Make Ahead Brunch~ Simply Elegant Crab Strata

I used to have more time to plan somewhat lavish meals for guests.  Like having 70+ people over without catering, making all the food and decorations myself with the help of one or two of my daughters.  Those times seem to be fading quickly into the abyss of my blog and memory.

Sometimes the simplest gatherings are the most gratifying for me and most pleasing for my guests.  But even the simplest gatherings should have something special.  And special doesn't have to be labor intensive.  Not even for an Easter brunch or a spring bridal shower.  Really!

Two things to keep in mind are:
1.  Use dependable recipes.
2.  Use quality ingredients.

I have your covered on the first.  The second is up to your local grocery, and you.

This recipe comes from a small recipe book from my favorite B&B.  The collection of recipes is very much like one you would get from the ladies group at a church.  They are pretty simple, with just one short paragraph of instructions.  It is so simple, that many may overlook it when selecting an elegant dish for their spring entertaining menus.  But it really deserves more than your consideration.  It is delicious.

Remember, use quality ingredients.  Using fresh and quality ingredients can almost always change any recipe into a star, even if you aren't a top chef.  Trust me, I know from experience.  So, before your begin, shop for your ingredients.

Fresh Produce
Use fresh lemon juice instead of bottled.  Mince your own onion, don't use onion powder.  Chop up some CRISP celery.  Keeping your celery in water in the refrigerator keeps it crisp.

Flavorful Cheese
You may be tempted to skimp here, but use some nice Irish cheddar or something that is an aged, good cheese.

Good Crabmeat
Use lump crab meat that you find refrigerated.  Not imitation.  Not frozen.  Not next to the canned tuna.  I use Philips. It's good.

Now you are ready! Assemble the strata the night before.  Put the dish, uncovered, a cold oven.  Heat the oven then begin timing from there.

And be ready to give out the recipe.  Everyone will want to make it once they find out how easy it is.


Simply Elegant Crab Strata
1 small loaf fresh sourdough bread, cubed {about 8 cups}
1 lb lump crab meat
1 c chopped celery
1 small sweet onion, chopped
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2 c real mayonnaise
juice from 1/2 lemo
1 tsp hot sauce
2 c grated sharp cheddar cheese
8 eggs, beaten
2 c milk

Grease a 9x13 or a 3 quart casserole dish.  Spread the bread cubes in the prepared dish.  In a large bowl combine crab, celery, onion, mustard, mayonnaise, lemon juice, and hot sauce; stir well.  Using a blender or food processor (even a hand mixer), combine eggs and milk well.  Add the egg mixture to the crab mixture and stir well.  Pour over top of the bread cubes.  Top with shredded cheese.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate over night.  In the morning, place dish in cold oven.  Heat oven to 350F.  Cook for an hour from the time oven reaches 350 or until lightly browned.  Serve with additional hot sauce and lemon wedges.

Note- I made this recipe and divided it into two dishes.  But, I recommend using just one 9x13 dish.

All Natural Lemon Loaf

For the lemon lovers out there, here is a recipe full of natural tart lemon flavor.

I set out to make a lemon loaf like the one my boys {who are endless lemon lovers} drool over at the coffee shop.  I wouldn't say this is a copy cat recipe.  I would say it is BETTER!  Fluffy.  Moist. Flavorful.  And natural.

I didn't search the web for a copycat recipe because I knew a couple of things.  One, there would be way too many to choose from.  The original most likely relies on something other than real lemon for its flavor.  I don't know that; I'm just guessing.

So I relied on a few prior recipes and the recent success I had with making flavored sugar from zest {in my most recent success it was with orange zest}.  I am quite amazed at how incredible the flavor of the zest permeates the sugar crystals.  The smell of the citrus oils is beautiful.  And it adds so much natural flavor to a recipe.

So here is the results of testing and tweaking.  If you are looking for a copy cat recipe for lemon loaf, this isn't it.  If you are looking for a tart but sweet, almost divine lemon cake/bread/whathaveyou, this is it.

All Natural Lemon Loaf
2 cups white sugar
zest from 2 lemons
3 c flour
1 tsp baking powder {double acting}
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
5 eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 tsp pure lemon extract
1 tsp vanilla
1 c sour cream, room temperature
1/2 c pure lemon juice*
Lemon Glaze {recipe follows}

*I juiced the two lemons and got 1/2 cup of lemon juice.  The remainder of the juice needed for the glaze was from a bottle of organic, 100% lemon juice.

Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease and flour two standard loaf pans.  Combine sugar and lemon zest in jar; shake and seal for at least 10 minutes.  Recommend doing this the day before for a stronger lemon flavor.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Whisk and set aside.  Cream butter and lemon sugar together for 5 minutes, til fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, blending well after each addition.  Add vanilla and lemon extract.  Scrape sides of bowl with rubber spatula to incorporate all ingredients.

Add 1/3 of flour mixture to butter; blend just to combine.  Add lemon juice; blend.  Add another third flour mix to batter; blend just to combine.  Add half of the sour cream; blend.  Add remaining flour and sour cream.  Blend just to combine.

Divide batter between two loaf pans.  Bake in preheated oven for 50~60 minutes, til golden and toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Cool on wire racks completely before removing.

To make lemon glaze, combine 2 cups of powdered sugar with 1/3 cup pure lemon juice.  Whisk to combine.  Pour over tops of cooled loaves.  Keeps for 2-3 days on counter if covered with cloth or parchment.

I used a combination of baking powder and baking soda.  Why baking powder?  Baking soda often causes cakes and baked goods to brown, especially when cooked a long time.  Baking powder doesn't so much and it's rising affect works with the heat, so more time cooking works with the baking powder.  Here's a great explanation and visual demonstration of the browning effect at Serious Eats.  One more thing.  Most baking soda sold now is double acting so that is what I used.  If you don't have double acting, just make certain you bake your lemon loaf as soon as you have the batter mixed and in the pan.

Orange Poppy Seed Bread

Do you understand the idea that the radio can kill a song?  It's played over, and over, and . . . Then without notice the song disappears, rarely to be heard on the radio again.  And one day, you walk into a coffee shop and the song is playing.  I forgot all about this song!

Sometimes I feel that way about recipes.  Everyone makes spinach dip or buffalo wings when there's a get together.  I love those things but after a while you want something different.  And sometimes you forget about those recipes.

For me this happened with lemon poppy seed muffins.  They were always a sure thing for breakfast or snack and just became mundane.  This week I was looking for a lemon recipe and happened upon one for a poppy seed bread with orange glaze.  Well, that was a bit of a change.  Enough to capture my interest.

The recipe needed some sprucing up.  I swapped the oil for melted butter; this trick works great for baked recipes.  Butter is so much more flavorful and natural {I know, oil is naturally occurring.  It just seems so unnatural to use a whole cup in something you'll eat} and gives a beautiful golden color to baked goods.  The batter is enough for two loaves or a loaf and some muffins.  Or a loaf and some small cakes, mini bundt cakes precisely.

The third change was a must for the orange flavor.  The original recipe called for 1/4 cup of orange juice in the glaze.  The orange flavor in the finished bread was indiscernible.  But the bread was luscious.  With the second go-round I took zest from two oranges and stirred it into the sugar.  The sugar will absorb the oils from the orange zest, which is where much of the flavor is, at least concentrated flavor.  Put the orange zest and sugar together in a jar; stir and shake.  Let sit for at least ten minutes.  I've started doing this and leaving it over night.  It makes a huge difference in the flavor of the bread.

I feel like I have rediscovered a lost song, one that is bright and cheery and makes my toes tap.  Only, it's a recipe.  And my taste buds are singing it's sweet and happy tune.

Orange Poppy Seed Bread
1 c white sugar
zest from two medium oranges
1 c brown sugar
1 c {2 sticks} butter
3 c flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
3 eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 c milk, room temperature
1/4 c poppy seeds

Stir zest and white sugar together.  Allow to set for at least ten minutes.  Melt butter; let cool.
Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease pans {2 loaf pans or 12 large muffin/cakelette pans}.

In large bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.  Add orange~sugar, brown sugar, melted butter, vanilla, eggs and milk.  With mixer, blend on medium speed for two minutes.  Stir in poppy seeds.  Divide batter evenly between pans.  Do not fill muffin/cakelette cups more than 3/4 full to avoid spilling.  Bake loaf 45-55 minutes, until golden and inserted toothpick comes out clean.  Bake muffins/cakelettes 25-30 minutes.

While loaves are baking, make glaze.  Combine 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup orange juice and 1 teaspoon vanilla.  Whisk together.  When loaves are removed from oven, pour glaze over loaves while in pan.  Let cool completely, in the pan.  For muffins, let cool for 10 minutes in pans.  Remove and drizzle glaze over top of muffins.

If using large muffin tins or min cake pans, don't over fill.  Use about 3/4 cup of batter so that the batter doesn't spill over while baking.  The muffins can be glazed after they are removed from the pan.  The loaf should be glazed in the pan and allow to cool completely before removing.

How to Make a Quiche and Create Your Own Recipe

In a little college town in norther Idaho sits the best coffee house I have ever been to.  It's more than a coffee shop.  It's a study hall.  It's a pub.  And it has some of the best food I've ever enjoyed.  When I'm there, I get coffee and something for breakfast each day of my stay.  Sometimes I choose a cinnamon roll, which are always fresh, made from scratch and are only available to those who get there early.  More often I'll get a piece of crustless quiche.

Funny thing, I was never one to eat quiche.  I like eggs and will always have cheese when offered, but never cared much for quiche.  That changed when I ate a piece of the crustless veggie quiche that Bucer's offers.  It was so creamy and had the perfect ratio of eggs to cheese to vegetables.  And I'm certain that the absence of a crust was really a plus for selling me on quiche.

Since that first piece, I've ordered quiche over cinnamon rolls many times at Bucer's Coffehouse Pub.  I have also tried to recreate the quiche.  What I've learned along the way is how to build a quiche.  One of the best quiche recipes I made myself during this endeavor is a recipe for a spinach and feta quiche.

Rather than give you another quiche recipe {you could just go to the one I've mentioned above; it's quite good} I plan to help you learn to build your own quiche.  The beauty of not following a specific recipe is you can use what you have on hand.

I've found making quiche an excellent opportunity to use up cheese that I have remaining from entertaining.  And I am able to use up some of the bulk fresh ingredients that I get at Costo.  Have you ever bought a bag of fresh baby spinach or a container of mushrooms just to throw out half of them?  You could easily use them in a quiche of your own design.

Don't limit yourself to leftovers though, design a special quiche for an upcoming occasion.  They are wonderful for breakfast, brunch and even dinner.  You can make the day of your event as they come together quickly.  Just allow time for baking and to cool some.  Or, make the quiche a day ahead.  Remove from the refrigerator about an hour before serving to come to room temperature or reheat in the oven to serve warm.

Basics of Making a Quiche

Milk and Eggs~ 4 Eggs to 1 Cup Milk
The basics of every quiche is eggs and milk.  Keep this in mind while designing your quiche.  I like to do 4 eggs and 1 cup of half n half.  Have fun and try out different types of milk~ whole milk, half n half, cream or buttermilk are options.

When you are mixing the eggs and milk, you can use up to 6 eggs for a standard quiche.  Just increase the milk.  I suggest 4 eggs to 1 cup of milk, 5 eggs to 1.5 cups, and 6 eggs to 2 cups.

Cheese~ 2 Cups of Grated or Crumbled
Not a requirement of a quiche, but cheese is a wonderful addition.  With so many cheeses, quiche possibilities are limitless.  As a cheese lover, I use 2 cups of cheese.  Use any combination to add up to two cups.  In the quiche recipe I give below, I used four different cheeses.  Mostly I had many smaller amounts of cheese to use up.  You can also use a single type of cheese.  It's your quiche!  Any cheese that can be grated or crumbled works.  I would recommend that if you use a cheese with a strong flavor, use about 1/4 cup of it and then complete the 2 cups of cheese with a milder one.  Although, I really like strong flavors so I change that ratio sometimes.

Some tasty cheese combinations I've enjoyed:
Gruyere and Havarti
Cheddar and Blue Cheese
Feta and Gouda

Fillings~ 1~2 Cups or 1~2 Handsful
Meats and/or vegetables can be added to your quiche.  Meats are rather easy.  Make certain they are completely cooked and chopped.  Vegetables will need a bit more work as they are usually full of water.  Sauteing and patting vegetables dry will help remove excess moisture so that they work well in your quiche.  Tomatoes do well if you sprinkle them with a bit of salt, let sit then pat dry.

Classic fillings are ham or bacon, spinach, mushrooms and onions.  Try what you like though.  Have fun with it.  Don't forget to use some complimentary herbs and spices such as thmye, dill, garlic and pepper.  I do not recommend using salt as cheese usually is quite salty on its own.

Putting it all together.
Why no crust?  It adds time.  And calories.  Calories?  What about all that cheese and cream?!  Exactly.  I'd rather splurge on the cheese than the crust, but that is my personal preference.  Really, the crust takes more time when making a quiche.  Without the crust you have: 1. quicker prep time, 2.  less calories to indulge in the cheese, 3.  no gluten and low carb!  I see it as a win~win~win.

I recommend a pie dish especially since you have no crust.  The pie dish will hold all the ingredients together while it cooks.  When I made my first quiche, which was a crustless recipe, the directions were to use a spring-form pan.  Messy mistake.  There was nothing to hold the eggs and cream in the pan and it oozed out.  Big waste of ingredients.

Grease a pie dish, either standard or deep dish depending on the amount of eggs and milk you use.  Fill the bottom of the pie dish with the meats and/or vegetables.  Next, layer on the cheeses.  You could save some grated cheese for the very top.  Combine your milk and eggs with any seasonings you'll be using.  Use of a hand mixer will help blend the eggs well.  Pour the egg mixture over the cheese and other filling.  If you saved some cheese to top, scatter that on.  Bake in a 350F preheated oven for 45~60 minutes.  Again, it depends on the amount of eggs and milk you used.  If you use fewer ingredients, less cooking time and vice versa.  You want your quiche to be golden but not too solid.  You are aiming for a custard filling.

If you aren't quite ready to build your own quiche recipe, you can start with this one.  I used a combination of four cheeses which were the excess from a cheese plate at a recent brunch.  Some fresh spinach and mushrooms were used for filling and half n half rounded out my choices for this quiche.

Crustless Four Cheese Quiche

1-2 tbsp olive oil
8-10 oz fresh baby spinach
4 oz baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c crumbled feta
1/2  c shredded gruyere

4 eggs

1 c half n half
1/4 c grated parmesan
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/2 c shredded fontina

Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease a standard pie dish.
Place 1 tbsp olive oil in large skillet; heat over medium-high heat.  Add spinach and toss occasionally to wilt.  Once wilted, remove to paper towels.  Add remaining oil and mushrooms to skillet; sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of salt.  Saute for 5 minutes.

Squeeze excess moisture from spinach.  Scatter the spinach in bottom of prepared pie dish.  Top with mushrooms then feta and gruyere cheeses.  In large bowl, combine eggs, half n half, parmesan, thyme and pepper; blend well to combine {alternately, use a blender for this step}.  Pour egg mixture over ingredients in pie dish.  Top with grated fontina.  Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes or until golden.  Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Moroccan Style Breakfast Rice

I am the youngest of five children.  My oldest sister, who was twelve years older than I, cared for me like I was her baby doll.  Even when she had her own small apartment, she would have me come over throughout the week.  She had married a man from Morocco when she was young, about 19 or 20.  My memories of him are strange as he was always kind to me, but I knew he was not so to my sister.  Although I have terribly sad memories of her marriage to him, I have some quite fond memories, too.  He taught her to make some amazing Moroccan food. She would have a dish that was new to me each time I stayed with her.

One dish I grew to know and look for was a type of rice pudding she made for breakfast.  It was similar to oatmeal or cream of wheat rather than a dessert.  I would wake to find her in the kitchen stirring a pot of simmering rice that would soon be ready for me to eat.  Bites of the sweet rice helped me get through last minute homework or studies for the day to come.

She never taught me to make this dish and she is no longer here to teach me, but my memories of it are pretty strong.  I looked for recipes for Moroccan rice and found some that I changed to be true to my memories.  I am fairly certain she didn't make her rice with almond milk but perhaps she did make her own or added some ground almonds to the cooking rice.  I do feel that the almond milk is essential to the flavor of this rice as I remember it.

Over all it is a rather healthy dish.  The almond milk only has 40 calories per cup and it doesn't have near the amount of fat that cow's milk does.  Almond milk is full of vitamins and minerals including zinc and calcium.  The almond milk really adds a distinct flavor but one that is not overwhelmingly different.  As it cooks, the rice really sweetens this on its own so I prefer to use a fourth cup of sugar instead of more.  I recommend anywhere between 1/4 and 1/3 cup in the recipe.  You can make it with less and add more after it has cooked if you like it sweeter.

The rice takes about an hour to make so I will make it the night before.  It easily reheats on the stove in the morning.  It thickens even more as it gets cold, so I add some more almond milk to the rice when I reheat it.  It takes just about 10 minutes to get really hot.  Only a small serving, about half cup, is quite filling but my older children will eat about one cup for breakfast.

This is just a note, not a paid advertisement.  I recently started uses Califia Farms almond milk.  It is in the refrigerator section of the grocery and is so creamy, not at all gritty.  And, I love the container it comes in.

Moroccan Style Breakfast Rice

1 c jasmine rice

2 c water

2 tbsp butter

4 c almond milk

1/4-1/3 c sugar

2 cinnamon sticks {each about 3", or 1 longer stick}

2 tsp vanilla

dash of ground nutmeg

Rinse rice well and drain in a mesh sieve.  Place rice and 2 cups of water in a large pot.  Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat; reduce heat to low and continue to simmer, uncovered for 10~15 minutes or until water is mostly absorbed.  The rice will be very creamy.

Add butter, almond milk, sugar and cinnamon stick.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low, simmering uncovered for 25-35 minutes, until the pudding has thickened and some of the milk has been cooked off.  Remove from heat.  Remove cinnamon sticks.  Stir in vanilla and transfer to serving bowls.  Let set in bowls.  Garnish with a dash of nutmeg and serve warm or room temperature.  Pudding thickens as it sets.  Makes about 6 cups of breakfast rice.

My little girl is 21 months now and working hard to walk on her own.  Her therapy sessions cause a lot of sweat and often tears.  Her therapist notes that she can get tired easily but pushes as much as she can.  I've noticed that she does much better with therapy when she's had a hearty meal the night before.  I've started giving her some rice pudding the at dinner time.  She loves the creamy and bumpy texture as well as the sweetness that comes from the starch in the jasmine rice.  I'm hoping she'll be off and running in no time as she loves following her big brother around the house.

Cinnamon Scones with Vanilla Glaze

My husband likes to bring me little treats; he's a sweetie! Sometimes flowers or sometimes a small trinket just to say 'I love you'.  The other day his gift was a vanilla scone from our local coffee shop.  It was tiny.  It was tasty.  It was his 'I love you' for the day.

I was certain he had been influenced in his decision of this gift by a recent trend in our kitchen.  I've been adapting my favorite blueberry scone recipe in various ways.  Mostly I've been making cranberry scones trying to use up the hoard of frozen cranberries I have in the freezer from the holidays.  The cranberry scones instantly became a favorite with my husband.

But now we're out of cranberries.  So with the inspiration from the inspired scone gift {does that make sense} I made cinnamon scones.  They are actually a combination of two recipes.  The second recipe is for a vanilla glaze I use for cupcakes and muffins.  Just dip the top of the scones in the glaze or drizzle.  I can't decide which I like better, dipped or drizzled.  I think drizzled.

You can make your own sweetheart some scones to let him {or her} know you love him.

Cinnamon Scones with Vanilla Glaze
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp baking soda

1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
Vanilla Glaze {recipe follows}

Preheat oven to 350F
Combine sour cream and baking soda; set aside. Cream butter and sugar. Beat egg with vanilla. Mix creamed butter and sugar with egg and vanilla. Combine remaining dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, cinnamon, cream of tartar and salt.

Add dry ingredients to egg/butter mixture but do not over mix; mixture will be crumbly like pie or biscuit dough. Add sour cream with baking soda to mixture; again, do not over mix; mixture should just begin to pull together. Use hands to bring all bits together.

Flour work surface well. Place dough onto surface and knead a bit to smooth out. Divide dough into three roughly equal sections.  Shape dough into disc and roll to 1" thickness reshaping as needed. Cut disc into 6-8 wedges. Place wedges on greased cookie sheet at least 2 inches apart. Cook on 350F for 15-20 minutes, until golden on bottom edges and slightly golden on top.

Remove to wire rack to cool.  While cooling, make vanilla glaze.

Vanilla Glaze~ Melt 1/3 cup butter over low heat.  Whisk in 1.5 cups confectioners' sugar and 1~2 tsp vanilla.  Stir in 1+ tbsp half n half, to desired consistency.  Dip tops of scones or drizzle across tops with a spoon.  If dipping and drizzling, dip first with a thicker glaze. Then thin with more half n half and drizzle across tops of scones.

Makes 18~24 medium triangular scones.

Our Favorite Banana Bread

We never seem to have enough bananas in our house.  But we are particular about what bananas we eat.  They have to be firm but not green and without spots.  I've quit buying bananas from our local retail warehouse.  Even if they look firm and slightly green, they are already ripe and mushy once peeled.  Unfortunately I too often forget that and am tempted by a picture perfect bunch.  Don't judge a banana by its cover.

So, you ask, what do I do with a bunch of over~ripe bananas?  What most people do. I make banana bread.  In addition to being particular about bananas, mouths in my house are quite particular about banana bread.  No nuts, no chocolate chips, just bananas. This is a simple bread, but much moist and flavorful.

My five year old stated, "This bread tastes like bananas."  Great!  That's what it is supposed to taste like.  It makes an excellent gift or a nice addition to your continental breakfast.  Serve it with a bit of butter or cream cheese {though it is delicious on its own}.

Favorite Banana Bread

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 c butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, not packed
2~3 ripe bananas, mashed
2 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
2 1/4 c flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 350F.
Blend cream cheese, butter and brown sugar together. Add bananas, eggs and vanilla; blend well. Combine flour, baking powder and baking soda in separate bowl and whisk to combine. Stir flour mixture into banana mixture. Spread in a large greased loaf pan. Bake at 350F for 50~65 minutes. Cool in pan for 15 minutes before removing.

Notes
*To remove from pan easily, make certain bread is not hot before inverting pan.  Loaf should easily slide out.
*If you  want more banana flavor and an even moister bread {more like cake}, use 3 bananas whereas 2 gives you a more traditional bread texture and flavor.
*The bread gets quite dark on the top.  It isn't burnt. Just remember that it isn't done when it is slightly golden.

Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins

With only a couple of weeks left before the children head back to school, I begin to get my thoughts about meals and snacks a bit more organized. I try to have some grab and go things on hand for those days I am just not as prepared as I thought I was or would like to be.

One of my go to recipes last school year was for bakery style chocolate chip muffins. This turned out to be a tried and true recipe after an small adjustment to baking time for my finicky oven. Today my five year old not only inspired another change, he also helped me make these~ Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins.

Taste testing~ "Does it taste good yet?  Yes, it does!"

He kept me entertained the entire time we were making these. He started by telling me we needed to "beat up the eggs". As we were mixing the ingredients, he would continually ask if the mix tasted good yet. "Oh, I can't wait till it tastes good and I can take a lick!" When they were all done, he told me to wait until they were cooled off before I took the little guys out.

When little helpers top off the muffins with mini chocolate chips, proportionality doesn't count.

You'll notice that some of our muffins are disproportional; some have more chocolate chips than others. My son said we messed up and had to start over. I think he just wanted an excuse to eat the whole batch.

These will probably be a weekly item in our house now, terrific for breakfasts with a boiled egg or yogurt and excellent as a snack with a piece of cheese {probably Baby Belle for my little munchers}. And they make a great first day of school treat for a new teacher!

Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins
original recipe from The Purple Spoon
1 1/2 c flour
3/4 c white sugar
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c sour cream
1/4 c vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 c chocolate chips
2 tbsp raw sugar

Preheat oven to 375F. Line 24 mini muffin tins with paper liners.

Combine flour, white sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Whisk and set aside. Combine sour cream, vegetable oil, egg and vanilla extract. Blend til smooth. Fold sour cream mixture into flour mixture, just to combine. Place a half spoonful of batter into each paper liner. Top with a few mini chocolate chips. Add another half spoonful of batter over the mini chocolate chips. Top off with another round of mini chocolate chips and a sprinkle of raw sugar {for a sweet crunch}.

Bake for 10-13 minutes, until golden on top. Cool before removing from pan. Makes 24 mini muffins.

Notes about recipe~
*I tend to overfill my muffin liners a bit so they are nice and rounded on top. This recipe may actually make closer to 28-30 mini cupcakes if you don't fill yours as full.
*You could mix the mini chocolate chips into the batter. Just toss the chips with a bit of flour to keep them from sinking to the bottom. I like the layered technique though.
*The original recipe calls for cinnamon and sugar on top. I think the sugar in the raw adds a nice crunch {I do this with many of my muffins}. Sugar in the raw could be replaced with sugar crystals if needed.
*If you don't have sour cream, use buttermilk or soured milk {milk with a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice added}.

Here's my littlest helper, Dianna.  She's almost five months old now and doing well.  As you can see, she's a happy little helper.

Truly the Best Cinnamon Rolls~ Ever

Often I don't think of posting a recipe I find on another blog if I don't alter it noticably, especially if it is quite popular or has been seen many other places. But I am making an exception because I think everyone is in need of the absolutely best cinnamon roll recipe. And this is it!

In my quest for the best cinnamon roll from scratch, I happened upon a post on Pinterest that claimed to be the recipe for the best cinnamon roll. Thankfully there were many comments from those who had actually used the recipe. They weren't necessarily negative comments but they were enough to push me to continue my search. Yay for me! And thank you Kaitlyn for posting the recipe that really wowed me.

It isn't as if this is a hidden recipe. Actually the original source is allrecipes.com.  I have probably even seen it before since it is highly rated and reviewed on that site.  But for some reason, I had not tried it before.  I have made cinnamon rolls a few times but was never wowed. I even gave up and decided to make a cinnamon roll bread that is no knead.  I like it. It is good.  It's texture is nice.  But I enjoy the satisfaction of actually make a cinnamon roll.

I did make a few changes to the recipe.  Some are very slight changes such as the amount of flour and yeast.  The most noticeable change is simply that I doubled the amount of frosting.  I like more than a slight slather of frosting with my cinnamon rolls.  If you like yours lighter, just half the frosting ingredients.

The filling alone in these is soooo good {you can't go wrong with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon}, it's almost too difficult to decide whether to have them frosted or not.

The Best Cinnamon Rolls Ever
from Kaitlyn Cooks, original from allrecipes.com
1 c milk
1/2 c white sugar
3 tsp yeast
1/3 c butter, melted
2 lg eggs, room temperature
1 tsp salt
4 1/2 ~ 5 1/2 c flour

For Filling
1/3 cup butter, softened
1 c brown sugar*
3 tsp cinnamon

For Frosting
8 oz cream cheese
2 c powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp milk

Warm 1 cup of milk to about 115~120F. Place 1/2 cup sugar in bowl of mixer and add milk; stir. Sprinkle yeast on top and stir lightly. Let sit for 5 minutes til foamy {yeast is now activated}. Add butter, eggs and salt to yeast mixture; stir.  Add 2 cups of flour; stir with paddle attachment.  Add another cup of flour and stir.  Switch to dough hook and add the fourth cup of flour.  Knead for a minute; continue to add dough, 1/2 cup at a time, and knead until dough is smooth and not sticky {about 10 minutes of kneading with dough hook}.  Shape dough into a ball and place in a greased glass bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and place in warm place to rise for 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Roll dough out to about 16x20 inches.  Spread 1/3 c softened butter onto dough.  Combine brown sugar and cinnamon; top buttered dough with cinnamon and brown sugar mix.  Roll from the long edge.  Cut dough into twelve equal pieces.  Transfer to a greased 9x13" baking dish.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400F.  Bake rolls for 18~20 minutes {unless you like a bit more gooey on the inside, then cut time to 15 minutes}, until golden brown.  While baking, make frosting.  Place softened cream cheese in bowl of stand mixer; blend til smooth.  Add powdered sugar, vanilla and milk.  Mix well, til no lumps are found.  Spoon over warm rolls.

*I suggest light brown sugar, though either dark or light may be used.  Dark brown sugar has a more intense molasses flavor.

The filling is so plentiful that it overflows its spiral housing while it's baked.

Tips and Tricks~
*Have all your ingredients ready~ eggs cracked and ready to use {at room temperature}, butter melted, and sugar in mixing bowl. As the milk and sugar and yeast sit, the temperature will quickly decrease. In order for the yeast to work well in the whole recipe, you want the ingredients to stay warm.
*The original recipe calls for 4 1/2 cups of flour.  I found that each time I have made these, I really need 5 ~ 5 1/2 cups of flour.  Once you have added 4 cups, just watch the dough as you add more, only 1/2 cup at a time.
*The dough doesn't rise a bunch like bread dough, so just let it rise for 1 hour and 30 minutes.  It will be noticeable, but I wouldn't say that it really doubles in size.
*Use very soft butter, almost melted, for spreading on the dough for the filling.  You want it to spread easily.
*Use floss to cut the rolls.  Slide the floss under the rolled dough, bring the strings to the top and cross, then pull quickly to cut through the dough smoothly and without smooshing it.
*When rolling dough out, place the 9x13" baking dish next to it.  You want your dough to roll out a bit larger than the dish.
*To make these ahead, follow directions to the point of rolling, slicing and placing in baking dish.  Instead of letting rise again, cover dish with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator.  Take out and let sit on counter for 15 minutes.  Place dish in oven and preheat {while the dish is in it}.  Once the oven is preheated, bake for 18 ~ 20 minutes.
*For a less intense cream cheese flavor, add 1/2 cup of softened butter to the softened cream cheese.  Blend til smooth.  Add an additional 1/2 cup powdered sugar to the frosting and mix as directed.  I actually prefer this frosting; it is superb.

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Peaches and Cream French Toast~ Make Ahead Breakfast

I find it important to send the family off for the day with their tummies filled with good food.  It sets the tone for the day.  Unfortunately, more often than not lately, they have their tummies filled with cold cereal.  But with a bit of planning, I will change this.  And this is how I plan to start the change.

Peaches and Cream French Toast is an absolute favorite with my children and husband.  As with most make ahead breakfast recipes, this comes from my favorite bed and breakfast cookbook, Recipes From the Watson House.  Most of the recipes call for the dish to be assembled the night before and placed in the refrigerator, then cooked in the morning.

All though it is a family favorite, I do have to admit I would prefer it without the peaches.  I am just not a cooked fruit fan {unless the fruit is berries}.  With that said, I do eat this picking around the peaches and just love it.  I think one day I will cook this without the peaches and serve the cooked creamy toast with fresh peaches.  But, the whole reason for making this dish is to send the family off with their tummies filled with goodness and feeling peachy.

A sweet caramel made of melted butter and brown sugar is topped with sliced peaches.

Add cubed French bread and pieces of cream cheese.

Then pour a creamy mixture of eggs, half-n-half and vanilla over top.

Cover the dish, all the bread and cream swimming in the creamy sauce atop the ooey~gooey caramel, and refrigerate til morning.

You can hire a little helper.  I pay mine with bread crumbs.

Once cooked, the top gets crunchy. . .

But when you take a piece, the inside is all gooey goodness.

Peaches and Cream French Toast
1/2 c butter
1 c brown sugar
2 tbsp reserved juice from canned peaches
1 29 oz can of peaches, drained
1 French baguette, cubed
8 oz cream cheese, cut into small pieces
12 eggs
1 1/2 c half-n-half
1 tsp vanilla

Heat butter, sugar and peach juice in saucepan until bubbly.  Pour into a 13x9 inch casserole dish.  Scatter peach slices over caramel sauce.  Top with bread cubes then pieces of cream cheese.  Place eggs, half-n-half, and vanilla in blender; blend to combine.  Pour egg mixture over bread and cream cheese.  Cover and refrigerate at least an hour but preferably overnight.  Bake, uncovered, in 350F oven for 50-60 minutes.

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Make Ahead Spinach Souffle

For our third anniversary my husband took me to a bed and breakfast in Chincoteague, VA.  The Inn at Poplar Corner is a beautiful replica of a Victorian home in the outer banks of the Virginia shore.  It is a charming place that we fell in love with and revisited for years {only ending when we decided to take family beach vacations around our anniversary and enjoy a night out instead of a week}.  We enjoyed biking through the seashore park to the beach, often spying the wild ponies grazing in the marshes.  We also enjoyed a home cooked breakfast each morning which we often took on the wrap around porch.  It was quite romantic.

The owners of the home each night would make breakfast for the following morning.  They made enticing meals that would feed all of the couples staying at the inn, and they did it effortlessly.  Even though it was our anniversary time, we would sit and talk to the owners some nights when we came in.  Sometimes we even sat and played cards with them.  I was even shown some of the ways they prepared food with such ease.  They would include a savory dish and something sweet along with fresh breads or muffins.  One of the dishes that I learned from Joann, one of the owners {I believed they have sold the inn now}, was Spinach Souffle.

On one of our last visits there my husband purchased their cookbook for me, Recipes From the Watson House {named for the original Victorian home across the street}.  I enjoy making many of the recipes I find in it, but the Spinach Souffle is my favorite and is always a tasty reminder of the days I spent there with my husband.

Make Ahead Spinach Souffle
1 box seasoned stuffing mix {about 2 1/2 c}
1 lb ground sausage
4 eggs
2 c milk
1 10 oz can cream of mushroom soup
1 10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 4 oz can sliced mushrooms, drained
1 c shredded cheddar cheese
1 c shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.  Crumble and brown sausage in frying pan.  Drain; spread over top of croutons in baking dish.  Combine eggs and milk; mix well.  Add cream of mushroom soup, spinach, mushrooms and cheeses to egg mixture.  Stir well and pour over top of sausage and croutons.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Remove souffle from refrigerator.  Place in cold oven; heat to 350F.  Once oven is heated, bake souffle for 50-55 minutes, until lightly browned and bubbly.

Tips and Tricks~
*This is a make ahead dish that allows you to just wake up and pop it in the oven, making it great for company and holidays.  It doesn't work well to make then stick in the oven because the egg mixture needs to mingle with the croutons.
*The recipe is easy, making use of canned and prepackaged items.  With not much trouble, you could use fresh spinach {wilt it quickly in a frying pan} and fresh mushrooms.  I do this and it makes the recipe even better.
*Switch up the cheeses.  Use Parmesan or white cheddar or pepper jack.
*Keeping with the Inn's selection of serving both savor and sweet dishes for breakfast, this goes great with a berries baked with an oatmeal topping.

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