Category: Breakfast

Breads · Breakfast · Cakes · Daily Thoughts · Fruit · Uncategorized

Apple Cinnamon Bread

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This bread sounded so good, I am headed to store to buy applesauce so I can make it. It comes from a ad in Paula Deen’s magazine from Sevierville, TN where they sell this bread at the Apple Valley Creamery Ice Cream and Bake Shop. So if it is in Paula’s magazine, it has got to be good!

3 eggs
1 cup canola oil
2 cups sugar
2 cups unsweetened applesauce
3 cups flour
1 teas baking powder
1 teas baking soda
1 teas salt
2 table cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins (I use golden raisins as the flavor is a little milder)
1/2 cup coconut

Preheat oven to 350
Cream first 4 ingredients until well blended.
Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
Pour into 3 greased medium bread pans (loaf pans)
Bake at 350 for about 45 min or until bread tests done.

*I will probably add 1 teas vanilla and 1/2 cup chopped pecans.

A jar of spiced peach jam was given to me by a dear friend that I cannot wait to spread over a hot piece of this bread (and of course a big slab of butter)!
Would love to hear back any comments after you bake this.

Breads · Breakfast · Chocolate · Cookies · Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Uncategorized

Chocolate Peanut Butter Biscotti

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Rediscovering some of my Christmas with Southern Living books (this one was 2001), I found several recipes which I want to make this season. Since it is so much fun to make biscotti and I have a friend who I will not name (but looks like she stuck her finger in a light socket to style her hair), that continues to ask me to bring her more biscotti every time I see her. So Spikey Hair Lady, will try this recipe to see if get meets your approval.
This is my friend who Randy tells her that he has to sit in front of her at church as he can’t see the preacher if he sits behind her. Of course, after she sees this post, we probably won’t be friends much longer and I will get to keep all the biscotti for myself.

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa
3/4 teas baking soda
1/2 cup finely chopped peanuts (they tested with cocktail peanuts, I will use my Virginia peanuts I buy at Costco)
1/2 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
*I deleted the 1/4 teas salt recipe called for since the peanuts were salted

Ingredients for Dipping Biscotti in
1 cup semisweet chocolate mini chips, divided
1 1/2 tables creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 tables shortening

Beat 1/3 cup peanut butter and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs, beating until blended
Stir together the four, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.(if using salt). Add to peanut butter mixture, beating on low speed until blended. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead in peanuts and 1/2 cup mini chips.

Shape dough into a 13′ x 3″ log on a lightly greased baking sheet (or ungreased parchment lined sheet). Bake at 325 for 40 minutes or until firm. Remove to a wire rack to cool for about 20 minutes.
Cut log diagonally into 1/2″ thick slices with a serrated knife using a gentle sawing motion; place slices on uncreased baking sheets. Bake at 325 for 7 minutes; turn slices over and bake an additional 7 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool.
Combine remaining 1 cup chocolate chips, 1 1/2 tables peanut butter and shortening in a small saucepan. Melt over low heat and stir to mix.
Dip one end of each biscotti in chocolate mixture. Place biscotti on wax paper until chocolate hardens.
Yields about 28 slices

Breads · Breakfast · Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Fruit · Uncategorized

Almond & Apricot Biscotti

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Have made this twice and each time, it gets great reviews from folks I share it with. Makes great hostess gifts or place in a decorated vase at each end of the dessert table. Great little dessert especially for people who don’t like a lot of sweets, but like just a little something to go with hot tea or coffee.

2 cups flour
4 tables butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 teas salt
2 eggs
2 teas baking powder
1 1/2 teas almond extract
1 cup dried apricots, finely chopped
1 cup sliced (very thin) almonds

Preheat oven to 350.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add softened butter,mixing until coarse crumbs form. With mixer on low, add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition; add in almond extract; Stir in apricots and almonds; continue to stir until dough is in ball form, about 1 minute.

On a parchment lined baking sheet, shape dough into two 2″x12″ logs. Bake in preheated oven until dry and set, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and place on wire racks. Let cool completely.
Transfer to a cutting board and with a serrated knife, cut logs on the diagonal into 1/4″ slices. Bake on parchment lined baking sheets until golden, 15-20 minutes, (turn each slice over halfway through baking) and rotating sheets halfway through. Let cool completely on sheets on racks.
Store in air tight container up to 1 week.

I melted vanilla candy melts and drizzled it over each cooled slice.

Breads · Breakfast · Cakes · Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Holiday Fare · Uncategorized

Pumpkin Coffee Cake

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A sweet friend who lives across the street brought some of this amazing coffee cake over Monday night. I wish I would not have scarfed it down before taking a picture, but as soon as we ate one bite…well, lets just say that we didn’t wait until after dinner to eat the whole plate she brought over. Thank you Patty for a new dessert which has put our cholesterol levels in a brand new category.
This coffee cake is almost a cross between a bread pudding and a cake. Peter Pumpkin just stood at the counter and between bites, kept asking me if I would make us a whole pan. It is that good.

Makes 16 servings, yeah right! more like 4 the way we eat.

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs, room temp
1 teas vanilla
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teas baking powder
1 cup sour cream

Pumpkin Filling
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
3/4 cup sugar
1 teas ground cinnamon
1/2 teas salat
1/2 teas ground ginger
1/4 teas ground cloves
2 eggs
1/2 cup half & half or 1/4 cup heavy cream plus 1/4 cup milk

Topping
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup light brown sugar
2 teas ground cinnamon
1 cup chopped pecans (very finely chopped)

Preheat oven to 325. Grease a 9×13″ pan and set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat again. Add the dry ingredients and mix to combine. Stir the sour cream and then pour half the batter into the prepared pan.
Stir together the pumpkin, sugar and the spices. Add the eggs and then the cream and stir to combine. Pour the pumpkin mixture over the cake batter and spread across the pan with the back of a spoon. Drop the remaining cake batter over the pumpkin in small spoonfuls and then smooth it across the pumpkin layer. Don’t worry about making it look perfect.
Stir together the melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Sprinkle the topping mixture across the top of the cake.
Bake for 50-55 min until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool before cutting.

Breads · Breakfast · Cakes · Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Fruit · Uncategorized

Browned Butter Banana Bread

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Is there anything that doesn’t taste better than browned butter? I remember the first time I tasted it. So much added nutty flavor and such an addition to already wonderful butter flavor. The praline frosting that is on the blog, which is made with browned butter is still one of my favorites. So when I saw this in an old magazine from Paula Deen, I instantly knew what I was going to bake next when the new bananas ripened.

3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups cake flour, sifted
1 teas baking powder
1 teas baking soda
1/2 teas salt
1 1/4 cups mashed banana (about 3 medium)
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 teas rum extract (extra, so since I don’t like rum flavor, will use vanilla)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until butter begins to foam. Continue cooking, without stirring, until butter is golden brown and has a nutty aroma. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a small bowl, discarding any remaining solids. Let cool to room temp, then refrigerate for 30 minutes or until butter has solidified but is not cold.
Preheat oven to 325. Spray a 10×5″ loaf pan with Pam baking spray with flour.

In a large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar with mixer on medium until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and next 3 ingredients. In a small bowl, whisk together banana, buttermilk, and extract. Add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with banana mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat just until combined after each addition. Stir in nuts, if using them. Spoon batter into prepared pan.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until bread tests done. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.
Stor in airtight container for up to 3 days or wrap tightly and place in plastic bag to freeze up to 3 months.

Breads · Breakfast · Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Uncategorized

Apple Fritters

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On the back of some of my cooking magazines, come these lovely little recipes from Sevierville, TX, advertising Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant This little gem is perfect for those mornings or late evenings when you don’t want to get back out of the house, but a donut sounds really good with a cup of tea or coffee. Simple and quick, this will not disappoint.
1 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
4 tables butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teas salt
1 orange rind with juice
1 cup apples, peeled and finely chopped
2 teas baking powder
1 teas vanilla

Combine ingredients and mix well.
Drop 1 tablespoon at a time into 350 oil until brown and cooked in the middle, Drain and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or powdered sugar.

Breads · Breakfast · Cakes · Desserts · Fruit · Uncategorized

Blackberry, Browned Butter & Almond Tart

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Taken from Southern Living Magazine, this recipe caught my eye and with a sack of blackberries already in the fridge, it sounded too good not to try. It is also one of those rare moments when I have almond flour in the house, which I had purchased to make another batch of french macaroons.

1 1/2 cups (12 oz) unsalted butter, plus more for the pan

8 large egg whites

3 1/4 cups unsifted powdered sugar, plus more for dusing

1 1/2 cups almond flour

1 cup plus 1 tables all purpose flour, divided, plus more for pan

1 tables vanilla bean paste

1 1/2 cup fresh blackberries

Preheat oven to 325. Grease and flour a 12 ” round tart pan with removable bottom; place tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium-high and cook, stirring often, until butter releases a nutty aroma and milk solids are golden brown, about 8 minutes. Immediately transfer butter to a bowl; ;cool slightly, about 10 minutes.

Beat egg whites with a heavy duty electric mixer on medium speed until frothy, about 30 seconds. Gradually add powdered sugar; beat until light and fluffy. Gradually add almond flour and 1 cup of the all purpose flour; beat on medium low speed until incorporated. Add vanilla bean paste (if you don’t have vanilla paste, add 2 teas vanilla) and browned butter. Beat on medium-low speed until incorporated. Spread batter in prepared pan. Toss blackberries with remaining 1 tablespoon all purpose flour and sprinkle over the batter.

Bake in preheated oven until golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 42-45 minutes. Cool in pan on a wire rack 15 minutes. Remove sides of pan and cool 30 more minutes. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Breads · Breakfast · Daily Thoughts · Uncategorized

Muffins & Toast

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IMG_4880This week, I have had the blessing of being invited to two different friends homes, one for lunch, the other for breakfast. At both homes, I came away with great recipes that I wanted to share. Debbie, who had the luncheon served cheese muffins which were just so good. Actually, anything with 3 cups of cheese is good, but these were gooey and ever so yummy. She served them with cucumbers with dill and cherry tomatoes and fruit.

Today, I was at  Connies, a new friend,  for breakfast where she served blueberry stuffed french toast.  Walking into her home, the aroma of grilled bread permeated the house and we sat down to warm blueberry syrup as she carried a platter of the scrumptious french toast over to us. Because Randy and I tend to usually eat toast with peanut butter in the mornings, or a bowl of cereal, this was a real treat. Unless we are celebrating something special like, we went for 2 days without eating dessert, or we actually walked past the fridge without opening it for 1 whole hour the evening before, when we will allow ourselves to splurge on toasts, sausage, eggs and hash browns.

Connie and Debbie, thank you both for serving dishes which were both new to me. Am excited to post them to share with others.

Cheese Muffins (taken from Pioneer Woman)

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 tables sugar

1 tables baking powder

1/2 teas salt

3 cups shredded colby-jack cheese

1 cup milk

1 egg

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter (let it cool for a few minutes before using)

(I did add about 1 tables parsley flakes, 1/2 teas dry mustard and 1/2 teas garlic powder to the dry ingredients)

Whisk together dry ingredients, then stir in cheese.

In a separate bowl, whisk egg, milk and butter together. Pour milk mixture into dry ingredients and stir with a spoon to combine. Divide mixture between 12 greased (well greased) muffin tins. The hostess used paper liners but the muffins tended to stick to the paper liners, so when I made these last night, I just eliminated the liners and heavily greased (with Pam) the muffin pan. After about 5 minutes of taking out of the oven, they came out very easily after running a knife around the edges.

Bake in a preheated 375 oven for about 20-25 minutes.

Makes 12 and I could have eaten all 12 with a slab of butter on top of each one.

Blueberry French Toast

As I sit here writing the recipes, it just dawned on me that if you are a busy mom who is always in a hurry in the mornings, you could even buy the frozen french toast and use it.

Make your french toast according to your favorite recipe. When you have the amount of slices you need to serve the number of people who will be gracing your table, spread about 1 teas of softened cream cheese on half of one side of the toast. Place about 4-6 blueberries on the cream cheese and using the spatula, fold the piece of french toast in half covering the cream cheese and blueberries. Allow to sit in the skillet or griddle for a minute to allow the cream cheese to almost melt. Serve with heated blueberry syrup.

 

 

Breads · Breakfast · Daily Thoughts · Starches · Uncategorized

Baked Oatmeal

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A friend of mine yesterday remarked how much she loved oatmeal for breakfast. During our conversation (yes, most of my conversations are centered around food) I ask her if she had ever had baked oatmeal and she replied that she had never heard of it.

When we lived in California I had the blessing of being a mentor mom to a group of gals in the MOPS (moms of preschoolers) study at our church. One of their favorite things to bring for snacks were these baked oatmeal bars. I’m not a huge oatmeal person, but these were really good. So I promised Marilyn that I would post the recipe today. Try it…you might be surprised how good they are!

 

2 cups old fashioned oatmeal

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1 tables granulated sugar

1 1/2 teas baking powder

1/2 teas salt

1/2 teas ground cinnamon (I will add a little more than that as I like more cinnamon flavor)

1 cup whole milk

2 eggs

2 tables canola oil

1 teas vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Grease an 8″ square pan.

Combine oats, brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon together in a bowl.

Whisk the milk, eggs, oil and vanilla together in a separate bowl. and stir until eggs and mixture are well combined. Set aside until flavors blend about 20 minutes. Add to oatmeal mixture and stir until thoroughly blended. Spread in prepared pan and bake about 30 minutes or until golden brown on top. Cool and cut into squares.

I might add about 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips before baking.

A great breakfast on the go meal!

*Taken from Allrecipes.com

Breakfast · Casseroles · Daily Thoughts · Uncategorized

Breakfast Casserole You Don’t Want to Miss

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You are thinking, “oh great, just another breakfast casserole” but wait…this is not just another one. It is probably the lightest and fluffiest one I have ever had. Had breakfast at a friends home yesterday and she had made this. She had been to a breakfast where every lady there requested it. And yes, all 6 ladies there yesterday did the same. I don’t like cottage cheese, but didn’t even know it was in it.

10 eggs

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled

1 teas salt

1/2 teas pepper

2 teas baking powder

2 cups grated cheddar or jack cheese

1 4 oz can chopped green chiles

5 slices bacon, cooked an crumbled

2 cups small curd cottage cheese

Blend eggs, flour, butter, baking powder, salt and pepper. Fold in cheese, chiles, bacon and cottage cheese. Pour mixture into a greased 9×12 baking dish.

Bake for 30 min at 400 or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean

Serves 6-9 depending on sizes of portion.

Options, can add mushrooms or spinach to batter.

Thanks Marilyn for sharing this with us…it was really delicious.