04 Nov
How to Make Perfect Scrambled Eggs
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods, How-To | 37 Comments
Scrambled eggs are a popular breakfast staple, but one that can often go painfully wrong. Sure, it’s pretty hard to make scrambled eggs inedible, but there’s nothing worse that rubbery scrambled eggs, or ones that are still quite watery. Once you master perfectly fluffy and moist scrambled eggs, there will be no turning back. It’s so simple and combines a few “secret” methods that together produce some of the most delicious scrambled eggs that will ever pass your lips. Weekend breakfasts will never be the same! Now what are you waiting for? Grab some eggs and practice your scrambling!
03 Aug
Brown Sugar Bacon Buttermilk Waffles
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods | 38 Comments
So you pretty much need to make these waffles immediately. This was my first foray into homemade waffles, and I was blown away by the results. Although I have owned a Belgian-waffle maker for a few years now, all I had ever done was mix up some Bisquick which, now that I think about it, is probably an insult to my awesome Waring Pro round “flip over” fancy-schmancy waffle maker. Well, I’m sure it was happy to see this batter hitting its surface. Imagine bacon that is topped with brown sugar and then baked in the oven so that the brown sugar carmelizes into a glaze on top of the bacon. Then a homemade waffle batter made with buttermilk that is thick, lumpy, and creates the perfect waffle. Mix the bacon into the batter, scoop onto the waffle maker and, voilà!, waffles that combine two favorite breakfast foods.
23 Jul
Vanilla & Brown Sugar Breakfast Polenta
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods | 22 Comments
Growing up in an Italian family, it goes without saying that this was not the first time I had polenta. This was, however, the first time that I had it in a sweetened form. When I think about polenta I am immediately transported to my grandma’s dining room, her house crowded with people, and catching a chill from the draft created each time a new person comes into the house. People are buzzing, and whiffs of sauce that has simmered all day and sausage that is frying dance through the air. It’s Thanksgiving Eve, and it’s one of the most celebrated dinners in our family, perhaps even more so than Thanksgiving Day dinner. You see, all of my grandfather’s siblings and their resulting families settled in the Chicago area while he stayed in Pittsburgh and married my grandma (aw). It became a tradition when my mom was still very little that our Chicago relatives came to visit for Thanksgiving. When I was young the house was full of people and everyone came for a full week (or longer) and for us kids it was truly like Christmas. Over the years, as members of the older generation passed and kids grew up, got jobs and families of their own, less and less made the trip, but there are still a few that come every year even if only for a few days. And to welcome the weary travelers when they get in on Wednesday, my grandma always prepares a large meal that includes a huge pot of polenta. You can choose to have it with marinara sauce and meatballs, or with crispy sausage and bacon. (I’m a sucker for the sausage and bacon, myself.) Needless to say, I am a big polenta fan and became an even bigger fan after tasting this sweetly satisfying breakfast dish.
19 May
Mushroom Spinach & Gruyere Quiche
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods, Vegetarian Entrees | 13 Comments
Given the current state of today’s economy, many people are trying to cut back on their grocery bill. Unfortunately, a lot of people think “eating cheap” equates to ramen noodles and spaghettios. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. In fact, slashing spending on food opens up the possibilities to getting creative and exploring new flavors. Since meat is one of the more expensive parts of a grocery bill, throwing in a few vegetarian meals during the week can really stretch the dollar. Quiche often graces the table for fancy breakfasts or the occasional brunch, but egg-based dinners can be very tasty, filling, and cheap!
The traditional quiche is baked in a flaky, buttery crust. While it tastes fabulous, we’re dangerously close to bathing suit season. We can spare the butter (and save it for dessert), right? It also drastically reduces the time it takes to assemble this dish, making it an easy weeknight meal.
08 Mar
Baked Oatmeal
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods | 14 Comments
Everyone knows that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Everyone also knows that breakfast can be the most boring meal of the day. It becomes all too easy to fall into a rut of grabbing toast while you run out the door, the same old bowl of cereal, or a calorie-laden Starbucks pastry. Okay so that last one might not be boring, but it’s certainly not healthy! This baked oatmeal is a wonderful alternative to traditional breakfast foods – it’s warm, hearty, filling, and full of good-for-you stuff that will make you feel like you started the day right. Looking for an added bonus? You can bake this up and have enough left to be reheated for breakfast every day of the work week. That’s right, 5 days of breakfast ready and waiting for you – no wondering what you’re going to eat or what you’ll have time to make when you wake up in the morning.
18 Oct
French Toast
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods | 14 Comments
Honest to goodness, custard-drenched, authentic French toast. I told you I was going to make good use of that Challah I made!
I eat French toast pretty often, but it’s usually nothing close to the sweet sensation that I cooked up this morning. I typically keep it pretty light and healthy – wheat bread, a couple of eggs whisked together with a splash of milk, quick dip, and then browned on the skillet. This, however, is so incredibly decadent, has such a rich flavor, and so sweet that I would argue that the syrup could be optional. Crazy, right??
29 May
Herbed-Baked Eggs
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods | 20 Comments
Yes, yes, I have joined yet another baking group. This one, Barefoot Bloggers, was started by Tara of Smells Like Home, and is devoted to cooking/baking Ina Garten recipes twice a month. I was drawn to this group for a few reasons:
#1 – I could stand to focus on cooking for a change instead of always baking – variety is the spice of life, no?
#2 – I love Ina Garten.
#3 – My sister bought me Ina’s Barefoot Contessa at Home cookbook for Christmas and it has been neglected.
Definitely good reasons. Now on to the food!
Our first recipe was Herbed-Baked Eggs, which I had actually watched Ina make on an episode of Barefoot Contessa. They looked fabulous, and I was looking forward to trying them. Some butter and cream is heated to bubbling under a broiler, and then three eggs are slipped into the gratin dish, covered with a mixture of herbs and Parmesan cheese. What a wonderful dish, and something so quick yet fancy enough to serve to breakfast guests. The eggs need a bit longer than the 5-6 minutes Ina estimates under the broiler, but the taste is just fabulous.
Our next Barefoot Blogger recipe will be Pasta, Pesto, and Peas. Be on the lookout for it in a couple of weeks!
26 May
Buttermilk Pancakes
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods | 15 Comments
My search for the perfect from-scratch pancake has eluded me for some time. Some of the recipes have been way too loaded with butter, and others have resulted in curdled butter when mixing together the melted butter, eggs, and buttermilk. At last, while watching the Food Network late one night, Alton Brown made buttermilk pancakes that had a modest amount of butter (in comparison) and solved the problem of my curdled butter. Apparently mixing the eggs, butter, and milk all together creates a chemical reaction that curdles the butter. By separating the eggs and mixing the egg whites with the buttermilk, and the yolks with the butter separately, each combination is thus stabilized. Problem solved!
The verdict: Love them! The batter is thick and lumpy, which creates fluffy, flavorful pancakes. Will be saving this for my standard pancake recipe from now on!
07 Feb
Homemade Granola
Posted by Michelle as Appetizers, Breakfast Foods | 24 Comments
I have always been a big fan of granola – the toasted, crunchy oats and nuts, along with sweet fruit make a wonderful combination, whether eating it in yogurt or by the handful. I ran into some problems, though, after discovering that I have a nut allergy, as one would be pretty hard pressed to find a package of store-bought granola that did not include some type of nut. So I figured I would need to go the homemade route if I wanted to enjoy granola again. However, it’s virtually impossible to find a recipe that does not include them and mostly out of sheer laziness I have never, before now, gone through the trouble of adapting a recipe (I know, it’s brutally taxing work). This granola tastes wonderful and I have been enjoying it mixed into my yogurt. I substituted Grape-Nuts cereal for the nuts in this recipe, which mimics the nice crunchy texture of nuts.
25 Oct
The Perfect Omelet
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods | 9 Comments
I saw a recent episode of Barefoot Contessa in which Ina made this recipe, and it looked absolutely delicious (as most of her recipes do!), so I bookmarked it. Since I was just cooking for myself tonight it was the perfect time for me to experiment with a not-so-healthy meal 
This was absolutely delicious and I already can’t wait to eat the leftovers. The combination of potatoes and onions was extremely tasty, and combined with all of the other ingredients it was, well, perfect! This was the first time I baked an omelet in the oven and I’m totally sold on the process. Mine took about 23 minutes to cook, although I am super paranoid about raw eggs, so it may just have been the overly cautiousness in me, but it definitely wasn’t near ready at 15 minutes. The only thing I changed about the recipe was to leave out the jalapeños – I don’t keep them in the house and I’m not particularly fond of things with a kick. Without further ado, here is another pic and the recipe – ENJOY! 
