Category Archives: Breakfast

Easy (I Swear) English Muffins

02 Thursday Mar 2017

Posted by in Breakfast, Miscellaneous

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Last year, I made it my mission to conquer bread baking. I failed massively at times and completely surprised myself at others. One of the experiments that shocked me with the ratio of low effort to maximum result was English Muffins.

The batter takes the same amount of time and work as pancakes. Throw everything in the mixer and let it go for about five minutes, until stretchy and shiny. Then let rise for 1-2 hours until very puffy.

I put my griddle on the stovetop at low heat and a sheet pan in the oven (heated to 350 degrees). I lightly scattered semolina on the griddle, placed the rings on the griddle, and scooped out palm-size globs of dough. (Technical term, lol.)

(The recipe calls for the dough to be rolled into balls, allowed to rise a bit, and then flattened, before being placed on griddle – you can try either method.)

I smooshed the globs into the rings and as they slowly toast on one side, the other rises slightly to fill the ring. Honestly, you can go without the rings as the dough doesn’t spread very much, but I love the traditional shape.

After they have good color on both sides, I put them in the oven on the sheet pan to finish for about 10 min. or when an instant read thermometer reads 200 degrees.

Voila!

 

Prep takes about 15 minutes, rise takes 1-2 hours (unmanned), and cooking takes about 25 minutes. Really not work intensive, but you have a plan ahead to build in the proofing time. BUT THEY ARE SO SO GOOD.

Try this when you have a lazy weekend, and I promise you will be shocked at how delicious these are (and everyone else will think you worked for hours and hours on them.)

RECIPE:  English Muffins from King Arthur Flour

Breakfast Egg Bites (Paleo, Whole30, Gluten-Free, Oh My!)

22 Wednesday Feb 2017

Posted by in Breakfast

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My biggest challenge when attempting to eat healthier is breakfast. I don’t have time to make anything, and I don’t really get hungry until about 9 or 10.

One eggy dish that has saved me are these Breakfast Egg Bites. You can basically pick any combination of add-ins, such as toppings you like in omelets or quiches, add eggs and bake.

I tried a couple variations this time:

  • Ham, Caramelized Onions and Cheddar
  • Broccoli, Caramelized Onions and Cheddar
  • Spinach, Bacon, Caramelized Onions and Feta

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I used a non-stick muffin pan, and used a generous amount of cooking spray to make sure they didn’t stick.

For the ham ones, I put the ham in first to make a “cup.” For the rest I just filled the tins about halfway with toppings. (I steamed the broccoli first, but the spinach can be added raw.)

In a large bowl I whisked 7 eggs (with 2-3 tablespoons of water, you can use milk if you want) for 12 muffins, but the egg amount depends on your preferred ratio of eggs to add-ins. Remember to add salt and pepper to the egg mixture.

You can substitute egg whites for some of the whole eggs or use egg beaters, if you want to cut some calories. You can also omit the cheese if desired.

Pour in the egg to about 3/4 fullness in each cup and use a utensil (I use chopsticks for pretty much everything, very useful here) to move the ingredients around a bit and make sure the egg gets in everywhere. Do not fill to the top or they will overflow. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. (I let them cool some after baking, then used a knife to run around the edge and loosen them before taking them out.)

img_7535I keep these in the fridge and grab a couple each morning. I’ve eaten them hot or cold, you could also put them in an English Muffin if carbs aren’t a consideration.

I have to say the spinach ones were my new favorite, but all of these were good.

Here are some recipes around the web if you want to get more ideas:

 

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A Lofty New Breakfast

22 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by in Breakfast, Lunch

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Northeast Tallahassee has gotten some really interesting new dining options, but one that stood out was Lofty Pursuits‘ new venture into serving breakfast/brunch. They have long been a destination for spectacular ice cream, milkshakes and the lost art of candy making, so I hoped that their breakfast lived up to the quality of their other products.

Um…let me just show you first…

The least photogenic, but super tasty (and perfectly spicy) omelette


The Hubs got the Spicy Omelet with pepper jack cheese, Bradley’s sausage, fresh jalapeño peppers, green peppers and onions. This was seriously spicy, but delicious.

Nice and chunky, just how I like it

I got the Corned Beef Hash with perfectly cooked eggs over medium and a very fluffy biscuit. The texture of the Corned Beef was some of the best I have had in town very delicate and tender. It also had just the right amount of Corning spice flavor, and the potatoes, onions and green peppers were seasoned well. Lovely.

With my yummy Lucky Goat coffee with legit heavy cream, I was a happy camper.

Seriously….omg

Disclaimer: I do not have a sweet tooth, so I much prefer savory to sweet. 

BUT, HOLY SCHNIKES THIS IS AMAZING.

The pancakes have the texture of the lightest, airiest biscuit ever, with a from-scratch strawberry topping/syrup including strawberry chunks and freshly whipped cream. 

Also, this is a HUGE portion so sharing should be considered. (I do not blame you if you want to keep these all to yourself though…😉)

You need these pancakes in your life.

Glad to have this new breakfast option, and looking forward to eating there again.

Visit Lofty Pursuits as soon as you can. (And check out their cool YouTube channel!)

Cajun comfort food at Angelette’s

27 Thursday Sep 2012

Posted by in Breakfast, Lunch, Review

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First off, I can’t believe it has taken me this long to get to Angelette’s Cajun Kitchen, but better late than never!

I am a big fan of Cajun and Creole dishes, we try to visit New Orleans at least once a year so that I can eat my way through the city. Tallahassee has some decent New-Orleans style restaurants, to varying levels of success (exception the short-lived Tallahassee location of Stinky’s Fish Camp – which had the best po’ boy I have ever had in town).

I had heard that the brunch at Angelette’s was amazing, but it is hard to get from the NE side of town to Southwood on the weekends for us with various activities always keeping us busy. But I knew that I could get breakfast dishes any time there…so why go at lunch?

Eager to get the full experience, I chose a breakfast dish and the hubs got the roast beef po’ boy, with a bowl of gumbo to start. And what a way to start…

The gumbo was rich and flavorful without being very heavy. Nice chunks of sausage and chicken were liberally sprinkled throughout the gumbo, and you can tell the roux was cooked to a deep rich brown. The bread toasts that accompanied the gumbo were light and buttery – perfect to dip and sop up the sauce.

My Eggs a la Duane arrived soon after the gumbo, and it was amazing. It is a crawfish cream sauce over pan-fried grit cakes, seared andouille, and eggs over easy. Not a light dish, but man was it good. The sauce was creamy and well-seasoned, including lots of lovely crawfish pieces. The over-easy eggs became part of the sauce and made a wonderful bite with the grits and sausage.

This dish also came with toasted butter bread (score!) – critical to cleaning up any remaining sauce.

The roast beef po’ boy was not as photogenic, but delicious. The same soft, but crusty bread was used, piled high with roast beef and fixings. It came with a very good traditional southern potato salad, similar to the way my mom makes it but with larger chunks of mild pickles. (Other side options included dirty rice, baked potato, red beans & rice, and Zapp’s potato chips.)

Several times during our meal, the owner checked on us and our server was attentive and quick. I was really impressed by the staff and food, and am itching to bring my daughters here for breakfast on the weekend as the French Toast and the Beignets looks ridiculous. (Early to miss the lines though!)

Angelette's Cajun Kitchen on Urbanspoon

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A Scrambled Eggs appreciation…

04 Saturday Aug 2012

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I love the simplicity and pure deliciousness that is perfect scambled eggs. I saw a special with Jacques Pepin years ago where he made his version, and I believe it makes the most creamy and comforting eggs you can find.Perfect Scrambled Eggs

The keys are a good nonstick skillet and using a spatula to gently scrape the bottom of the skillet until the eggs are almost done – taking them off the heat for those final seconds. I like them a little wet and I add a small pat of butter to finish them before serving.

Another nice touch is to get a more upscale butter like Lurpak (my fave) or Plugra (both can be found at regular grocery stores.) If I’m lucky, I have farm-fresh eggs from Tomatoland (a locally-owned produce stand), but this method elevates discount eggs to a heavenly place.

I also use table salt during the cooking and use kosher salt to finish, I believe the table salt more evenly seasons the eggs when they are liquid.

Let me know if you use any of these methods, or tell me YOUR favorite way to cook scrambled eggs…

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