Cinnamon Breakfast Bites

These are a very yummy breakfast treat.

Ingredients:
1 1/3 C flour
1 C rice Crispies, coarsely crushed
2 Tbs sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 C butter flavored shortening
1/2 C milk

Coating:
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
2/3 C sugar
1/3 C butter, melted

Directions:
Combine flour, cereal, 2 tbs sugar, baking powder, and salt. Then cut in shortening. Stir in milk just until wet. The mixture is going to be dry but you can add 1 extra tsp of milk if it's too dry. Shape into 1 inch balls. In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and 2/3 C sugar. Dip each ball into the melted butter, then roll into the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Place in a greased baking dish. Bake at 420 for 15 to 17 minutes. Makes 24 breakfast bites.

Oatmeal Buttermilk Whole-Wheat Pancakes

These are so delicious! And I feel very healthy when eating them because there is only 1 tablespoon of sugar in the whole recipe and it includes whole-wheat AND oats! These cook fast so use a lower-than-normal pan temperature to make sure you don't burn them before they cook through.

Adapted From Here
Ingredients:
3/4 C of oats (I use old-fashioned)
1 1/2 C plus 2 Tbs buttermilk, divided
3/4 C whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbs butter, melted
1 Tbs brown sugar

Directions:
Soak the oats in 3/4 C of the buttermilk for 10 minutes. Meanwhile mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Stir in the oat mixture, the remaining 3/4 C plus 2 Tbs buttermilk, egg, butter, and brown sugar until just combined. Cook on medium-low. Makes about 8 pancakes.

If you are just trying to use up leftover buttermilk and don't have quite enough, I have used half buttermilk and half 1% with wonderful results.

Cinnamon Streusel Oatmeal Muffins

I love muffins for breakfast. This is a favorite recipe I use all the time (from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book).

Ingredients:
1 1/3 C flour
3/4 C rolled oats
1/3 C sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
3/4 C milk
1/4 C oil

Streusel Topping:
3 Tbs flour
3 Tbs brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbs butter

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. In a medium bowl combine flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl whisk together the egg, milk and oil. Add to the flour mixture and stir until just mixed. Spoon batter into greased or paper-lined muffin tin.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon for the streusel topping. Cut in the butter until the mixture looks like course crumbs. Sprinkle streusel topping over the muffin batter in the cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

Homemade Pop Tarts

Photo Source

I love breakfast pastries! I have tried a couple homemade pop tart recipes and this one is my favorites. The original website had several filling options but I have only tried the brown sugar cinnamon kind. Why make anything but the best? If you are interested in some other ideas, follow the link and see some options for alternate fillings.

Ingredients:
2 C flour
1 Tbs sugar
1 tsp salt
1 Cup unsalted butter, cubed (I used salted once and the crust did turn out too salty)
1 egg
2 Tbs milk

Cinnamon Sugar filling:
1/2 C brown sugar
1 to 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon to taste
4 tsp flour
1 egg to brush on pastry

Directions:
Mix flour sugar and salt in a large bowl. Cut in butter until it is in pea-sized lumps just as if you were making a pie crust (because basically you are). Combine the egg and milk and then pour into the flour mixture, stirring until just combined. Knead a few times on a floured counter if needed.

Divide the dough in half. One half will be the bottom of the pastry, and one will be the top. Now, if you want these to look like poptarts, roll out to about 1/8" thick, roughly a 9x12 rectangle. From there cut into 9 3x4 pieces. I usually just make one giant poptart and then cut it into pieces afterward but that means the filling won't be surrounded by crust in all of the pieces.

Beat the extra egg and brush it over the bottom pastry piece. This will be the inside and will help the filling stick to the pastry. If you have the dough in pieces, put a heaping tablespoon on each pastry. If you have one large piece of dough, just spread it evenly over the surface. Then place the remaining pastry piece/s on top. Use your fingers or a fork to press around the edges and seal the top and bottom together. Prick the tarts a few times with a fork to let steam escape.

Refrigerate the poptarts while you preheat the oven to 350. Bake on a greased or parchment lined pan for 20-25 minutes.

Crock Pot Breakfast Casserole

 This has been my go to breakfast for dinner lately. It is easy to put together in the morning and then forget about until dinner time. Or if you want it for breakfast, put it together at night and wake up to a hot meal!

Recipe and Photo Source

Ingredients:
1 lb of breakfast meat (ham, bacon, OR sausage), cooked
1 small onion, diced
1 small bell pepper, diced
16 oz of frozen hash browns
3/4 cup of cheese (we use cheddar)
6 eggs
1/2 C milk
green onions (optional)
salt and pepper

Directions:
Grease your crockpot. Layer half of your ingredients starting with meat, then onion, pepper, hash browns, and cheese. Repeat the layers and top with green onion. In a separate bowl, beat together eggs, milk, and salt and pepper. Pour over the layered ingredients making sure everything gets wet. Cook on low for 7 hours. I enjoy eating mine with salsa!

Cinnamon Scones

I finally bought some cinnamon chips. I have been tempted ever since my cinnamon muffin recipe, which called for them (I used a substitute). I almost never see cinnamon chips at the store but during the holiday season I saw them often. I have been trying to avoid unnecessary grocery expenses but I decided if I didn't buy a bag of them now, I would have to wait until Christmas 2013.

I am glad bought them! Now the only problem is I want another bag because I have so many recipes I want to try out. But I am super glad I started with this recipe for cinnamon scones. It was amazing! The recipe made more than I anticipated so I gave some away to friends but now I am almost wishing I had saved them all for myself! Eating one of these is like eating a thick muffin top of a cinnamon streusel muffin - the best part.

And you bet I actually used heavy cream when it called for it. I was lucky enough to have some left over from my amazing chocolate bundt cake. I suppose next time I make this, I will try substituting milk and see how it turns out.

Recipe Source

Ingredients:
 3 C flour
1/3 C sugar
5 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 C unsalted butter (2 sticks)
3/4 C heavy cream
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 C cinnamon chips
Topping:
1/2 C sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp heavy cream

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Mix together flour, 1/3 C sugar, baking powder, and cinnamon. Cut butter into tablespoon sized pieces and then cut it into the flour mixture as you would in a pie or biscuit dough until mixture resembles course crumbs. Fold in cinnamon chips. 

In separate bowl mix heavy cream, egg, and vanilla. Add to the main mixture, stirring until combined. Place dough on a piece of parchment paper and shape as desired. You can roll it out with a rolling pin or just use your hands to flatten it to 1/2 inch thick. Shape it into a rectangle or circle.

Combine the topping ingredients and then sprinkle over dough, pressing lightly. Cut dough into desired piece sizes. I made mine into about 10 squares and then cut them in half for 20 triangles. If you press it in a circle you can cut pizza-like wedges.

Place parchment paper on a baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes. Enjoy while they are warm!

1 batch makes 8-10 servings

Crepes with Apple Filling

One of my roommates in college was from Dijon, France. She had a great crepe recipe that I have often used. I was in the mood for crepes but couldn't find her recipe so I just used this one from allrecipes. The crepes turned out really yummy and I also made an apple-cinnamon filling one of the reviewers talked about.

Ingredients:
1 C flour
2 eggs
1/2 C milk
1/2 C water
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbs butter, melted

Filling:
1 Tbs butter
1 apple, chopped
pinch of cinnamon
1 Tbsp powdered sugar

Directions:
Whisk together the eggs, milk, water, and melted butter. Stir in the flour and salt. Poor 1/4 cup of batter on a small frying pan over medium high heat. Tilt the pan so the batter evenly coats the bottom in the thin layer. Cook for about two minutes and then flip. Cook until desired brown-ness. Serve with apple filling. Makes about 8 crepes.
 Filling: Mix together all ingredients in a small frying pan. Cook until apple is soft.

I also enjoy eating my crepes with just a little lemon juice and powdered sugar sprinkled on top.

Pumpkin Muffin Doughnut Holes

While Pumpkin Muffin Doughnut Holes is a long name for a recipe, I like to know what I am dealing with from the beginning. It is fall and so I am making a lot of pumpkin foods lately. I have been wanting to try these for a while but never got around to it until today. As I ate them I was wondering why I had waited so long. These were AMAZING! They were so delicious that I couldn't stop myself before I ate *six* of them. They definitely satisfied my doughnut craving and were so much easier than doughnuts - no deep frying!

I adapted the recipe from here. Sorry for the weird measurements again. I halved the recipe and still easily got 2 dozen doughnut holes.

Ingredients:

Scant 3/4 C Flour

1 tsp Baking Powder

1/4 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp Cinnamon

1/8 tsp Nutmeg

1/4 tsp Allspice

1/6 C Vegetable Oil

1/4 C  Brown Sugar

1/2 Egg

1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

scant 1/2 C canned Plain Pumpkin Puree

1/4 cup Milk

Cinnamon Sugar Coating:

3-4 Tbs melted butter

1/4 C of cinnamon sugar mixture

Directions:

In a medium bowl stir together first six ingredients. In a larger bowl, whisk oil, brown sugar, egg, vanilla, pumpkin and milk until smooth. Pour dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir until just mixed. Spoon into a greased mini-muffin tin. Cook at 350 for 10-12 minutes or until toothpick inserted in muffin comes out clean.

Let rest two minutes before dipping.

While the muffins are baking, melt your butter in one bowl and create a cinnamon sugar mix in another. When the muffins are cool enough to handle, dip in butter and then in cinnamon sugar mix to coat. 

I did some calculations and each muffin is about 40 calories if you don't dip them. If you dip them (and I highly recommend you do) you are looking at closer to 60 calories a piece. So go ahead, eat a couple!

Pumpkin Pancakes

I have been on a breakfast food kick lately. Today I made these pumpkin pancakes and was blown away with how good they were. These were some of the fluffiest pancakes I have ever had. I think the secret is in the egg-white step. The recipe said to beat the egg whites until they were stiff. I did not want to dirty my electric mixer because this recipe had already used up several bowls (I don't like dishes). So I just whipped them by hand until they were frothy. I think it worked great though because the pancakes were delicious.

I used soy milk and vegan butter because I am on a dairy-free diet but I am sure it would taste just as delicious (or even more so) with the "real" stuff.

My only complaint: it was a bit of work for just 8 pancakes. I will probably double the recipe next time and freeze the leftovers so I can enjoy them for many days!

Original recipe here.

Ingredients:

1/4 C flour
1/4 C whole wheat flour
1 Tbs sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice*
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 C milk
1/2 C pumpkin puree
2 large eggs, separated
2 Tbs butter, melted
1/2 tsp vanilla

*I mixed my own pumpkin pie spice: 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ground ginger, 1/8 tsp nutmeg, 1/8 tsp ground allspice. Makes 1 tsp of pumpkin pie spice.

Directions:
In a large bowl stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix milk, pumpkin, egg yolks, butter and vanilla until smooth. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ones until just combined. Beat the egg whites until stiff. Gently fold in to batter.

Cook 1/4 cup scoops of batter. Makes 8 pancakes. Serve with butter and cinnamon.

Hour Bread for French Toast

I like this bread recipe because it only takes one hour to make start to finish. It isn't quite right for sandwich bread but I LOVE it for french toast. I will often make a batch and cook the whole loaf into french toast so I can eat it for breakfast all week. (Or freeze some for later).

This recipe is very versatile and can be used as a pizza crust or even turned into cinnamon rolls.

The measurements are kind of weird because the original recipe made four loaves and I like just one at a time.

Ingredients:
2 5/8 C flour
3 Tbs sugar
1/4 Tbs salt
3/4 Tbs yeast
3/4 Tbs vital wheat gluten
1 C water

Directions:
Combine dry ingredients in a large mixer. Add water and knead for 5 minutes. Roll out and then roll up into proper loaf size. Place in greased pan and let rise for 25 minutes. Meanwhile preheat oven to 350. Bake for 25 minutes.

Oatmeal Wheat Pancakes

I got this recipe from my sister several months ago and these have quickly become my favorite pancakes. They taste delicious and are substantial with both oatmeal and whole wheat.

Ingredients
1 egg
1/3 C flour
1/3 C wheat flour
1/3 C oatmeal
3/4 C buttermilk (I use regular milk with 3/4 Tbs vinegar or lemon juice)
2 Tbs vegetable oil
1 Tbs sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Directions
Beat egg until fluffy. Add remaining ingredients. Cook over medium low heat. Makes about 8 pancakes.

Cinnamon Muffin

Made these for breakfast on Sunday. Delicious. Very sweet. There was more than enough batter, filling, and topping for a dozen muffins.

Adapted from here

Topping:
1/3 C brown sugar
1/4 C oats
1/2 C flour
3 Tbs butter, very soft

Filling:
2 tsp cinnamon
3 Tbs butter, melted
1/2 C brown sugar

Batter:
1/2 C butter, melted
3/4 C milk
2 eggs
1 3/4 C flour
1/2 C oats
2 Tbs cornstarch
3/4 C sugar
1 Tbs baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Directions:
In a small bowl combine the topping ingredients. In a separate bowl combine the filling ingredients. For the batter, mix the butter, milk, and eggs well. In a large bowl mix together the remaining batter ingredients. Add the liquid part all at once and mix until moist. Fill your greased muffin tins as follows:
Put in half of the batter, then dollop a bit of the filling in each cup. Top with remaining batter. Put on streusel topping and lightly press. Do not over-fill the muffin tins.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

*Note: the original recipe called for 1/2 C cinnamon chips instead of the 1 tsp cinnamon in the batter. I would like to try this sometime
**Warning, the muffins were a bit on the crumbly side where the filling went. Be careful when removing from tin.

Homemade Yogurt and Granola

I have made several attempts at homemade yogurt. This was the easiest and most successful try. The secret? Crockpot! Yes, a few years ago I wasn't even aware that you could make your own yogurt at home. Once I found out, I thought it was so neat I would give it a try. My first few attempts came out runny and/or did not work at all. But I think this crockpot method is pretty foolproof. You don't even need a thermometer. All you need is a crockpot, milk, a small amount of yogurt, and time.

Ingredients:
8 Cups of milk (or really any amount, I just used a half gallon)
1 starter yogurt (any plain store bought yogurt cup as long as it has "live and active cultures". I used brown cow this time and it turned out great)
2 Tbs sugar
1 Tbs vanilla - optional

Directions:
Pour the milk into your crockpot. Turn it on low for 2-3 hours depending on how hot your crock pot gets (you want the milk to reach 180 degrees). Then turn your crock pot off for 3 hours to let the milk cool a bit. Next, take a few cups of the milk and mix it with your starter, the vanilla, and sugar. Then pour back into the crock pot and stir. Put on the lid, cover with a towel to insulate. Let sit for 8-12 hours.

That is it, just leave it alone and the live and active cultures will do their work. The longer you wait, the thicker your yogurt will be. I accidentally let mine sit for 14 hours. It was almost a bit too thick for me - turning into more of a cottage cheese. I think 12 hours might suit me best.

Then here is another secret I learned this time. If your yogurt is still too runny for your liking, line a strainer with paper towels and set over a bowl. Pour your yogurt in and let it drain (in the fridge) for a few hours. Hey Presto! Now you have thicker yogurt and whey. You can save the whey to use as a substitute for water when baking. Apparently really healthy. I am going to try mine out today.

Additional options:

• You can leave out the vanilla and sugar until you have finished. That way you can set aside some unflavored yogurt to use as a sour cream substitute.
• You can add any sort of flavoring you want. Jams and jellies. Maple syrup, honey. I blended in some fresh strawberries to make strawberry yogurt.
• You can freeze in an ice tray to use for smoothies
• Whey can also be a substitute for buttermilk
  

Granola Recipe:
Yogurt and Granola! What a delicious breakfast combination. Here is my favorite peanut butter granola recipe:

Ingredients:
3 Tbs butter
1/4 C sugar
1/4 C brown sugar
3 Tbs milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 Tbs peanut butter
2-3 C oats

Directions:
On the stove, melt butter. Stir in sugars and milk. Bring to a boil and stir for two more minutes. Remove from heat. Add in peanut butter and vanilla. Then stir in 2-3 cups of oats until well coated. If you want it crunchier, you can spread on a pan and broil in the oven. Eat as a snack or over yogurt.

Crumpets and Scones

In honor of Prince William and Kate's wedding, Jeff and I had crumpets and scones for dinner. Actually, the day before we were having a conversation and I said something about crumpets for tea and we both realized that neither of us was quite sure what a crumpet was. With a little research, I learned that it is similar to an English muffin.

I found a recipe and we were pleasantly surprised with how tasty crumpets are. I think it was the butter you fry them in! They are a mix between English muffins and pancakes I think. I have never had them before but can definitely see myself doubling this recipe and using these for breakfast.

With the scones, I decided on a chocolate chip version (from Joyofbaking) because, let's face it, everything is better with a little chocolate. Although I was very tempted by a recipe with a cinnamon streusel on it. The scones were great because they didn't have to rise at all: so I can easily make them again without much planning/thought beforehand.

Crumpets:
(adapted from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:
2 1/4 tsp SAF instant yeast
1/4 C warm water
1 tsp sugar
1/3 C warm milk
1 Tbs butter, melted
1 egg
1 C flour
1/2 tsp salt





Directions:
Mix yeast and water. Add sugar and let proof 5 minutes. Mix in milk, butter, and egg. Add flour and salt and mix until smooth. Cover and let rise 45 minutes in a warm place. Fold over and let rise 15 more minutes.

Heat pan on low. Add some butter to the pan (let melt). Spoon batter onto pan (enough to make the size of crumpet you want). Cook on medium low for about 5-7 minutes until the bottom is browned and the top has bubbles and appears dry. Flip and cook another 2 minutes or until the other side is browned. Add more butter to pan as needed.

Serve with butter, jam, nutella, or other suitable topping. Eat warm or save and toast at a later time.

Scone:

Ingredients:
2 C flour
1/4 C sugar
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 C butter
1/2 C chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 C milk*
3/4 Tbs vinegar*

*you can substitute 3/4 C of buttermilk for the milk and vinegar

Directions:
Mix the milk and vinegar, let sit 5 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, soda, and salt. Cut in the butter with two knifes or a pastry blender (just as if you were making biscuits). When it looks crumbly, stir in the chocolate chips. Add the vanilla to the milk mixture. Slowly add 2/3 C of the milk to the bowl. Stir just until dough comes together. Add the remaining milk if necessary. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead a few times and then flatten out into a 1 1/2 inch thick circle. Cut the dough into 8 wedges (like a pizza). Place on a greased baking sheet. Brush tops with milk.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Breakfast Casserole

This is a casserole I had at a church Christmas breakfast. It was delicious so I got the recipe. I made it for dinner and even though the recipe said to refrigerate overnight, I just stuck it in the fridge for about an hour and it was great. Leftovers reheat well for breakfast!

Ingredients:
1 lb sausage
6 eggs
2 C milk
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground mustard
6 slices of white bread, cut in 1/2 in. pieces
1 C cheese

Directions:
Brown sausage and drain. Set aside. Beat together eggs, milk, salt, and mustard. Add bread, sausage, and cheese. Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight if desired. Take out of fridge 30 minutes before baking. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until cooked through.

Carrot Bread Muffins

These low-fat muffins were surprisingly sweet and moist. They also kept really well stored in a ziploc bag. I got the recipe from allrecipes.com and it said it made 10 servings. However, I was able to make a dozen muffins from the recipe.

I had originally purchased some applesauce to use in some chocolate chip cookies. The cookies turned out okay, but not very cookie like. They were more spongy. So I decided to make something else with the rest of the applesauce. So instead of butter or oil, these muffins were made with 3/4 cup of applesauce. You can't even tell! They are a great treat. Plus, since there are real carrots in them, you are getting some veggies in too! Win win!

Ingredients:
1 C sugar
1 C flour
1/2 C whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 C unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 C shredded carrot
1/4 C chopped walnuts (optional, I did not use)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix sugar, flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. In a separate bowl beat together applesauce, eggs, and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients, stirring until just moistened. Fold in carrots and walnuts (if desired). Spoon batter into muffin tins. Bake for 20-25 min or until done.

If you desire a carrot bread loaf, put batter in an 8 x 4 x 2 inch loaf pan and bake for 50-55 min.

Chocolate Chip Muffins

Here is a new recipe I tried on Sunday. These are not my favorite muffins ever but they were quick and easy and tasty enough!

Ingredients:
2 1/2 Cups pancake mix
1/2 Cup sugar
1 egg
2/3 Cup water
1/4 C canola oil
Chocolate Chips

Directions: Mix pancake mix and sugar in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk egg, water, and oil. Pour into dry ingredients, mixing until just moistened. Fold in chocolate chips (or blueberries or raspberries if you prefer).

Spray muffin tins with Pam or line with muffin cups. Fill two thirds full with batter. Bake at 400 degrees for 14-16 min.