it’s the time of year for… egg nog, among other things.  i wanted to find a way to incorporate egg nog into our breakfast.  i first tried egg nog french toast, which was a massive fail.  they were very blah.  we went to ihop and devoured egg nog pancakes, which were AWESOME.  so i decided to try egg nog in another one of our favorite breakfast dishes: waffles.  these are a bit cakey, but most definitely egg-noggy and wonderful.  the recipe yields two average sized waffles; double and quadruple, as needed.

source: cake and allie

• 3/4 c flour
• 1/4 c cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 c egg nog
• 1/3 c vegetable oil
• 1 egg

1. in a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
2. in a medium bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients.
3. pour wet ingredients into the dry mixture bowl and whisk until just combined.  do not overmix, lumps are fine.  let the batter rest for 30 min.
   
   
4. cook waffles using your favorite waffle iron.

enjoy and merry christmas!

zucchini was on sale at publix a few weeks ago.  i get a lot of from the sale ads which incidentally, makes tom happy because i spend less on groceries each week.  thinking about zucchini took me back to summer and out of the icy winter that we’ve been having down here in nashville.  so i found this recipe online.

it’s a recipe that needs a bit of tweaking, but was pretty tasty for a first try.

slightly adapted from: allrecipes.com

• 1 8 oz. can refridgerated crescent rolls
• 2 tbsp honey mustard
• 2 c sliced zucchini
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1/8 c butter
• 2 c cooked, shredded chicken meat
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 c milk
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 2 c shredded mozzarella cheese

1. preheat oven to 350°.
   
   
   
2. open the can of crescent rolls, unroll the dough and place the dough into the bottom of a 9″ x 9″ baking pan.  do not separate the rolls.  press the edges of the dough up the sides of the pan to make a crust, spread the honey mustard over the dough.
3. place the zucchini and a few tbsp of water into a saucepan over medium heat, cover and bring to a boil.  reduce heat to medium low, and cook the zucchini until tender, about 15. min.  drain and set the zucchini aside.
   
   
   
4. place the onion in a large skillet with butter over medium heat, and cook and stir until the onion is translucent, 5-8 min.  stir the cooked zucchini and chicken into the onion and mix well.  let the mixture heat for about 5 min., stirring occasionally.  spread the zucchini mixture in an even layer over the crust.
5. in a bowl, beat the eggs with milk and seasonings; pour the egg mixture over the zucchini.  sprinkle the cheese over the top.
   
   
   
6. bake until the egg mixture is set and the cheese is browned and bubbling, about 20 min.  broil if needed.

enjoy!

french toast is a very simple breakfast dish to make.  i’ve been making it for a very long time and was kind of surprised to find that i hadn’t blogged about it yet!

(for 8 slices of french toast, multiply as needed)

• 8 slices of bread (tom prefers good old fashioned white, i prefer brioche)
• 3 eggs
• 1 – 1 1/4 c dairy products (milk, half & half, whipping cream*)
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• cinnamon, to taste

1. preheat a griddle to med-low heat.
2. in a medium bowl, whisk 3 eggs.
3. add dairy products (i prefer to use 1/2 c half and half, 3/4 c milk.  i used 1/2 c whipping cream, 3/4 c milk today and it turned out great, too!)  whisk together with the eggs.
4. add sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon.  whisk until mixed well.
5. place 1/2 tbsp of butter on the griddle.  (add even if you’re using a non-stick griddle, it helps give the french toast a golden color and crisp finish.)
6. dip a slice of bread into the egg mixture and place on griddle.  repeat until your griddle is full.  allow to brown on one side and flip.  brown on the other side and move to dish.  try to only flip each slice once, because it can become mushy if you flip it more than once.
7. top with whatever you wish.

enjoy!

i have a dear sister who is part pirate, part mexican and 100% awesome.  it’s her birthday this wednesday and i got the honor of making her a birthday dessert.   her first requirement was that she wanted cupcakes.  (little did she know that her husband picked up a sweet pirate cupcake kit a while back.  i’m bummed i didn’t get a pic of one with a pirate topper in it. )  i mentioned tres leches cupcakes to her and she got REALLY excited.

so to wrap it up: pirates + tres leches + cupcakes = best way to celebrate the best. sister. ever!  happy birthday, bran!

recipe slightly modified from cupcakeproject.com

• 8 eggs, separated
• 1 1/3 c sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 c flour
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 6 oz. evaporated milk
• 11 oz. condensed milk
• 3/4 c heavy cream
• 3 oz. kahlua (or any liquor that you prefer)

1. preheat the oven to 350°.
2. in a large bowl, beat the egg yolks and 1 c of the sugar until pale and fluffy. (2-3 min.)
3. add the vanilla.
4. in a small bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, cornstarch and salt.  mix these ingredients with the yolk mixture until combined.
5. beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
6. add 1/3 c of sugar at the end.  do not over beat!
7. fold the whites into the yolk and flour mixture, being very careful not to deflate the batter.  (i used the paddle attachment on my kitchenaid mixer at a low speed).
8. fill the cupcake liners about halfway.
9. bake for 20 min. or until golden brown and when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
10. with a serrated knife, remove the top golden layer on each cupcake to expose the sponge.  if some of your cupcakes didn’t rise over the cupcake liner, poke holes in them with a toothpick.
11. mix the three milks.  divide the mixture in half, add kahlua to one half, to spike half of your cupcakes.  or to spike them all, double the kahlua and skip dividing the milk mixture in half.  or spike none of them at all.  it’s entirely up to you!
12. you’ll want to add 3 tbsp of the milk mixture to your cupcakes.  you can add it to your cupcakes 1 tsp at a time.  this part takes a while, but you’ll want to take your time because if you try to add all 3 tbsp at once, you’ll just end up with a sticky mess.  the milk will completely absorb into the cake.
13. refrigerate the cupcakes covered overnight.

meringue frosting recipe

(or you can just skip this and top the cupcakes with whipped cream)

• 4 egg whites
• pinch salt
• 1 c sugar
• 1/2 c water
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

1. mix the water and sugar in a small pan.
2. bring it to a boil and cook until soft ball point, about 10 min. (or 235° for those of you with a handy dandy candy thermometer).  to know when the syrup has reached soft crack, take a little bit with a clean spoon and drop it in a bowl filled with water.  it is ready when you can make  a little soft ball with it inside the water.  be careful, this is HOT!
3. when the syrup is about to come to the soft ball point, beat the egg whites (with a pinch of salt added just a minute after starting the beating) until soft peaks form.
4. still beating the whites, add the syrup in a steady way and beat until the mixture cools down.  this takes a while, but the end product is worth it!  the final mixture will resemble soft marshmallows.
5. frost the cupcakes!
6. top with cinnamon.

enjoy!

as i have said before breakfast is our favorite meal of the day.  breakfast was served at our late morning wedding reception and i could go on and on about how much we LOVE breakfast.  but i won’t.  i’ll just share another shoemaker-approved breakfast dish.

Adapted from SmittenKitten

• 1 pizza crust (however you prefer to make it)*
• 1/4-1/2 lb. ground breakfast sausage
• 1/4 c grated parmigiano reggiano cheese
• 1 c grated mozzarella
• 3 eggs
• salt and pepper to taste
• green onion
• parsley flakes

* i picked up an awesome pre-made dough from publix that was just waiting to be kneaded and topped.

1. pull dough out of the fridge 1-2 hours before you want to start making pizza.
2. pre-heat oven to 500°.
3. brown sausage in a pan.  place on a paper towel lined dish to drain of excess grease.
4. knead out dough.  make sure the bottom of the crust is floured well.
5. t0p with parmigiano reggiano, mozzarella and sausage.
6. crack the three eggs over the top of the pizza and top with salt and pepper.
7. bake for 8-10 min. or until eggs are cooked to your liking.
8. remove from oven, top with green onion and parsley flakes.

enjoy!

happy new year, everyone!  breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, so i couldn’t think of a better way to start out the new year than with this kickin breakfast casserole.

• 1 tube breakfast sausage
• 1/2 medium green pepper, chopped fine
• 1/4 medium sweet onion, chopped fine
• 10 8″ flour tortillas
• shredded cheddar cheese, a lot of it and divided
• 1 1/2 tbsp flour
• 2 1/2 c half and half
• 8 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 tsp salt

1. brown sausage in pan over medium heat, drain off excess grease.  fold in onions and peppers.
2. place a good pinch of cheese in center of tortilla, top with 1/2 c of sausage mixture, roll and place into greased 9″ x 13″ baking dish.  repeat until pan is full.
3. in a large bowl, whisk together eggs, half and half, flour and salt.   pour over tortillas, cover and refrigerate overnight.
4. in the morning, preheat oven to 350°.   cover casserole and bake for 25 minutes.  uncover and bake for 15 minutes.   sprinkle with remaining cheese, bake until cheese is bubbly.

enjoy!

this pie is one of tom’s favorite desserts, if not his absolute favorite dessert.   it’s frequently served at thanksgiving and Christmas.  but i make it several times during the year, dressing it up with mini pie crust cutters.

it is very simple to make, especially if you use ready-made pie dough.   however, i am not a cheater. here’s the recipe, courtesy of the 1953 edition of “better homes and gardens new cook book”:

plain pastry (for an 8-9 inch double crust pie)

• 1 1/2 cups sifted enriched flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 c shortening
• 4-5 tbsp cold (COLD) water

1. sift together the flour and salt.  cut in half the shortening with a pastry blender until the mixture looks like cornmeal.  then cut in the remaining half until the pieces are sizes of peas.
2. sprinkle water (i use water from the brita in the fridge), a tablespoon at a time, over part of the mixture.  gently mix fork; push to one side of bowl.  sprinkle next tablespoon water over dry part; mix lightly; push to moistened part at side.  repeat until all is moistened.  gather up with fingers; form into ball.  let stand several minutes.  (at this point i put the crust in the fridge for about 15 min.  the cooler the shortening, the flakier the crust becomes because the steam from the shortening makes little pockets in your crust, thus forming flakiness.)
3. divide dough by about 2/3 and 1/3.  form ball.  flatten slightly and roll on lightly floured pastry cloth.  (i use saran wrap.)  roll 2/3 dough in a circle form, if edges split, pinch together.  always roll from the center out to the edge.  use light strokes.  place in pan, cut off excess dough around edge of pie dish.
4. roll remaining 1/3 dough out.  cut shapes from dough, brush with small amount of water, place on edge of crust.  place pie in the fridge while preparing filling.

pecan pie

• 1/2 c sugar
• 1/4 c butter
• 1 c light corn syrup
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 eggs
• 1 heaping c pecans

1. cream sugar and butter.  add syrup, salt; beat well.
2. beat in eggs, one at a time.  add pecans.
3. pour into a 9-inch pastry-lined pie pan (see above ).
4. bake in a moderate oven (350°) 1 hour and 10 minutes – or till knife comes out clean.

enjoy!

crème brûlée is about as perfect as dessert can get. i had never had crème brûlée until our recent trip to cincinnati. we ate at jeff ruby’s and it was so heavenly, i decided that i needed to figure out how to make it!  i picked up a crème brûlée torch set from bed, bath & beyond, butane from meijers, and was on my way to making the recipe below. i hope that you enjoy it!

• 2 c heavy cream
• 1/4 c sugar
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (don’t use the kind with alcohol in it, the flavor isn’t as good.)
• 4 egg yolks (save the whites and make a healthy omelette to make up for the crème brûlée!)
• 4 tbsp white or brown sugar

1. preheat the oven to 300°
2. bring a large pot of water to boil. while the water is boiling, combine cream, 1.4 c sugar and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. stir occasionally 4 to 5 minutes, until steam rises. in a medium bowl, beat egg yolks and vanilla until smooth. temper hot cream into yolks, stirring constantly, until all cream is incorporated. pour mixture into ramekins.
3. place ramekins in baking dish, and place dish on oven rack. pour boiling water into dish to halfway up the sides of the ramekins. cover whole pan loosely with foil.
4. bake 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until custard is just set. chill ramekins in refrigerator 4 to 6 hours.
5. before serving, sprinkle 1 tbsp sugar over each custard. use brown sugar for a caramel flavor, use white for a crunchier topping. brown top.

enjoy!

this is a quick, simple and delicious solution for breakfast.

• 1 loaf of french bread
• 8 oz. package of cream cheese
• raisins (optional)
• brown sugar
• 10 eggs
• 3/4 c milk
• 3/4 c half and half
• 1/4 c maple syrup (or other syrup)
• 1/4 c melted butter
• cinnamon

1. cube bread and place half in a greased 9 x 13 pan
2. dot with cream cheese cut into small cubes
3. sprinkle with raisins and brown sugar, evenly over bread
4. layer with the remaining bread
5. in a large bowl, combine eggs, half and half, syrup and butter, pour over bread
6. sprinkle with cinnamon
7. cover and refrigerate overnight
8. remove cover and bake and 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes
9. serve hot with syrup

enjoy!