Blueberry & Lemon Buttermilk Breakfast Cake

I have been craving blueberries like crazy the last few weeks.

Partially eating them each & every day.

Last week I made Blythe’s blueberry muffins &

was VERY disappointed. The light fluffy muffin I was looking

forward to eating, was a dry crumbling mess.

Back to the drawing board & by that I mean Pinterest!

What a fantastic site!

My second attempt at a yummy blueberry treat was

way more successful & tasty!!

I LOVE the taste of blueberries & lemon. The combination

is absolutely wonderful. You’re going to love this recipe.

MMM.. doesn’t it look good?

Ingredients

½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tsp. lemon zest or more
7/8 cup* + 1 tablespoon sugar**
1 egg, room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
  1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups fresh blueberries
½ lemon – squeezed
½ cup buttermilk

* 7/8 cup = 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons
** This 1 tablespoon is for sprinkling on top

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Cream butter with lemon zest and 7/8 cup of the sugar until light and fluffy.

Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Meanwhile, toss the blueberries with ¼ cup of flour, then whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder and salt.

 Add the flour mixture to the batter a little at a time, alternating with the buttermilk. Squeeze in lemon juice from 1/2 lemon. Fold in the blueberries.

Grease a 9-inch square baking pan (or something similar) with butter or coat with non-stick spray. Spread batter into pan. Sprinkle batter with remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 35 minutes. Check with a toothpick for doneness. If necessary, return pan to oven for a couple of more minutes. (Note: Baking for as long as 10 minutes more might be necessary.) Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

Try to control yourself.

These were the Blythe blueberry muffins.

 

Huevos Rancheros

Meant to post this sooner but with so

much going on I haven’t been blogging every often.

I REALLY enjoy searching for new breakfast ideas since breakfast is my

favorite meal of the day. I love this because it introduces

new dishes to my 9 year old who can be very picky. She sees

that breakfast doesn’t always have to be a sugary treats.

Which I’m not going to lie, I LOVE sugary treats for breakfast but I like

trying new things like huevos rancheros.

As much as I love Mexican food you’d think I would have tried

this classic Mexican breakfast before now.

It was so good, I can’t wait to make it again.

A little salt, black pepper, cumin, oregano & cayenne pepper to season.

Fresh veggies.

Beginning to cook the veggies for the sauce.

I love how bright & bold the veggies look in the pan. 

Make sure you break your eggs in a separate dish before putting in a pan.

This helps make sure no egg shell gets into the pan.

Ingredients

3 tbsp olive oil, divided
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 cups tomatoes and their juices, chopped
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tbsp jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, finely chopped
corn tortillas
large eggs

To make the Rancheros Sauce, heat 1 tbsp oil in medium pan over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell peppers & garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 6-8 minutes, or until onion begins to soften. Add salt, cumin, pepper, oregano & cayenne pepper. Stir. Add tomatoes, chicken stock & jalapenos. Bring to a simmer. Cover while simmering for 15 minutes. Remove cover, add cilantro & cook an additional 5-8 minutes, or until sauce begins to thicken. Season with salt & pepper to taste.

In a small skillet, add 1/2 tsp oil over medium-high heat. Add 1 corn tortilla at a time & cook on each side until golden brown. About 30-45 seconds per side. Keep warm by wrapping in tin foil while you cook the eggs.

Heat remaining 1/2 tbsp oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the eggs to the pan & lightly season with salt & pepper. Fry eggs until the egg whites no longer giggle on top and turn white. Cover pan with lid & cook additional 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, or until eggs are cooked sufficiently.

 

Substitute & Measuring Charts

I have come across a lot of wonderful blogs

& have signed up to receive emails from almost all of them.

Recently I received an email containing these charts which I

thought were extremely helpful. How could I not share these with everyone!?

There are times when I want to make a recipe & I have everything

but that one ingredient. Instead of running to the store for that one thing,

I now how a substitute chart to reference. Genesis!!

Cooking just became a little bit easier.

The chart below is wonderful for measurements.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve needed to know a measurement

& I turned to google to find my answer. lol

 

Breakfast Panini w/ Fresh Herb Butter and Smoked Gouda

I’m normally not the breakfast sandwich kind of girl

but when I received this recipe in an email, I wanted to try it.

AND..

My husband gave me the biggest compliment, at least in my book it’s big.

He said it looked like a gourmet meal. Like something you would get at Le Peep.

WOW, I made my first ‘pretty’ dish! lol Not only is it pretty, it’s healthy & tasty!

The best part was using all the fresh herbs.

With the left over basil, I’ll be making homemade margherita pizza tonight.

Stay tuned for that recipe.

Doesn’t that look good?! I used smoked Gouda even though you can’t see it.

Fresh herb butter.

Butter both sides of the sourdough bread before toasting.

Rinse the baby spinach. Pat dry.

Ingredients

Breakfast Panini

4 slices sourdough bread
2 tbsp. compound herb butter
Gouda or white cheddar cheese, sliced (about 2 oz.)
½ cup baby spinach leaves
1-2 tbsp olive oil
2 large eggs
Salt and pepper, to taste

Take the sliced sourdough and spread both sides of each piece of bread lightly with the herb butter.  Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat and grill or brown the bread until golden and lightly crisped on both sides.  Just before the end of cooking, add the sliced cheese to 2 slices of the bread and cook just until the cheese is melted.  Remove from the heat.  Layer a handful of baby spinach leaves over the 2 slices of bread on top of the melted cheese. Meanwhile,heat olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat.  Gently crack the eggs into the pan, being careful not to break the yolk, and cook until they have reached your desired level of doneness.  Carefully transfer the cooked eggs from the pan on top of the bread with the cheese and spinach.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Top with the remaining slices of grilled bread.  Serve immediately.

Herb Butter

8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1-2 cloves garlic, very finely minced
1 tbsp. fresh basil, finely minced
1 tsp. fresh dill, finely minced
1 tsp. fresh thyme, finely minced
½-¾ tsp. kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.  Mix well with a spoon until combined and all ingredients are evenly incorporated.  To serve, pipe butter into small serving dishes with a decorative pastry tip.  Alternatively, place the butter mixture onto plastic wrap, form into a log, wrap tightly and refrigerate until ready to serve.  Allow to come to room temperature before serving so it is spreadable.

 

Sticky Bun Ring

I had no idea when I found this recipe on Pinterest they

would be so incredibly good.

My family devoured them in a matter of minutes!!

It literately took no more than 5 minutes to prep & about 20 minutes 

to bake. So perfect if you have kids who are starving & impatient first thing in the morning.

I plan on making these again when my daughter has friends spend the night.

Ingredients

2 small tubes refrigerator buttermilk biscuits OR 1 tube Pillsbury Grands buttermilk flaky biscuits 

3 Tbsp. butter, melted

1/2 C. pancake syrup (any brand you like)

1/3 C. packed light brown sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 C. chopped pecans, optional

Spray a fluted pan with non-stick spray. Combine the melted butter and syrup in a small bowl and set aside. In another bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans (if desired). Place about half of the syrup mixture in the bottom of the pan. Then sprinkle half of the brown sugar mixture on top. Lay the biscuits on the bottom of the pan, overlapping edges (closely together) to form a ring. Top with remaining syrup and sugar mixtures. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 1 minute in the pan, then invert onto a serving platter.

This is what your ring should look like before you bake it.

After it bakes.

Once you flip your sticky buns onto the plate, spoon the sauce over the top.

Serve warm with a glass of milk.. Enjoy!

 

Breakfast Roll

Over Christmas break my mom made this breakfast roll for my family & I.

I’m really not sure where she got the idea but I can tell you it’s super tasty!! 

It kind of reminds me of a breakfast sandwich you would get at McDonald’s only 10 times better.

My 9 year old constantly asks me to make this for her. So you know it’s good when your child

would rather have this than a bowl of sugary cereal.

This is what the roll will look like after baking.

Ingredients

4 eggs

1 egg white

1 roll spicy sausage

Colby Jack cheese (slices)

1 can Pillsbury big & flaky crescent rolls (has to be the can with 50% bigger)

Crumble sausage in the pan & cook until brown on medium heat. Drain.

While waiting for sausage to brown, place crescent rolls on a greased cookie sheet.

Do NOT pull rolls apart. You should have one long sheet instead of a bunch of individual rolls.

Pinch seams together.

Start lining the center of the roll with the Colby Jack cheese leaving

about an inch at the top & bottom of the roll.

Place all 4 eggs (scrambled) in a clean pan. Cook until eggs are no longer runny.

Place sausage on top of the cheese & egg on top of the sausage.

Pull each side of the dough over top the filling & pinch seam together.

Brush egg white over the top of the dough. This will give the roll a pretty golden color.

Bake as directed on crescent roll package.

Inside look!

 

English Sweet Potato Biscuits & Honey Butter

I had mentioned in the previous post about sweet potato biscuits so here they are.

Found this recipe in one of my Taste of Home magazines so I thought I’d give it a try.

These are really good with the homemade honey butter but not so much dry.

My family didn’t complain, actually ate 3 to 4 biscuits a piece. They weren’t bad but I think I might

cut back on the flour & add more sweet potato. I will also make them thicker.  It was

my first time making homemade biscuits so this was definitely a learning experience.

See how thin they are? Next time I won’t roll them as much.

Ingredients – Biscuits 

2 cups all-purpose flour

4 tsp sugar

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 cup shortening (I know this is unhealthy )

1 cup mashed sweet potatoes

1/2 cup half & half cream

Honey Butter

1/2 cup butter softened

2 Tbsp honey

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

In a small bowl combine the first six ingredients. Cut in the shortening until mixture

resembles coarse crumbs. Combine sweet potatoes & cream. Stir into crumb

mixture just until moistened. Turn onto a lightly floured surface.

Gently knead 8 to 10 times. Pat or roll out to 1/2 inch in thickness.

Cut with floured biscuit cutter. Place 1 inch apart on a greased baking sheet.

Bake at 400 degrees for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown.

In a small bowl, beat the butter, honey & cinnamon until blended. Add a little more

honey if you can still taste the butter flavor.

 

Momma’s Fried Apples

Received my Southern Favorites cookbook the other day in the mail

& immediately started planning our Saturday breakfast.

Eggs, Sausage, Fried Apples, Sweet Potato Biscuits & Honey Butter.

I’ve never made fried apples before & I felt this would make breakfast a little more exciting.

My husband & daughter loved these especially the sauce the apples were cooked in.

They used the sauce on their biscuits, kind of like apple butter!

I will be making these again & again!

Wonder if these could be used in an apple pie!? May have to give that a try.

This recipe makes a lot of fried apples!

Ingredients

1/2 cup better, cubed

6 medium unpeeled tart red apples, sliced

3/4 cup sugar, divided

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Melt butter in a large pan. Add apples & 1/2 cup of sugar. Stir to mix well.

Cover & cook over low heat for 20 minutes or until apples are tender. Stir frequently.

Add cinnamon & remaining sugar to pan. Cook & stir over medium-high heat for 10 minutes or until apples are tender.

 

Blueberry Danish

You will probably hear me talk about Pinterest a lot through these blog post. It has become my addiction! 

I love getting on there searching out craft projects & recipes. You can find some great recipes that people

have posted like the one I am getting ready to share with you.

If you have a Pinterest account, please follow ME.

So this danish was so easy to make & the taste was unbelievably good. One of the great things about making danishes

is you can make a variety of different types by simply changing the fruit you use.

My husband loved this, saying it tasted like a poptart & has requested we try raspberry next.

Ingredients

1 box puff pastry {2 sheets}, thawed to room temperature

Filling

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. Almond Extract
1-1/2 cups frozen blueberries (I used a little more than this)

Frosting

1 cup powdered sugar
3 Tbsp. Heavy Cream
1 tsp Lemon Extract
pinch of salt
chopped almonds (optional)

Lay one whole pastry sheet onto a greased cookie sheet.

Mix softened cream cheese, sugar, and almond extract together until well blended.  

Spread on top of  the pastry sheet then top with frozen blueberries.

Cut second puff pastry sheet into 10 long strips. If you cut your strips skinner like I did you will have more than 10 & that’s fine.

  Weave strips on top of the blueberries. To weave lay strips length wise about a finger space apart, then come back width wise doing the over under method.

Bake at 375 F for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Every oven is different so watch closely around the 20 minute mark not to burn your danish.

Mix powdered sugar, heavy cream, pinch of salt & lemon extract until smooth. If mixture if a little dry add just a small amount of heavy cream.

If you can still taste the powdered sugar, add 1 drop at a time stirring each time until it taste lemony.

Can pipe the frosting on for a fancy effect or use the fork method to drizzle the icing on.

If you are using the chopped almonds sprinkle the on top.

 

Chorizo Breakfast Tacos

Since moving to Texas I’ve found my taco horizon expanding. My husband & I joke that I am a taco snob.

Average tacos just want do any longer – step aside boring tacos.

So before moving here I had never heard of Chorizo, boy was I missing out!! His family introduced me to this little whole in the wall Mexican restaurant that I fell in love with. You could say that was the first time this Kentucky girl had ever had authentic Mexican food. When we go there my go to is always chorizo, cheese & salsa tacos. 

So one morning I decided to make breakfast tacos. Not just any breakfast tacos but chorizo, potatoes, egg & cheese breakfast tacos.

Boy were they good! So here we go, this is what you need to do!

Ingredients

5 red potatoes (this depends on how many people you are feeding. This was more than enough for 3 people)

1 roll of Chorizo

Eggs (again this depends on how many people you are feeding. If using small tortillas 1 egg should be enough for 2 tacos)

1 pack of shredded cheese

1 pack of tortillas (I used small tortillas)

1 bottle green salsa (this is optional)

olive oil

black pepper, salt & cayenne pepper

First start by washing & drying your potatoes. Next chop each potato into relatively thin cubes. Do not make them so thin you can see through them. That will cause them to cook too fast & burn.

To season the potatoes requires you to know your taste buds. Pinch of salt & about 3 shakes of pepper. The cayenne pepper is where your taste buds really come into play. If you don’t like spicy food, you need to take it easy on the cayenne or omit it all together. I prefer spicy, so I add a pretty descent amount. 

Add a little more than a cap full of olive oil to your preheated pan. A non stick pan works best for this. Pan should be on medium to high until they start to brown then lower the temp to low to medium heat. You don’t want to burn or dry out your potatoes!

While the potatoes are cooking you can start the chorizo in a separate pan. Set pan on medium heat & cook until chorizo has browned. Be sure to drain the grease. There will be quite a bit of grease & you really don’t want to add that to your tacos. Please note, the grease will be a redish color.

After both the potatoes & chorizo have cooked, heat up tortillas. There are many different ways to do this, I prefer to heat them on the stove.

The microwave is much easier & it really doesn’t change the taste. 

Scrabble those eggs!

Add the chorizo, eggs, potatoes & cheese to your heated tortilla & you are set for a delicious filling breakfast. Don’t forget to add the green salsa.