The Buttercreme Baker

Breakfast is served

With John being out of town, I thought I'd call off Breakfast Night and just make a simple dinner-maybe pasta. To this, Madelyn objected…loudly.

I had a hankering for some Bob Evans Caramel Apple Stuffed Pancakes. Since the nearest franchise is no less than an hour away, I did some online research and I must say, mine were even better than the restaurant version.

Making the Caramel Apple, cream cheese toppings and pancakes can be a little time-consuming but, well worth it.

Caramel Apple Topping (Adapted from Betty Crocker's Caramel Apple Topped Waffles)

2 T unsalted butter

3 medium cooking apples (Granny Smith, Gala, etc.), peeled and sliced

1 t cinnamon

¼ C caramel ice cream topping (I like Smucker's)

Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Stir in apples and sprinkle with cinnamon. Cook over medium heat 25-30 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender. Pour caramel topping over apples and cook another 5-10 minutes, tossing apples in the topping to coat.

Serve hot over buttermilk pancakes topped with Vanilla Cream Cheese Topping (found another great recipe for this should you not have pudding mix on hand). I'll share that one some other time.

Nostalgia

Still on my comfort food kick, I browsed one of my favorite cookbooks in search of a little nostalgia. My mom hardly ever cooked, but when she did, it was usually something pretty special…well, at least for breakfast anyway, dinner-not so much (blah). I wanted to find a recipe similar to the one she used to make muffins on Sunday mornings.

Having no such luck on the muffin hunt, I thought I'd try these Cinnamon-Sugar Waffles instead. Boy, was I glad I didn't find that recipe.

 

 

Banana Bread-Ultimate Comfort Food

I made this last week for Breakfast Night. It was warm, fragrant, filling and just plain delicious.

The plan was to make the bread and then turn the leftovers into French toast but that never happened, as there weren't any leftovers. I guess that was a good thing because the bread is so decadent alone, I was kind of hesitant to make it into French toast.

This particular recipe is my absolute favorite; the heavy cream combined with the banana creates an amazing moistness!

So, what secret ingredient does your best banana bread recipe require?

My Limbs Runneth Over

I noticed that the little buds, which will soon be lemons, are growing at a pretty steady pace. I am so proud-it's still alive!

So far this winter, the only casualty of my black thumb has been the poinsettia (I won't even photograph it, it's so pitiful). All of the leaves have fallen off but, there are still quite a few flowers still hanging on for dear life. Trial and error, people, trial and error.

This juicy morsel was dinner last night. I had never tried the recipe until then and I'm not so sure I'll make it again. John and Madelyn however, couldn't get enough. You be the judge.

Barbecue Stew Beef (Adapted from Barbecue Beef Brisket by The Pampered Chef, Stoneware Inspirations)

1-2 lbs stew beef

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ t kosher salt

½ t black pepper

¾ C ketchup

¼ C cider vinegar

1/8 C brown sugar

1/8 C Worcestershire sauce

1 T yellow mustard

1 medium onion, sliced

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place beef in a 9x13 pan, preferably stoneware. Sprinkle beef with garlic, salt and black pepper.

*Combine ketchup, vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire and mustard. Pour over beef.

*Arrange sliced onions over meat. Cover pan with lid or aluminum foil. Bake for 1 hour-1 hr 30 or until fork tender.

 

 

Cheers to the New Year!

Happy New Year, everyone. I'm sure we weren't the only ones that woke up too late to enjoy breakfast. Well, isn't that a great excuse to have brunch?

These quick and easy rolls were the centerpiece.

Tangerine Rolls (adapted from Southern Living's Easy Orange Rolls recipe)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Beat 4 oz of softened cream cheese, ¼ C firmly packed light brown sugar, and 1 ½ t tangerine zest at medium speed in a mixer until smooth. Unroll 1 (8 oz) can of crescent roll dough onto a lightly floured surface, pinching perforations closed. Sprinkle dough with 2T of granulated sugar. Spread cream cheese mixture over sugar. Gently roll up the dough, beginning with the long side. Cut into about 13 slices. Place slices in a lightly greased 8" round pan. Brush tops of rolls with 1T of melted butter. Bake 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Stir together ½ C of powdered sugar and 2 T of tangerine juice in a small bowl until smooth. Drizzle over hot rolls.

I can't wait until my new lemon tree fills with fruit. Oh, the possibilities…lemon rolls, lemon meringue pie, lemon chicken, lemon custard cakes, lemon tart, spun lemon sugar-yup, I'm a lemon fiend.

Can you believe it's already bearing fruit?

And from the looks of the little buds, there are more to come. Thanks Morgan and Ginger!

 

 

Mr. Crunchy

Uuummm…Croque Monsieur-the classic French bistro sandwich. You cannot go wrong with crusty French bread, salty, but not too salty Virginia ham, fresh parmesan and Gruyere. And to top it all off, a creamy béchamel spiked with nutmeg and pepper. Mon dieu!

I love this sandwich because like an American ham and cheese, the ingredients can be adapted to whatever you have on hand. No Blackforest ham in the fridge? Substitute country or city ham. Sourdough is a good sub for the French bread called for in the standard but, the possibilities are endless.

I used this recipe posted by Elise on Simply Recipes. It's adapted from several different recipes including one from Ina Garten and Debra Weber.

Peppermint Twist

I attempted to make the Peppermint Twist cupcakes featured on Fields of Cake (a fellow foodie) for the Christmas Party last Sunday.

Even the peppermint white chocolate ganache turned out nicely.

Things were going well until I started to ice the cupcakes-my pastry bag did not want to cooperate. Aaargh! I didn't even photograph the end result-let's just say I made lemonade out of lemons.

 

The Party’s Over

I am happy to report that the Hampton Inn Christmas Party went off without a hitch. The soiree took place at Charley's Waterfront Café, adjacent to several of the historic Greenfront Furniture storefronts.

John, Madelyn and John's parents

Abby, Iris and Debra

Of course the gingerbread houses came home with Madelyn.

Several of you have asked for the recipe for the apple fritters I posted last week. Well, ask and you shall receive.

Apple Fritters (adapted from a recipe submitted by John Robbins to Allrecipes.com)

1 C all-purpose flour

¾ t baking powder

1 t salt

½ t apple pie seasoning

1 egg

1/3 heavy cream

¾ C chopped Gala apple w/ skin

4 t butter, melted

1 ½ T sugar

1 T lemon juice

¼ t vanilla

Peanut oil for frying

    

    In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and apple pie seasoning until well combined and airy. In another bowl beat egg and cream. Add the apple, butter, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla; mix well.

    Stir into dry ingredients until just moistened. In a fryer, heat oil to 375 degrees. Drop batter by rounded tablespoons into the hot oil. Fry until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels. Dust or roll in confectioners' sugar or cover in glaze of your choosing.

    Bon Appétit!    

The Apple Fritter Gang

Last night, Breakfast Night was exceptionally delicious. As I've said before, it can be rather challenging coming up with something that's not only delicious, but different as well.

After scouring all of the usuals for ideas-Epicurious, Food Network, Foodbuzz, I landed at my tried-and true-All Recipes. They happened to have featured a special section for favorites in breakfast and brunch recipes. Well, I didn't make it out of the "A's" before I found exactly what I wanted to make-Apple Fritters. I read through the reviews and they were fairly positive (4 out of 5 star rating), the biggest issue seemed to be that some members were not too experienced in the art of frying. So, I gave it a whirl…

they turned out wonderfully!

Like little apple donuts.

I dipped some in a lemon glaze and the others I dusted with powdered sugar. A definite repeat.

Lights, Camera, Action!

Last night, Madelyn performed in her school's annual Lower School Christmas play. She was a part of the "12 Groovy Days of Christmas".

Unfortunately, her face paint was more 60's than 70's…oops.

I've been so busy working on these life-sized gingerbread houses for the Hampton Inn Christmas party; I haven't had time to do much else. Needless to say, the Great Room is a mess.

I did find time to make these scrumptious blueberry muffins, however.

Blueberry Muffins (Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living)

• 6 T unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for tins
• 3 C plus 2 T all-purpose flour
• 3 t baking powder
• 1 t salt
• 1 1/4 C sugar, plus more for sprinkling
• 1 large egg
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 t pure vanilla extract
• 1 C heavy cream
• 1 C fresh blueberries
• ¾ C wild frozen blueberries

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter large (3 3/4 inches) muffin tins or use cupcake liners, and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium speed until fluffy about 3 minutes. Add egg, egg yolks, and vanilla; mix until well combined. Reduce speed to low; alternate adding reserved flour mixture and cream to mixer, beginning and ending with flour. Remove bowl from mixer; gently fold in berries by hand. Divide batter among muffin tins; sprinkle generously with sugar. Bake until light golden, about 35 minutes. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Remove from pan; transfer to wire rack, and let cool completely.