Apple-Cranberry Baked Oatmeal

Every time I go, I wonder why it's taken me so long to come back. And sometimes that's just five days. The serenity of the lake puts my soul at ease and creates spaces for quality time like none other.

So far, baked oatmeal has a similar track record.

My newest version is packed with cold-weather season flavors and textures. Apples and cranberries add sweet-tartness, pecans a nutty crunch and orange zest a refreshing citrusy flair throughout. So wondrous was the influence of the zest that I was compelled to invest in the house's very own zester. (Yes, quality kitchen tools really are quite exciting.)

Because my mother is almost as fastidious about Tuesday-Thursday nail nights as I am about baking from scratch.

 Bonus: Because winter masqueraded as spring for so long, we enjoyed our oats on the deck that boasts my favorite view.

 The next time I was lake-bound, I brought my zester and vowed to come back sooner.

More Baked Oatmeal: The Strawberry Kind
Even More Grainy Breakfast Delight: Whole Grain Strawberry Breakfast Cake

Out-of-this-World Waffles

These gridded pastries are so light and fluffy delicious that I often travel with a waffle iron so I can share them. 

My brother consumes more cereal than anyone I know, so when I visit, I find it necessary to deviate from the breakfast norm, heat up the iron to fill with a flour-milk-oil combo and watch these babes rise to life.

The older I get, the more I firmly I believe that each bite of waffle really necessitates a juicy bite of berry alongside it. This also gives me an excuse to bring fruit that needs washing and slicing (vs. apples and bananas) into the apartment.

I don't make these waffles because they are good for your health. I make them because they are good for your soul.

In addition to trips to apartment of said brother, this year Out-of-this-World made their Downton party debut alongside a bar of bananas, berries, whipped cream and chocolate syrup, and ever since I have been craving waffle dessert decadence. 

Banana Pancakes

Before Jack Johnson decided to sleep in and pretend like it's the weekend, banana pancakes entered the scene of my [breakfast] life. Twenty years later, I blame the October 1995 Cooking Light that still sits on my mom's cookbook shelf for making me think most other pancakes taste like cardboard.

These cakes are creamy and more banana-y than their bread cousins. More than most recipes I post on this blog, they have also stood the test of time and made more visits to my skillet than anything except scrambled eggs.

If you got brownin' bananas, consider smashing them up and pretending it's the weekend now.

Crepe Bar

If ever anything were worth savoring, it was this.

The barely sweet confection known is the crepe is the fresh-off-the-press tortilla of all things French and lightly decadent. Swirling its batter in a pan before it, poof, instantly cooks into a delicate final product, time and time again, is a therapeutic exercise, albeit one that requires all hands on deck. It's way worth it though, especially if you munch on crepe scraps while you go.

The whole spread of nuts, fruits and creamy spreads was beautiful to my taste buds, but what I found myself salivating over weeks later was the number one star: Nutella Mousse. Yes, Nutella Mousse, hazlenut-chocolate spread in creamy form. Spread it on a crepe, sprinkle on some strawberries and wrap it up with a chocolate drizzle on top, and you may never crave anything else again. It even transported one person back to Europe, she said.

Warning: If Nutella Mousse miraculously survives its debut and ends up in your fridge, it will quickly and frequently escape for you to violently tear off strips of leftover crepes to dip into it and unite with your tongue.

A spread such as this is perhaps best enjoyed with amongst female company. I often ooh and ahh (literally) over what I taste, but it's rare that other people have equally as expressive reactions like crepes elicit. So epic was this spread that I served it twice in one day, first for breakfast for the ladies in my new home group from church and second for our weekly Sunday evening Downton Abbey watching/face stuff gathering. A crepe bar would also be fun for a shower of some sort.

Side note: Extra Raspberry Syrup and Chocolate Syrup make excellent excuses to make cheesecakes and waffle bars, and might up your hot chocolate intake. Be forewarned in that realm too.

Crepe Bar Elements

Brown Butter Crepes (recipe below)

Nutella Mousse

Whipped Cream

Sliced Strawberries

Sliced Bananas

Chopped Pecans

Sliced Almonds

Powdered Sugar

Raspberry Syrup

Chocolate Syrup

Cajun Frittata

Some people welcome friends into their arms with heartfelt hugs. I am not one of them. I will reciprocate hugs, preferably side ones, but I might be the world's most awkward hugger. It just doesn't say love to me.

Instead, when a friend is stressed, I want to love on her (or him) by preparing edible comfort. When big deal things happen in others' lives, I find myself crafting something tasty. That's how I roll.

And that is how I found myself toting frittata ingredients to an old white house in small town, Alabama.

Because, of course, when a bride requests you make a frittata on her wedding morning, you prechop onions, pepper and Conecuh sausage, you preshred you some Monterey jack cheese, and you throw your dishes and your eggs and your olive oil in a bag and take them with you.

And as you relish those moments leading up to the BIG moment, that only-happens-once time that is so precious when spent with close friends, you get those close ones well-nourished in a way that says "this is my hug." And also you put flowers in your hair.

You get bonus point if clearing-rain morning light streams into your kitchen for photo opps, even if the lighting in your steaming skillet shot isn't the greatest.

Mini Frittatas with Feta, Swiss Chard, Mushrooms and Shallots

This is what happens when you fancify eggs for brunch with friends. I have yet to perfect a giant frittata, but making little ones in muffin tins turn out just fine. It was also easy to pull out servings for a few of us and save the rest for fast meals later that week.

Also, what are eggs without bacon?

Why cook spinach when you can get your hands on something as pretty as red-veined Swiss Chard? Like spinach, it also goes from a giant pile of leaves to a small ball of wilted green, and has a similar taste. Cooking is really quite fascinating.

Making these also reminded me I need to purchase silicone cupcake tins. Cleaning eggs out of metal ones is treacherous.

Banana Muffin Tops with Oatmeal Streusel

At some point I vowed not to buy more random baking pans that might or might not get used, ever. My collection already includes the popsicle-shaped cake pan I asked for for my birthday in high school (what a cool teenager I was!) and snowflake molds my thoughtful friends gave me for Christmas a couple years ago.

But then one day on the baking aisle a.k.a. my fantasy land at Hobby Lobby, a Whoopie Pie pan screamed: "Buy me! Make pretty treats with me, and fill them with Buttercream Icing!"

Fast forward several months: I still have not made Whoopie Pies with aforementioned impulse buy. But I did have a revelation mid-what-to-do-with-speckled-bananas-this-time brainstorming: muffin tops!

So semi-healthy breakfast treats with lots of surface area for slightly sugary but mostly oat-y treat topping were born. And that would not have been possible without that whoopie pie-turned versatile tool in my ever-growing kit(chen).

Random thought: Why do I so tend start like every sentence with a conjunction? Must be the elementary grammar rebellion I have repressed for nearly 20 years kicking in.

Overnight Oats

Now that days start with spring-really-more-like-summer sun, nothing sounds appetizing about hot oatmeal, not even my beloved baked berry oatmeal.  Fortunately, to save me from the humdrum of an all cereal, toast or yogurt weekday morning routine, my friend Lisa introduced me to a way to eat my oats chilled.

As the name suggests, you prep them at night. Which means no a.m. prep time. Which means I am slightly more likely to not have a strictly force self out of bed-shower-dress-eat-pack for day-start to-do list mantra running through my head as I start my day. Which means I might actually come before the Lord in praise in my waking moments and turn my day over to what He (gasp, not me) would have me do each moment of the day.

Simply mash up some banana and then mix in oats, your choice of milk, and a sprinkling of cinnamon and whatever other toppings sound right to you. Really, you can add whatever yogurts, liquids, spices, grains and fruits you like as long as there is liquid to soften the oats. I like to mix in blueberries or strawberries.

Voila, insta-breakfast of the scratch-made variety.

Starting with banana, cinnamon and oats.

What are your favorite weekday breakfasts?

Sausage and Apples

In school they teach you to write in complete sentences. 

In my attempts at writing not-for-teachers, I prefer things short. And concise. Short and concise, sometimes incomplete sentences. To be catchy. And add emphasis on the important words.

Addendum: Subheads. I like them.

Memory: Cafe Berlin, Columbia, MO: The kind of hippie-food breakfast place whose menu items make you pause, then delight

Menu item: Apples, garlic, red onion, local andouille sausage, a hint of chili powder and cinnamon cooked in maple syrup and brown sugar.

Re-creation: Sunday brunch with home group ladies

My dinner for the next two nights: This wondrous concoction served atop Sweet Potato Pancakes.

Inspiration for that: Trattoria Centrale appetizer of bread spread with sweet potato puree and topped with apples, pork and other good things I can't recall.

Five-Ingredient Smoothie

I don’t buy smoothies from those smoothie chains. They claim it’s all-natural, but I don’t believe them. Once you get used to homemade ones with pure fruit and yogurt, you’ll become a smoothie snob like me. They don’t need sugar or supplements, just the real stuff.

My go-to recipe is simple: ripe banana, berries or other fruit (like peaches on this photo shoot day), ice, juice, and plain yogurt. Blend. Sip. Enjoy.

I know there are fancier combinations out there. Maybe I’ll try them one day. But for now, when my fruit starts to get too ripe for my uber-sensivity to the slightest bit of mushiness, I throw it in my smoothie maker for breakfast or a snack. It’s worth cleaning the blender afterward, especially if I actually clean or soak it immediately so the fruit pieces don’t get all annoying and stuck to the sides.

 A blend of fresh (or frozen) fruit taste especially wonderful when it’s hot outside and the last thing you want to eat is something heavy or hot.

How do you like to make smoothies?

Blueberry-Banana Breakfast Muffins

The advent of berry season, glorious berry season, inspired this twist on my go-to Banana Breakfast Muffins. I mixed some berries into the hearty batter and topped each muffin with crunchy granola. They're just sweet enough to satisfy and go down perfectly with some strawberry or raspberry Kefir (basically drinkable yogurt).

There seem to always brown bananas at my house begging to be made into a grab-and-go, healthy breakfast. Solution: stock the freezer with fruity muffins with plenty of wheat flour and ground flax seed to stick with you 'til lunchtime.

More Baked Blueberry Goodness:
Banana-Blueberry Bread
Berry-and-Spice Whole Wheat Muffins
Blueberry Cheesecake Muffins

Real Oatmeal: Two Ways

Today's subject is oats, as in real oats, as the kind that are oval-shape and have texture, as in not the ground-up mush that comes in packets or in the quick-cooking box. But the instant oats are just so conveniently instant, you say. Or maybe you say that all oatmeal is that nasty porridge that you, like poor Baby Bear, were forced to eat by Mama Bear.

I am here to argue that (1) oats do not require laboring over the stove in the time you don't have and (2) their whole-food, nutty texture is soul-warmingly delicious with a heartiness that sticks with you until lunch.

1. The Super Easy Way: Nuked Oats

News flash: you can microwave real oats. You simply put water and oats in a microwave-safe bowl; nuke it for 3 1/2 minutes; and then stir some combination of brown sugar, nuts (I like walnuts!), milk, and/or berries. See oats box for instructions for different servings.

Word of Warning: Real oats puff while in cooking this super-fast way, so unless you want an oatmeal explosion in your microwave, cook it in a bowl (or casserole dish or, my favorite make-do container, a glass bread pan) three to four times the volume of the oats.

2. The Hands-Off Way: Baked Oats

Baking oats with a few extra ingredients makes for a taste and consistency that is a cross between an oatmeal cookie and traditional oatmeal.  This recipe won me over with its fresh strawberries and garnish of warmed strawberry jam. Beat that, Strawberries and Cream Instant Oatmeal.

It takes 40 minutes to bake, but because you only stir it once,  all the magic happen while you do everything else that needs to be done in the a.m.

Mad Update 3/1/12: My new favorite way to make baked oats is with strawberries and bananas!
1. Layer banana and strawberry slices in a baking dish.
2. Mix oat mixture prescribed in recipe (sometimes I skip honey and use more brown sugar) and spread on top of fruit.
3. Bake 20 minutes uncovered then 20 minutes covered, no stirring required.
4. Serve with plain Greek yogurt and fresh strawberry slices.
*I also like to make extra and reheat it for multiple days in the microwave.

How do you eat your oats?

Pumpkin Pie French Toast Casserole

I could go on and on about the warm pumpkin pie flavor of this subtly sweet French toast and how it so impressed me that I made it twice in one week, once for friends and once for family.  But I have to get the best part without letting my verbose self get carried away:

It's seriously the easiest breakfast for a crowd I've made. You pour a mixture of eggs, milk, pumpkin, and spices over bread slices arranged in a baking dish. But even that you do the night before, so when you wake up all that's necessary is placing a dish in the oven and pulling out the syrup.

Monkey Bread Muffins

These bites of buttery, cinnamon-sugar goodness are the perfect treat for a holiday breakfast. I made them for Thanksgiving; now you can try them for Christmas.

Just like a regular batch of monkey bread, you can pull apart the pieces of deliciousness, but the bonus to the muffin-pan version is that you get more of the caramelized topping for each bite. Plus, it's easier to serve, and you can make a smaller amount if you have less people and don't make yourself sick off the sweetness--been there, done that.

Also, thanks goes to Rachel (who is in Singapore!) for recommending I try this recipe and hence got it from my forever long to-cook list to real mouths and then to the blog.

Pumpkin Pancakes

These fluffy cakes taste like fall. How could they not with a combination of pumpkin and warm spices? 

To complete your pumpkin pancake experience, I recommend a crisp and cool yet sunny morning where you can sit outside amongst orange, red, and yellow-hued trees and linger over quality conversation. Bonus for Me: My particularly wonderful pancake co-conspirator found the pancake recipe and set all the ingredients out for me before I got out of bed; such a treat!

Like most pancakes, maple (preferably real maple) syrup is necessary, unless you are just snacking on the cakes after breakfast. I put the walnuts on to look pretty, but I liked the addition of nutty texture and taste and ended up adding more.

Easy Breakfast: Fried Egg Nest

I finally got around to multitasking quick yet tasty and filling fried-egg-on-toast breakfast last weekend. Call it what you like*, it takes the whole putting-the-bread-in-the-toaster step out of the equation and adds an element of fun. Now if I could just master cooking my egg the perfect amount of time, with just enough runniness.

*Wikipedia says this recipe idea is known as bird's nest, bull's eye eggs, cowboy eggs, egg-in-the-hole, eggs in a blanket, elephant egg bagel, frog in a hole, gas house eggs, moon eggs, and Rocky Mountain toast.

Recipe: Boat Church Egg Puff

Today I bring you my favorite egg casserole. It starts off pretty basic with a layer of torn-up bread and shredded cheddar over which you pour a mixture of eggs, milk, and spices.

But then it gets more exciting when you sprinkle colorful, flavorful veggies and bacon on top.

I let the dish sit overnight, and then I bake it for it to puff up into a souffle-like dish packed with egg/cheese/topping flavor.

I've made this egg casserole so many summer Sundays for boat church. "Boat church?" you might be thinking. It's a 30-minute worship service on the lake followed by a potluck breakfast. Minus the waking up at 7:15 a.m. part, rolling out of bed to worship on the still-calm lake waters and fellowship over homemade breakfast potpourri is the perfect way to start a Sunday.  Rock Creek Mission "God's Floating Church" celebrated its 25th anniversary this month; I think this dish had made appearances there for at least a third of those years.

The arrow on the photo points to the food table where everyone congregates after singing for sweet rolls, fruit, biscuits and gravy, and of course breakfast casseroles.

Recipe: Peach Buttermilk Pancakes

I could not have been more excited to bring home the first basket of sweet, juicy Chilton County peaches of the season last week.

After a few days of snacking on them, my friends and I whipped them up into some pancakes on Saturday morning. This Southern Living buttermilk pancake recipe  showcases the ripe peaches with a hint of cinnamon. I like them topped with more chopped peaches and a bit of Reddi Whip, but they are also good with maple syrup.

Of course chopped fresh peaches are the secret ingredient. They're a pain to peel and chop; that's why I enlisted my friends for that duty. Thanks, Colleen and Jonathan.

But the process is easy after the chopping. You just got to wait for the batter to get bubbly and flip them for golden perfection.

Speaking of peaches, you should check out the Southern Living recipe collection I compiled and this trifle recipe from my kitchen last summer. 

Regardless of whether you cook with peaches, make to at least simply sink your teeth into the fuzzy-skinned fruit delight and let the juice drip down your fingers; you won’t be sorry.

Recipe: Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes

Picture a lemon poppyseed muffin in pancake form, with just enough sweetness. Now throw some macerated fresh strawberries on top. Sound wonderful? It is. So wonderful maple-loving me had no second thoughts about pulling out the syrup. These pancakes are fruity and refreshing, perfect for spring or summer, and a nice change of pace in the breakfast realm. There's plenty of lemon flavor from zest to make them taste great plain. In fact, good luck not snacking on them if they are just sitting around helplessly.

After discovering the recipe on pickycook.com and returning multiple times to salivate over it, I brought them to life for a Breakfast at Tiffany's potluck for a birthday girl who shares a her special day with Audrey Hepburn, darling. The pancakes made their debut on a buffet of cheese grits , blueberry French toast casserole , fruit, zucchini bread, hash browns, and selection of juices and champagne — nothing less than you would expect from a bunch of girls who edit lifestyle magazines. The occasion even made an appearance on a blog to which one of the party goers contributes. 

Recipe: Carrot Cake Pancakes

Being as my Saturday morning treat is unique, hearty pancakes, this recipe from an article on Denver in the January Cooking Light immediately moved the the top of my to-cook queue. They are very carrot-dense, but the white flour keeps the texture light. The warm spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger) that are featured prominently in every bite make the cakes taste sweet. 

The carrot grating is time consuming, but I thought the unique spice combination and veggie-packing made worth it enough to be made again for sure. 

Carrot Cake Pancakes

1 ¼ cups all-purpose

1/4  cup  chopped walnuts, toasted

2  teaspoons  baking powder

1  teaspoon  ground cinnamon

1/4  teaspoon  salt

1/8  teaspoon  freshly ground nutmeg

Dash of ground cloves

Dash of ground ginger

1/4  cup  brown sugar

3/4  cup  low-fat buttermilk

1  tablespoon  canola oil

1 1/2  teaspoons  vanilla extract

2  large eggs, lightly beaten

2  cups  finely grated carrot (about 1 pound)

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flour and next 7 ingredients (through ginger) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Combine 1/4 cup brown sugar and next 4 ingredients (through eggs); add sugar mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until moist. Fold in 2 cups carrot.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Spoon 4 (1/4 cup) batter mounds onto pan, spreading with a spatula. Cook for 2 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. Carefully turn pancakes over; cook 1 minute or until bottoms are lightly browned. Repeat procedure twice with remaining batter.