Slathering on some Cream Cheese

December 21, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Baking, Breakfast Foods at 11:34 am | Comments »

: Slice of bread with cheese cream from Crestock Stock Images

For the past few days, all my local stores, supermarkets and groceries have been out of cream cheese. And by that I mean those regular blocks, not that “whipped” or onion and chive-flavored stuff. I can only attribute this to the fact that Christmas will be here in four days (!), which apparently has sent everyone on a cheesecake-making frenzy.

Now, cheesecake doesn’t figure in my home-based bakeshop repertoire, but I do buy loads of the gorgeous white stuff- many times to make my perfect cream cheese frosting, but mostly just to slather on a slice of bread and go.

Which brings me to today’s recipe, which takes the cream-cheese-on-a-piece-of-toast idea a step further. And what a step it is. Once you’ve made this for your family’s breakfast, be warned: they will beg you for it over and over again. Since it’s so easy to make (it’s done overnight!), that won’t be a problem, of course:

Overnight Cream Cheese French Toast

4 thick slices bread, cubed
1 8oz. package cream cheese, cubed
6 large eggs, beaten
1 cup whole or skim milk
8 teaspoons real maple syrup (pancake syrup will do in a pinch, really)
1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional if you like nuts)

Liberally butter a 9″x13″ casserole dish. Place a layer of half of the bread cubes in the bottom. Over this, scatter all the cream cheese cubes- then add the other half of bread cubes on top.

In a measuring cup, combine eggs, milk and maple syrup. Mix well. Pour over the casserole. Cover well and place in the refrigerator overnight.

The next morning, preheat your oven to 350. Sprinkle the casserole with nuts (if using), and bake for 30 to 45 minutes or until it looks nice and lightly golden.

Serve with more maple syrup, and some good butter.

Ahh… Kasha

November 25, 2009 | Posted by Lorraine as Breakfast Foods at 5:37 pm | Comments »

Bowl o Kasha

As a child, I had porridge every day- certainly a bowl for breakfast, and oftentimes another bowl as an afternoon snack. Recently, I’ve discovered Kasha, buckwheat groats that are very similar to oatmeal, but taste a little different. Good different. Know what knishes are? I love knishes- and no wonder: they’re traditionally filled with Kasha.

It’s almost Thanksgiving, and before the gluttony begins, I thought I’d share a nice, healthy recipe for Kasha with you. This is my favorite way to cook it:

1 cup buckwheat Kasha
2 cups water
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon butter
pepper to taste

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, dry-toast the Kasha for a few minutes, just until it darkens a little. Remove to a bowl, and set aside.

In the same saucepan, add the water, salt and butter, and bring to a boil. Slowly pour in the Kasha. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for about ten minutes, or until it thickens and the liquid is absorbed. Turn heat off, and leave it in the pan for about five minutes more.

Fluff with a fork, and serve!

Sweet Breakfast Muffins

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

Sweet Breakfast Muffins

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.

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