed potato and just mash up the rest when I spotted a muffin tin. Change of plans. I was now making Fully Loaded Potato Muffins. These were delicious. The potato was filled with goodies and I even used Baco Bits since I don’t eat bacon. The end result were these adorable muffins that tasted like something the angels made. Are angels into spices?
Stuffed Potato Muffins
Ingredients:
2 baking potatoes
2 ounces sharp cheddar cheese
2 ounces sour cream
1/2 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon butter
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (without fish)
1/4 cup Baco Bits
Method:
Clean and bake potatoes at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
Cut potatoes in half and remove the potato from the skins.
Put potatoes aside.
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Chop onion and saute with 1 tablespoon butter until golden brown.
Grate the cheese and add 3/4 cup of it to the cold potato along with the sour cream.
Add onions and Baco Bits to the potato, with the salt, pepper & Worcestershire sauce.
Spoon the potato filling into the muffin tins.
Sprinkle over the remaining cheese, giving each potato skin a light covering, and cook for 20-30 minutes until golden.

For Passover recipes, please go to Comfy Cook and My Sweet and Savory.

PEANUT BUTTER FEATHER PANCAKES & HOMEMADE MAPLE SYRUP

Peanut Butter Feather Pancakes
1 cup flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/3 cup JIF Peanut Butter
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon butter, melted

  • In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
  • In a small bowl, beat egg with Jif until blended. Stir in milk and melted butter.
  • Add all at once to the dry ingredients, beating until blended. Add more milk to thin batter if necessary.
  • Bake on a hot, lightly greased griddle until bubbles break on the surface. Turn and brown the other side.

Maple Syrup
1 cup white sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
scant 1 cup water
1 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract
2 tablespoons maple extract

  • Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan.
  • Bring to a slow boil.
  • Simmer gently 5 minutes.
  • Remove from heat and cool 5 minutes.
  • Store in refrigerator.

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BREAKFAST CASSEROLE & OVEN HASH BROWNS

On Sunday mornings we try to have a nice brunch together, but there always seems to be time constraints. This weekend we tried Ree’s Sleepin’ In Omelette and my hash browns and boy was it yummy together. I halved both recipes and we still had lots of leftovers. Hubby did miss meat though and asked me our regular family favorite next week.

OUR NORMAL FAMILY BREAKFAST CASSEROLE*

1 cup diced ham OR crumbled sausage OR a combo of both
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese OR jack and cheddar combo
1/2 can cream of mushroom soup
4 slices thick sourdough bread
4 Jumbo eggs
celery salt and white pepper to taste
PURE

  • Spray the bottom of an 8×8 or 9×9 baking dish
  • Cook meat of choice and layer on bottom of baking dish
  • Layer bread in a single layer over the meat
  • Whisk together the soup, milk, eggs, salt and pepper
  • Pour evenly over bread
  • Top with the cheese
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes (covered with foil for the first 30 minutes)

*This can be made ahead and left to chill 24 hours before baking – in fact it usually tastes better that way.


OVEN HASH BROWNS

2 large Russet potatoes*, scrubbed clean
1 bunch green onions, minced fine
1 large apple, peeled, cored and minced (optional)
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Celery salt and white pepper

  • Grate the potatoes with a cheese grater
  • Spin dry the potatoes and apple pieces in a salad spinner or if you don’t have one use a flour sack cheesecloth and squeeze them dry
  • Toss the potatoes with the melted butter
  • Generously sprinkle with the celery salt and white pepper
  • Bake on large cookie sheet until crisp**

*you can cheat & use frozen Oreida hash browns, but be sure to thaw & drain off moisture
**If they are stubborn, I put them under the broiler for a couple of minutes to brown.
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QUICHE LORRAINE – THE PERFECT SUNDAY MORNING PIE


1/2 pound bacon, crisply fried and crumbled
1 cup finely grated swiss cheese
1 large bunch green onions finely sliced
4 eggs
2 cups whipping cream
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 deep pie crust

Preheat oven to 425°.

Prebake the pie crust and cool before filling.

Sprinkle the crumbled bacon, finely sliced onion and grated swiss cheese evenly into crust.

Beat the eggs, whipping cream and seasonings until well blended. Pour over mixture in pie crust.

Bake 15 minutes and then reduce heat to 300° and bake an additional 35 minutes or until just golden and knife comes out clean.

Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.
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Raspberry Streusel Muffins: Lovin’ From The Oven

Muffins are one of the easiest breakfasts to make.  You can make them ahead and freeze them, simply make them the night before or if you have the time, make them fresh in the morning.  Their flavor doesn’t diminish with early baking.  We got some raspberries on sale a month ago and froze them.  I brought one bag out this week and made these scrumptious muffins.  The tartness of the raspberries goes well with the sweetness of the streusel.  One helpful tip: make up a bunch of streusel and store it in a glass jar in your fridge.  It lasts a long time and saves you time when you want a fun topping on a cake, pie or muffin.
 
 Raspberry Streusel Muffins:
Muffins:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp lemon peel
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup raspberries
Topping:
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp lemon peel
2 Tbsp melted butter
Glaze:(optional)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Mix all ingredients for muffins except the berries.  Fold in berries.  Fill muffin cups with batter.  Mix topping ingredients and crumble the topping over muffins.  Bake 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  Mix glaze ingredients and drizzle glaze on muffins after they have cooled 15 minutes.  Makes 1 dozen.

GERMAN PANCAKE

GERMAN PANCAKE
3 eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, melted + a little to coat the pan
1 teaspoon vanilla
Juice of 1 lemon
Powdered Sugar

  • Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
  • Coat the inside of an ovenproof 12 inch skillet with butter or PURE. Be sure to remember to edges and sides.
  • In a mixing bowl beat the eggs until well blended.
  • Add the milk and blend again.
  • Sift together the flour and salt and gradually fold into the egg mixture.
  • Add the melted butter and vanilla, blend until smooth.
  • Pour batter into the buttered skillet.
  • Bake 15 minutes.
  • Reduce heat to 350 minutes and bake another 10 minutes until pancake has billowed high and turned golden brown.
  • Sprinkle with lemon juice and powdered sugar. You can also use regular maple syrup or molasses or I especially like it with Blackberry Pineapple Dipping Sauce or Lemon Sauce.
  • Serve immediately.

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