Sweet Breakfast Muffins

September 30, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Baking, Breakfast Foods at 4:55 pm | (2) Comments »

It should be obvious by now that I’m a breakfast person through and through. Never mind that I’m never up in time for breakfast, I’ll take breakfast food over other types of food nearly every time… whatever time that might be. On lovely, lazy days, when I have a bit more time on my hands, I like to whip up a batch of these muffins for breakfast. They’re quick and easy, and you probably already have all the ingredients in your pantry. Make these, and have a beautiful morning:

Sweet Breakfast Muffins Recipe

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup whole or 2% milk
1/4 cup melted butter or vegetable oil

Preheat your oven to 400F, and lightly spray a muffin pan.

In a large bowl, using a large whisk, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together until well-incorporated. Make a well in the center of the mixture. In a large measuring cup or bowl, stir the egg, milk and melted butter (or oil) together. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture, stirring VERY lightly, just until moistened. It will be lumpy- that’s fine.

Scoop or spoon the batter into the muffin pan, filling up to 2/3rds full only. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, checking often.

Let cool, and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Labor Day Luxuries: Pancakes & French Toast

September 4, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Breakfast Foods, Holiday Fun at 12:12 pm | Comments »

Pancakes and French Toast

I love Labor Day. Not only is it my last chance to wear white, it’s usually a long, lazy weekend, spent puttering around the kitchen, watching lots of tv, and watching the husband fire up the grill for some smokey barbecue goodness. Long, lazy days like this call for long, leisurely breakfasts- and here’s one of my favorites: pancakes and french toast with some fried eggs.

Do you need recipes for the above, really? Here’s a link to my favorite pancake recipe, and for perfect, perfect, perfect french toast, see below:

Delish French Toast

1 cup whole milk
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
8 slices stale bread (I like a good, hearty country loaf, but it’s really up to you)
4 tablespoons salted butter

In a bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, honey and salt. Pour into a shallow pan (like a pie pan) and set aside.
Preheat your oven to 375F. Gently dip your bread slices into the egg mixture, allowing to soak for around half a minute on each side. Let these sit for around two minutes.
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a nonstick pan over medium-low heat. Place 2 slices of your nicely soaked bread at a time into the pan, and cook until golden brown and delicious.

Serve immediately with or without your stack of pancakes, and some well-fried eggs.

Cornflake Girl

July 16, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Breakfast Foods at 4:29 pm | Comments »

cornflakes

As a child, the only boxed cereal I’d eat was Frosted Flakes. I’m not sure if it was because of Tony the Tiger- my favorite toy for years was a beat up old Tigger doll (which I still have, and which is staring at me from a top shelf right here in my office as I type this. Hi, Tigger!)- but I loved my Frosted Flakes. As I grew up, though, I found it too sweet for my tastes, and transitioned to regular cornflakes. With honey- or vanilla sugar if I’m feeling naughty- and creamy whole milk (but not too much, I don’t like soggy cornflakes). What exactly is in a cornflake, though? Some online research brought me these interesting facts:

Wikipedia tells me that cornflakes were originally manufactured by Kellogg’s “through the treatment of corn”, and that it was originally called “Granose”. Good call changing the name, I say- although the “treatment of corn” doesn’t sound too healthy to me.
This awesome page describes the process of making cornflakes, from milling the sweetcorn to rolling it into flakes with 40 tonnes of pressure, to um, “spraying” it with vitamins and minerals.
Although I like them best in a bowl with milk and sweetener, cornflakes are a wonderful substitute for breading in most recipes. Check out this Cornflake Fried Chicken recipe from Epicurious, for example. One reviewer said the sweetness of the cornflakes was “a delicious change”.

Finally, let me leave you with this recipe from Nigel Slater that uses four ingredients, and makes some of the most addicting little “cakes” I’ve ever tasted. Try them and see.

Chocolate Cornflake Cakes

Ingredients
50g butter
4 tbsp golden syrup (or corn syrup- or honey)
100g good dark chocolate
75g cornflakes

In a small, heavy pan over low heat, melt the butter, syrup and chocolate together. Stir in the cornflakes. Using a small ice cream scoop, scoop out rounds of the mixture onto a buttered baking sheet or silpat mat. Chill in the fridge.

Stack o’ Pancakes

June 29, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Breakfast Foods at 3:33 pm | Comments »

pancake-stack

My husband and I have been low-carbing it lately, but because we don’t want to feel deprived, have designated two days a week when we can have a healthy amount (not too much, not like a pint of ice cream, ok) of carb-laden food. Yesterday was such a day, and guess what we had?

Yes, pancakes have always been one of my favorite comfort foods. I like my pancakes fluffy, but not too thick, because I have to stack them. The higher the better. Then I slather them with good, salted butter, and pour on the maple syrup.

And I must have real maple syrup. No substitutes, no maple-flavoured syrups, thank you very much.

Sigh. What a day yesterday was. I can still taste the buttery, sweet, salty pancakes… and I share the recipe with you here:

Classic Buttermilk Pancakes

1 1/2 cups plain flour
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder (try to get aluminum-free, it makes a huge diff)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups buttermilk (or- regular milk with a tablespoon of vinegar mixed in!)
1 large egg
3 tablespoons melted butter

Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and add in your liquids (buttermilk, egg, melted butter). Mix very lightly. Do not overmix.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle over medium high heat. Pour about 1/4 cup of the batter on for each pancake, keeping in mind that your first pancake will probably be imperfect. This is ok. Snack on it while you make all the rest. Pile hot pancakes on a plate, and serve.

Mother’s Day Ambrosia

May 10, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Breakfast Foods, Holiday Fun, Recipe at 5:44 am | Comments »

Ambrosia

One of the nicest Mother’s Day traditions is making your mom breakfast in bed. Now, while you can certainly go the whole nine yards and whip up any number of breakfast dishes, sometimes you want something simple. Healthy. And absolutely delicious.

Enter this Ambrosia, which I promise you is as lovely as its name. Here’s how to make it:

Mom’s Ambrosia
Ingredients:
5 ripe oranges, peeled and sliced
1 medium-sized banana, peeled and sliced, and sprinkled with about 1/8 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup flaked coconut (optional. Omit if Mom’s just not a “coconut person”).

Method:
In a medium bowl, combine orange and banana slices. In a separate bowl, mix together orange juice, lemon juice, and honey. Pour over the fruit slices, and top with coconut. Serve chilled, with a silver spoon.

The secret here is using the very best ingredients you can buy: organic oranges and bananas, freshly squeezed orange juice (although Tropicana will certainly do in a pinch), raw organic honey… well, you get the idea. After all, your mother deserves nothing less.

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