Breakfast Casserole

 

I don't make casseroles too often--my kids prefer a lighter breakfast--but breakfast casseroles are fun sometimes, even for dinner or potlucks. My kids loved it, but I made sure the onion and peppers were diced ridiculously small so they didn't notice. I got this beauty from Holly Nilsson. Enjoy! Serves 10+.

Breakfast Casserole

20 oz shredded hash browns, thawed

1 lb breakfast sausage

1/4 c onion, diced

1/2 red bell pepper, diced 

1/2 green bell pepper, diced

2 c cheddar cheese

8 eggs

1 12-oz can evaporated milk, or 1 1/3 c milk

1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.* Spray 9x13 or 3 qt baking dish with cooking spray. 

2. Heat large skillet over medium high heat. Brown sausage, breaking it up as it cooks, until no pink remains. Drain grease from skillet. 

3. In sprayed dish, add hashbrowns, cooked sausage, onions, bell peppers, and 1 1/2 c of the cheese; gently mix together and spread evenly in pan. 

4. In large bowl, add eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning; whisk until combined. Pour over hashbrown mixture in pan and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Cover dish with foil.

5. Bake in preheated oven 55-65 minutes or until cooked through. 

* Can prepare ahead through step 4 and refrigerate. May need to add about 10 minutes to cook time.

Quiche

I love quiche every so often and this recipe is so tasty! My six your old called it "epic" and my husband had thirds. Can be made for breakfast, lunch or dinner and can be frozen for later (just bake it longer, until center is warm). The cream does make it heavy so it makes you fuller than you think. Tweaked a recipe from allrecipes.com. Makes  1-9" quiche.

Quiche

1-9" frozen pie crust
12 oz chub breakfast sausage of your choice
1 Tbsp bell pepper, diced
1/2 medium onion, diced
4 oz mushrooms, diced
3 eggs
3/4 c heavy cream, or whole milk
1/4 tsp vinegar
1 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
1/8 tsp tarragon
1/8 tsp garlic powder
pinch nutmeg
1 c shredded cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake frozen crust 10 minutes; set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in large skillet cook sausage over medium heat, crumbling as it cooks, until no longer pink. Drain most of the fat from pan. Add bell pepper, onion and mushrooms to skillet; cook 4 minutes. Remove from heat.
3. In medium bowl, mix eggs and cream. Add vinegar, parsley, tarragon, garlic powder, nutmeg and cheese. Stir in sausage and vegetables.
4. Pour into pie crust and bake in preheated oven 50 to 60 minutes, or until edges of crust are golden brown.

Sausage Gravy

I was craving biscuits and gravy the other day (thanks to odd pregnancy cravings) and this recipe hit the spot. It is super tasty, filling, and easy to make. I love that you can make the gravy in the pan with the sausage. I didn't have ground sausage so I chopped up sausage links. It was okay, but ground sausage is so much better. :) Serves 4.

Sausage Gravy

1/2 to 1 lb ground pork sausage
1/2 c flour
3 Tbsp butter, if necessary
2 c milk
salt and pepper to taste

8 biscuits prepared

1. Cook sausage in large skillet over medium heat until browned and no longer pink.
2. Stir in flour until dissolved. If sausage is low fat and doesn't make enough juice to dissolve flour, add 3 Tbsp butter, melt, and stir until flour is dissolved.
3. Gradually stir in milk. Cook until sauce is thick and bubbly. Season with salt and pepper according to individual preference. Serve hot over prepared biscuits.

Banana Crumb Muffins

These are great! I tweaked a recipe off of allrecipes. The muffin itself is good, but adding the crumb topping makes them even better! I have a better banana bread recipe, but the crumb topping on these makes them unique. They're best warm, but great cold the next day. VERY moist and tasty. Try them and let me know what you think! Makes 12 muffins.

Banana Crumb Muffins

1 1/2 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 c sugar
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 c melted butter or olive oil

Crumb Topping
1/2 c sugar
3 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp flour
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
3 Tbsp chilled butter

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease 12 muffin cups, or line with cupcake papers.
2. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg, vanilla and melted butter or oil. Stir in the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
3. Topping: In a small bowl, mix together sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in chilled butter with 2 butter knives or pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse sand. Sprinkle topping evenly over muffins, about 1 Tbsp each muffin.
4. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of muffin comes out clean.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

This muffin recipe is a big hit with the kids! They try to stuff themselves until banana muffin is coming out of their ears. So tasty! :) Keep any leftovers in the fridge or freezer, in an air tight container. Makes 12 muffins. Enjoy!

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

2 c flour
1 c sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 eggs
1/4 c butter, softened or at room temperature
1/2 c plain yogurt or sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
2 ripe bananas, well mashed
1 c semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin tin; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except chocolate chips. Beat mixture just until we’ll combined.
3. Stir in chocolate chips. Fill greased muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in muffin comes out clean. Let sit 5 minutes; remove muffins to cool on cooling rack. Best served warm.

Bacon/Ham Potato Torte

This was my first attempt at pie crust. It always intimidated me! But really, it was easy...as pie! :) For the pie crust recipe, click on this link. ;) This is tasty and filling and feeds lots of people. It takes a while to prepare, so be aware and start early enough...I made the crust in the morning to save time. Eat for breakfast or dinner. If you want to be creative, sprinkle some scrambled egg in with it! Serve with a salad or steamed veggie or fresh fruit...and let me know what you think!
 
Bacon/Ham Potato Torte

1 double pie crust
6 to 7 strips bacon, or 2/3 cup diced ham
4 sprigs thyme
1 c heavy cream
4 medium russet or red potatoes, peeled
 Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 c grated Gruyere cheese
1 egg yolk, whisked with a 1 Tbsp of cold water

1. Prepare pie crust (<---I used the first one on that page), placing bottom portion in pie pan. Keep top crust in bag. Refrigerate both until ready to use.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
3. Cook bacon or diced ham over medium heat. Cook bacon just until crispy, the ham until it smokes. Let cool on paper towel-lined plate. Crumble bacon when cool to the touch.
4. Heat cream and thyme sprigs in small sauce pan over medium-low to medium heat until starts to simmer. Turn off heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Remove thyme sprigs.
5. Remove pie crust from refrigerator. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise then slice thinly. Layer potatoes on bottom of pie crust, sprinkling salt and pepper and bacon or ham on each layer. There should be 3-4 layers, depending if you use bacon or ham. Layer until pie tin is almost full. Spread grated Gruyere cheese evenly on top. Slowly pour the cream over the cheese as evenly as possible.
6. Roll out pie crust top. Place it over the pie, gently pulling off any remaining crust, and crimp edges closed. Brush top and edges with egg wash and make a few slits on top. Put pie pan on baking sheet and bake until the top is crispy golden brown and the potatoes are cooked (you can tell if you cut through some of it....if the knife goes easily through the potatoes, it's done. It takes 45-60 minutes, depending on your oven. If the crust edges get too brown, you can cover them with pieces of aluminum foil.
7. Remove pie from oven and let sit 15 minutes before serving.

Mom's Cinnamon Rolls

One of my favorite memories is coming home from school to my mom baking these cinnamon rolls. And, well, any time she'd make them. They are so light and fluffy and delicious! I love the clear, simple glaze rather than the white, shortening-tasting glaze. I've had good cinnamon rolls in my time, but these are by far my favorite. Let me know what you think! ;) I always double the recipe--if you're going to go through so much effort, might as well make extras. And they freeze perfectly! Just nuke them in the microwave for a few seconds and they're the next best thing to fresh from the oven. Give them a try!

Mom's Cinnamon Rolls

1 pkg (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
1/4 c water, warm (110 degrees)
1 c milk, scalded (180 degrees)*
1/2 c shortening
1/3 c sugar
1 tsp salt
5 c all purpose flour
2 beaten eggs

1 c sugar and 2 Tbsp cinnamon, mixed
1/2 stick butter at room temperature
handful of brown sugar
chopped nuts and/or raisins, if desired

Icing
1 c powdered sugar
2 Tbsp milk

1 tsp vanilla

Option 2: Thicker Frosting
1/2 c butter, softened

1 1b. powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla 

3-Tbsp milk

1. Soften yeast in warm water (5-10 minutes). Meanwhile, combine scalded milk, shortening, sugar and salt in large mixing bowl; cool to lukewarm. Stir in 2 c of the flour; beat well. Add eggs; mix well. Stir in softened yeast and enough of the flour that dough doesn't come off on your finger when you touch it. (Don't add to much flour; it should be a bit sticky.) Cover dough and let rest 10 minutes.
2. Knead dough 8-10 minutes on counter or in mixer. Place in lightly greased bowl, turning once to grease the surface. Cover lightly with saran wrap. Let rise in warm place until doubled in size (or has a good heap), about 1 hour.
3. Roll out (about 1/4" thick) into a rectangle. Cover with a thin layer of room temperature butter. Sprinkle evenly with cinnamon sugar mixture. You should barely be able to see butter and dough underneath. Top with brown sugar, crumpling it in your hand as you drop on top of cinnamon sugar. The more cinnamon sugar you add, the more will drip down as it bakes and caramelize at the bottom. Sprinkle raisins and/or chopped nuts, if using.
4. Roll up the longer side, making sure it's tight. Slice (using knife or dental floss) into 3/4" slices and place on lightly greased jelly roll pan or 9x13 baking dish. Cover and let rise again until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
5. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes.
6. Make icing or frosting. Glaze should be runny, but not too runny. If it's too thick, add 1 tsp milk and stir until reaches drizzling consistency and no lumps remain. For froting, beat butter, sugar, vanilla and milk until smooth. Spread evenly over each roll while warm.

*To scald milk: Place the milk into a saucepan on medium temperature and heat just until it starts to boil. Immediately remove from stove and set aside.

Pancakes

I love pancakes, but not all are created equal. My mom always made them from a Krusteaz mix and I thought those were good. These pancakes are even better, though. :) But that's not surprising since things are usually better when made from scratch. :) This made 10 large pancakes for me. My four year old ate 3 as big as his head. :D Give them a try. They're delish!

Pancakes

1 1/2 c flour
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar
1 1/4 c milk
1 egg
3 Tbsp butter, melted

1. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and sugar. Make a well in center and pour in milk, egg, butter and mix until smooth.
2. Heat lightly oiled pan or griddle or medium-high heat. Pour batter onto griddle, using approximately 1/4 c mix for each. Brown on both sides. Serve hot.

Bran Muffins

This is my sister-in-law's recipe. She made these for me after I had my second baby and they were ta-sty! And they're healthy to boot! Makes 24 muffins.

Bran Muffins

2 c buttermilk*

2 c whole wheat flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 c sugar

1 c bran flour

2 eggs

4 Tbsp coconut or olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 375. Line muffin tins with paper; set aside.

2. Mix wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar and flour in large bowl. In separate small bowl, quickly whisk eggs; add oil and buttermilk. Stir into the dry ingredients, just until wet.

3. Ladle evenly into muffin tins (I use soup ladle b/c it's easier and less mess!), about 1/2 to 3/4 way full. Bake 15 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out dry.

* If you do not have buttermilk put 2 Tbsp lemon juice or vinegar in 2 c measuring cup and add milk to make 2 cups. Let sit at least 5 minutes.

Glazed Chocolate Chip Scones

I always thought scones must be difficult to make because I'd only seen them sold in pretty glass displays at bread stores...well, they're not only easy, they're delicious when fresh! They're a fun way to change up breakfast or snack.
There are a lot of recipes out there, but this is my favorite. Y-U-M. ;) My kids (and neighbors) LOVE them. To lower fat content, omit butter from glaze or omit glaze all together. This recipe makes 8. ENJOY!

Glazed Chocolate Chip Scones

2 c all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 c vegetable shortening
1/2 c milk
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips (you could also use currants, frozen blueberries, or any other fruit you'd like)

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Grease baking sheet and set aside.
2. In large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. With pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
3. In small bowl, combine milk, egg, and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients along with chocolate chips (or other) and mix with fork until mixture clings together and forms a soft dough.
4. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface and knead gently 5 or 6 times (I actually do this part inside the mixing bowl). Flatten into a 7-inch round. Cut into 8 wedges.
5. Place scones, 1 inch apart, on greased baking sheet. Pierce tops with tines of fork.
6. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
7. Mix the glaze while baking.

Scone Glaze
1/2 c sifted powder sugar
1 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp milk (plus some)
1/2 tsp vanilla

Stir powdered sugar, melted butter, milk, and vanilla in a small mixing bowl. You could also add any flavoring you might want (i.e. 2 tsp lemon juice, etc.). Add more milk, 1/2 tsp at a time, until drizzling consistency. Spoon or baste over warm scones. Serve immediately.