Posts tagged breakfast
Blueberry Raspberry Pancakes with Candied Bacon
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Heat the oven to 375 F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spray a wire cooling rack with non-stick cooking spray and place it on the prepared baking sheet. Lay the strips of bacon on the wire rack with about 1/2- inch of space between them.
In a small bowl combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, paprika, and cocoa powder until well combined. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the bacon.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the bacon is crisp and the topping is bubbling. Cool completely on the rack. Once cool roughly chop reserving 2 strips for topping. Set aside.
Heat a flat griddle, or other large smooth bottom skillet, to medium-low heat.
In a medium bowl cream together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until smooth.
Add the eggs, one at a time, and whisk until evenly incorporated. Add the buttermilk and whisk until well combined.
In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to mix. Stir in the chopped bacon.
Make a well in the center and pour in the wet ingredients. Stir until just combined and no large lumps of dry flour remain.
Lightly fold in the berries, careful not to burst any or over-mix.
Spray the griddle with non-stick cooking spray and scoop the batter, by the 1/3 cup, on to the heated griddle.
Cook for 2 to 3 minutes on the first side, or until the batter begins to puff, the edges are no longer shiny, and the cooked side is golden brown.
Flip and cook for 1 to 2 minutes on the second side, or until the pancakes spring back when gently pressed in the center and are golden brown. 
(of course I decided to photograph the overcooked ones, lol…smh. Trust me, the rest turned out better) To hold pancakes while cooking store in a warm oven on a wire rack. They will hold for up to 45 minutes. Serve warm with a drizzle of the berry syrup and a sprinkle of the candied bacon.
These were so delicious I made them on Saturday AND Sunday. And then I started my diet on Monday. 
ENJOY!!!
Spinach Ham and Gruyere Quiche
0I wonder where the ‘real men don’t eat quiche’ nonsense comes from… I bet they won’t say it to my husband’s face. lol Now, I will admit that he pretty much KILLED the whole thing so I will say that if you plan for you and the kids to get a bite in, recognize that a “real man may be looking for some bacon on the side” lol. This was terribly simple and makes for a great brunch dish as well.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 ½ shallots, minced
- 8 oz. deli sliced ham (kinda thick)
- 1 bag flat-leaf baby spinach, roughly chopped
- Coarse salt and ground pepper
- 4 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated (about 1 cup)
- 1 Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crust
- 4 large eggs
- 1 ½ cups half-and-half
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- red pepper flakes (optional)
Directions
- Prepare your pie crust by gently unrolling into the pie dish. Push it down into the pan making sure the dough hangover is pretty even around the pan. (If it doesn’t come out perfect don’t worry. Look at mine, lol. I think that it gives it a homemade feeling and rustic quality. Here is a link to directions on crimping your crust: http://localfoods.about.com/od/piestarts/tp/crimping.htm Totally simple!
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks set in lower third. In a large skillet, heat butter over medium. Add ham and shallots, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 1 to 2 minutes. Add as much spinach to skillet as will fit; season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and toss, adding more spinach as room becomes available, until wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Make sure all spinach is used.
- Transfer spinach mixture to a colander. Press firmly with the back of a spoon to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Put spinach mixture into pie crust, top with cheese. Place crust on a rimmed baking sheet.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, half-and-half, nutmeg, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Pour egg mixture into crust.
- Arrange baking sheet on rack, and bake until center of each quiche is just set, 55 to 60 minutes, rotating sheets from top to bottom halfway through. Let quiches stand 15 minutes before serving.
I would’ve doubled the recipe but I was kinda peed off that I couldn’t find my other pie dish so I lashed out by starving everyone. lol If there are more than 4 people, double up! Also, play with your favorite meats and cheeses etc. It’s impossible to mess up, really. Enjoy!
Strawberry Buttermilk Pancakes
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This post will be short and sweet because we’ve already done this buttermilk pancake recipe in the Red Velvet Pancake post. The only change I made was bumping up the vanilla to 2 teaspoons. On that note, I use a high quality PURE vanilla extract. I got a very large bottle from TJMaxx for about $13. I’ve had it forever so it is worth the investment. For this recipe I also used this opportunity to try out my Egg and Pancake cooker (a circular metal cookie cutter looking thing). It’s definitely not needed but for the sake of my marriage I need to start using some of the crap I bring into this house. 
- Mine were like this but circular
- Ingredients
3 tablespoons white sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
3 eggs
2 tea. PURE vanilla extract
1/3 cup butter, melted
2- 2 1/2 cups sliced strawberries
oil or butter for pan
- Directions
I love you, dad.
0We all put a lot more money, time and effort into catering to mom on her big day than we do for dad. Admittance is the first step. Fathers seem to get the more sentimental gifts- monogrammed cigar boxes, golf club cozies, pics of the grand babies, t-shirts etc. and they seem to be fine with it. But let me try my mom with a shirt? Yeah right! Outdo yourself this year with a special breakfast that says it all. Well, you had better put some meat with it if you know what’s good for you. They don’t ask for much but I’m sure meat is on the list.
Using a cookie cutter or a knife, cut out a small heart shape from the center of a thick slice of bread. Spread each side of bread with herb butter (recipe below).
Heat skillet over medium heat. Saute bread until golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Lower heat, and gently flip toast.
Break an egg into heart-shaped hole. Using a spoon, gently hold yolk in center (for symmetry) until it sets. Cover, and cook until egg white turns opaque, about 5 minutes or so, depending on how soft you like your yolks. Transfer to a plate along with the heart-shaped piece of cutout bread, perfect for dipping into yolk. Don’t forget the meat! I served it with turkey sausage links to my Greggy.
Herb Butter
1 cup loosely packed fresh herbs, such as parsley, oregano, thyme, or marjoram, finely chopped
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
Directions
The ideal setup would be to throw your herbs in a food processor with he butter for a few pulses. By all means do it if you have one but i don’t so i just chopped and chopped as finely as I could and added the herbs to the softened butter, stirring until combined. Store in an airtight container, refrigerated, for up to 2 weeks.
*This butter would be FABULOUS over your favorite pasta dish as well!
Red Velvet Pancakes
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I was recently in Miami and the prize for going to early morning service (on top of being closer to God o_O ) was a trip to the Grand Luxe Cafe. lol I have to say that instead of making my little joke about being rewarded by man or my pancakes in heaven (IDK…I hadn’t worked it out completely which way I wanted to go with it lol) I decided NOT to piss my mom off and be happy that I finally had the opportunity to try their famed Red Velvet pancakes. (Meanwhile, my mom is on the cell phone inviting all of my sisters and cousins who DID NOT attend church with us but not without a small scolding about eternal damnation. (Trust me, you rather just get up and go with her than hear it, lol)
Of course the non-churchgoers beat us there but we didn’t hold them up because I’d heard too much about the pancakes and was sticking to it. Once they were served, I noticed they had actual chocolate chips in them and while that wasn’t my idea of a “traditional” red velvet cake, they were goooood. They serve them with fried chicken but I did it with bacon. Maybe later.
I took a basic buttermilk pancake recipe and made it velvety. That simple!
Buttermilk Pancakes
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons white sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
3 eggs
1/3 cup butter, melted
oil or butter for pan
Milk (just under one cup)
1 Tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice
2. Add enough milk to bring the liquid up to the one-cup line.
3. Let stand for five minute. Then, use as much as your recipe calls for.
Buttermilk Red Velvet Pancakes
Buttermilk Pancake recipe (above)
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
Bag of Ghiradelli Bittersweet Chocolate chips 70% cocao (10-12 per pancakes)
2-3 tablespoon red food coloring (see if that is enough to get the color you want, if not red enough, continue to add)
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting
8 oz softened cream cheese (1 package)
2 oz softened butter (1/2 stick)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract + more to taste
1 1/3 cups of powdered sugar + more to taste
With a mixer on medium speed, mix cream cheese and butter together. Add vanilla. Mix in sugar gradually.
Directions
In a large bowl, whisk the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt).
In a separate bowl, beat together the wet ingredients (buttermilk, milk, eggs, red coloring, vanilla extract and melted butter).
Keep the two mixtures separate until you are ready to cook.
Heat a griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. The pan is ready when you can flick water across the surface and it instantly beads up and sizzles. Lightly grease it.
Once that is hot, pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture, using a wooden spoon or fork to blend. Stir until it’s just blended together. Don’t over stir it. (A little lumpy is ok.)
Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/2 cup for each pancake. Immediately add 10-12 chocolate chips. Wait for the pancakes to bubble (2 – 3 minutes) before flipping and continue to cook for a minute or two. Serve hot with a dollop of cream cheese frosting (recipe follows).
Options:
Top with toasted walnuts or pecans
Top with chocolate chips
Make your own buttermilk (recipe above)
Top with maple syrup
Greg’s Bday Breakfast-Part 2 (Bananas Foster French Toast)
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I’ve made this recipe before and could not WAIT to make it for my family. For some reason, whenever I go home, I get really lazy and just love to let my mom take care of everything. However, since I was playing host this weekend, I KNEW this would be on the roster. Greg had reservations about the French Toast and the Shrimp and Grits meal combo but I knew they would appreciate it. We all consider ourselves FOODIES but since I am not in a great culinary city like Miami, I am charged with actually having to replicate the dishes I love….plus they can’t cook…shhhh.
Bananas Foster French Toast
(courtesy of Paula Deen)
Ingredients:
4 large eggs
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
8 tablespoons butter, divided
8 large croissants, halved
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup maple syrup
1 cup chopped pecans
6 ripe bananas, halved crosswise and lengthwise
1 teaspoon rum extract
Directions:
In a shallow dish, whisk together eggs, cream, and cinnamon. In a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Dip 4 croissant halves in egg mixture to coat both sides. Using a fork, remove croissants from egg mixture, letting excess mixture drip off. Place croissant halves in hot skillet. Cook 2 to 3 minutes per side or until lightly browned. Repeat procedure with remaining butter and croissant halves. Set aside and keep warm.
In a large skillet, combine corn syrup, brown sugar, maple syrup and pecans. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat, and simmer for 2 minutes. Add banana halves and rum extract. Coat with the syrup mixture, and simmer 1 minute. Spoon over French toast. Serve immediately.
Blueberry Pancakes
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On Sunday morning, I decided that we would have PANCAKES! My mom didn’t make pancakes for us as kids. She was more of a “grits n eggs”, southern girl and we had no complaints. I recalled watching one of my favs, “Throwdown with Bobby Flay” in which he challenged the famed Clinton Street Baking Company (CSBC) in New York to a Blueberry Pancake Throwdown. If you’re unfamiliar with the show, he finds people that are perceived to make the “BEST” something (pancakes, mac n cheese, crab cakes, fish tacos, etc.) and tries to improve their recipe and then challenge them to a duel. You should check it out….I digress.
Bobby’s Pancakes beat out CSBC’s and made it to my “To-do” list. I planned to perform the recipe as created but there were 2 reasons why I didn’t:
Haute Eggs
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As I told you, I’ve exhausted my Fiercefoodie budget for the month (or until Greg forgets) yesterday on my Patron. Nevermind the fact that he ate 2 cupcakes. Ummmhmmm…. Anyway, I noticed that I have no breakfast contributions on the site so I decided to try to get some daylight shots for a change (supposedly a key factor in food photography) and scramble some eggs. Plus, I was in no hurry to dirty my recently cleaned kitchen, so a one-pot dish was ideal. After a check around the fridge, I found a couple slices of oven roasted deli turkey, deli Muenster cheese, a little white cheddar, a shallot, sundried roasted tomatoes and a little heavy cream.
Of course, you can use ANYTHING for the scramble. Scrambles are quick and more forgiving than trying to fold your eggs over into an omelette. I can do it though (very slowly however) so don’t sleep on my skills. : ) But with the scramble, you get to stuff it with a lot more goodies that otherwise wouldn’t fit in that thin little envelope. Usually, I use leftover mushrooms, onions and peppers but apparently I haven’t cooked anything lately (if you let Mr. Ungrateful tell it, lol) Hey! Birthday girls eat out.
Tyler’s Ultimate Shrimp & Grits
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(Recipe courtesy of Food Network.com)
Level: Easy, 4 servings
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil ( I quasi-covered the bottom of the skillet with the EVOO)
- 1 medium white onion, minced
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 pound andouille or spicy Italian spicy sausage, cut in chunks
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 to 3 bay leaves
- 2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails on
