Breakfast: What to do When Company's Coming!

I love breakfast.

It is - as you've all been told over and over again - the most important meal of the day but it's also the most versatile.

You can literally bake, toast, fry, poach, or cook up anything you want and it would be acceptable breakfast food.

You can have steak and eggs for breakfast no questions asked (unless you have high cholesterol), but what if you ordered steak and eggs for dinner?

While I would commend you on making breakfast an all day event, some people would definitely think it odd to want scrambled eggs at night.

And as for those All-Day Breakfast joints (which are phenomenal), notice they specify that it's breakfast they're serving all day, not lunch because who orders pancakes and bacon for lunch?

But you want salmon for breakfast? You got it.

You want fajitas with the sunrise? Sure thing.

You want last night's cold pizza with your coffee? Coming right up.

Breakfast is the bomb.

You can have literally anything you want and it's not weird.

And if you have company coming over for breakfast or staying the night and expecting to be well fed the next morning then I have found 3 amazing recipes you can try!

I started thinking about more interesting breakfast recipes this morning when I stumbled across a selection of recipes from the April issue of Canadian Living.

I saw a recipe (and drool-worthy picture) for a British breakfast called

TOAD IN THE HOLE

(picture from http://www.recipes4us.co.uk/)

If you like sausage as much as I do (ha-ha, grow up) then this English gem should be making an appearance on your table sooner rather than later. It's as easy as this:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a cast-iron skillet, heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil over medium-high heat and then brown 6 sausages (banger-style is ideal but you can really use any kind you like).

2. Transfer the sausages to the oven and cook until the insides are no longer pink, about 15-20 minutes.

3. In a bowl, whisk together 3 eggs, 1 cup flour, and 1/4 tsp salt. You should end up with a thick paste. Slowly whisk in 1 cup milk until the mixture smooths out. Stir in 2 tsp chopped rosemary and pour over the sausages.

4. Bake for 25 minutes until crisp and brown, and resist the urge to open the oven door! This could deflate the nice puff your flour mixture will create around the sausages.

The second breakfast recipe that is great for company is very different from Toad in the Hole. If you like having something sweet (pancakes drenched in syrup, crepes, waffles, french toast, or muffins) for breakfast, then this recipe is for you! It's best served warm so unless you want to be the host/hostess with the most/mostess and wake up at 5:30 am to make this fresh, make it the night before and pop it into the oven for 5-10 minutes to warm it up before you serve it!

MONKEY BREAD

(picture and recipe from bakingbites.com)

1. Lightly grease a bundt pan and set aside.
2. In a bowl, mix together 2 1/2 tsp dry active yeast and 1/4 cup warm water and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.
3. Stir in 1 cup of flour, 1 tsp salt, 3 tbsp sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1 egg, 2 tbsp melted butter, and 3/4 cup warm milk. Mix until the dough is fairly smooth (if you have a stand mixer, throw on your dough hook and let 'er rip). Gradually add in another 2 to 2 1/2 cups flour and mix until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Knead the dough for 3-4 minutes. Place back in the bowl, cover with plastic and let sit for 30 minutes.
4. While you wait, get out another bowl and whisk together 2 cups brown sugar, 1 1/2 tbsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp allspice. Set out another bowl beside the first and in it place 1/2 cup melted butter.
5. After the 30 minutes is up, turn out the dough on a lightly floured surface and gently flatten out the dough using your hands. Cut small pieces of dough off to form small balls. Do this by rolling the dough in your ever-so-slightly floured hands. Dunk each ball into the butter and using a fork, transfer the dough ball into the brown sugar mix and roll it in the bowl to cover it. Place the dough ball in the bundt pan. Repeat this step until all of the dough has been cut into dough balls. Cover the full bundt pan with plastic wrap and let it rise until almost doubled in bulk, about an hour.
6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the monkey bread for 30-35 minutes then let cool for 10 minutes before turning out onto the serving dish.
**This bread is best warm and gooey so, again, if you make this ahead of time, don't remove it from the bundt pan and pop it back in the oven for a few minutes before serving!


Finally, if you want to keep your breakfast more low-key but still retain that element of elegance, I have the solution for you.
This is a recipe that I saw on Everyday Italian with the lovely Giada Di Laurentiis a few years back but I can't find it nor do I remember her exact steps.
So it's inspired by her, with a twist all my own.

Scrambled Egg Baguette

(the actual results will look different to this but this was the closest picture I could find)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with tin foil.

2. Cut a baguette (your choice of type of bread, ciabatta works well as do french baguettes) length wise into top and bottom. Carefully pull out most of the soft inner part of the loaf, leaving a hollow middle section in the bread. Make sure you leave high sides and the ends intact. Place the hollow baguettes on the baking sheet and set the bread you removed aside.

3. In a bowl, whisk 5 eggs with 1/3 cup milk, 1/2 tbsp butter, and 3 tbsp finely chopped chives. Rip the bread you set aside into bite-sized pieces and add into the egg mix. Pour the mix into the hollowed out baguette and place in the oven. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the eggs are fully cooked.

4. Cut the baguette into your desired serving size, serve and enjoy!

Easy, right?

Hope you can use at least one of those recipes for a delicious breakfast this weekend!

Choux Pastry: Easy & Elegant

I decided that, since choux pastry looked like it would be much more difficult to make than it seemed, I would experiment with it last night and figure out where I went wrong, which steps I went through too quickly, etc.

The good news?

Choux pastry only looks like it requires an arsenal of pastry-making skills and a lot of free time.

I followed the Williams Sonoma recipe from yesterday and it worked out perfectly - even with a delay as I ran out of eggs and had to send John on a run to buy another carton.

Choux Pastry:

...and while I had no ice cream to make proper profiteroles, I did dunk those bad boys in chocolate (the same chocolate topping in the Williams Sonoma recipe from yesterday also):

Yum.

I made the smaller profiterole-sized pastries and also some eclair-sized pastries.

You can really play around with the size and shape you want by using different pipping bags and tips.

Hey so in other news, I am a struggling student with literally an empty bank account to my name.

Do any of you think there's a market for gift baskets?

A few of my friends have gotten into selling personalized cakes and cupcakes and so far they've gotten good feedback.

I'd like to think I can throw together a mean gift basket, with sweet and savory food items, homemade crafts like candles, bath stuff, and hey I can even knit scarves and blankets.

Ooooo I could sell blankets!

Sorry, back on track.

While I'm not quite sure if I want to set up my own little gift basket business, if you know anyone who is stuck for ideas for a birthday, Christmas (especially Christmas!), graduation, every other holiday, or anniversary gift - ask them if they'd consider a gift basket and send them my way!

I'm working on one now for John's sister and it's going to be good!

Birthday Basket: Profiteroles and Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies

This morning I was browsing through the stations on TV to find something to watch with our fry-up long weekend breakfast and I stumbled upon the gameshow network.

Does anyone remember this show!?

I used to watch it ALL THE TIME when I was a youngster.

I think I was doomed to have a love affair with food and the kitchen and grocery stores.

I always wanted to be a contestant. That or on Kids Street - you know, the one where the kids sat in the race cars and clapped over their heads?

Robin and I used to practice by making up trivia questions about ourselves so that we knew everything about each other.

We would have killed on that show.

Moving on...

John's sister's birthday is next Saturday and she's turning 30. I've decided to put together a birthday gift basket of sorts and I have a few ideas.

I bought the basket at Home Outfitter's a few days ago and I'm thinking of putting in a bottle of wine (maybe from 30 Bench? If I think she won't be too sensitive about her age...), some cappucino or some kind of nicer coffee-type drink packets, maybe some nice tea as well. I'm also going to bake a loaf of bread, make some madeleines, maybe biscotti, and these two recipes:

Anna Olson's Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies

(but made with soy butter to be allergy-friendly)

(photo from the foodnetwork.ca)

(recipe from Anna Olson's Sugar)

To make these cookies:

1. Cream 1/2 cup butter with 1 cup brown sugar until smooth. Beat in 1 tsp vanilla and 1 egg.

2. In a separate bowl, combine 2/3 cup flour, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, a dash of black pepper, and 1/4 tsp salt. Add to butter mixture to blend, then stir in 1 1/2 cups quick oats. Place the dough on a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log about 2-inches wide. Chill at least 2 hours before slicing.
3. Preheat oven to 350 °F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
4. Slice cookies into ¼ -inch slices and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking tray. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until browned. Cool cookies before removing from baking tray.
5. To make the filling, beat 2/3 cup soy butter, 2/3 cup icing sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Spread filling on bottom of one cookie and sandwich with a second. Repeat until all cookies are filled. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

The second recipe that I REALLY want to make and perfect is for profiteroles.

I have a feeling that making choux pastry is not as easy as it may sound so it's going to be my challenge!

Williams-Sonoma Profiteroles

(photo & recipe from Williams-sonoma.com)

To make the choux pastry:
1. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup water, 6 tbsp butter and 1/4 tsp salt and bring to a full boil. When the butter melts, remove the pan from the heat, add 1 cup flour all at once and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until blended. Return the pan to medium heat and continue stirring until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan and forms a ball. Remove from the heat and let cool for 3 to 4 minutes, or to 140°F on an instant-read thermometer.

2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk 1 egg. When the batter has cooled, add the egg and beat with the spoon until incorporated. Whisk each of the remaining 3 eggs one at a time, then stir into the batter. After each egg is added, the mixture will separate and appear shiny but will return to a smooth paste with vigorous beating. Let the paste cool for about 10 minutes before shaping.

3. Position 2 racks evenly in the oven and preheat to 425°F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

(a) To shape small puffs (ideal for profiteroles), fit a pastry bag with a 3/16-inch plain tip and fill the bag with the paste. For each puff, pipe about 1 tsp. of the paste onto a prepared pan, forming a mound about 1/2 inch in diameter. Space the mounds at least 2 inches apart to allow for expansion.

(b) To shape large puffs (ideal for cream puffs), fit a pastry bag with a 5/8-inch plain tip and fill the bag with the paste. For each puff, pipe about 1 Tbs. of the paste onto a prepared pan, forming a mound about 2 inches in diameter. Space the mounds at least 2 inches apart to allow for expansion.

(c) To shape logs (ideal for éclairs), fit a pastry bag with a 3/4-inch plain tip and fill the bag with the paste. Pipe out logs 4 inches long and 1 inch wide. Space the logs at least 2 inches apart to allow for expansion.

4. Bake the puffs for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375°F and continue baking until golden brown, 5 to 10 minutes more for the small puffs and 15 to 20 minutes more for the large puffs and logs. Remove from the oven and immediately prick the side of each puff or log with the tip of a sharp knife. Return to the oven, leave the oven door open and allow the pastries to dry out for 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer the pans to wire racks and let the pastries cool completely on the pans before filling.

5. To make the chocolate sauce, in the top pan of a double boiler, combine 6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips and 1/3 cup light corn syrup. Set the pan over but not touching barely simmering water in the bottom pan and heat, stirring often, until the chocolate melts. Add 1/3 cup half-and-half or milk, 1 tbsp butter and 1 tsp vanilla and stir until blended.

6. To assemble, slit the puff-shaped choux horizontally almost through and fill each with a small scoop of ice cream (vanilla is probably the most common but you can use any flavour you want). Arrange 3 or 4 filled puffs on each dessert plate or bowl. Spoon the warm chocolate sauce over the puffs. Serve immediately.

I obviously won't be able to fill the profiteroles with ice cream before I put them in the gift basket so I may do cream puffs instead....or put the chocolate sauce on, let it dry and harden and then bring ice cream to do a kind of make-your-own profiterole station.

I'll think on this.

John and I are heading out for brunch at either the Golden Griddle or an all-day breakfast place near us :)

Enjoy the long weekend everyone

Good Morning (Nut-Free) Granola Bars

John and I went shopping last night to pick up cat litter for the poor little bugger and while we were there I took a walk down the breakfast food aisle.

I starred at the peanut butter replacements for a few minutes, debating whether or not I would buy a jar and try out the "peanut butter" granola bar recipe.

After a few back and forth mind changes and a few encouraging words from John, we bought a jar.

This stuff is actually pretty good.

It has the same texture and the same taste as I remember peanut butter having.

You can probably find soy butter products at your grocery store on the same shelf as the regular peanut butter.

It's kind of funny....it took me a full five minutes to remind myself that this was safe and not actual peanut butter and that trying it wouldn't result in swelling, hives, and itchiness.

I literally put some on my finger and then looked back and forth between my finger and the jar for five minutes. I re-read the declarations and promises of being nut free several times.

In the end I bit the bullet and tried it, then later devoured half the pan of granola bars.

Like a shark going into a feeding frenzy from the faintest sniff of blood, such, apprently, is me with "peaNOT butter" as my friend Danielle cleverly called it.

I want to try and make those delicious peanut butter (replacement) cookies now!

Anna Olsen's original recipe, fiddled with to my liking:

Good Morning Nut-Free Granola Bars

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. I a bowl, toss together 2 cups rolled oats, 1 cup crispy rice cereal, 1/2 cup raisins, 1/4 cup chocolate chips, 1/4 cup mixed dry peels (like the kind you put in christmas fruit cakes).
2. In a sauce pan over medium-low heat, melt 1 cup soy butter, 1 cup brown sugar, 1/3 cup butter, 2 tsp vanilla extract, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, and a pinch of salt. Once melted together, pour overtop of the oat mixture.
3. Pour granola batter into a pan lined with parchment paper. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Let cool, then place pan in the fridge to allow granola to set, at least 2 hours. Cut into bars and enjoy!

I brought some over to my mom this morning and she was very impressed with how peanut-butter-y they really taste.

This product is perfect for anyone who loves peanut butter but can't have it for various reasons - allergies, working in a school, etc. I recommend giving it a try if you're curious about peanut butter replacements.

Hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend!

Granola Bars: Make Your Own!

In a few weekends I'll be heading up north to Algonquin Park for a few days of lakes, canoes, and campfires.

One thing we always tend to pack to bring with us food-wise is a box of granola bars.

They don't take up a lot of space and they make perfect snacks when you need something to give you more energy to paddle until lunch or until dinner time.

I want to try and make my own granola bars to take with us this time.

A lot of recipes include nuts and peanut butter so obviously a nut-free granola bar is preferable.

I found 2 recipes that interest me, one that I can make as-is and the other that uses a lot of nuts and nut products. I kind of want to see if I can substitue things to make it nut-free without ruining the taste.

I don't think anyone who isn't allergic to nuts has ever tried any of those no-nut butter products (I certainly wouldn't if I could still stick my hands in a jar of peanut butter and lick those fingers clean) but I tried a no-nut peanut butter product one time a few years ago. It was phenomenal ....the first time. I made a no-nut butter and banana sandwich and almost cried it was so good.

Then the second time I tried it, it tasted all wrong and actually made me feel sick.

So I'm wondering if I used it in a recipe where it's not necessarily the main ingredient whether it will work or not.

First up:

Anna Olsen's Granola Bars

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and grease and line a 9-inch square pan with parchment paper so that the paper hangs over the sides of the pan.
2. Toss 2 cups rolled oats, 1/2 cup shredded coconut, 1/2 cup raisins, 1/4 cup sunflower seeds and 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds together in a bowl.

3. In a pot over medium-low heat, stir 1 cup peanut butter (or nut free alternative), 1 cup brown sugar, 1/3 cup butter, 2 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg and 1/2 tsp salt until melted.
4. Pour melted mixture over oat base and stir until blended. Stir in 1 egg and spread granola into prepared pan, patting down to make even. Bake for 30 minutes, then cool for 20 minutes before chilling for 2 hours.
5. To cut, lift granola out of pan with parchment paper and cut into bars.

The second recipe is already a nut-free recipe:

Martha Stewart's Nonuttin' Chewy Chocolate Granola Bars

(From Alana Elliot of Nonuttin' Foods)

1. Spray an 8-by-8-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; line baking sheet with parchment paper, leaving a 1-inch overhang on all sides. Set aside.
2.Place 1 3/4 cups oatmeal and 1 1/4 cups crisp-rice cereal in a large bowl; stir to combine. Set aside.
3. In a medium saucepan, mix together 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/3 cup vegetable oil, and 1/3 cup honey. Place over medium-high heat; bring to a gentle boil. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add to oatmeal mixture; stir until oatmeal mixture is fully coated and well combined.
4. Evenly pour oatmeal mixture into prepared baking dish; sprinkle with 1/2 cup chocolate chips. When mixture is cool enough to touch, press down into pan. Let cool to room temperature. Cut into 16 (1-by-4-inch) bars. Granola bars can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week, and frozen up to six months.



I'd be tempted to add some dried cranberries, or other dried fruits to this recipe just to make it a bit more interesting.

I may attempt both of these recipes at some point in the upcoming weeks so I'll keep you posted on which one is the better recipe.

Off to work - forecast calls for rain so it could be a nice easy day!

P.S. I made the pumpkin spice lattes last night - really good! Give that recipe a try!

Blue Cheese Pop-Overs

Yesterday marked 2 years of cohabitation between me and John.

It's crazy that we've been living together for that long already!

It's been a wonderful two years and if these two are any indication of how things are going to play out in the future, well....I think we're in for one heck of a fun ride.

Photo taken from pigeon-master.livejournal.com

Since we both kind of forgot that yesterday was our move-in anniversary (oops) we're making a nice chicken pasta with buffalo mozarella for dinner. And because pasta isn't enough carbs, I put another recipe from the Martha Stewart Hors d'eouvres Handbook to the test:

Blue Cheese Pop-Overs

Though mine didn't really get the nice pop-over look on the top, they are very light and airy AND even though I added a ton more blue cheese than the recipe called for (I had almost a full package to try and use up, left over from the Pommes Annette) the taste is subtle. I think even blue cheese-ophobes could be persuaded to give these at least one thumb up.

To make these pop-overs:

1. In a bowl, whisk together 2 eggs, 1 cup milk, 1 cup flour, 2 tbsp melted butter, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tbsp black pepper. Whisk until all of the lumps have smoothed out.

2. Add in 1 1/4 ounces of blue cheese (I used about 3/4 cup worth of cheese cut into very small cubes). Whisk again until smooth then put the batter in the refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours and preferably overnight.

3. Once chilled for several hours, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Spoon batter into well greased mini muffin tins. Bake the pop-overs for 15-18 minutes or until the tops begin to brown slightly.

4. Allow them to cool slightly, remove from the pans, and serve while still warm.

I'm off to go finish up this pasta so I will post again tomorrow :)

P.S. I got a denim shirt yesterday! It's glorious. I found it at H&M for a reasonable price and while there I also found an amazing cocktail ring with a big black stone that rotates! It's stylish and fun to play with.

Win-win.

Good Things for September (2010)

It's September!

School is just around the corner, the summer weather is going to start to cool down, and by the end of the month we'll likely be seeing the beautiful colours of autumn as the leaves start to turn shades of yellow, red, and orange.

I find September a hard month to pick seasonal 'Good Things' for because it's that month sandwiched perfectly between the end of summer and the start of autumn so while I try to stay away from warm weather items, I also don't want to only feature things like knit sweaters and autumn harvest vegetables (those'll be for next month).

So - here are some things I'm excited for this month

'Good Things' for September

1. Revlon Nail Polish in 'Make Mine Mango' (number 920)

My mom accidently bought two of these (she liked it THAT much!) so she kindly sent one my way. I quickly fell in love with this shade! It's not quite pink, not quite orange, but a wonderful combination of the two. I find it to be a bright, happy shade but it's also a flattering colour that I think most people will be able to wear.

2. Silk Light Vanilla Soy Milk

I bought this for the first time a few weeks ago and really like it. It's a bit thicker than regular milk and I like the light vanilla taste. Because it's made from soy, I assumed there would be more protein but surprisingly a cup of 1% milk has 3 g more protein than a cup of Silk does. Weird. Silk does have more iron though, if that counts for anything. It's lactose-free so it's good for those who are lactose intollerant. It's tasty and I like it.

3. Lattes

Who doesn't love a warm steaming cup of coffee especially on a chilly morning? And sometimes, but not too often, it's nice to treat yourself to a latte. My personal favourites (from Starbucks because I always seem to get gift cards to Starbucks and I like to use them to get myself fancier drinks) are the Skinny Vanilla Latte and, when I'm feeling a bit more liberal with my calorie spending, the Chai Tea Latte. The approach of Autumn also means the return of the Pumpkin Spice Latte!
If you want to make your own (less expensive) version, I found a recipe by a woman named Jeannie, which I've made a few of my own changes to
(recipe from http://www.recipecircus.com/recipes/Joy/BEVERAGES/Pumpkin_Pie_Latte_by_Jeannie.html):

1. In a small saucepan, stir 3 heaping tbsp pumpkin puree into 1 cup light vanilla soy milk. Add 2 tbsp maple syrup (*Jeannie recommends adding vanilla syrup but I think maple syrup compliments pumpkin pie flavour*) and 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice. Heat gently, continuing to stirring occasionally just until steaming and foam begins to appear.
2. Pour pumpkin flavored milk into a tall mug and pour 1-2 shots of espresso over. Top with whip cream and a dash of pumpkin pie spice.
Note: If you like it slightly sweeter add some vanilla flavored coffee cream.


4. Corn

Whether you're wrapping in bacon and throwing it on the BBQ, boiling it and rubbing it with a pat of butter, or cutting it off the cob to add to any number of dishes, corn is one of those vegetables that taste so much better in the summer sunshine.
Never tried wrapping your corn in bacon and BBQ-ing it?
Well friends, boil your corn for about 5 minutes of until you can fairly easily poke the kernels with a fork. Remove from the boiling water and wrap a slice or two of bacon around that corn-on-the-cob, securing the ends with a toothpick. Place on the BBQ for a few minutes until the bacon is cooked then serve and enjoy. Don't forget to remind your guests that there are toothpicks in their corn, unless you remove them yourself before serving.


5. The Alexa bag from Mulberry



The bag is called the 'Alexa' because it was inspired by the woman holding the bag in the picture above, Alexa Chung. She's a British model turned MTV VJ turned fashionista. I like her style.
And I love this bag.
There's no way in H-E-double hockey sticks I'll be able to afford this bag unless I win the lottery so I'll just have to keep my eye out for similar-looking satchels.
Side note: does everyone else automatically think of THIS when they hear the word satchel?



6. Denim Shirts

A la Ashley Olsen.

I realize I'm a little late on the denim-shirt trend but I feel like they make better fall shirts than summer. Especially considering we're not done with the 30+ temperatures just yet. And while I like to look nice and in fashion, there's no way I'm going to sweat it out in a denim shirt just to look stylish.

I'm going to look for sales at the Gap.

All from the Gap, all potential candidates: 1. Boys Blue Chambray shirt (being able to still sometimes buy children's clothes is one of the perks of being on the smaller end of the size spectrum), 2. Womens chambray tunic top, 3. Single-pocket boyfriend shirt.

I think I like the first 2 the best though.


Well that's that!

If you have your own 'Good Things' you think should be included in September's list please feel free to add them in the comments section!