What’s For Breakfast?

Just enjoying a leisurely breakfast on our honeymoon.

Breakfast.  We’ve heard it called the most important meal of the day but how many times have you thought about making a homemade breakfast but then didn’t because you just couldn’t think of anything that sounded appetizing?  The following is a list of breakfast ideas I compiled to keep on hand.  These are real breakfast foods that we regularly eat.  (We usually do menu plan our breakfasts but sometimes you just aren’t in the mood for what’s on the menu.)  You will also find that most of these are quite nutritious. 

1. Oatmeal: Instant, On the stove, baked, or cooked overnight in the crockpot
2. Grits: add a little cheese and butter-yum yum! 
3. CoCo Wheats: these are a delicious treat at our house!  You can find them in most groceries next to the oatmeal.  They ALWAYS remind me of my little brother Caleb-these were his favorite breakfast food as a kid. 
4. Rice Pudding with Apples, Pears or Raisins.
5. Cooked Rice with Milk and Sugar (great way to use up rice from dinner the night before)
6. Muffins: Try Banana Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Chip, or Apple Cranberry,
7. Biscuits with Jam or Gravy (a super special treat)
8. Breads: Cinnamon Raisin, Fall Bread,  
9. Egg McMuffins
10. Toast with Butter or a Homemade Jam or try Pumpkin Butter
11. Scrambled Eggs: for a new twist add in salsa, cheese, or bacon.
12. Omelets
13. Hard-Boiled Eggs-Eli loves these!   
14. Pancakes/Waffles: we like to add in different fruits to change it up!  Try: Peach Pancakes
15. Carmel Apple Strata or Ham and Mushroom Strata
16. Breakfast Egg Sausage Casserole
17. Fruit Smoothies
18. Potato Pancakes
19. Breakfast Burritos
20. Green Smoothies
21. Yogurt with Fruit
22. Cottage Cheese with Fruit or Cinnamon
23. Granola: either eat it with milk like cold cereal or with yogurt.   
24. Granola Bars
25. Quiche
26. Cinnamon Rolls
27. Spinach Frittata
28. French Toast or Stuffed French Toast
29. Coffee Cake or Apple Cake
30. Cinnamon Toast
31. Crepes-okay so I’ve never made these for breakfast but they may end up on our menu next week. 😉 

What are some of your breakfast favorites?

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Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Perfect for breakfast or a snack for everyone.

We have been making these muffins for years.  They are wonderful!  I recently gave one to Eli and he loved it.  To make:

• Ingredients:
• 1/2 c. of coconut oil or butter
• 3/4 c. sucanat or sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 c. whole wheat pastry flour (any kind of flour will do-these are great with ww pastry flour)
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. mini chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar together.  Add eggs and beat well.  Add flour, salt, and soda-mix well.  Add in bananas, extract and chocolate chips.  Bake at 400 for about 18 minutes depending on your oven.  Yields one dozen large muffins (fill muffin pans 3/4 of the way) or 1 1/2 dozen small muffins.  Enjoy!

Related Posts: Pumpkin Chip Muffins and Apple Cranberry Muffins

Delicious Herb Bread

We find this Herb bread to be delicious especially for meat sandwiches.

For the past couple of months we have been absolutely loving this recipe for Herb Bread.  The recipe makes 3 regular sized loaves of bread.  You could easily divide the recipe by 1/3 to make just one loaf but I usually make 3.  This freezes very well or you can give a loaf or two to a friend.  It definately tastes like something you would get at a specialty sandwich shop. 

Mix together:

• 3 3/4 c. warm water
• 6 T. soft butter, dry milk powder, and sucanat or sugar.
• 1 1/2 t. each of thyme, basil, marjoram, and chives.  If you happen to run out of one of them just increase all of the other spices to compensate for it.  I often run out of marjoram and the bread is still great. 😉
• 4 c. whole wheat flour
• 3 T. yeast
• 1 1/2 T. salt
• Mix together in a bowl and let set for about 15 minutes.  Set the timer or you will definitely forget about it.  🙂  Add bread flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.  I think I usually add about 4-5 cups at this step.  Then knead for 6 minutes.  Form loaves and place in greased bread pans.  Let rise and bake at 350 for 35 minutes.  When it comes out of the oven I like to top it with just a tiny bit of soft butter to make the crust soft.

Hoppin’ Johns and Buttermilk Cornbread

How can black-eyed peas taste this good? They sound awful. 🙂

This past week we ventured out yet once again to try a new inexpensive, yummy, healthy recipe.  This delicious dish has only 260 calories per serving and serves eight so enjoy! 

Ingredients:

• 1 pound black-eyed peas: you will find these in the grocery store in the dry bean section.  (They taste a lot like navy beans I think.) 
• 1 medium ham hock: (you could also a chicken carcass I would think.)
• 8 c. Water
• 1 can 14.5 oz diced tomatoes
• 1 c. chopped celery
• 1 c. chopped onion
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/4 t. basil
• 2 t. chili powder
• 1 cup uncooked brown rice.

Rinse peas and soak in water in a large stockpot overnight.  The next day combine all of the ingredients except the rice.  Mix well and simmer for 1 hour 20 minutes.  Remove the ham hock and remove the meat.  Place the meat back in the pot along with the rice.  Simmer about 1 hour or until the rice in tender.  Throw out the bay leaf.  Serve with cornbread-recipe below.

Buttermilk Cornbread

This cornbread is so yummy I have made it 3 times this past week!  I’m sure you will enjoy it too. 

In a bowl combine: 1 c. buttermilk (if you don’t have buttermilk take a cup of milk and add 1 T. lemon juice.  Allow to stand 5 minutes and you have buttermilk!), 1 beaten egg, 2 T. oil, 1/2 c. cornmeal.  Let soak 10 minutes.  Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9″ iron skillet or pie pan.  Then add: 3/4 c. flour, 1/4 c. sugar, 1/2 T. baking powder, and 1/2 t. salt.  Pour into pan and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean.  Enjoy!

Sourdough Cinnamon-Raisin Bread

 

Absolutely delicious sourdough raisin bread.

Have you entered the exciting world of sourdough yet?  If not this bread is reason enough to begin cooking with sourdough.  To make you do need something called a Starter which you can either make yourself or get from a friend.  I recommend getting some from a friend.  (I would be more than happy to share just let me know.)  🙂 

Combine 2 cups cold liquid culture, 1 cup of flour and 1/4 cup of water in a large bowl. Let this sit (proof) for 12 hours at room temperature.

After 12 hours add 1 cup of flour and 1/4 cup of water.  Mix and knead until smooth.  Proof 8 hours at room temperature. 

Mix together 3/4 c. milk, 1 1/2 t. salt, 2 T. sugar, 1/4 c. cinnamon, and 1 cup raisins. (You could also add 1 cup of chopped nuts.) Mix well.

Add 2 3/4 c. flour one cup at a time. When it is difficult to stir the flour in transfer to a clean floured counter. Work the rest of the dough in by hand.

Divide the dough in half. (You are making 2 loaves-one for your family and one to share.)

Roll out each half into a rectangle with the width being however long your loaf pan is. Mix together 1/2 c. sugar or other type of sweetener and 2 T. cinnamon. Sprinkle half onto each rectangle. You can also add a tablespoon or two of melted butter to each rectangle before adding the sugar/cinnamon mixture. (I didn't use butter and it was wonderful without it).

Roll up each rectangle to form a loaf of bread. Place in a bread pan and allow to rise about 3 hours. My house was kind of cold so it took a while.

Bake at 375 for 50-55 minutes. Yummy! Even Brandon (who hates raisins) loved this bread.

This bread is absolutely wonderful!  I hope that you enjoy it.  It was so easy.  I’ll never be able to buy a loaf in the store again.  Much better than any store-bought cinnamon-raisin bread and I didn’t pay 3.29 a loaf for it!  🙂

Spoil Your Husband with Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Looking for a new way to spoil your husband? Try your hand at making homemade cinnamon rolls. He will love them! Mine sure did.

My husband absolutely loves cinnamon rolls!  Last week he asked me if we had any.  We didn’t and he got such a sad look on his face that I decided to make him some from scratch.  They weren’t very hard and I think they’ve got Pillsbury beat hands down.  I’m sure your husband or friends will agree too!  It was quicker to whip these up real quick than to run to Kroger and buy some.

In a bowl combine 2 cups flour, 3 t. baking powder, 1 t. salt. Then cut in 6 T shortening, and stir in 2/3 cup milk.

Roll dough out into a rectangle about 8X15. If you don't have a rolling-pin you could use a smooth plastic cup (I did this in college). Brush with 2 T. softened butter.

Mix together 1/4 cup sugar and 1 t. cinnamon (and raisins if you wish). Sprinkle the mixture onto the dough.

Roll up like a jelly roll. That means start at the long edge and roll up tightly. Pinch each end to seal the dough. Cut into about 1" slices (this should make around 16-18).

Place them cut-side down on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 425 for about 15 minutes.

To make a quick and easy icing combine 2 cups powdered sugar, 1 t. vanilla, and a couple of tablespoons of milk. I think a cream cheese icing would also be great but I didn't have any on hand. Enjoy!

Sesame Garlic Italian Bread

Serve this alongside some homemade lasagna or spaghetti and your husband will think you hung the moon.

Are you looking for a new way to jazz up a simple Italian meal?  Try this delicious Italian bread.  It is beautiful but not difficult at all.  Don’t be intimidated by how it looks! 

In a mixer fitted with dough hooks (or a bread machine set on the knead cycle) combine:

• 1 1/2 c. warm water
• 3 T. powdered milk
• 2 c. bread flour-you could also use whole wheat bread flour (I think this is what I used I can’t remember)
• 2 T. yeast
• Mix all of this briefly.  Then add:
• 1/4 c. sugar-granulated regular sugar or raw.
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/2 T. minced garlic
• 1 1/2 t. salt 
• 1/2 c. oil-I like canola. 
• Mix together and then add flour 1 cup at a time.  I ended up using about 4 1/2 c. at this step.  Knead on medium speed for about 5 minutes.  Remove dough from mixer and place on a lightly floured surface.  Divide dough into 2 parts. 

Take each dough portion and roll it into a rectangle roughly 14X10. Spread with butter (softened) and sprinkle lightly with parsley flakes, parmesan cheese, and garlic salt.

Roll up tight like a jelly roll: start from the long side and roll to the other long side.

Slice rolled dough in half down the middle. Then twist together loosely. Make sure to pinch the ends together.

Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, parley flakes, and sesame seeds. Let rise about 30-40 minutes. bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes.

Note: This recipe does make 2 loaves.  You could easily half the recipe.  I usually do make 2 loaves and wrap one very tightly and place in the freezer.  The bread easily stays fresh for days.  (I do keep mine wrapped tightly with plastic wrap).  This bread is also wonderful alongside soup.  A perfect way to round out a meal.  Try some today!

Apple Cranberry Muffins

Apple Cranberry Muffins-a wonderful fall treat!

For the last couple of weeks I have been watching for the cranberries to appear and then finally last week I found them on sale at Aldi.  I’m waiting till they hit .99 to buy a couple more bags for the freezer!  One of my favorite things to do with them is to make bread of muffins.  The following is my favorite muffin recipe.  They are pretty sweet-I would call them a desert muffin more so than a healthy muffin.  🙂  I sent some home to my family and they gobbled them up like crazy!  The following recipe makes 18 muffins.

• 3 c. flour-you can use white flour, wheat flour or combination-I used whole wheat pastry.
• 2 t. baking soda
• 2 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. salt
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 c. brown sugar or Sucanat-I think this could be decreased and they would still be great!
• 1/2 c. oil
• 2 t. vanilla
• 1 1/2 c. apples diced-I like Gala but any will do great.
• 1 1/2 c. cranberries-whole
• 1 c. walnuts chopped
• Mix all of the ingredients together and add in the apples, cranberries, and walnuts last.  Mix until everything is just combined-DO NOT OVERMIX or your muffins will be tough.  Bake at 350 in greased muffin tins or paper lined tins for 20-25 minutes.  Delicious! 

Creative Fall Bread

This past year we have really been trying to eat the food that we buy.  I know this might sound silly but we save so much money by making sure that we eat all of the produce that we buy.  it’s also easier to convince Brandon to eat vegetables! 🙂  We are pretty good about menu planning but sometimes I find myself left with some odd ingredients.  Yesterday I found half a can of pumpkin left over from some pumpkin waffles and half a sweet potato.  What in the world could I do with the two of them?  Make a super yummy fall bread!  Trust me it’s really good.  Here is the recipe if you’d like to try it too. 

Mix together:

• 4 c. flour either all-purpose or whole wheat pastry flour
• 3 c. sugar-you could probably decrease this if you wanted to
• 2 t. baking soda
• 1 1/2 t. salt
• 1 t. each of baking powder, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg
• 1/2 t. ground cloves
• 1/4 t. ground ginger.

Then Add in:

• 2 c. total of: sweet potato and/or pumpkin (I was about 1/3 c short so I added 1/3 cup applesauce to make the total amount 2 c)
• 1 c. oil
• 4 eggs
• 2/3 c water

Divide dough between 2 greased loaf pans filling about 2/3 of the way full.  Bake at 350 degrees 1 hour-1 hour 10 min or until done.  Let cool for 15 minutes and remove from pans.  This recipe yields 2 loaves but you could easily cut it in half.  I like to make at least 2 loaves of bread at a time.  I either freeze one, give it to a neighbor, or take it to a friend (which I did last night).  Enjoy!  This makes your house smell heavenly!

Fall Pumpkin Chip Muffins

My first attempt at any fall home decor. I think I'm better at baking than decorating! 🙂

Are you in the mood for something festive that just screams FALL?  For the last month or so I’ve been enjoying the beauty of fall.  Crisp walks, falling leaves, having the windows open, candles burning, snuggling up under a blanket, and getting out all of those fall recipes once again.  As far as fall food I love all things pumpkin.  One of my favorite stores Aldi now has canned pumpkin.  Yipee!  So add a can of pumpkin to your grocery list and try these Pumpkin Chip Muffins.  They are amazing.  They taste best when eaten with a friend and savored along with a cup of hot tea.  I was blessed to make some this past weekend with none other than my good friend Sarah Burton who came to visit. 

Pumpkin Chip Muffins

• 4 eggs
• 2 c. sugar-any kind is fine
• 1 (15 or 16oz) can of pumpkin
• 1 1/2 c. oil (you can replace some of the oil with applesauce if you like)
• 3 c. Flour-tastes good with whole wheat even! 
• 2 t. baking soda
• 2 t. baking powder
• 1 t. ground cinnamon
• 1 t. salt
• 2 c. chocolate chips

Beta together eggs, sugar, pumpkin and oil.  Then add flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.  Fold in chocolate chips.  Place in greased muffin cups and bake at 400 16-20 minutes.  Cool for 10 minutes and remove.  This recipe makes 2 dozen but is easy to cut in half if you only want a dozen.