Grab'n Go Breakfasts

And better yet, they're make ahead breakfasts you can feel good about!
I had Miss Mak help me with these this morning and since most of the measurements are large it was fairly easy. The fun part was using a potato masher to cream the bananas. Of course her favorite part was taste testing.

First up...

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Squares

 Recipe Found at Gingerbread Bagels

What You'll Need:

1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar {I used rapadura)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 large mashed banana
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

What To Do:
Mix together the quick cooking oats, sugar, baking powder, kosher salt and ground cinnamon.
Add in the vanilla extract, milk and egg. Mix the ingredients together.
Then add in the mashed banana and peanut butter. Combine all of the ingredients.
Pour the mixture into a lightly greased 8 by 8 inch metal baking pan. Bake at 350 F degrees for 20 minutes.
Cut into squares and enjoy!
 

and since I already had half of the same ingredients out, I went ahead and made a batch of

Banana Oat Breakfast Cookies

 

 Recipe From Watching What I Eat

What You'll Need:

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp cinnamon (or more, to taste) 

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1/3 cup raisins, or to taste

1 1/2 cups oatmeal, quick or old fashioned

2 ripe bananas, mashed with fork until creamy

What To Do:

Set oven to 350.

Mix first three ingredients in a large bowl. 

Add remaining ingredients and let sit for at least 10 minutes. {I used old fashioned oats so I let it sit for closer to 20.}

Drop cookie dough, by spoonfuls, onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet & flatten cookies into rounds.
Bake approx. 30-35 minutes, or until golden & done.
Remove from oven & let rest on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then move to cooling rack.

When completely cool store in a covered container.

Individual Fruit Pizza

We had a baby shower for a beautiful friend this weekend who may very well be the cutest pregnant woman I've ever seen!

I was asked to make something to eat at the shower and of course I jumped at the chance to try out some new recipes I've found on Pinterest!

There has been a really fun fruit salad idea going around from The Entertaining Elf that's perfect for baby showers but it's a bit popular and I like off-beat so I opted for the fruit pizza idea I found at Joy Is At Home which I spun off of and used the Amazing Fruit Salsa recipe I love so much. 

So here's how it goes... 

What You'll Need: 

sugar cookies {baked and cooled}

1 container cool whip

8 oz cream cheese

1 batch of fruit salsa 

What To Do:

Mix cool whip and cream cheese together with a fork or hand mixer. {If you taste this mixture you'll notice that it's light on flavor but I promise you, that's just how you want it.}

Get your cookies handy...{I opted to save my time and use the Pillsbury cut and bake.

 They hold up well if the salsa gets juicy. I don't recommend using a soft sugar cookie recipe with this.}

   and then...

 and...

Finally, you send me a "thank you" card for finding and sharing this yummy-ness! 

Happy Day To You!!

Amazing Fruit Salsa

I had this fruit salsa recipe for the first time about a year ago and loved it from the first bite.

My mother-in-law, the baker, brought up some up with her and I believe the recipe came to her from a woman in her home church in SouthWestern PA. 

It's pretty basic in it's ingredients and the results are, as I said, AMAZING! 

2 kiwi, peeled and diced

2 golden delicious apples, peeled, cored and diced

1 lb strawberries, diced

1 8 oz can pineapple chunks, undrained and cut into smaller pieces {or 1 c fresh pineapple}

3 Tbsp peach preserves

2 Tbsp white sugar {next time I make this I'm skipping the sugar to see how it goes}

1 Tbsp brown sugar {same here}

 

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.  Cover and chill in refrigerator for at least 15 min.

C'est fini!  

This stuff is great with yogurt, granola, cinnamon chips, as fruit pizza, all on it's own...

MMM... SO GOOD! 

Broiled Grapefruit

I found the recipe for this yummy-ness at Williams-Sonoma and made a couple of adjustments...

What You'll Need: 1 grapefruit - 1/4 c of rapadura (or brown sugar) - 1 T butter, melted - 1/2 t cinnamon 

What To Do: Cut a grapefruit in half and section pieces. Mix rapadura/brown sugar with butter and cinnamon and pour over the top of each half.

 Place on a baking sheet about 4 inches from the broiler and heat for 2-3 minutes until everything's uniformly bubbly.

 YUM!

Sonoma's original recipe found here

PB&J Smoothie

We have taken a break from out standard tropical fruit, spinach, kefir, and yogurt smoothie because I made this once and the kids love it!
Yes, they actually ASK for it!
I found the idea at 100 Days of Real Food. Great site!
I vary from the original a bit but the basics are the same and I want to give credit to the originator of the idea...

My Version:   1/3 c yogurt, 1/3 c kefir or milk, 1/3 c peanut butter, 1 banana, 1 c frozen blueberries

Blend together and serve.

Brunch Recipes

I had an impromptu play date this morning.
I wanted to try out some brunch recipes since my collection is a bit slim.
Based on my testing and feedback from other snackers... I consider these successes. 

The Protein:

Crouton Breakfast Casserole

my adaptation... 
4 slices of deli ham
2 Tablespoons butter - melted
1 and 1/2 cups croutons (seasoned croutons work great)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3 large eggs - slightly beaten
3/4 cup milk
salt and pepper - to taste

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Prepare a medium-small baking dish (like 7x7 inch) with a light coating of cooking spray.
Layer the croutons in the bottom of the dish and drizzle evenly with melted butter.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, ham, 1/2 of the cheese, salt, and pepper. Pour this mixture over the croutons. Top the casserole with the remaining shredded cheese.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until eggs are set and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let the casserole stand 10 minutes. Cut into equal portions and serve warm.

The Starch:

Hash Brown Casserole

my adaptation... 
3/4 cup chopped onion 
1/2 teaspoon paprika 
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
1 (32-ounce) package frozen Southern-style hash brown potatoes, diced 
2 tablespoons butter, melted and divided  
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
1 (8-ounce) carton light sour cream (such as Daisy) 
Cooking spray  
2 cups cornflakes, coarsely crushed


Preheat oven to 350. Combine first 4 ingredients and 1 tablespoon of butter in a large bowl; toss well. Combine soup and cheese in a medium sauce pan over medium head and stir until cheese melts. Careful not to let it burn and you don't' have to melt down all cheese, just enough to make it gooey. Stir in sour cream. Pour cheese mixture over potato mixture and stir well. Spread mixture evenly in a 13x9 greased baking dish. Combine cornflakes and remaining butter and sprinkle evenly over potato mixture. Bake for 1 hour.

The Fruit:

Caramel Apple Breakfast Casserole

6 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
4 medium or 3 large apples, peeled and diced
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
6 slices of bread, torn

In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs, milk, cinnamon and nutmeg.Peel and dice the apples.  In a smaller mixing bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon.  Toss with diced apples {I did this is a large plastic bag}. In a greased 8×8-inch glass baking dish, tear 3 slices of bread and add to the bottom.  Then add a layer of the diced caramel apples.Tear the other 3 slices of bread and spread on top of the apples. Pour egg/milk mixture into the baking dish.  Cover with foil and let stand in the refrigerator for at least an hour (overnight, ideally!).  Preheat oven to 350. Bake covered for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake another 15-20 minutes, or until eggs have cooked through.

{Blueberry Waffles with Lemon Icing}

I found this recipe at Vegan Yum Yum. Blueberry and Lemon just may be my favorite combination. With a couple of minor adjustments {for personal prefrence} it's rather yummy. Hubs worried they'd be "no bueno" when he heard the word "vegan" but after assuring him that I made some adjustments, he tried and liked them a lot.
It's a touch of sweet and sour for breakfast. My favorite!

Waffles
What You'll Need:
2 Cups All Purpose Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
3 Tbs Sugar
2 cups kefir {can be subbed with 2/3 c plain yogurt and 1 1/3 c milk}
5 Tbs Water
1/3 Cup Oil
1 Cup Fresh Blueberries (*see note about using frozen)
Spray Oil for the waffle iron

What To Do:
Preheat your waffle iron.

Mix all the dry ingredients together well with a whisk. In another bowl, whisk the wet ingredients together. Combine wet and dry, then gently fold in berries.
Spray your waffle iron with a little bit of oil and make a test waffle. In my waffle maker, 1/2 cup of batter is perfect for a single waffle, and they cook for 10 minutes. Follow the instructions or your preferred directions for your waffle maker. This recipe makes 10 waffles if each waffle uses 1/2 cup of batter.

*If using frozen blueberries, keep them in the freezer until the last second. Reserve 1-2 Tbs of your dry mixture. When you’re ready to add the blueberries, take them out of the freezer, measure them and mix them with the reserved dry mixture. Then fold them into your mixed batter in NO MORE than three (3!!) folds. This will prevent your batter from turning a gray-purple color.

Lemon Icing
What You'll Need:
1 c powdered sugar
1 t lemon juice
zest of 1/2 lemon
2-4 T milk

What To Do:
Mix in a blender until smooth. You can do it without a blender if you feel like sifting your powdered sugar to make sure there are no lumps.

Thick, Creamy, Tasty Yogurt

Technically this is "round 2" but round one was such a failure I didn't want to share it....
I originally took a stab at this recipe from Passionate Homemaking for crockpot yogurt. I wanted to sweeten it up a little so I found a few suggestions online as to how to best do that and wound up with a rather gross, soupy mix that went straight down the drain.
It has taken me several months to be willing to try again but here we are.
I followed a crockpot free recipe from Passionate Homemaking this time which was super simple because the directions were VERY detailed.

 

 

 

 

 

The results?

Vanilla yogurt that tastes much like store bought with maybe a touch more tang. Nothing I can't handle and, to be honest, I'm a picky eater in the way that I only eat things that taste good.
Don't ask me to explain what that means.
Anyway... I have been using yogurt/kefir mix for our morning smoothies lately so we go through yogurt pretty quickly. Stonyfield Organic French Vanilla Whole Milk Yogurt, which is what I buy, usually goes for 4.29 around here. I buy it on sale for 3.99. Half a gallon of organic, grassfed milk, delivered to my door is 3.75 and I made close to three quarts of yogurt from the one half gallon so I've saved about eight dollars.
Yes, I will continue using this recipe and stop or at least seriously cut down on our store bought consumption depending on my schedule.

Worth a shot for your home? I'd say so.

A note on consistency...
I took these pictures right after taking them from the warm water bath. Once I put it in the fridge it thickened to the point that I could turn the jar upside down and it held it's shape.

{Strawberry Sauce}

Strawberry season is just about over but if you're trying to take advantage of every last bit of it, I mixed up a really yummy sauce that goes great on just about everything from ice cream to crepes that you may wanna try.

Mix about a cup and a half of rinsed, stemmed, and chopped strawberries and one to two tablespoons {more or less to taste} of real maple syrup in a blender until smooth.

 

Our favorite uses are on crepes and mixed in with yogurt. 

So good!

{Breakfast Granola}

I can't speak for anyone but myself here.
I indulged in a bit too much baking {as I'm sure you've assumed} and far too much eating of all the yummy treats.
Thus... we start off the new year with granola.

There are tons of recipes out there with dried fruits and other flavorings but I happen to really like the simplicity of this particular recipe. I pair it with, my favorite, Stony Fields French Vanilla or plain yogurt and a touch of maple syrup.
The way I've made it is with quick oats, as the original recipe calls for but I've had no problem using whole slow cooking oats. Maybe a little more to chew but the flavor is still good.

Breakfast Granola

{no idea where this recipe is from}

What You'll Need: 

1 c quick cooking Rolled Oats

1/2 c shredded coconut {sweetened or unsweetened work}

1/2 c slivered almonds

3 T vegetable oil

2 T honey

What To Do:

Preheat to 350. 

Mix all ingredients well, pour onto a baking pan with sides {I use a jelly roll pan} and bake for 10 minutes. Removed from oven, stir well, and bake for another 10 minutes or until browned. You'll want to watch the last few minutes carefully since it can burn if in too long. {My oven only requires it to bake for about 18 minutes.}Let cool and store in air tight container.

{As you can see, I quadrupled this recipe. I split it up on two pans for baking.}

Let Them Eat Cake!...{pancakes, that is}

Pancakes of any kind are easy to freeze and easy to thaw {microwave or toaster}. Throw on some fresh blueberries or mashed strawberries and they'll sing your praises. {At least they should!}
Here are some of our Easy-Peasy Make-Ahead Pancake Recipes:

Basic Pancakes

Courtesy o' Natalie B. 

1 cup flour

1 egg

2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

1 c milk

1 T sugar

2 T vegetable/canola oil

Mix until smooth and cook. 

Variations: 

Add 1 T of fruit preserves OR 1 tsp vanilla extract OR 1 c fresh mashed strawberries/blueberries OR mashed banana OR chocolate chips

Sweet Potato Pancakes
Courtesy of WholesomeBabyFood.com

2 T unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup cooked sweet potato, mashed

1 egg (or 2 egg yolks)

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1/2 t baking powder

1/4 cup milk

Mix sweet potatoes in a bowl with the egg. Stir in flour and add baking powder. Add up to 1/3 cup of milk while stirring. Stir in 1 T butter.The mixture should have the consistency of thick, lumpy sauce like an "instant" pancake mix. Place a skillet over medium heat and add 1/2 t butter. Spoon batter into skillet and cook until bubbles rise to the surface of the pancakes and break. Approx 1-2 mins. Flip and cook another 2 mins. 

Banana Pancakes
Courtesy of Wholesome Baby Food

1 or 2 ripe bananas (not overly ripe or mushy bananas)

Pancake Batter (try Hodgson Mills Buckwheat Pancake Mix)

Slice bananas thinly and coat with pancake batter. Lightly fry in pan until golden brown. Serve as finger food for snack or at breakfast time

 {You can do this with peeled, thinly sliced apples too.}

Applesauce Pancakes

I Can't Remember Where This Came From

1 cup flour

1/4 t salt

1 1/2 t baking powder

1 T melted butter

1/2 cup milk

1 beaten egg

1/2 t vanilla

1 1/4 cups applesauce 

Sift flour, salt and baking powder into a medium mixing bowl. Combine butter, milk and egg. Stire into dry ingredients. Add vanilla and applesauce; beat well. Spoon batter into a hot, well greased griddle, enough batter to make an approximately 4" diameter pancake.  

 

If making them from scratch isn't for you, Hodgson Mills sells several different pancake/waffle mixes that are easy to find in grocery stores. 

Cover It With... 

yogurt mixed with fruit puree OR pure fruit puree OR sliced fruit OR maple syrup OR CHoCoLaTE syrup

** Freeze individually or separate with wax paper to keep from sticking together. 

{Croissant & Pan au Chocolat}

So, I'm not a good baker. Ask Dear Hubs and he'll be glad to tell you thatI ruin boxed brownies regularly... and since I love a challenge I decided to take on crescent rolls. {I say this in regard to the intro of the recipe from Williams-Sonoma's Essentials of Baking that says "Mastering the making of of croissant pastry is considered a great achievement in the baking world" so you must understand how impressed I am that these even resemble croissants but for the record, they were delicious!}

By the way... these take a while so don't plan to try them when you're in a rush!

Have them on the table in 9.5 hours {you read that right}
Makes 16 croissants or 8 "pan au chocolat"
OR
8 croissants and 4 "pan au chocolat"

You'll need: 2 tsp active dry yeast

2 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp warm water
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled &
1 cup butter chilled but pliable
1 cup cold whole milk
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

One: In a small bowl, combine yeast, warm water and a pinch of sugar, stir and let settle for 5 minutes until bubbles form.

Two: In a large bowl, combine the remaining sugar, salt, 2 tbsp melted and cooled butter, milk, yeast mixture and 1/2 cup of flour and mix with a wooden spoon until blended. Gradually add the remaining 2 cups of flour {1/2 cup at a time} and mix until it forms a sticky mass.

{If you are familiar with baking, the texture of this may throw you off. I thought it needed more flour but I went with the recipe and it works out}

Three: Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 1/2" thick. Transfer to a jelly/sheet pan, cover with plastic and refrigerate until chilled for at least 40 mins and as long as overnight. {Since the dough is so sticky I had a hard time working with it. I'm sure you could just add a little more flour until it is easier to work with but, to stay true to the recipe, I just sprinkled flour onto two pieces of plastic wrap and rolled the dough flat between it. That way it didn't stick to my counter or my rolling pin and put it into the fridge still between the plastic sheets.}

Four: About 10 minutes before you're ready to take the dough out make butter package by pounding 1 cup {2 sticks of butter} into a 6"x8" square using a rolling pin or palm of your hand and chill in the fridge for about 5 minutes so that i was firm but still pliable {I used a gallon sized freezer bag and just cut the sealed sides off to get the block out easily after chilling}.

Five: To laminate the dough, roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface to a 9"x13" rectangle. Place butter block in the center of the dough and fold in all four sides so the butter is concealed {the picture above is just to give you an idea of what this should look like and is not one I took so the butter is towards the end and not centered as directed}.
Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to form a 10"x24" rectangle. Fold the dough into thirds {like you would a letter} and this completes the first "turn". Cover with plastic on pan and return to fridge for 45 minutes.

Six: Remove dough from fridge, roll out to 10"x24" rectangle, fold into thirds again and refrigerate for 45 minutes. This is your second turn. Do this 2 more times for a total of 4 turns. After rolling and folding the 4th time, leave laminated dough covered in plastic and in the fridge for at least 4 hours, overnight if you'd like.

Seven: To form croissants, roll out the pastry on a lightly flours surface into a 9"x18" rectangle. Cut it in half lengthwise to get two 9" squares. {I actually pulled out my ruler for this step.}
If you are making only croissants, cut each square in half both ways so you end up four squares. Then cut each square in half diagonally so you end up with 8 triangles. Gently stretch the triangle to double the length and, starting at the wide end, tightly roll into croissant shape. Place on a buttered baking sheet, about 3" inches apart, with point of the triangle under the croissant to avoid it from unrolling during baking.
If you are making only Pan au Chocolat, cut the 9"x9" square in half, both ways, to make four equal squares. Sprinkle 1-2 tbsp of semi-sweet or bitter-sweet chocolate shavings or chips into a strip down the middle of the square and fold into thirds {again, like a letter}. Pinch the seam to seal but do not seal the ends. Place seam down on the pan about 3" apart.

If you are making 8 croissants and 4 "pan au chocolat", use one 9"x9" square for each and follow the steps above.

Eight: Cover croissants/pans with a towel and place in a warm, draft free spot to rise for aprox. 1.5 hours {until dough doubles in size}.

Nine: Mix 1 egg and 1 tbsp of whole milk in a bowl and brush to completely cover your dough.

Ten: Bake at 425 for 12-18 minutes or until tops are golden brown. Let cool and enjoy!

** This recipe is brought to you with some edits for what worked best for me and is not the exact replica of the recipe found in the Williams-Sonoma book.