Peach-Blueberry Crisp

This is one of my all-time favorite warm weather dishes - especially when peaches are in season at the Farmer's Market. The original recipe called for Apricots, but when I saw those fresh peaches staring at me from the bins of the Farmer's Market...it was as if they were calling to me. Peaches and blueberries - such a perfect duo. This can easily be eaten for breakfast (as the original recipe suggested eating it with some yogurt on top - YUM!), or as a dessert! This is a light and fragrant dish with just a little crumble on top, so no worries about feeling weighed down!

Ingredients:
1/2 lb of Peaches, sliced (about 2 cups)
1/2 pint of Blueberries
1 1/2 Tbs Sugar
1 Tbs flour
pinch of nutmeg (I used Pumpkin Pie Spice)

Crumble:
1/2 stick of butter, melted
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup flour
2 Tbs Almonds
3 Tbs sugar
pinch of salt

What to do:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Put sliced peaches and blueberries in a 9" baking dish
3. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 Tbs sugar and the pinch of nutmeg
4. Stir in the Tbs flour
5. In a separate bowl, pour the melted butter and sugar in, combine
6. Add a pinch of salt, the oats, the flour, and then the almonds until clumps form
7. Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the fruit, and bake for 30-35 mins

Adapted from: Smitten Kitchen

Parmesan-Herb Biscuits

Loosely adapted from: Basic Biscuits

This should actually be called "The Most Delicious Biscuits You Will Ever Eat", but due to my need for recipe organization...it isn't. Growing up in the South I knew when I had a hankering for a biscuit, there was only one place to go: Bojangles. Now, if you have no idea what Bojangles is, just know one thing - No other biscuit could ever compare. Waking up this rainy Sunday morning, the biscuit hankerings were looming over my sleepy head. With the nearest Bojangles over 60 miles away (and not knowing any good biscuit places around my apartment), I did what I needed to do to soothe my uncontrollable cravings. I found this recipe online, and adapted it to make it more interesting. Unbelievable. Fluffy, flaky, buttery, delicious. What did I do next? Made an egg biscuit, of course.

Ingredients:
2 c all purpose flour
1 Tbs baking powder
6 Tbs frozen butter
1 ts salt
1 Tbs garlic powder
1 Tbs Italian seasoning
1/4 c grated parmesan cheese
3/4 c milk

What to do:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Mix flour, baking powder, salt, garlic powder, seasoning and cheese together in a large mixing bowl
3. Using your hands, mix in the 6 individual tablespoons of butter, breaking them apart into pea-shaped bits, and mixing into the flour mixture
4. Add in the milk 1/4 c at a time, lightly mixing with a spatula until a sticky dough forms
5. Spray a baking sheet with non stick spray
6. On a clean surface, roll out (or pat out) the dough mixture into an even layer
7. Using a biscuit cutter or a glass, cut circle shapes in the dough and place each on the baking sheet
8. Bake for 15 minutes

Italian Benedict

 

To me, Eggs Benedict is synonymous with brunch. The toasted english muffin and perfectly poached egg with a creamy, rich hollandaise sauce seals the deal for the end of a great weekend. I was feeling a little adventurous this morning [coughafternoon] and decided to explore my new love of eggs and marinara sauce. A while ago I came across a wonderful recipe for parmesan risotto topped with a fried egg and a dollop of marinara sauce. The flavors worked so perfectly together that I knew another combination had to be concocted. There are other variations of an "Italian Eggs Benedict" such as poaching the eggs in marina sauce or as a hollandaise replacement. In my opinion you can't have an eggs benedict without hollandaise sauce, so here is my take on a classic brunch dish!

Ingredients:

5 eggs with 3 of the yolks separated and put aside 

2 Tbs Marina sauce of your choice

1 English Muffin, sliced

1 Tbs lemon juice

1/2 cup [1 stick] firm butter (I cut this in 1/2 and is tasted just fine)

1 Tbs grated parmesan cheese

What to do:

1. Heat oven to 300 F degrees, put English Muffins on a baking sheet and toast until eggs are poached

Bring a medium sized sauce pan filled half-way with water to a boil

2. Reduce heat to med-low and crack eggs one at a time into a deep ladle

3. Slowly and carefully place the ladle with the egg into the hot water and gently tip to the side so the egg slide into the water. Repeat with 2nd egg

4. While eggs are poaching for the next 4-5 minutes, remove English Muffins from the oven and spoon 1 Tbs of Marinara on each toasted English Muffin on the baking pan

5. Remove poached eggs with a slotted spoon and gently place one on each English Muffin

6. Turn oven temperate to "WARM" and return the baking sheet to the oven to keep muffins and eggs warm.

7. Place the 3 separated yolks into another smaller saucepan and whisk together with the lemon juice

8. Once combined, turn the heat to low and add in the butter 1/4 cup at a time (or 1/8 at a time if cutting in 1/2 = 2 Tbs) 

9. Continue whisking the butter into the egg and let it melt gradually - you want the eggs to cook all the way through

10. Keep adding the butter in gradually and whisking until the sauce has become thick and creamy.

11. If curdles appear in the mixture, remove pan from heat and add a Tbs of boiling water to smooth it out

12. Once sauce is done, turn off heat, remove muffins from oven, pour sauce over each and sprinkle with the grated parmesan

Salmon and Chive Cream-Cheese Omelet

I bought NOVA cured salmon from trader joe's (5.99) and chive cream-cheese to make lox bagels, but decided to ease up on the bready-carbs and come up with something else to use the ingredients in.

The cream-cheese in the omelet makes the inside really fluffy with added flavor. If you like salmon, the cured kind is nice to keep on hand. You can use it in so many recipes - on bagels/sandwiches, in pasta with a white cream sauce - and in omelets! Since it's cured it's already been salted and prepared, which makes the assembly much easier. Peas were added for a little color and texture.

Ingredients:
3 large eggs
1/4 frozen peas. thawed
1/3 cup chopped cured salmon
1/4 milk/half & half
1-2 handfuls of parmesean cheese
2 Tbs chive-flavored cream-cheese
pepper to taste


* since the salmon, cream-cheese and parmesan cheese are all pretty salty anyways, you don't really need to add anymore salt.


what to do:
1. In a mixing bowl, wisk together the eggs and milk
2. Add in the cream cheese and wisk until combined
3. Add in the salmon and peas and pepper
4. Heat a smaller round skillet with oil or butter
5. Pour in the egg mixture and keep the heat on low-med
6. Sprinkle 1 handful of parmesan on the egg 
7. Use a rubber spatula to run along the edges of the omelet against the pan to make sure it's not sticking.
8. Once the egg has almost firmed on the top, very carefully flip one side over onto the other
9. Flip the omelet once so both sides are evenly cooked
10. Top with the rest of the parmesan cheese and pepper

Veggie and Goat Cheese Frittata

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I realized that I hadn't put up a breakfast post in a while, and felt it necessary to do so! This frittata is really easy to make, and can be used with all kinds of ingredients. For a non-vegetarian option you could add leftover chicken, shrimp, or holiday turkey!

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1 Tbs milk
1/2 zucchini sliced
1/4 red bell pepper chopped
1/4 sweet yellow onion chopped
1/2 tomato chopped
2 Tbs crumbled goat cheese



what to do:
1. Saute the onions in some oil in a medium sized frying pan.
2. Add the bell pepper and zucchini once the onion turns translucent (about 5 mins)
3. While those veggies are cooking, whisk together the eggs and the milk, set aside
4. Add tomato after all other veggies have finished cooking, continue to cook for 1 more min
5. Add in the egg mixture to the pan, and turn the heat down to med-low, and place a lid over the top
6. Let frittata cook covered for 5-7 mins, then sprinkle the goat cheese on top, replace cover and cook for another 3 mins until cheese has melted down

Pumpkin Spiced Belgian Waffles

Come one, come fall!

Fall is in quite a hurry to get here - and might I just say...It's about friggin' time! I love the fall. Hot tea in the morning, long sleeved p.j.s at night, and all the delicious comfort food you can eat in between. On this - albeit rainy - Fall morning, my friend and I decided to make a fall-themed brunch. To make this happen, we needed to use the one ingredient that truly defines the autumn season = PUMPKIN! We decided on pumpkin spiced belgian waffles with whipped cream and pecans. 

Ingredients:
1 can of pumpkin
pancake/waffle mix
milk
cinnamon
pure vanilla extract
pecans
heavy whipping cream

*the measurements that we used made 2 large waffles, so if you want more than that, adjust the rest of the ingredients to your desired amount

what to do: waffles
1. preheat waffle iron
2. pour 1 cup of mix into a mixing bowl
3. add in about 1/2 cup of pumpkin
4. add in 1/2 cup of milk
5. dash of cinnamon
4. splash of vanilla
5. [optional] add chopped pecans
6. mix together, pour onto waffle iron according to instructions

what to do: whipped cream
after the waffles are finished, or if you have an extra hand in the kitchen, start on the whipping cream - easy, double easy.

For the waffle measurements above, pour 1 cup of the heavy whipping cream into a mixing bowl, and mix on med-high speed until it thickens and is, well, whipped cream.