Recipes and Cooking Ideas for Homemakers and Amateur Cooks
 

Category: Breakfasts

Breakfasts

French Toast with Homemade Butter

I love Saturday mornings.

It sounds like it’s Saturday morning right now. It’s not. It’s Thursday afternoon. But I do love Saturday mornings… 24/7 year round. I’ll tell you my secret for loving them: I kinda do whatever I feel like doing for the morning… drinking a few extra cups of coffee, reading, baking, playing Two Dots, etc., and not let myself be bothered with the 101 things I should be doing.

Last Saturday morning, I felt like making French toast. I had seen a French toast recipe in a cookbook awhile ago when I was looking for something else. It grabbed me because I was surprised there was a recipe for French toast… I thought everyone just did a ratio of about 1/4 cup of milk per egg, dipped the bread in, and fried it up. But this recipe had extra ingredients in it. Like, cinnamon and vanilla. Mmmmm!!

french toast

French Toast …recipe from Simple and Satisfying cookbook
3 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbsp. sugar
11 slices bread (or however many slices the mixture covers, this was only enough for 8 pieces, but maybe my letting them soak for a second was why)
butter, for frying

Mix together all but bread and butter. Dip bread into mixture. Fry in butter until golden brown, turning once.

You know what I loved about this recipe? While the French toast was frying, my kitchen smelled a.m.a.z.i.n.g! Of cinnamon and vanilla.

The recipe also has a Stuffed French Toast variation where you spread cream cheese on one slice of bread and jam on the other, put them together like a sandwich, dip the sandwich into the egg mixture and fry it. I’ve gotta try it sometime!

Also, for the first time ever, I made homemade butter. That is what is on top of the French toast up there. And I used buttermilk from the butter-making for the egg mixture. I felt so domestic. :) It also took me back to when I was a kid again… my mom used to make it often, and I loved watching.
The reason it’s piped into roses is because after it was made, it was just a boring lump. And it was so creamy that I wanted to make it pretty.
homemade butter

I’m not going to feature the butter here because… Jessie at The Hungry Mouse already did an amazing job of featuring it, with great directions and tips and pictures. So, go there for your instructions if you want to make it, that’s what I do! You’d be surprised how easy butter making is! I’m not planning to always make it because easy as it is, it’s still easier to break open a box and peel off a wrapper, but I am just happy to have the option of doing it.

Happy Saturday… oops, I mean Thursday.

Breakfasts

Quick School Morning Breakfast Ideas, including Baked Oatmeal

There was a time when the term “school morning” was a negative thought in my mind, mostly it was rushing sleepy kids through their morning routine. What changed was simple. I started getting them up 45 minutes earlier. Now, we have all the time in the world and it’s so relaxing and peaceful. And here’s another thing I love about that. Instead of deleting those 45 minutes out of their night, we tacked it on the other end. I love that hour or two at night when I still have kids, but am basically off duty. :)

Back to those extra 45 morning minutes… I don’t use the extra time to feed them a full course breakfast. We do quick breakfasts. I’m going to make a list of what a common school morning breakfast would be around here, from most frequent to seldom.

— Toasted bagel with cinnamon sugar
— Toast, either with cinnamon sugar, honey, or jam on it
— Cold cereal with milk
— Banana with peanut butter
— Cuties oranges
— Baked oatmeal
— Yogurt
— Regular oatmeal with brown sugar & cinnamon
— Cinnamon rolls
— Pancakes thawed from the freezer
— Pop tarts
— Toaster strudels
— Cookies with milk

Now that I think of it, eggs & toast would be a quick breakfast too, but that’s pretty much just a weekend thing for some reason for us. I mostly don’t make their breakfasts, they usually get it themselves. I made it this morning though… Baked Oatmeal. They love baked oatmeal. I posted baked oatmeal back in 2008 and someone said in the comments that she microwaves it for a quicker breakfast. I tried it and it doesn’t have the crunch, but tastes just as good. And it cuts 30 – 40 minutes down to 7 or 8 minutes. And that’s why it made the “quick breakfasts” list.

I just switched to using the recipe below instead of the one from 2008 because I like this one better. They’re very close, the only differences are that this one has cinnamon and a different salt quantity.

oatmeal1

Baked Oatmeal …recipe from the Simply Wonderful cookbook

3 cups quick oats
1 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs, beaten

In a mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients. Spoon into a greased 9″ square baking pan. Bake at 350 for 40 – 45 minutes. Or microwave 7 – 8 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes. Serve warm with milk. Yield: 6 – 8 servings. You can also add fruit to it… apples are my favorite.

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What do you serve for breakfasts? Do you have quick ideas that I missed up there?
And if you usually cook full course breakfasts, I’m impressed! I remember one time in my teen years, I stayed with my friends Sheila and Heidi overnight. Her mom cooked a big breakfast and then they had cold cereal as dessert… they didn’t call it dessert, she just served it like you would dessert (cleared some main dishes and plates away and put cereal and bowls on the table). I still vividly remember how floored I was when the cold cereal appeared. I was so stuffed after that meal! My friend said that was a normal breakfast, but breakfast was the biggest meal of the day at their house. They were farmers.

Comments

2 Responses to “Quick School Morning Breakfast Ideas, including Baked Oatmeal”

  1. Karen B on April 9th, 2014 12:09 pm

    PW has a recipe for Make Ahead Muffin Melts my girls love. Very easy to just plop the egg stuff on english muffins in the morning and shove in the oven. We started earlier mornings here too.Not for big breakfasts but to move slower. =) Our 13 yr old is often up making coffee when I get to the kitchen!

  2. Kay on April 9th, 2014 9:28 pm

    Hey, thanks, Karen, I’ll have to try those muffin melts! We could use a change up around here… plus, something with eggs (thinking more protein) on a more regular basis would be good. The “moving slower” at our house usually includes wrapping in a cozy blankets on the couch for a bit. :)

Breakfasts, For Special Occassions, Garnishing, Side Dishes, Snacks

Drizzled Chocolate Fruit Kabobs, plus How to Keep Banana Slices from Browning

These fresh fruit kabobs drizzled with chocolate are the perfect item for adding a bit of beauty and pizzazz to the table without a lot of time-consuming work. You can’t beat that, right? So, keep it in mind next time you need to take food somewhere. It doesn’t even require a fork so it works for “bring finger food” occasions. These particular ones were made for my husband Shannon to take to a company potluck at his office at Keller Williams Real Estate.

chocolate drizzled fruit kabobs1

There is no recipe, just use any kind of fruit you want to… They all work great. Well, except apples. Apples sometimes split when you put them on the skewers. If you’re using apples, the thinner the skewer the better. Just for the record, apples and chocolate go together awesomely! Is awesomely a word? I figure as long as you know what a word means, it doesn’t really matter if it’s technically not a word. ????

Chunk up/slice all the fruit that gets chunked or sliced. Take stems off of fruit that gets de-stemmed. Toss fruits that get brown with lemon juice (more on that later).

In other words, before I start threading them on skewers, I like to have them all ready to go.
Then, start poking fruit on until: 1. Fruit is gone, 2. Skewers are gone, or 3. You have the desired amount.

fruit kabobs

After the fruit is all on the skewers, put about a half cup of chocolate chips or candy melts in a sandwich bag, but don’t seal shut. Put it in the microwave for 30 seconds. Flip it over and microwave it for 20 second. Work the bag with your hands and put them in for 10 seconds. Do this until all the chocolate feels smooth and no chunks are left.

I need to get back in my zone… that zone where I automatically remember to take pictures at each step! I was having too much fun and just kept rolling instead of stopping for pictures.

Now, you’re ready to drizzle. Put the kabobs all really close together so less drizzle lands on the table. Snip a little corner off of the bag and just scribble back and forth over the fruit. Then immediately separate them or else the chocolate will harden and pull drizzles off of its neighbor.

Put them on a plate. Garnish if you want to.
lemon rose chocolate leaves
Here are tutorials on the rose and leaves, in case you want to make some:
Rose • Chocolate leaves
The rose tutorial is actually for making a tomato rose, but it’s the same technique.

Now, about the bananas and keeping them from browning.

Lemon juice is the secret here. I did a little test where I checked them after 3 hours and after 6 hours. A little after the 6-hour mark, my girls came home from school and I let them eat my experiment for an after school snack… and then thought of it later that I should’ve tested the bananas longer, like 24 hours. But what I did learn is that lemon juice works its magic for at least 6 hours, and that was the info I needed because unless they have to set/freeze/marinate/etc, I rarely make things more than 6 hours ahead of time. Maybe that’s because I’m a procrastinator.

So here we go, the experiment. The pictures above were taken right after I made it, where even a fresh banana would still be looking good. The pictures below were taken 3 and 6 hours afterwards.

3 hours after being tossed with lemon juice:
banana slice browning2
From left to right: uncovered room temp, covered room temp, uncovered refrigerated, covered refrigerated, covered frozen, and a fresh slice.
The fresh slice is NOT 3 hours old, it’s just there for comparison. The frozen one is thrown in there for fun… it actually has no lemon juice on, it was peeled and put into the freezer right away and is probably more like 3 months old.

6 hours after being tossed with lemon juice:
banana slice browning3
The middles are starting to get a little brown, but are still fine.

What I was surprised was that between all the lemon-juiced ones, there was pretty much no difference! I’m glad about this tidbit because it gives flexibility. Here is a closer up. They all stayed firm too, no mushiness.
banana slice browning1

chocolate drizzled fruit kabobs

Here come the Holidays… make some of these pretty things!  It’s a delicious, healthy snack to set out on the snack table (with the chocolate covered Ritz crackers, cookies, red-green-silver-foil-wrapped Hershey kisses, and party mix).

Comments

4 Responses to “Drizzled Chocolate Fruit Kabobs, plus How to Keep Banana Slices from Browning”

  1. Twila on November 22nd, 2013 11:30 pm

    These look yummy. I’m wondering where you found the short skewers, or did you cut skewers in half. If you cut them in half, what did you cut them with so the ends didn’t splinter?

  2. Kay on November 23rd, 2013 12:55 pm

    Twila, I get the short ones at Meijer, Hobby Lobby, JoAnns, or Michaels. Are you close to any of those stores? I was out of them at the moment, so for these I used the longer ones. I cut them with a wire cutter… makes a nice clean cut, no splinters. :)

  3. Shannon on December 5th, 2013 1:43 pm

    I miss your posts! :)

  4. Kathleen on September 17th, 2014 12:12 pm

    Can fruit kababs been frozen and them dipped. If so what is the shelf life in a freezer before the fruit gets mushy? Would it be ok to eliminate the lemon juice if the kababs were frozen?

Breakfasts

The BEST cold cereal ever

Posted on August 31, 2009
Filed Under Breakfasts

REESES PUFFS! Any ‘amen!’s to that?

cereal-reeses.jpg

Whoever invented cold cereal with milk was brilliant. It’s quick. It’s good. It’s healthy.

This post isn’t going to have a recipe to make your own cold cereal, it’s just a post about cold cereal. BUT, if you do want to make something as good as cold cereal to eat with milk, make this granola.
granola9.jpg
Hands down, the best granola I’ve ever had. Maybe it’s because it has chocolate chips in it. Or maybe it’s because it has all regular ingredients in it.

Anyway, back to rambling about cold cereal. I think cold cereal actually started with Mr. Kellogg and Mr. Post, but whoever is behind General Mills came up with the kinds that are the biggest hit in our family. A couple weeks ago, Kelloggs was on sale AND I had Kelloggs coupons, so I bought a bunch of Kelloggs cereal. Well, big mistake. EVERY single day, Tiffany asked for “Yucky Charms” (she can’t say her L’s) and Lexi asked for Reeses Puffs or Cinnamon Toast Crunch. We were all glad when it was time to get cereal again… welcome to our cupboards again, General Mills! Especially Reeses Puffs!

We do also like Post Honeycomb, Kelloggs Fruit Loops and Big-bite Mini Wheats, Quaker Life and Cap’n Crunch, but not enough for them to be ‘regulars’ in our cereal cupboard. Give us Golden Grahams, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms, and Resees puffs any day! Tiffany would eat cold cereal 3 meals a day plus snacks if I’d let her. And it really does make a great bedtime snack!

Anyway, I’m just curious… what kind of cereals are regulars in your cupboard? What do your kids like?

Comments

17 Responses to “The BEST cold cereal ever”

  1. Shannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnon on August 31st, 2009 7:47 pm

    Reagan is the cereal lover here. She wants some every morning, no matter what else there is to eat. She is majorly hung up on Rice Krispies right now. I think it’s only because she gets to put sugar on them. :) And yes, “Yucky” Charms are a hit too, once again, the marshmallows call! :) Madison will just eat whatever is here, she’s not so picky. I don’t usually eat anything unless I’m pg then I’m starved. Reading about Captin Crunch makes me hungry for it again. :) Eric, once a month or so he’ll actually eat breakfast and then it must be Honeynut Cheerios.

  2. Freida on August 31st, 2009 8:08 pm

    Fruity Pebbles or Cookie Crunch or Graham Crackers are what my kids eat. I like anything basically, just whatever we got. I like to switch off, but I usually end up with granola since that is most times what I have on hand other then the kids’ cereal. Erin, when he eats breakfast, likes granola or Honeynut Cheerios. Reeses Puffs are good, I agree, but I hardly ever buy them. I figure they will just go to “waist” anyway, and that is not what I need. :)

  3. Freida on August 31st, 2009 8:10 pm

    Oh and btw, did you ever try that granola with cinnamon chips? I did and it is GOOD!!! I will do it again.

  4. Wendy on August 31st, 2009 8:38 pm

    Amen to Reese’s Puffs!! The best cereal ever!
    (But I don’t eat them very often because they make the roof of my mouth sore…)

  5. Marissa on August 31st, 2009 8:42 pm

    My boys enjoy homemade granola and the “hay-bale” cereal- frosted mini-wheats

  6. Angela on September 1st, 2009 6:57 am

    I think you might need to examine the nutrition labels if you think that kind of cereal is healthy!! False flavorings, lots of sugar and/or corn syrup, and chocolate chips do not fall in my healthy category. =)

  7. Beth on September 1st, 2009 11:32 am

    I’ll give you an amen about the Reese’s Puffs, but the granola wins, hands down. I put the semi-sweet chocolate chips in. That gives me my chocolate fix, so I rarely eat any later in the day.

  8. Karen on September 1st, 2009 12:25 pm

    Kimberly will eat cereal 3meals a day+ =)our reg ones are mostly like yours.kallie looovveess the reeses puffs!

  9. Sheila on September 1st, 2009 1:14 pm

    Hi Kay, I bet you’re surprised to see a comment from me! :-) I was just taking my lunch break here at Rockland and decided to be really bold and leave you a comment. :-) Darren is our cereal lover. He always has been. I would say Quaker Life is the all time favorite around our house, but we eat quite a variety. Krista eats it, too, but she isn’t as die-hard as Darren. I’ve always been glad that they like it, because it makes such an easy breakfast. I personally don’t eat cereal because it does not appeal to me in the mornings. I do eat it for a snack sometimes. Bruce keeps it stocked over here at work and eats it almost every morning at first break.

  10. Arla on September 1st, 2009 2:08 pm

    I’m with Angela, cold cereal has a lot of sugar and they add the vitamins back in if I’m not mistaken to make it seem more like food. BUT, it’s a big hit here, too. For a few years I refused to buy it. Here’s why: Elv was taught at home to eat it every night before bed and the children caught on. When they eat cereal they eat lots. Well I want my cereal at the orthodox time and so the children wanted it then, as well. What with having cereal morning and night; Elv was gonna be broke fast. Now, since most of us around here are more calorie and healthy conscious than we used to be, we can afford to buy a bit of cereal now and then, again. Elv is the only one who eats it at bedtime and the children like other things just as well for breakfast.

  11. renita on September 1st, 2009 5:26 pm

    interesting to see we are “normal” when it comes to cereal eaters! The boys will eat all of the cereals mention above and I think all 4 have different favorites. They will have it Sunday eve. if we’re at home. And I also have 2 that would eat it every day 3 or 4 times a day. A box of Reese’s Puffs don’t last more than a day.

  12. Amy on September 1st, 2009 7:45 pm

    Honey Bunches of Oats are a biggie here and I keep cheerioes on hand for the little ones. Icould live on the granola you had on here, Kay!! I add about 3 tsp cinnamon with that and some raisins, too. SOooooo good!!

  13. Lisl Lattin on September 5th, 2009 1:42 am

    An hour ago I told Dru I was craving pizza. Now it’s cold cereal. Mom, I still like cold cereal at bedtime. Alas, cold cereal in Thailand would rather blow the budget. We get it now and then but mostly I just gaze longingly, sigh, and walk on past. (Dru kind of gently tugs on my hand so that I remember it’s not a necessity of life.) It’s funny though, I remember dad eating cold cereal out of a particular green bowl–do you still have that bowl, Mom?

  14. Loretta on September 5th, 2009 9:06 pm

    We love cold cereal @ here too!!! They always want all different kinds, so we mix a bunch of diff kinds together and always try to add a “healthy” kind–like a bunch of bran flakes!

  15. Tamara on September 26th, 2009 3:17 pm

    My fav cereal is Great Grains with dates and pecans…sooooooo good. Reese’s Puffs are really good too…with milk or right out of the box. There is a great recipe for Reindeer Chow using Reeses Puffs, white chocolate, powdered sugar, dried cranberries, little pretzels and other things I cannot remember at the moment.

  16. Kate on October 30th, 2009 3:02 pm

    i’m addicted to life cereal. the honey graham flavor in particular. but reese’s would do in a pinch!

  17. Janelle on November 14th, 2009 8:27 pm

    Yeah…was wondering where you got that it’s healthy! But yeah…I agree that it’s yummy and oh-so handy!

Breakfasts, Snacks

Granola, with normal ingredients

Posted on March 16, 2009
Filed Under Breakfasts, Snacks

I’ve never made granola before. Or granola bars. They always call for bran or wheat germ and those are 2 ingredients that keep me flipping thro’ the cookbook and thinking, “Well, I guess I won’t make granola this time”.  (*whisper* I’ve never even seen bran and wheat germ or know what they are.) So, I buy my granola at the bulk foods store (only on rare occassions because it’s pricey) and buy my granola bars at the grocery store.

Then, just lately a few of my friends started raving about this granola and when I looked at the recipe, I was glad to see that it took ‘normal’ ingredients! So, I made some. It is SO good! Like one of my friends said, it’s good at any stage of the making process… you can’t help but sampling it here and there while mixing, baking, and stirring it.

Eat it with milk in it, put it on top of yogurt, eat it plain as a snack, or sprinkle it on top of a dessert.

granola8.jpg

Granola

10 cups quick oats
3 cups graham cracker pieces (this was 1 1/2 packs of Honey Maid)
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups coconut
2 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup chopped pecans
3 sticks of butter (1 1/2 cups)
1 cup peanut butter chips (I tried some with chocolate chips… it was better ???? )

granola1.jpg

granola2.jpg

Melt the butter and mix with dry ingredients.
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Divide between 2 large baking sheets. I did it on 3 baking sheets… the vertical one is chocolate chips and peanut butter chips mixed, the horizontal one in the back is peanut butter chips and the one in front is chocolate chips.
granola5.jpg

Bake at 300 for 40 min or until golden brown. Stir every 15 min the 1st 30 min, then every 5 min. Add peanut butter chips in the last few minutes of baking time.

granola10.jpg

I sampled all 3 varieties and liked the one with just chocolate chips the best. I thought the next best was the one with chocolate and peanut butter chips mixed. The one with peanut butter chips was good too, but I will from now on just use chocolate chips and maybe put some peanut butter chips in too if I have some on hand.

And this is how I like to eat it the best: with milk and a spoon…
granola9.jpg

Comments

10 Responses to “Granola, with normal ingredients”

  1. Freida on March 16th, 2009 9:57 am

    Glad you like it. I still want to try the choc. chips sometime, but it will have to be at someone else’s house. The peanut butter chips get the rave reviews here.

  2. Berneice on March 16th, 2009 10:00 am

    Grr. i still don’t have all the “normal” :) ingredients. I bought some tiny cinnamon chips last week that I want to try.

  3. Lisa@The Cutting Edge of Ordinary on March 16th, 2009 4:27 pm

    I make granola all the time. I love mine with coconut and almonds. Yours looks great!

  4. Fran on March 16th, 2009 6:51 pm

    We like granola too, and I make it occasionally, but I’m not sure about the chocolate chips in it. Maybe it would be better than I think. I like the idea of graham crackers, I’ve never heard of that. It sounds wonderful.

  5. Beth on March 16th, 2009 6:56 pm

    Glad you’re telling the “world” about this awesome stuff! Seriously…this granola is so simple & makes a person want to quit dieting. I ate it for breakfast & again for lunch one day. :)

  6. Twila on March 17th, 2009 7:37 am

    That recipe is almost identical to mine. Except I use 2 packs of graham crackers, and the original recipe called for 4 sticks of butter, which I can hardly bear, so I’ve cut it back to two. I don’t usually add the nuts, and I use miniature butterscotch chips. I stir them in after I take it out of the oven. I also started adding vanilla to the butter before I stir it into the rest of the stuff. Your right, is is good. In fact, I just made some yesterday.

  7. Heather on March 17th, 2009 1:24 pm

    That granola does look delicious! My family used to make breakfast cereals to sell so I’ve been making granola almost forever! :) Anytime you see wheat germ in the recipe you can eliminate it and just add a bit more of one of the other dry ingredients. I always add it because I know it’s good for me and all the bulk food stores in this area have wheat germ at a very reasonable price. The granola that I make currently I’m sure is not as tasty as yours but I’m going for the ‘dieting’ aspect of things. :) Very little butter & sugar….

    BTW, my sister in law recently told me about your site and I love it! I live in Ohio and have two little kids, almost 4 and almost 2.

  8. Mariann on March 27th, 2009 12:03 pm

    I haven’t made granola for a long time, this makes me hungry for it! The dry ingredients sound similar to my recipe, but mine says oil instead of butter. I think butter would give even more yummy flavor to it. [I tried putting wheat germ in it once & did NOT like the taste of that stuff.:(]

  9. Sherilyn on March 27th, 2009 1:41 pm

    That looks alot like the recipe I sometimes use only it had rice krispies in it. We loved it and now when I try new recipes I just use rice krispies when it calls for anything I don’t like or don’t have. I think the krispies kinda lighten it up when you’re eating a whole bowlful.

  10. Elmina on September 1st, 2009 12:39 pm

    I made some of this granola today, and it’s da bomb! I just hope we don’t get “high” on all that butter!! Thanks for sharing the recipe my sister Freida uses, and reminding me to try it.

Breakfasts

Caramel Pecan Cream Cheese Pancakes… and the bananas are optional ;)

Posted on January 22, 2009
Filed Under Breakfasts

Other than the desserts and cookies, THIS recipe would have to be one of the best dishes on this site. And it’s easy to make it a nice presentation too.

caramel-pancakes10.jpg

The last time I was at a Bob Evans restaurant for breakfast, I was looking at the menu and, as usual, everything was grabbing me. I always have that problem at restaurants. Sometimes it’s so bad that after we’ve ordered and are waiting for our food, I forget which one of the 5 things I couldn’t decide between that I actually ended up ordering. Anyway, when I saw these pancakes on the menu, the decision-making was OVER.

To make a long story short, I got hungry for these and decided to do a search to see if there was a recipe online. I found one at Meemo’s Kitchen …this cooking blog has alot of recipes from restaurants on it!

I didn’t do any short cuts, in fact there are 3 recipes within this recipe! So, this is REALLY from scratch! ????

Caramel Pecan Banana Cream Cheese Pancakes …I think Bob Evans’ and Meemo’s name for them was a little different, but mine aren’t EXACTLY the same, so I’ll name them this.

Printable recipe for now.

2 cups vanilla pudding
2 cups (or 2 8 oz pkgs) cream cheese

Pancake batter

2 Tbsp. honey-roasted pecans

1 banana, sliced (So far, in talking about this recipe to my friends, there’s been some opposition to the bananas… you know who you are! ???? They (the bananas) could easily be left out and it would not take away from the quality at all.) 

Caramel sauce

Powdered sugar

Whipped topping

I very seldom use instant vanilla pudding. Instead, I use the filling recipe that I use in peanut butter pie. I grew up with homemade pudding like that and there is just no other pudding that compares to it. So, I made this pudding, measured out 1 cup, added an 8 oz block of softened cream cheese, and whisked the mixture till smooth.
caramel-pancakes-pudding-crm-chs.jpg

For the pancake batter, I used my regular pancake recipe here.

For the honey-roasted pecans, I took regular pecans, tossed them with some honey (approx 1/2 cup pecans w 1 Tbsp. of honey) and baked them at 350 for about 15 min.
caramel-pancakes-pecans.jpg

For the caramel sauce, I put 1 cup of sugar in a kettle (dry). Stir over medium heat and eventually it turns to a tan liquid! I should’ve timed it, I’d say it took maybe 7-10 minutes. After it’s all liquid, add 6 Tbsp. butter and stir.
caramel-pancakes-caramel.jpg
Remove from the heat and slowly stir in 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream. Whisk till smooth. Pour into a different container to cool. Note: That sugar is easy to burn! I made the caramel sauce twice because the first time, I stirred it intermittently while doing other stuff and burned it a little. I didn’t know it was burned till I tasted it, it wasn’t bad, it just had a tiny bit of a burnt flavor. The second time, it turned out perfect and was actually a shade lighter in color.

Now, the fun part… we’ve got it all ready to go here:

carmel-pancakes1.jpg

Pour batter into the frying pan like usual. I always do 3 pancakes in my frying pan because that’s what fits the best. So, instead of a stack of 2 big ones like Bob Evans does, I made a stack of 3 smaller ones. And yeah, sometimes they get too big and run together, so my pancakes don’t always turn out round. Put a few banana slices and some pecans on top.
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Flip pancakes as usual (and sometimes a banana slice may go flying off).
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When done, put a pancake, bottom side up, onto a plate.
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Spread a couple spoonfuls of the pudding mixture on top.
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Put another pancake on top.
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Spread some more pudding mixture on and drizzle with caramel.
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Put the 3rd pancake on top, drizzle with more caramel, sprinkle with powdered sugar,
caramel-pancakes8.jpg

…and add a dollop of whipped topping.
caramel-pancakes9.jpg

Mmmmm, I can’t tell you how good this is! And it’s very filling too! I didn’t even eat lunch.

caramel-pancakes11.jpg

You’ve gotta try this! If it looks too complicated, you could buy caramel sauce, use regular pecans, and use instant pudding. But, it’s so worth it to do it from scratch, especially the pudding!!!! (In my mind, I’m adding about 20 more exclamation marks about the pudding.)

Comments

27 Responses to “Caramel Pecan Cream Cheese Pancakes… and the bananas are optional ;)”

  1. Shannon on January 22nd, 2009 4:09 pm

    Oh my word, these look so good. I think yours look better then then the other ladys. :) I’m gonna try them sometime, I really am. :)

  2. Lisa@The Cutting Edge of Ordinary on January 22nd, 2009 4:53 pm

    Wow, that could be a dessert!

  3. Doris High on January 22nd, 2009 7:18 pm

    I should not have showed this entry to my husband! :) That looks delicious.

  4. Doris High on January 22nd, 2009 7:20 pm

    shown! Where is edit when I need it. :)

  5. Bobbi on January 22nd, 2009 7:27 pm

    They look so good. I wish I had everything I needed for tomorrow morning.

  6. Rosalyn on January 22nd, 2009 8:04 pm

    I think I need to try these sometime! ???? Thanks for sharing!! :)

  7. Monica on January 23rd, 2009 7:39 am

    Those look soooo yummy!! I am going to try them!! Now, all I need is a recipe for Bob Evans Cinnamon Pancakes and I’m all set–those are my husbands favorite!! :)

  8. Mary Faith on January 23rd, 2009 9:37 am

    I want to print this recipe. Didn’t there used to be a “printable version” link? I can do a bunch of copy/paste… I don’t want to print all the pics. :)
    This looks awesome by the way. I definitely want to try them!

  9. Kay on January 23rd, 2009 9:43 am

    Uh, yeah, Mary Faith. I’ve sorta fallen by the wayside in the printable recipe department. I’ll get one up there within an hour (if no emergencies come up). Gotta help my kids get their snow stuff on to go outside first. Thanks for the reminder! :)

  10. Joanna on January 23rd, 2009 8:34 pm

    Soooooooooo…….how many calories per serving? Do I want to know?
    I am drooling over these but trying to forget about them at the same time. Maybe they can be my reward after the first 10 pounds come off…

  11. Joanna on January 23rd, 2009 8:35 pm

    And definitely NO bananas!

  12. Jo on January 23rd, 2009 8:36 pm

    Just now noticed that my full name is on those ^^^ two comments. So you know it’s me & not the other one, I changed it. :-)

  13. Kay on January 23rd, 2009 10:01 pm

    Uh, no, Jo, you don’t want to know how many calories per serving! I was very surprised! :( BUT, it is SO worth it to splurge once in awhile on these. ????

  14. Christy on January 23rd, 2009 10:06 pm

    These look absolutely scrumptions, but sound like too much work. May I just come over for brunch on Monday?

  15. Donna-FFW on January 23rd, 2009 10:33 pm

    Amazing is the best word I can use to describe how these look. Sinfully delicious! Special occasion pancakes for sure.

  16. Beth on January 24th, 2009 4:41 pm

    OMW, Kay! I am printing this recipe! It looks like something excellent for supper at our house. So I’m definitely printing this! 15 exclamation marks. :)

  17. Katrina on January 27th, 2009 2:31 pm

    Those look divine!

  18. janae on January 27th, 2009 2:34 pm

    m-m-m—i think i’ll try some someday!!or do you serve breakfasts??

  19. Charlene on January 27th, 2009 3:31 pm

    I think you really need to post how many calories….
    It looks simply delicious and also looks like it would be a NO NO for my diet

  20. Rachel on January 29th, 2009 2:53 pm

    Wow, those look WAY too good. And I think the bananas would go with it perfectly.

    I think I’ll save trying this for a special occasion. It sure looks like a ‘special’ kind of breakfast!

  21. Anne on February 28th, 2009 1:17 pm

    I made these one snowy day when hubby didn’t go to work! What a fun treat! Thanks for all the great ideas….

  22. Lorrie on March 29th, 2009 7:27 pm

    Oh my word! This is so going to make me go off my diet! But it will be worth it.

  23. Kimberly Bates on June 11th, 2009 4:28 pm

    Hi,

    I made these for dinner last night and everyone loved them. My husband who normally doesn’t like pancakes, loved them and had seconds. My kids liked them to, even my 4 year old had seconds. And she hardly ever finishes a plate let alone have seconds of anything:) I will be trying other recipes on your website sometime next week.

    Thanks for sharing!

  24. sabrina on February 15th, 2010 7:49 am

    ya these are delicouse my mom made these but when she made them i dont think she used puddin and she cooked the pecans in with the sauce and just poured them over top the pancakes alog with the sauce……..which were delicouse! and she only made a two stack but of course she was feedin all kids so yeah but they were delicouse even if yer not a big pancake fan .youll love this if your makin a big breakfast i also recommend these pancakes there delicouse :)

  25. chilady0923 on March 23rd, 2010 9:19 pm

    OMG! I tried these tonight for dinner. I had seen the Bob Evans version online and have been dreaming about them. I did use this reciipe but to make more calorie and sugar free diet friendly, I adapted the recipe. The kids loved them. Here are my changes:

    1. Instead of vanilla pudding I used Sugar Free, Fat Free Banana Cream Pudding

    2. I used Fat Free Cream Cheese (To get the smooth consistency I blended with vanilla pudding mix and milk in the blender)

    3. I used glazed walnuts(my preference over pecans)

    4. I used Smucker’s Sugar Free Caramel Topping

    5. I made a Splenda/cornstarch version of the powered sugar (1/4 cup of splenda with 2 tbsp of cornstarch put in food processor and ground until the right consistency)

    6. I made whole wheat pancakes using whole wheat pastry flour and added a tsp of vanilla for flavor

    7. For the kids, there were some changes: daughter had bananas, chocolate chips and a chocolate sauce; son’s friend had bananas only; other daughter had sliced strawberries with strawberry topping

    The total calories for 3-4inch or 2 5 1/2 inch pancakes is 584. As I said, the kids made me fix theirs and they loved it. I couldn’t finish mine.

  26. subhie on April 10th, 2010 2:10 pm

    wow..this look so…good..any had try this combo..wth pecan..a must give try one….thx for sharing!

  27. Alicia on May 17th, 2014 12:25 pm

    I have the pecans baking now. I’m so excited, I’m surprising my fiancé with these this morning. I used butterscotch instant pudding and pre-made Carmel topping, but I’m using my IHOP harvest grain pancake recipe. Thanks for the recipe!

Breakfasts

Oven Denver Omelet… Good morning! :)

Posted on December 10, 2008
Filed Under Breakfasts

I love hot breakfast foods. Sometimes when we go out to eat to we-serve-breakfast-all-day restaurants, I never get past the breakfast section of the menu. So, there I am, eating an omelet or stuffed French toast while everyone else is eating a cheeseburger and fries. But I’m fine with that. I don’t get hot breakfasts enough. And now that I think of it, I guess that’s nobody’s fault but mine, what with me being the cook around here.

I oughta start doing what my mom does… I grew up with having one evening meal a week a breakfast foods meal. With school and Dad going to work early, it didn’t work out in the morning to have breakfast as a family, so that is how we got those good hot breakfast meals in… have them for supper. I know quite a few of my friends do that now and then too.

This baked omelet is what we had for a Saturday brunch recently. Mmmmmm, it was good! And quite easy too! It comes from the 2001 Quick Cooking annual cookbook. By the way, if you’re keeping track of how often I’ve used this cookbook lately, awhile ago I sat down with it and whenever a recipe grabbed me, I wrote the recipe name and the page # on a separate piece of paper. Till I got to the end of the cookbook, I had 25 recipe names written down. So, little by little, I’m making them.

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Oven Denver Omelet

Printable recipe

8 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
2 cups frozen shredded hashbrown potatoes
1 cup diced fully cooked ham
1 cup (4 oz) shredded cheddar cheese
1 Tbsp. dried minced onion

In a large bowl, beat the eggs, milk, and seasoned salt.
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Stir in the remaining ingredients.
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Pour into a greased 8″ square baking dish.
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Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.
Yield: 6-8 servings.
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I’m going to have you all start helping me a little with serving ideas. I find a recipe I want to make and then get stuck on the ‘What shall I serve with it?’ question. I like to have a minimum of 3 things at each meal. What would you serve with the Oven Denver Omelet?

I know, it won’t help for this time because I already served this omelet, but I want your suggestions anyway for future reference, in case I make this again or something like it. By the way, I served this with Raspberry Cream Cheese Cinnamon Rolls, fruit, and orange juice.

Comments

10 Responses to “Oven Denver Omelet… Good morning! :)”

  1. Joanna on December 10th, 2008 8:52 pm

    Since breakfast is usually our only sit-down meal as a family, I often run out of ideas. The past week or two, I’ve been uninspired in the mornings, and we’ve had some pretty sorry excuses for breakfast. Your omelet is inspiration! It looks easy, & I have all of the ingredients (or substitutes). Thanks for saving my reputation with my family; looks like this is breakfast for us tomorrow!

  2. Berneice on December 10th, 2008 9:37 pm

    Definitely have to have toast, then probably some juice and fruit. Btw, it looks delish. I will have to try it soon.

  3. Melissa K on December 11th, 2008 5:29 am

    While the cinnamon rolls would be great with it, I need toast if I’m eating eggs of any kind. Then fruit or maybe smoothies too! This looks yummy. Too bad I’m the only one in my family that actually likes eggs!

  4. Twila on December 11th, 2008 6:48 am

    I would probably also serve toast, maybe even pancakes. And sweet rolls or doughnuts is always a happy ending to brunch!

  5. Beth on December 11th, 2008 9:37 am

    I shall certainly try this. Looks awesome!

  6. Ralph on December 11th, 2008 12:23 pm

    An english muffin topped with some sort of fruit preserves and a drizzle over the top of the omelet with some hollandaise sauce.
    Fresh fruit on the side would be a great addition too.
    In my family an omelet topped with tomato gravy would have been the order of the day.
    I’m gettin hungry just looking at the pics.

  7. Fran on December 11th, 2008 12:50 pm

    Yummy! This looks so good. I love almost any kind of egg casserole. Thanks for another recipe.

    I finally updated my blog.

  8. Judi on December 11th, 2008 2:27 pm

    That looks totally YUMMY!! (I’m teaching my granddaughter to go ‘yum’ when she eats something she likes – I always do – say ‘yum’ that is) I think I’d serve it with toasted bagels and cream cheese and just a glass of juice. It has everything else in it which is just fine with me.

  9. Sharon on December 12th, 2008 2:08 pm

    toast and applesauce or fresh fruit. Salsa or ketchup is great on casseroles like this. I make a similar breakfast casserole and use sausage. And you know you can do it the night before, right? And sprinkle a little more cheese on top when it comes out of the oven to melt…mmmmm……

  10. Shannon on December 14th, 2008 9:19 pm

    Oh this looks good. Not sure how I missed it. I love breakfast foods too, maybe we should meet for breakfast sometime. :)

Breakfasts

Baked Oatmeal

I’ve never made baked oatmeal. I think I’ve had it before (Mom might have even made it at home), but I don’t really remember when. The only oatmeal I really liked (before this) is the stuff in packets, the maple & brown sugar flavor. I just saw this recipe while looking for something else and it kind of grabbed me, so I decided to try it. And, it was GOOD!!! It’s filling too! (with seconds, that is) ????

It’s easy and quick too… you can get out of bed, make it in your pjs, put it in the oven and by the time you’re dressed and combed and have the bowls, spoons, and milk around, it’s ready to pull out of the oven. Make it tomorrow morning!

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Baked Oatmeal    … recipe taken from the Simply with Taste cookbook

Printable recipe

1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 eggs, beaten
3 cups quick oats
2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup milk
1/4 tsp. salt

Cream sugar and butter together until light. Then add the eggs and mix well.
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Add the baking powder and salt, then alternately add the oats and milk, mixing just until well blended. Pour into a greased 9×9 baking dish.
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Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

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Serve this warm with milk for a breakfast dish or with ice cream for a dessert. When I got this out of the oven, Lexi thought I had made bars! We all really liked it, even the girls had seconds, which by the way is quite something… usually at mealtime we deal with “Do I have to eat all this?” instead of “Can I have more of that stuff?”

Up next on Kitchen Scrapbook: Super Pizza Subs (from the 2001 Quick Cooking annual cookbook, if you have it and want a sneak peek)

Comments

16 Responses to “Baked Oatmeal”

  1. JoAnn on October 28th, 2008 8:35 pm

    I LOVE baked oatmeal! I always used to bake it in the oven, but was in a hurry one time and discovered it’s just as good done in the microwave for 7 minutes. My 16-year-old son was just asking for this the other night.

  2. Liz on October 28th, 2008 9:14 pm

    Funny thing, the other day I wrote down a recipe that is the same as this one, except the salt is different. I also just wrote down the halved version of it beings I doubt Kait and I will eat that much. Now I am just waiting until I decide on a morning to make it. I saw the idea somewhere else, and I see JoAnn ^^ already uses it, to do it in the microwave. I think I am going to try that method.

  3. Freida on October 28th, 2008 9:20 pm

    Oh yum! We love baked oatmeal.’Bout time to make it again.

  4. Kelly on October 29th, 2008 6:20 am

    Welcome back to the blogging world, Kay!

    I’m hoping to return this weekend — we’ll see…I’m still trying to “adjust” to the stove and oven in my new house. (As in — my first post might be more of a disaster than a treat! LOL)

  5. Traci on October 29th, 2008 7:11 am

    On this very cold morning….this looks amazing!! I will have to try it this weekend. I’m so glad you are back…..I love the tutorials!!!

  6. Jan on October 29th, 2008 8:10 am

    yum! i love baked oatmeal, it’s a comfort food. it would have been perfect this morning. i cut the sugar in half, replace it w/honey add sliced apples tossed in the brown sugar with a little cinnamon too. i guess you can add any fruit or even filling, they used to do that at a restaraunt i worked at(way back when).

  7. Monica on October 29th, 2008 10:27 am

    I just made this on Sunday morning!! I like to put a layer of frozen blueberries in the bottom of the pan and top it with the oatmeal mixture and then bake it. Then I eat it vanilla yogurt instead of milk!! It’s so good.

  8. Kay on October 29th, 2008 11:37 am

    I took my own advice and made it again this morning. :) This time i tried it in the microwave, like you suggested, JoAnn, and it turned out great! Now I want to try it sometime with fruit in it and eating it w yogurt.

    One of my favorite things about this site is getting tips and ideas from you all! ????

  9. Liz on October 29th, 2008 2:09 pm

    I made it for breakfast in the microwave – turned out great. Then I took your idea for dessert at lunch by eating it with ice cream. Of course, I added chocolate chips to it. I liked that better than the breakfast version. I want to try it with fruit sometime too. Too bad I can’t say that my daughter just loved it. =(

  10. Ann on October 29th, 2008 1:07 pm

    We love it with with 1/2 – 1 TB cinnamon in the recipe. We also like to eat it with frozen blueberries. The last time I made it, I used maple flavoring (about half the amount of vanilla) since I was out of vanilla, and it turned out very tasty!!

  11. Liz on October 29th, 2008 2:09 pm

    I made it for breakfast in the microwave – turned out great. Then I took your idea for dessert at lunch by eating it with ice cream. Of course, I added chocolate chips to it. I liked that better than the breakfast version. I want to try it with fruit sometime too.
    Too bad I can’t say that my daughter just loved it. =(

  12. Joanna on October 29th, 2008 3:02 pm

    This is a fairly frequent breakfast for us, but my recipe is different, I’ll have to try this one. I sometimes add apple chunks, and I love it with dried cranberries in it (especially at this time of the year!). We eat it with syrup drizzled over the top, and milk. I love the blueberries/yogurt idea above!

  13. Ruthie on October 29th, 2008 4:24 pm

    Baked, or unbaked – oatmeal is not a favorite of ours. But, I am glad to see you’re posting again.

  14. Linda on October 29th, 2008 9:36 pm

    I had some awesome baked oatmeal at a coffee shop in Arkansas. I don’t know what all they added but there were nuts and dried cranberries in it too. I’ve started adding either chopped walnuts or sliced almonds to my oatmeal as a way of adding more protein. I should do some experimenting with the baked oatmeal. I’ve started cooking my oatmeal in apple juice for a natural healthy sweetener. I love to add cinnamon, nuts, and dried cranberries if I have those on hand. I was needing to cut calories so I did this version to cut back on the oil and sugar.

  15. sandra on October 30th, 2008 6:04 am

    This is a favorite of ours. I make it for a quick and filling lunch. Try adding a teaspoon of cinnamon to the batter. Yum!

  16. Ruth on October 30th, 2008 11:19 pm

    I love baked oatmeal. It’s not at all like cooked oatmeal, which I also enjoy. It’s consistancy is more like a cake. I like to add cinnamon and raisins, or cranberries, and nuts of any kind. I also like to have leftovers, because you can warm it it the microwave, and its as good as freshly made.

Breads Biscuits and Rolls, Breakfasts

Katie’s Strawberry Scones

Posted on June 2, 2008
Filed Under Breads Biscuits and Rolls, Breakfasts

I don’t know who Katie is, but her scones are GREAT!!!! This was one of those recipes that I saw and right away knew I had to make. I got the recipe off of a new cooking blog I found last week: Kelly Cooks…and Other Amazing Feats. I had fun browsing thro’ her other recipes too.

One thing that grabbed me about these scones was that they take fresh strawberries. We don’t have fresh strawberries around here yet, but I’ve still been getting them regularly because they’re perpetually on sale at the grocery store. And that has got to be one of my favorite fruits, especially cut up and mixed with sugar. As the season wears on and I’ve had lots of strawberries and foods with strawberries in them, I get over my craving, but for now, strawberries it is. Second to chocolate… which of course is a helpless non-stop year-round craving.

Katie’s Strawberry Scones

2 1/4 – 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (depending on how ripe your strawberries are) I used 2 1/4 cups.
1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 stick (8 Tbsp.) butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1 egg
1/4 cup yogurt (I used strawberry yogurt.)
1/4 cup milk
2 tsp. orange zest  (I didn’t have oranges on hand, so I skipped this.)
1 cup fresh strawberries, diced

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, combine egg, yogurt, milk, zest; whisk to combine thoroughly and set aside. In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, powder, salt, and whisk to combine. Using pastry cutter and two knives, cut butter into flour until all pieces are smaller than pea-sized. Add strawberries, and toss to coat.
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Add wet ingredients to dry and mix in lightly with fork until dough just comes together. Turn dough out onto well-floured work surface and pat into large ball. Cut the dough ball in half.
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Shape half of the dough into a flat disk shape and cut into 8 slices. Place on baking sheet and repeat with other half of dough. Sprinkle tops of scones with sugar. I shaped the disks right on the baking sheet. One thing I wasn’t sure about is if the wedges were supposed to be separate or still in a circle for baking. But it turned out great like this!
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Place in the oven. Bake until slightly brown, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on a baking sheet for 10 minutes.

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Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.

I think they’re best if you eat them while they’re still warm. To serve, I cut one in half and spread butter inside, then put a dollop of whipped topping on top. Just delicious!!!

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These got rave reviews around here from all of us! I’d like to experiment a little with using different yogurt flavors and maybe even different fruits, in addition to or instead of the strawberries. Also, I’ll bet the orange zest really adds something too. I want to be sure and have that on hand next time.

Comments

7 Responses to “Katie’s Strawberry Scones”

  1. Kelly on June 2nd, 2008 6:11 am

    They look amazing! Good call on the baking separate or together — it never even occurred to me LOL

    I baked mine separated out, but, as you found out, it works both ways.

    Katie gave me one more AMAZING strawberry recipe, if you’re interested…they’re the best cupcakes I think I’ve ever had. Hands down.

    http://kellycooksandotheramazingfeats.blogspot.com/2008/02/famous-strawberry-cupcakes.html

    Enjoy!

  2. Arla on June 2nd, 2008 7:19 am

    Kay, you ought to try serving those with Devonshire whipped cream. Devonshire takes scones to a whole new level, trust me.

  3. Anna on June 2nd, 2008 7:40 am

    Those look good! My daughter’s teacher and teacher’s assistant both love scones. I think I’m going to make a little collection of good scone recipes and give it to them on the last day of school. This one is going on the list.

  4. Berneice on June 2nd, 2008 8:25 am

    these look wonderful. I had some of the best choc chip scones over the weekend. I might have to try it in here.

  5. Shannon on June 2nd, 2008 8:29 am

    We had wonderful scones over the weekend. I’m gonna try these!!

  6. Lisa on June 2nd, 2008 9:07 am

    Oh it’s almost strawberry picking time here in Rhode Island, so I think I will be saving this recipe for some fresh berries! Thanks!

  7. Rosalyn on June 2nd, 2008 1:32 pm

    I love scones…I’ll definitely have to try these when my strawberries are ready! :) Yummy! :)

Breakfasts, Out of My Comfort Zone

Carrot Pancakes – Out of My Comfort Zone Cooking #4

Posted on May 21, 2008
Filed Under Breakfasts, Out of My Comfort Zone

Does ‘carrot pancakes’ strike you as odd? It did me, for 2 reasons: 1. The thought of carrots in pancakes. and 2. These pancakes do not get served with syrup… there is a cream cheese mixture that goes on top of them instead. All my life, pancakes have gotten served with syrup. Sometimes with peanut butter underneath the syrup, but always with syrup. If we’d decide to put jam on them instead, that was not the norm.

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This recipe actually sounds really good. It’s got pecans in it… YUM! and it’s got cinnamon and brown sugar in it and that cream cheese spread sounds really good!!! And they are really good, except the carrots kind of wreck them, which is unfortunate because that’s the main ingredient.

Carrot Pancakes – from the 2003 Quick Cooking Annual Cookbook

1 1/4 cups flour
2 Tbsp. finely chopped pecans (I didn’t chop them very fine, I like running into chunks)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup milk
1 cup grated carrots
1 tsp. vanilla
Cream Cheese Spread:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Dash ground cinnamon

In a bowl, combine the first 6 ingredients. Combine the egg, brown sugar, milk, carrots, and vanilla; mix well.
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Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.
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Pour batter by 1/4 cupfuls into a greased hot griddle.
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Mmmmm! Look at all those chunks! …too bad so many of the chunks are carrots, huh?

Turn when bubbles form on top of pancakes;
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cook until second side is golden brown.
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Place the cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla, in a blender or food processor; cover and process until smooth. Transfer to a bowl; sprinkle with cinnamon.
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Serve with pancakes. Yield: 4 servings. This recipe makes 11 pancakes.

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Next time, and I think there might be a next time, I would put in a few more pecans and considerably less carrots. They were fun to try for something different. Lexi (5) wouldn’t touch them with a 10′ pole (and I sounded excited about them to her, carrots and all), but Tiffany (2) downed a whole pancake like nothing. Shannon didn’t get a chance to taste them because he was at work, but I think his take on them would’ve been similar to Lexi’s.

Edit: I tried these again later and replaced the cup of carrots with 1/3 cup of pumpkin and doubled the pecans, but kept everything else the same. I think I should’ve added nutmeg too. Anyway, they were delicious!

I’m actually having alot of fun with this Out of My Comfort Zone series. It’s fun trying stuff I’d never try otherwise. Next week, I’m planning to try a lettuce salad with fruit and maybe nuts in it.

Comments

7 Responses to “Carrot Pancakes – Out of My Comfort Zone Cooking #4”

  1. Jo on May 21st, 2008 11:57 am

    You are braver than I! Our boys love carrots & pancakes, but I can only imagine the reaction if I’d put carrots IN their pancakes, then veto the syrup!!

  2. Sharon on May 21st, 2008 12:29 pm

    My first reaction too is that carrots don’t go with pancakes, but these sound kind of neat with the cream cheese spread–a little like carrot cake maybe? So that part makes sense. Do the carrots get soft though in just the little time it takes to fry the pancakes, or are they still a bit crunchy?

  3. Mary Faith on May 21st, 2008 12:59 pm

    I’m not usually a brave one for trying new recipes, but I think this would sound MUCH BETTER if you used sweet potatoes instead of carrots. Of course, that’s coming from a sweet potato lover! :) I think maybe I’ll try it sometime when I have sweet potatoes on hand. I think I would cook them first, though, at least a little bit…

  4. Kay on May 21st, 2008 1:13 pm

    It was kind of surprising, but the carrots didn’t need cooked first. They weren’t crunchy chunks. I grated baby carrots with a grater, so it was pretty flat little pieces. I wonder if the bought grated carrots would need cooked first though…they’re longer and thicker than mine were.

    Can’t tell you how good those pecans were in there though! I’d recommend not chopping them too fine. Pecan chunks (as opposed to carrot chunks) are a good thing. :)

  5. Rosalyn on May 21st, 2008 2:01 pm

    I was thinking too, along the lines of carrot cake, and decided these sound delicious! And I wonder how it would be to top it with syrup, after you put on the cream cheese spread??! :) (I love syrup with my pancakes) My girls would probably like it w/o the syrup…they (are going thru a phase?) don’t like syrup with their pancakes! ????

  6. Tamara Merritt on May 21st, 2008 5:20 pm

    Hmmmm I was thinking to use some canned mashe carrot instead, and maybe mix some honey in the cream cheese or either drizzle honey after the cream cheese.

    I think they sound yummy though, but heck add more PECANS…and toast the pecans before adding to bring out more of that nutty goodness.

    Sweet potatoes sound really good too! I would definitely cook them some first.

  7. Ruth on May 21st, 2008 7:26 pm

    They sound good to me. Nothing like getting your veggies. I’ve had carrot pie,carrot cake, and carrot salad and enjoyed all of them. I, personally, like gravy on my pancakes … tomato gravy or sausage gravy, then finish with syrup on my last pancake, like dessert. I find that pancakes with gravy are more satisfying than pancakes and syrup. Maybe I’m odd???

Breakfasts, Sweet Rolls and Coffee Cakes

Make these danish pastries for breakfast tomorrow morning!

Posted on May 8, 2008
Filed Under Breakfasts, Sweet rolls and Coffee cakes

An easy yummy-sounding recipe showed up in my email Inbox on Tuesday. It was from my cousin-in-law, Sharon. Is cousin-in-law a proper term? I don’t know, it sounds strange. Anyway, she’s married to my cousin. Not like you need to know that or anything. Thanks for the recipe, Sharon. They were easy and fast and delicious. And I had fun playing around with them too… bonus pictures at the end.

It only takes 4 ingredients. I like recipes like that because there’s more of a chance that I’ll have everything on hand! Although, yesterday, I wanted to make potato salad (way more than 4 ingredients) and I had everything except milk! Really, who runs out of milk?! I did have chocolate milk, but I didn’t think that would work too good. Anyway, that has gotta be one of my biggest cooking pet peeves… going to make something and not having all the stuff. That’s why I need to live nextdoor to the grocery store.

So, here’s our easy 4-ingredient recipe.

Cherry Cheese Danish

1 tube (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
4 Tbsp. cream cheese, softened
1 cup cherry pie filling (or your choice) I used strawberry.
1/2 cup vanilla frosting

Separate crescent dough into four rectangles. Place on an ungreased baking sheet; seal perforations.
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Spread 1 tablespoon cream cheese onto each rectangle.
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Top each with 1/4 c. pie filling.
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Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes. Place frosting in a microwave-safe bowl; heat on high for 15-20 seconds. Drizzle over warm pastries. I didn’t have frosting, so I mixed 2 Tbsp butter, about 2 Tbsp. milk, about 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar, and a bit of vanilla. That made about exactly 1/2 cup!
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Serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers (if there are any :) ). Yield: 4 servings.
I think I should’ve let them cool a bit more before glazing. It all ran together and you can’t see the striping anymore.
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Here’s a note that Sharon wrote at the end: I don’t usually have vanilla frosting on hand, so I make my own powdered sugar glaze. I add almond extract for cherry pie filling, a little cinnamon for apple, lemon for blueberry, nutmeg for peach, etc. Don’t you just love that sentence? She’s such a good creative cook! Wish I’d think of stuff like that! They’re quick and perfect for a special Sunday morning breakfast, or for company, or for just anyhow with coffee. And they’re even good made light, which I usually do (reduced fat crescent rolls and cream cheese).

Bonus:
I decided to play with them a bit…
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We have a regular flat one, a pinwheel, a turnover, and a spiral. The spiral turned out to have way too much filling in it and made a mess when I rolled it up (like a little jelly roll). The turnover and spiral should’ve been baked a few minutes longer.

The pinwheel was my favorite (not for taste… they all tasted the same). It was easy to do and looked a bit fancier. Next time, I think I could make them neater, too. It was Tiffany’s favorite too. She said, “I want dat one” about 10 times while I was taking the pictures and her little pointer finger kept coming into view in my camera window whenever she’d say it.

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These pastries are so good! Perfect with a cup of coffee! I just made them for the girls and I, and since the girls eat about as much as a chickadee does, there was actually some left over. The next morning, I ate another one and instead of warming it up, I ate it refrigerator cold and it was really good that way too!

Try them! Try them! Try them!

Comments

7 Responses to “Make these danish pastries for breakfast tomorrow morning!”

  1. Sharon on May 8th, 2008 5:14 pm

    awwww, kay, you didn’t have to mention me…now I feel like a celebrity or something. ???? I think YOU’RE the one that’s creative–like I’ve never thought of all the different things you could do with ’em. Love that spiral too, think I’ll do that sometime!

  2. Freida on May 8th, 2008 5:26 pm

    Try them I will!!!!

  3. JoAnn on May 8th, 2008 6:10 pm

    Sounds perfectly delicious–and I have everything on hand! Sounds like a good bedtime snack!

  4. Shannon on May 8th, 2008 7:32 pm

    Ohhh, looks wonderful. I need to go get some pie filling.:)

  5. Liz on May 8th, 2008 8:40 pm

    Those look really good! I think Elvie would like them too. I have cream cheese, blueberry pie filling and apple pie filling on hand but no cresent rolls. Maybe I should head over to JoAnn’s for a quick bedtime snack.=)

  6. Susan on May 19th, 2008 6:24 pm

    Mmmm! Those look yummy! And just right for a nice cup of coffee!

  7. Roni on November 13th, 2008 5:08 pm

    Use preserves if you don’t have pie filling. Put some lemon in the cream cheese, too…

Breakfasts, Sweet Rolls and Coffee Cakes, Tidbits

Ahhhh, this is the way to start a day! (and other rhymes)

Posted on April 18, 2008

Posted on April 18, 2008 
Filed Under Breakfasts, Sweet rolls and Coffee cakes, Tidbits

…start it with raspberry cream cheese rolls and coffee!

Sometimes I wonder if I should try a post that’s in poem format. This would be a good one to do that on because the title rhymes… and that just happened, didn’t even try it. The best poems are ones that flow, that you can’t tell the poet was working hard to get it to rhyme. An example of working too hard to rhyme would be like this:
My friend and I met
this morning at eight.
Our coffee we drank
and our donuts we ate.
You just don’t say “our coffee we drank” and “our donuts we ate” in regular conversation, you say “we drank our coffee” and “we ate our donuts”. That is one of my pet peeves in poetry. I know it’s ‘legal’, but it just makes it sound so much more formal. It would be much better to say,
Coffee and donuts
and a friendly chat,
Breakfasts don’t get
much better than that.

I used to get a kick out of writing poems in my adolescent years. My favorite has always been a 6-line style where lines 1& 2 rhyme, 3&6 rhyme, and 4&5 rhyme. I don’t know what it’s called, kind of like a limerick, but not quite. Around 16, I wrote a whole poem consisting of about 10 stanzas in that style. The first stanza was:
In August we moved
To what actually proved
To be home at Valley View Orchard.
At first, work was fun,
But before all was done,
We thought we were seriously tortured.
…and so on it went, about life on our orchard.

My dad was/is great with poems. I still remember when I we were growing up, Dad would start making up a poem about this or that and just kept going and going for quite awhile, not having to pause to think of a rhyming word. It was amazing to me even at a young age how he could do that. Of course, the bar was pretty low because we were just kids and were thrilled with anything that rhymed.

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Anyway, when I started this post, I had no clue I’d get into poems! So, instead of erasing the poem parts, I went up and added “(and other rhymes)” into the title. I was just posting to tell you that I made raspberry cream cheese rolls this morning AND that I finally have a new FAVORITE coffee mug once again! Here are both:

My friend, Shannon, from OH,  sent me that coffee mug. It’s perfect. The ‘walls’ are thick, just how I like them. It’s heavy and solid. And the design is great. And she said that they’re hard to break… which is good! Did you know that I break more dishes than my 2 children do?! Sometimes I wonder if I’m clumsy. Anyway, it’s a Longaberger mug, if you’re interested in getting one. She tells me Longaberger mugs are the best. And I think I’m convinced.

And those raspberry cream cheese rolls (here is the link to the recipe), they are just the best! Seriously, try them! I just thought of it now, I got the recipe for these rolls from Shannon, too (same one that just gave me the mug). These rolls are easier than they look and the dough is SO nice to work with because it doesn’t stick to anything… not to the rolling pin, not to the counter, not to your hands. The raspberry filling is just regular pie filling from the grocery store (I put it into a plastic storage bag, cut a corner off, and pipe it on). It doesn’t have to be raspberry, in fact, this time I used strawberry. I put it in the food processor so there wouldn’t be big chunks. The cream cheese filling is from a bulk foods store in plastic bag tubes. BUT, Barb, if you’re reading this, you had asked a question about the cr. ch. filling if you don’t have a bulk foods store around. I made it from scratch this time just to experiment and it turned out great! I edited the post that the rolls are featured on and added that filling recipe.

:)

So, now everyone, tell me what you had for breakfast in a comment! You can make it in poem form if you want to.

Here I’ll start:
My roll was first-rate
My coffee was great
And Shannon confirmed that when he ate his.
You may have guessed
These are the best
And I don’t care who your grandmother is!

Comments

19 Responses to “Ahhhh, this is the way to start a day! (and other rhymes)”

  1. Arla on April 18th, 2008 11:22 am

    Kay dear, I am one of those old-fashioned cooks that doen’t know much about things like doughnut mixes. I found quite a few bags of last sumemer’s blackberries in my freezer this morning and was just wondering what to make with them. Your raspberries rolls look wonderful, and I can figure out how to make pie filing of my fresh frozen wild berries, but I am lost about the doughnut mix. Are these rolls cakey or bready? if you know what I mean? What shall use in place of the mix? I love your website BTW.

  2. Kay on April 18th, 2008 11:40 am

    Arla, don’t even try to look for donut mix around here. I looked everywhere from Duluth to Eau Claire and couldn’t find it in the big grocery stores and Pine Knoll bulk food store doesn’t have it either. You could try hot roll mix… the rolls are bready like regular cinnamon rolls, not cakey (it’s raised donut mix). My friend from Ohio (Shannon, who’s mentioned above) sent me some donut mix from a bulk food store near her.

    :)

    There are a few rolls left… if you’re going to town today, stop in and I’ll give them to you. Seriously.

  3. Sharon on April 18th, 2008 12:50 pm

    Hey, Arla & Kay, they have donut mix at Weaver’s Store here 10 minutes out from Eau Claire. It’s “my” bulk food store. If you want me to bring you some sometime, holler. I betcha these rolls would work with another cinnamon roll dough, but I personally love how fast the mix make them.

  4. Ali on April 18th, 2008 2:50 pm
    :)

    I had an extra, extra big mug of coffee with splenda and cinnamon vanilla creamer.

  5. Monica on April 18th, 2008 3:00 pm

    Gotta love the Longaberger mug!! Looks just mine! Couldn’t come up with anything to rhyme with my boring breakfast of Multi-Grain Cheerios!! Those rolls look and sound delicious!! Monica

  6. barb on April 18th, 2008 3:33 pm

    First of all, I don’t have a rhyme. I would have to think to hard and I’m sorta in a hurry. But…
    after thinking a while I finally remembered what I had for breakfast (yes, it’s been a long day)
    I had a homemade cinnamon roll. I’ll tell you why I just happen to have homemade cinnamon rolls around, because that don’t happen around here very often. A couple of days ago, I was making french bread and had some extra dough. I thought I would rather have cinnamon rolls than extra french bread, so I just rolled it out, spread some butter on, sprinkled on cinnamon and sugar, rolled ’em up and Wow, easy cinnamon rolls(at least if you are making bread dough anyway:)

    I guess you didn’t ask for us to write a book about our breakfast but it just kind of happened.

    The only poem of any significance that I ever wrote was for my sister when her baby died at birth. It was inspired by God, because I can not write poems like that, but I really do like to read poetry.

  7. Liz on April 19th, 2008 8:11 am

    I guess you won’t be getting a poem from me. I don’t like writing them and don’t make a practice of reading them. (I had to read yours to see what you wrote.)=) I just had cereal for breakfast but yesterday for brunch I was able to sample some of the delicious rolls.=)

  8. Arla on April 19th, 2008 9:46 am

    Thanks Kay, So I guess I’ll just use Melinda Kulp’s Cinnamon Roll recipe that’s in the Dirstine Cookbook and go from there. I couldn’t believe all my typos in what I’d written before. I write to communicate, mostly, not to inspire, thus no poetry from me, either, but it’s an eighth wonder you could even follow my hasty question there, sorry about that.

  9. rosa on April 19th, 2008 1:13 pm

    I love your mug. I was actually gonna post and tell you my favorite mug is the exaxt same one but I never got around to it. I have 2 of them and I always claim them!

  10. amy on April 19th, 2008 1:27 pm

    Your rolls look great,
    But I’m watching my weight,
    You never could see
    By looking at me.
    Sweet things like your rolls,
    Make me lose all control,
    So I’ll make them not,
    And stick with celery and carrots.

    Okay that was lame, but very fun.

  11. amy on April 19th, 2008 1:28 pm

    Oh and I’ll probably end up making them too. I just needed things to rhyme:)

  12. Elaine on April 19th, 2008 2:40 pm

    I MUST stop reading this site for the next several months. This morning, I had Special K protein cereal and tomorrow morning I am planning to have whole wheat pumpkin pancakes with sugar-free maple syrup. They’re both what I would call edible, but not what I would call a wonderful way to start a day!

  13. Katie Mast on April 20th, 2008 2:48 pm

    Well I am with the post just above me, I may need to stop reading your delightful post as well, my stomach is churning so bad. I am really really trying to watch my food intake this week, just eating salad’s and veggies. For breakfast I am having protein drinks, yikes!!! Those rolls really look good, i have been wanting to try them. Just waiting for company so i dont eat them all cuz bread is my weekness. I love your site. I get all excited when i see you featuring pampered chef items. Now i know your not paid to cook with those items, but I love all my PC products.

  14. Shannon on April 20th, 2008 5:11 pm
    :)

    Ummm, I love you mug too.

  15. Shannon on April 20th, 2008 5:12 pm
    :)

    And I’d love to come over and tell you all about our weekend over some rolls and coffee. The comment submited before I was done.?

  16. Judi on April 21st, 2008 11:57 am

    Protein, grain and fat
    Just a little not too much
    Energy stays strong.

    Egg, toast and butter
    I enjoy it every day
    Perfect start of day.

    I think a Haiku is a poem of sorts. Haiku is groups of words making a statement with 5 syllables, 7 syllables and 5 syllables. I’m new at this, but I need the practice lol. I start my day with a scrambled egg and toast every day. It gives me a strong start and holds me til I get around to eating again, be it 4 hours or 7 hours. I’ve tried changing to others things, but too much carbs makes me starved in less than an hour. And sugar – forget it I’m ready for a nap in less time than that.

  17. Susan on May 19th, 2008 7:04 pm

    I like your mug, and those rolls look scrumptious! I liked Amy’s poem, too! Very cute!

  18. Longaberger Mugs on June 2nd, 2008 10:09 pm

    Your friend is right about the Longaberger mugs. We own the exact same mug (except ours are green) and I’ve dropped them many times. They are very durable.

    Alicia Smith

  19. Violet Sorc on June 5th, 2008 4:55 pm

    I would like to boast,
    That I had some toast.

Breakfasts

Pancakes! Plus a bit of fun for the kids.

Posted on April 15, 2008
Filed Under Breakfasts

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We eat pancakes alot. I make a batch, then put whatever we don’t eat in the freezer for quick breakfasts, usually warmed in the microwave, but the toaster works great too.

When I was growing up, we had pancakes alot. We children had the recipe memorized, but I also remember what it looked like. It was in an old Betty Crocker cookbook located at the top left-hand corner of the page. There was some batter splatters and flour stuck to the page. And the sugar in the recipe had a line through it. I remember one time when I was making them, I was feeling a little daring and put the sugar in. At 9 or 10 years old, I didn’t think about it that a little sugar wouldn’t make a huge difference and I was surprised when the pancakes looked and tasted the same.

Mom also used to make syrup. She’d make it, then pour it into 2 glass ‘Aunt Jemima’ syrup bottles. I always liked it better the second time because it was thicker and not so warm and runny. I still like my syrup thick and I don’t warm it up in the microwave (even though our plastic syrup bottle has a thing on the front that says ‘HOT’ after it’s warmed) because it’s too runny.

We got to talking about pancakes recently in family emails and my brother said they got a good recipe out of a local newspaper awhile ago and he makes them pretty often. He copied the recipe in an email and since I usually use the recipe on the side of the Bisquick box, I knew any recipe would be an improvement! So, I made them this morning.

My brother is a great chef. He made grilled salmon one time for our whole family and does lots of other grilling too. And that’s not all. One time, we all got together for a meal and this trifle appeared. The layers were picture-perfect, not crooked or varied thicknesses. I was complimenting my sister-in-law on it because I knew they brought it and because she’s a pro at making things look nice and attractive. She said, “Oh, I didn’t make it. Bruce did.” I really wish I’d have taken a picture of it. Anyway, they’re both great cooks and I can’t understand why they’re still slim and don’t weigh 300 pounds!

Pancakes

2 cups flour
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup butter (melted)

Mix first 5 ingredients together. Lightly beat eggs, buttermilk, and butter in a separate bowl.
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pancakes2.jpg  Add milk mixture to flour mixture all at once and stir until just combined (should be a little lumpy and quite thick).

pancakes3.jpg  Can you hear the sizzle?

Yeah, I don’t use a measuring scoop to put the pancakes in the frying pan. I just pour, thus my pancakes are varied shapes and sizes, but we don’t mind.

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pancakes6.jpg Just look at the texture of these pancakes! They were so soft and fluffy and had visible air pockets. They tasted great too… probably partly because of the melted butter! Delicious! this recipe made 18 4″ pancakes (give or take an inch, depending which pancake you pick).

Now, for the fun part…

You may think I’m crazy, but this is what we do with pancakes around here. My girls haven’t eaten a normal round pancake for quite awhile.

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pancakes8.jpg  Their plates.

pancakes9.jpg  My plate.

It really doesn’t take long at all to cut out shapes and it’s fun for them to eat and pick which shapes they want. And the scraps are kind of hard to spread peanut butter on, but they taste the same… believe me, I know!

P.S. Barb posted a Corn Chip Salad recipe that sounds wonderful in the comment section of the hard boiled egg post (Thanks, Barb!). Check it out! Who’s going to be the first to try it? :)

Comments

9 Responses to “Pancakes! Plus a bit of fun for the kids.”

  1. Berneice on April 15th, 2008 11:59 am

    My kids are not cracked over pancakes, might have to try the shapes to make it more fun.

  2. Freida on April 15th, 2008 1:37 pm

    We love pancakes, too. I make them often. Altho’ we need eggs with ours! My kids would love the shapes. Something I should maybe try, altho’ more time-consuming. :/

    I haven’t ever made corn chip salad, but I had some for the first time the other week at somebody’s house. It was SOOOO yummy! I’m gonna write this recipe down.

  3. Shannon on April 15th, 2008 1:44 pm

    I always put the metal cutters in the pan and pour the mix in there. It would stick and wouldn’t come out when I flipped them and on and on. This looks much easier!! Madison often asks for pancakes for supper! :)

  4. Kay on April 15th, 2008 2:07 pm

    Yeah, Shannon, I used to try that too with metal cutters. I could never get it to keep its shape… batter would seep out or the pancake would stick and rip some off. It was such a mess!

  5. Jay on April 15th, 2008 2:15 pm

    Is that peanut butter I see on some of those pancakes? And I thought my family were the only ones.

  6. Liz on April 15th, 2008 2:43 pm

    Maybe I will have to try this. What I use now is a mix that someone gave me and I am never real happy with the results.
    Do L and T actually eat that many pancakes for breakfast or are they smaller than it appears? I do good just getting K to eat a small bowl of cereal or one egg most of the time.

  7. barb on April 15th, 2008 2:51 pm

    My hubby and children like pancakes a lot better than I do, but I’m going to have to make them soon, and I am definatly going to do the shape thing. I know my boys will LOOOVE it.

    I had to laugh at the picture of your plate, Kay.
    That is so typical for us mommy’s, but that’s O.K. it all taste the same;)

  8. Rene on April 15th, 2008 10:07 pm

    I’m so glad I found your site on the Mommy
    Blogs! Your recipes look great and have inspired me to dust off my kitchen and use it for more than a place to dump the mail!

  9. Karen on April 16th, 2008 9:24 am

    We will definately have to try the pancakes! Our usual is the bisquick recipe and Hubby is the pancake maker. Certain members of this house think the only way to make pancakes is to sprinkle mini milk chocolate chips on one side when frying……
    And we LOVE that cornchip salad. It has been a favorite for a long time!

Breakfasts, Sweet Rolls and Coffee Cakes

Wake up and smell the coffee… cake

Posted on February 21, 2008
Filed Under Breakfasts, Sweet rolls and Coffee cakes

I have started making breakfasts on Saturday mornings! I know, most of you probably already do that, plus do it Monday mornings and Tues mornings and Wed mornings…   Anyway, I do try to steer clear of recipes that require me to get up early though! Here’s one we had recently on a Saturday morning…

Peach Coffee Cake… which actually ended up being Apple Coffee Cake. Recipe taken from the 2006 Quick Cooking Annual Cookbook

1 cup butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 eggs
3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 can (21 oz) peach pie filling (I used homemade apple pie filling that Mom gave me, or was it Grandma? I am blessed!)

ICING:
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/2 tsp. almond extract
3 to 4 tsp. milk

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the flour, salt, and baking powder; add to the creamed mixture and beat until just combined. Spread 3 3/4 cups of batter into a greased 15″ x 10″ x 1″ baking pan. (I didn’t measure out 3 3/4 cups!)
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Carefully spoon the pie filling to within 1″ of edges.
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Spoon remaining batter over filling.
coffee cake4 Ok, THIS is harder than it looks! At times like this, I’m glad I’m not a perfectionist. At this point in the recipe, I had decided I might not feature this after all. Thankfully, it came out of the oven looking much better with the ‘islands’ more connected and not so choppy and oddly shaped!)
Bake at 350 for 20 – 25 min or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean (cover loosely with foil if edges brown too quickly).
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Cool on a wire rack. In a small bowl, combine the icing ingredients. Drizzle over coffee cake. Yield: 16 – 20 servings.
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coffee cake1  Mmmmmmm! Just delicious! I came back to them later for a late-morning snack and I thought it actually tasted even better at room temp than when it was warm from the oven… just my opinion. I’ll bet this would be good with about any fruit. I do want to try it with peach sometime… I didn’t have any peach filling on hand when I went to make these.

Thanks to those of you who tried the biscuits and then mentioned it. It’s always fun to hear feedback from you if you try recipes on here! Also, a big thanks to heidirhodes for taking time to post your recipe! I’m planning to try that one next time I make them.

Comments

One Response to “Wake up and smell the coffee.. cake”

  1. S.L. Martin on February 22nd, 2008 11:25 am

    Just checking if the comments work.

Breakfasts, Sweet Rolls and Coffee Cakes

Scones…

I always run across scone recipes in my cookbooks and wanted to try them sometime, but didn’t know how or when to serve them. The recipes didn’t give any tips except ‘serve warm’. I guess you’re just supposed to automatically know!   Anyway, after a little research and asking questions, I got a few tips. So here’s the ones I made, although in my research I found out that chocolate chip scones are too American. I want to try some that are more authentic sometime. They’re kinda like fancy biscuits.

Chocolate Chip Scones   …recipe from an Easy to Bake, Easy to Make recipe card.

2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup cold butter, cut into pieces
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400. Grease a baking sheet. Combine flour, sugar, b. powder, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until coarse crumbs form. Stir in cream until a dough forms. Stir in chocolate chips.  Knead dough gently on lightly floured surface 8-10 times. Pat dough into an 8″ round, about 1/2″ thick.
scones1
Cut round into 8 wedges with a sharp knife. Place on prepared baking sheet. I put the chunk of dough on the baking sheet, THEN shaped it into an 8″ round.
scones2  At the bottom of the card it said “Helpful Hints: If you prefer soft scones, arrange the wedges on the baking sheet so they are touching each other. For scones with crispy edges, place the wedges about 1 1/2″ apart on the baking sheet.” I thought soft would be better, Shannon thought crispy would be better. So, that’s why they’re arranged like they are, that way we’d have some of each.

Bake scones until golden brown, 20-25 min.
scones3
Serve warm. Tips I got were to split them apart and spread butter and/or jam in them and to put whipped cream on top. I did the butter and whipped cream… didn’t know if jam would go with choc chips.
scones4  I know, I should have a cup of tea sitting beside the plate. These were really good! Easy to make too. Another note on the recipe card was “For biscuitlike scones, do not knead dough. Drop dough into 8 mounds on prepared baking sheet. Bake about 20 minutes.” So, I guess they’re not necessarily all wedges. 

————————————————————————————————

Note: On the post before, I forgot to say where the recipes came from. The Broccoli Casserole and the Pudding Pumpkin Pie both came out of the 2006 Quick Cooking annual cookbook.

Breakfasts, Desserts, Sweet Rolls and Coffee Cakes

“Mom, how do you make… ?”

From my mom…

Easy Cinnamon Biscuits (not sure of the real name, if there is one)

2 7.5 oz cans Pillsbury biscuits (10 biscuits per can)
2 handfuls brown sugar
Cinnamon
8 oz Cool Whip

Grease 9×13 pan and put biscuits in.
biscuits1
Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon on top.
biscuits2
Spread Cool whip on top.
biscuits3Looks more like a dessert now, doesn’t it?
Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes.
biscuits4
biscuits5  These are great!!!!! There’s a goo at the bottom and next time, I’m planning to add some pecans on top before putting on the Cool Whip. They take very little time to assemble, plus no rising time. Very good! Keep on hand for a warm breakfast on busy mornings!

From my mom-in-law…

Yum Yum Pudding

60 Ritz crackers
1 stick butter
2 qt vanilla ice cream
2 boxes instant vanilla pudding
1 1/2 cups milk

Crush crackers. Mix with melted butter. Spread out in a 9×13 pan and bake at 350 for 5 min.  (I made a half batch for us, so used a smaller pan here and should’ve used a smaller bowl later!)
pudding1
Beat softened ice cream. Add milk and pudding. Put crumbs in the bottom of a serving dish, saving some crumbs to sprinkle on top.
pudding2
Pour ice cream/pudding mixture over crumbs.
pudding3
Top with remaining crumbs.
pudding4
pudding5
Store in refrigerator (not freezer).  Yum is right! I didn’t remember having it before and as I was making it, I was so tempted to add some chocolate for an extra layer. Glad I didn’t because it was so good!!!! Lots of buttered toasted crackers!

Breakfasts, Main Dishes, Pies, Soups

Totally “off the wall” recipes (sorry to those of you who don’t like puns… I couldn’t help myself)

Posted on January 8, 2007
Filed Under Breakfasts, Main dishes, Pies, Soups

Blueberry Muffins
Farmer’s Market Soup
Chicken Pot Pie
Apple Pie
If you remember my cookie baking/candy making post, the kitchen that we were at had the neatest wallpaper!!!!
recipe wall   It was in the kitchen at Sandra’s (xsenergyo5) church. Sandra, have you guys ever tried them? The wallpaper has 4 recipes repeated on it. So, I took pictures of each recipe and made them. I hope you can read them ok… I’ll see how it looks after it’s uploaded and if I can’t read them, I’ll type them out. *Edit*…I just checked to see if I could read them and it’s a little hard, but if you click on the picture, it opens a new window that it’s bigger and more readable in.

Blueberry Muffins

recipe muffins

Some notes: I didn’t know what double-acting baking powder was, but my baking powder in my cupboard said ‘double-acting’ on it, so maybe all baking powder is?????    I also just used my regular nutmeg from my spices instead of getting a nutmeg and grating it for ‘freshly grated’. I used frozen blueberries, not fresh, but I think fresh would be better and not as juicy, so I want to make it sometime with fresh. The batter was more of a cookie dough consistency, which kind of surprised me, but the muffins were great!!! Some of the best I’ve had! They were moist and dense, which I like! We loved them!!! I will definitely make these again!!! Now for the pictures…
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Farmer’s Market Soup

recipe soup

Some notes: I used baby carrots and figured 9 would equal one big one. I’ve never in my life peeled a tomato before! What a juicy mess! I put just enough water in to come up to the level of the veggies, they weren’t totally covered… that way it wouldn’t make alot of broth.  Um, now for what we thought of it… I thought it was good in a but-I’d-never-make-it-again way. I made a half batch and was glad I did because I had the whole thing to myself! It sure is healthy though!!!! It took a long time to cut up all those veggies!

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Chicken Pot Pie

recipe potpie

Some notes: After it simmered for 20 minutes, I thought the broth didn’t seem thick enough, so I put in an extra tablespoon of flour. I missed a picture of the chicken/veggie part of the pot pie before putting the dough on top. For the biscuit dough, I used a recipe that was very good, but it ended up sort of limp and sticky and hard to work with, so the pot pie ended up looking pretty messy. I used all but about 5 biscuit’s worth of the dough (the recipe took 2 cups of flour to give you an idea of the size batch it was), so then I just baked those biscuits and served them with the meal. We really liked this! It was good and flavorful. Not sure if I’d make it again, just simply because it took awhile to make and we don’t do much in the way of casserole-type dishes. But I would definitely recommend it!!!!

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Apple Pie

recipe pie

Some notes: Too many apples! I used a 9″ deep dish pie plate and as you will see, it was piled high! I cut up 8 and used probably 6 apples, and they were medium sized, not huge. I used Golden Delicious mainly because that’s the only kind I recognized (and I used to live on an apple orchard! ). I used brown sugar. Before the height of this pie scares you off, it’s not actually that huge. The crust stays up and the apples settle, as you can see in the last picture after we took a couple pieces out. This pie was absolutely tops! The winner of all the “wall” recipes! I will definitely make it again. Great flavor and so perfect warm with a serving of ice cream!!!

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Breakfasts, Sweet Rolls and Coffee Cakes

Brunch

Ham/sausage/bacon & egg & cheese muffins
Raspberry Cream Cheese Cinnamon Rolls
Fruit and dip

We had a brunch for Lexi’s 4th birthday party, then she opened her gifts and we had the cake and ice cream closer to noon then. I tried a new recipe for the brunch. It was a hit!!! I was replenishing the fruit tray and the eggs and was going to eat after everyone else was done… until… people started coming out for seconds and saying “these rolls are awesome” type of comments. So, I got a plate and got a roll before they got all. They were soooo good! My mom copied the recipe down and my mom-in-law confirmed that I would put it on this site and said she’d get it then. So, this is something I will DEFINITELY make again and it wasn’t just the taste I liked… they were so easy to make too. By the way, if you remember back around Thanksgiving, I was planning to make these T-giving morning, well, it didn’t happen then, so here they are finally!

The recipe comes from my friend Shannon.

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Raspberry Cream Cheese Cinnamon Rolls

1 Tablespoon yeast
1 3/4 cups warm water

Mix.
Then add

7 to 8 cups donut mix

Mix dough and let rise till doubled. Reserve 1/4 of dough. Roll out the 3/4 and spread with melted butter (I used a little over a half stick) and brown sugar ( I had it maybe about an 1/8″ deep) and cinnamon. Roll it up, cut into 12 pieces, and lay in a 9×13 pan.
roll1  Tips for cutting rolls: I use a string… slide it under the rolls, bring the ends up over, cross them and pull, and it makes a nice cut without smashing… ok, maybe everyone cuts rolls like that… I learned it from my mom. Also, to get them an even 12 pieces, cut in the middle first, then each section in half, then thirds from there (if you count my pieces, there are 14 because I cut the ends off first).

Swirl raspberry filling and cream cheese filling on top of rolls. roll2 I piped it on, then tried to swirl them together with a knife, but as you can see, it didn’t get too good. I stopped after doing 3 and just left them like that.

Edit: If you don’t have access to the cream cheese filling, try this:
8 oz softened cream cheese, 1 egg, 1/4 cup sugar, and 1/2 tsp. vanilla. Beat till smooth. Put it in a plastic storage bag (or a decorating bag), cut the corner off, and pipe it onto the rolls.

Roll out the rest of the dough. Spread with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon and cut into small pieces. Lay on top of filling. Let rise about an hour.
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Bake 25-30 min at 350. Drizzle with glaze (1 c. powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 2 Tablespoons milk).
rolls-baked.jpg  They sorta billowed out of the pan… maybe because I used the 2 ends after all. I drizzled the glaze on right away and it kind of melted and pooled. Next time, I’ll let them cool for a few minutes first. Madisonsmom2, I don’t know if this looks like yours did. ????? 

Edited January 2012 to add: I often put about 3 rolls in a different small pan so the 9×13 doesn’t billow over. Also, I often make them the evening before, put them in the fridge overnight (unbaked), pull them out of the fridge and put em in the oven, then turn the oven on. I don’t preheat the oven if I’m pulling them out of the fridge because I’m afraid the cold pan would crack on the hot oven rack.

Anyway, they were just scrumptious and another great thing about them is that the dough was not at all sticky! I didn’t get my hands or the rolling pin messy. I could just roll on top of it without it sticking to the rolling pin or the counter!!!

Here is the rest of our meal…
meal muffins  Ham is in the closest crockpot, eggs are in the farthest crockpot… we just used those to keep them warm. I should’ve made a sandwich and taken a picture of it… didn’t think of it.
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Comments

7 Responses to “Brunch”

  1. Bernice Wagner on April 5th, 2008 6:48 am

    Good morning, I come everyday to your site to see ‘what’s cookin’…what is the raspberry filling and cream cheese filling? Did I miss a recipe for them? Also, is parsley the green flakes in the Red Lobster biscuits? I’ve had them at the resturant and can’t wait to make them! Blessings to you for sharing your cooking skills! thanks, Bernice

  2. Kay on April 5th, 2008 7:27 am

    Hi, Berneice,
    Thanks for the comment and for stopping by my site often!
    I got the cream cheese filling at the same bulk foods store where I got the donut mix. The filling comes in plastic tubes. The raspberry filling is just a can of pie filling from the grocery store. If I have a pie filling with chucks in it, I put it in the food processor to get rid of the chunks. So, nope, you don’t have to make the fillings. :)

    On the Red Lobster biscuits, the green flakes are parsley and Italian seasoning. I know, the recipe doesn’t call for it and I don’t put it in anymore, I should change that picture!

  3. Barbara Miller on April 9th, 2008 9:59 pm

    I want to try the rasberry thingys but I have no bulk food store where I live so how could I make the cream cheese filling? Thanks Barb

  4. Kay on April 9th, 2008 11:11 pm

    Good question, Barb. I’m planning to make these rolls sometime soon (got so hungry for them again after posting them!) and instead of buying the cream cheese filling, I’m going to make it and see how it turns out. I found a couple recipes. Google ‘danish cream cheese filling recipe’, that’s what I did. The filling recipes have eggs in them, but that should be ok because it gets baked.

    After I make the rolls, I’ll let you know what recipe(s) I used and how it turned out. I’ll also post it here.

  5. Kay on April 18th, 2008 10:35 am

    Update: I added the cream cheese filling recipe into the post above.

  6. Lydia Jo Martin on July 7th, 2011 5:48 pm

    Thank you for steering me this way. Were you being nice or is this some sort of evil diet plan to deter me? No really, from that photo you can tell that the dough rolled out so nice. Looks like a great thing to keep stuff on hand for. I will now go eat a piece of sugar free dove chocolate and try not to think of cinnamon rolls again today!