French Toast with Praline Sauce

We love breakfast at our house.  During the week with work and school, it's usually a quick bowl of cereal or grits for the girls, a breakfast bar for me and A.J. usually heats up leftovers from the night before or the night before that.  Don't make a face, he works night and gets home during the day so even though it's morning, it really his dinner time...I think.  Anyway on Saturdays either the girls have to be at work early or they slept at a friends the night before so they aren't looking for breakfast and A.J., ok make faces now, A.J. is either eating some hot pickles he made or eating chips and salsa.  Sundays are much like during the week, something quick and then out the door to church.

Honestly, maybe once every month or two, we're all together on a Saturday or holiday I get to make a nice family breakfast.  In between, we Waffle House it for late night cravings.

I have been wanting to try this recipe for such a long time.  It's a combination of a Paula Deen recipe, one on Steen's Cane Syrup website and the method I've used on the past for breakfast bakes.

NOTE:  Start the night before

1 loaf French bread

8 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Dash salt

Butter a 9x 13 baking dish. Slice the whole loaf of French bread into 1-inch thick slices. Arrange slices, in the dish by overlapping them and in 2 rows.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, then whisk in the half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  Whisk until thoroughly blended.

Pour mixture evenly over the bread.  Make sure each slice is coated with the egg and milk mixture.  Cover the dish with foil and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Make the Praline Sauce:

2 sticks of butter, melted 

1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Whisk all of the ingredients, except the pecans together.  Once thoroughly combined, fold in the pecans with a spatula.

Remove the baking dish from the refrigerator and pour sauce over the the bread.  the sauce will be somewhat thick, so you may have to get a spoon and gently spoon the sauce to make sure it covers each slice of bread. 

 

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes.  The bread will puff slightly and turn a pale golden color.

I added a little sprinkle of powdered sugar but if you're a French toast die-hard, pour on the Steen's Cane Syrup or maple syrup.

Demand more holidays so we can all have breakfast with our family!

 

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Boomsday Breakfast Casserole

Congratulations to Ramona of The Japanese Redneck!  Ramona is the winner of the Girard's Salad Dressing Giveaway!

Thanks to tropical weather, our three-day Labor Day weekend didn't turn out quite as planned.  It rained, and rained, and rained some more.  Soooooo, instead of grilling, swimming and over-eating outdoors, we overate, watched football, movies and danced our tushes off on the Wii indoors.

Since breakfast is the most important meal of the day, we threw this together Labor Day morning.  A divine way to have a delicious breakfast ready, hot and simply and at the same time!

1 lb. smoked sausage, slice the link in half and slice into 1/4 inch half moons
2 tablespoons Canola oil
1/2 cup onions, finely chopped
1/2 cup bell pepper, finely chopped
1/4 cup green onions, sliced thin
2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
6 large eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup evaporated milk
3 croissants, torn into pieces
1 tablespoon Creole seasoning
Hot sauce to taste
1-1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the Canola oil in large skillet over medium-high heat.  Saute the sausage, onions and peppers, for about 10 minutes, until the sausage begins to brown.  Halfway through season with half of the Creole seasoning.

While the sausage is cooking, whisk the eggs, milk, and the remainder of the Creole seasoning together.  Once thoroughly combined, stir in the green onions and hot sauce to taste.

Arrange the torn croissants pieces in the bottom of a buttered casserole dish.  Spoon the sausage mixture over the croissant. Ladle egg mixture over the sausage and croissant layers the top the cheddar cheese.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 to 35.

Kind of makes the rain seems like sunshine, doesn't it?

Easy Breakfast Parfait

Don't boo and hiss,  this packed full of flavor and texture!  So anyway, a few weeks ago, I happened to catch the Neely's making this for breakfast.  I've always wanted to try and make my own granola and who knew it could be so easy and so versitile.  Who knew sleepy teenagers would wander in the kitchen early on a Saturday morning asking, "What smells so good? It woke me up."  

Doesn't it look like dessert?  Don't let this parfait fool you, it's fat-free, filling but doesn't bog you down like the usual breakfast fare.

Granola:

3 cups old-fashioned oats

2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut

1 cup chopped dried apricots (quarter each apricot)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped raw pecans or walnuts
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons canola oil
3 tablespoons Steen's Pure Cane Syrup or real maple syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Toss the oats, coconut, apricots and pecans in a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, canola oil, cane or maple syrup, vanilla, and  Kosher salt.  Drizzle the syrup mixture over the oat mixture. Use your hands and toss well, to make sure everything is evenly coated. 

Spread the mixture in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes, stirring/turning the mixture halfway through so the granola will cook evenly.Remove from the oven and place in a large bowl or storage container so it will stop cooking and allow to cool before serving.

Yogurt:

2 cups plain Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons honey
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine the yogurt, honey, and cinnamon in a bowl.

To Assemble:

Place a spoonful or two in the bottom of a glass then layer with a spoonful or two of the yogurt mixture.

Gorgeous and easy, give it a drive around the block!

Huevos Rancheros

We're not normally traditional big breakfast eaters in the morning.  Breakfast food for dinner and we're all over it! 

None of us can eat as soon as we get up.  During the week with work and school or now that it's summertime, the girls have soccer conditioning very early every morning, we don't eat a traditional breakfast.  On the weekends from time to time, I decide I want to make a big breakfast and EVERYONE better eat it!

When A.J. and I were on our honeymoon, he ordered Huevos Rancheros every morning for breakfast.  Being the Stepford wife that I am (NOT), I wanted to try my hand at Huevos Rancheros.  I looked over several recipes online and kind of tailored one I wanted to try. 

I have to be honest, this was a pretty labor intensive undertaking and totally worth the work.  We all loved it!  The portions I served were way more than our appetites could handle.  Cut the serving size in half because this is way too delicious to waste.  

1 (15-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, undrained
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro plus 1 tablespoon, finely chopped
1 large clove garlic
1 jalapeno pepper (seeded)
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 ounces Mexican chorizo, casings removed
Canola or Vegetable oil
4 (6-inch) flour or corn tortillas (2 tortillas per person)
1 (16-ounce) can refried beans
4 eggs
1 avocado, pitted, peeled and diced
3/4 cup grated Monterrey Jack cheese
2 tablespoons light sour cream

Open the can of re-fried beans and place in a small pot.  Heat over low heat, partially covered, until heated through.

In a food processor, puree the tomatoes and juice, onion, 2 tablespoons of the cilantro, garlic, jalapeno, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Place mixture in a medium skillet and heat to a simmer over medium heat until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Cover and keep warm over low heat.  Talk about smell good!

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, break up and cook the chorizo until browned. Using a slotted spoon, remove the Chorizo to the skillet with the tomato mixture and keep covered.  Leave the Chorizo fat in the large skillet, this is major flavor!

Add 1 tablespoon of canola or vegetable oil to the Chorizo fat in the large skillet, reduce heat to medium. Using tongs, place a tortilla in the skillet and cook until light golden but not crisp, about 30 seconds. Flip and cook for another 30 seconds. Transfer to plates, two tortillas per plate. As you are cooking the remaining tortillas, add a little bit more oil to the skillet because the tortillas will absorb the oil.

Since all that's left to cook is the eggs, and they will cook quickly, you will need to begin assembling.  Spread the re-fried beans on the tortillas.

Begin cooking the eggs by adding another tablespoon of oil to the skillet. Working in batches, crack the eggs into the skillet. Cook until the bottoms are set and the edges golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Turn the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook until set, about 1 minute more. Place one egg on each tortilla and ladle the tomato mixture over the eggs garnish with the diced avocado, shredded Monterrey Jack cheese, and a dollop of sour cream.  Top with the additional  cilantro.
So if you have the time and inclination this weekend and the daddy in your house enjoys this type of cuisine, surprise him!  He will appreciate the pampering.

Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there!

My Favorite Biscuits

I'm not known for making pretty biscuits, but that has changed since I stumbled on to this recipe that I had written down on a piece of paper some time back.  I'm pretty sure it's from "Down Home with the Neely's".  I have now sworn off those canned biscuits!

Many of you don't like to bake with yeast, this biscuit recipe has you covered, no yeast.  Just three simple ingredients and you have some luscious biscuits for breakfast or as a side to soup for a light lunch or a hearty accompaniment to your fried chicken and mashed potatoes.

My Favorite Biscuits -

2 cups self rising flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1½ cups heavy whipping cream


Mix all 3 ingredients together until dough forms a ball. Using your stand mixer with the dough hook, makes this a snap.  Turn out onto floured surface and knead for about 1 minute. Roll dough out to ½ inch thickness and cut biscuits with a biscuit cutter. Place biscuits on a Siplat or greased baking sheet and bake at 450F for 8 to 10 minutes, until golden brown.

Hint:  I don't buy self-rising flour but found this handy substitution!  For each cup of self-rising flour, use one cup of all-purpose flour and add 1-1/4 teaspoon of baking powder and 1/8 teaspoon of salt.

They actually look like real biscuits and not blobs of dough.

 

They are just crying for butter!

 

This one was calling out to me.

How can you say no?

Apple and Sausage Breakfast Bake

Have I got a treat for you! What kind of a friend would I be if I didn't share this with you?

I don't know what to call this, so for simplicity, I'm calling it a Apple and Sausage Breakfast Bake.

A couple of months ago when we were guests of my brother and his wife, my sister-in-law Chele, prepared a dish similar to this using cranberries. I did not get to watch her preparation process but I did pay attention to a few things and came up with this.

My family was over the moon with this breakfast bake and I thought it was a nice change from the usual breakfast fare.

The best part of this is you can prepare it the night before then sachet into the kitchen the next morning and serve a piping hot healthy breakfast without breaking a sweat. I do sachet, did I ever tell you that? Also, it contains three of major food groups, sausage, sour cream and cheese. How can you go wrong?

Let's get some breakfast vittles going!

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and spray an 8x8 oven safe dish with non-stick cooking spray.

Whisk 6 eggs in a medium bowl.

Add approximately 1/3 cup low fat sour cream and 1 cup of 2% milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 teaspoon salt and whisk to thoroughly blend.

Cut up a package (6 patties) of breakfast sausage into bite-sized pieces.

Take 12 slices of cinnamon swirl or cinnamon raisin swirl breakfast bread and cut into bite sized pieces.

I have a confession...with a hot cup of coffee by your side it's hard not to pick. So drink tea.

Peel and core one apple (I used a Granny Smith - I like the tartness and they hold up well with baking) and cut up into bite sized pieces. Add to the apples 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon and 2 tablespoons white granulated sugar. Toss the apples pieces in the cinnamon sugar combination.

Line the bottom of your baking dish with a layer of the bread cubes.

Add a layer of sausage and apples and, and, and...

A layer of grated sharp cheddar cheese. Are you drooling yet? You'll need about 2 cups of shredded cheese. Repeat with another layer of bread, sausage, apples and cheese. Pour the milk/egg mixture over the casserole, cover and refrigerate for at least two hours, but better yet over night.

Bake at 325 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes. Be sure to check on this at 45 minutes. The bread will puff up and it may overflow in your oven and the last thing I want is a big mess in your oven. I do care; I almost had a big mess in my oven.

Remove and let stand for about 20 minutes so you don't burn your tongue. I got anxious and burned my tongue. I know, I'm pitiful.

Hey beautiful, where have you been all my life?

Smoky Mountain Biscuits and Sawmill Gravy

I guess you know by now this isn't a gourmet cooking blog or a "cooking light" blog. If you're into healthy cooking light recipes, stop reading, turn around and run far, far away. The only redeeming feature of this recipe is that it "shore is good"!

I've learned very quickly since our arrival in East Tennessee almost two years ago, that people take their biscuits and gravy very seriously in these here parts. In fact it's staple, in fact McDonald's and Hardee's serve biscuits in gravy, in fact my husband has become a fan of biscuits and gravy. I don't remember fast food places back in the Big Easy serving biscuits and gravy for breakfast and I don't remember my husband requesting this delicacy in the 20 years that I've known him. When we first moved up here I thought is was pretty gross, but then we eat crawfish and the people here think that's gross (boiled crawfish are NOT gross, they are better than biscuits and gravy). I made biscuits and gravy for the first time 2 weeks ago, now on Saturday mornings I hear from the love of my life, "sigh, I sure go could for some biscuits and gravy for breakfast.". Meanwhile I'm thinking to myself, "A.J. please take a Crestor (for cholesterol) and have a bowl of oatmeal." He works so hard and asks for so little so this morning I am going to surprise him and make him biscuits and gravy.

There's one thing you need know before we get started in case the food snob police read this post. I am using canned refrigerated biscuits because that's what my husband prefers. Since this is for him, and they are way easier to prepare, I'm using canned biscuits. Ok, let's get breakfast going!

Smoky Mountain Biscuits and Sawmill Gravy -

Bake 1 package of Pillsbury Butter Tastin' Biscuits per package directions.

While the oven is heating and the biscuits are baking, brown about 6 breakfast sausage patties.

Remove thoroughly cooked sausage patties from pan and set aside and drain on a paper towel.

Drain the rendered fat from the frying pan, reserving 2 tablespoons. Heat the reserved 2 tablespoons of fat over medium - medium high heat. Once the fat is heated add 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. Stir flour into grease to form a "roux" taking care to get out all of the flour lumps.

Stir continuously until the flour cooks off and the roux starts to brown to a caramel color, about 4 minutes.

Whisk in 1 cup of milk to get the proper thick consistency and keep stirring. If the gravy is too thick add 1 more cup of milk. Add 1/4 cup at a time and stir to blend it in evenly. As an option, you can crumble one of your sausage patties into the the gravy. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of black pepper to your gravy.

Slice your biscuits in half and spoon the gravy over the biscuits open faced while thinking how your going to work off these extra calories today.

Serve with a slice of sausage and you have a breakfast fit for a king or Elvis.