Honey Date + Pecan Scones

Mar 28, 2013 by Gina Mueller

I have been searching for dessert substitutions- trying to get off my sweet kick induced from eatting too many oreos over our ski vacation.  Scones have been a great alternative, especially ones like these that are packed with healthy ingredients.  While they still have sugar and flour they also have honey, dates, pecans, and oats.  They are delightful- especially with a cup of coffee.

Honey Fig + Pecan Scones
Adapted by  Brown Eyed Baker

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats (my oatmeal mixture is half steal cut oats and half old-fashioned oats)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons almond milk
• 1 cup diced dried dates
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a large baking sheet with greased aluminum foil.

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, oats, baking powder, and cinnamon. Then, in a smaller bowl, whisk together egg and oil. Then add honey and mix well. Fold the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined. Then gently mix in half and half. In a small bowl, cover dates and pecans with sugar and then fold into dough.

Use your hands to form a large ball with the dough.  Place dough ball on  baking sheet and flatten to 1/4 in.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20  minutes or until lightly golden brown. Serve warm, preferably the same day the scones are baked. Otherwise store in an airtight behavior or freeze until ready to eat.

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, oats, baking powder, and cinnamon.

whisk together egg and oil. Then add honey and mix well.

Fold two mixtures together

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Breakfast Bake

Dec 24, 2011 by Lindsay

When Gina visited Chicago a few weeks ago, I made this beautiful breakfast casserole for brunch. I had been eying the recipe for weeks, so I was glad that it turned out to be even more delicious than I was expecting. I like to refer to it as breakfast stuffing. It takes some time to put together, but since you can prepare most of it the night before, there is no excuse not to try this for a Holiday brunch this Christmas or New Years!

Ingredients:
(Recipe from Food & Wine. As prepared, I cut the ingredients by approx. 25% since the only casserole pan we had was small.)

• 1 pound bakery white bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (16 cups)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound sliced applewood-smoked bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
• One 28-ounce can whole Italian tomatoes—drained, chopped and patted dry
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/2 pound extra-sharp cheddar, shredded (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 pound Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
• 2 tablespoons snipped chives
• 1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• Salt
• 8 large eggs

I revised a bit based on what we currently had on hand: a mix of leftover french & sourdough bread, regular bacon, and only cheddar cheese.

Steps:
Preheat the oven to 350°. Lightly oil a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish. In a large bowl, toss the bread with the olive oil and spread on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes, tossing once or twice, until the bread is golden and lightly crisp.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook the bacon over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain; reserve 2 tablespoons of the fat in the skillet.

Add the onion to the skillet and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and crushed red pepper and cook until any liquid is evaporated, about 3 minutes.

Return the toasted bread cubes to the bowl. Add the contents of the skillet, along with the bacon, shredded cheeses, chives and broth. Stir until the bread is evenly moistened. Season with salt. Spread the mixture in the baking dish and cover with lightly oiled foil. (You can prepare through this step the night before and keep it in the refrigerator.)

Bake the bread mixture in the center of the oven for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until the top is crispy, about 15 minutes longer. Carefully remove the baking dish from the oven and, using a ladle, press 8 indentations into the bread mixture. Crack an egg into each indentation. Return the dish to the oven and bake for about 15 minutes, until the egg whites are set but the yolks are still runny. Serve the breakfast bake right away with hot sauce.

Chop the bread into uniform cubes, toss with olive oil and bake the bread cubes at 350° for 20 minutes.

Cook the bacon in a skillet until crispy. Once finished, keep approximately 2 tbs of bacon fat to cook the onions.

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Eggs and a Muffin Pan

Sep 30, 2011 by Gina Mueller

I have a confession.  I have not been to the grocery store in over a month!

Making it the perfect time to try something new.  This breakfast was not only delicious but extremely easy and fast.  I will definitely be cookng my eggs in a muffin pan the next time I have a group over for breakfast.

Ingredients

• Eggs
• Sausage (or whatever you like with your eggs)
• Tortilla
• Cheese
• Dash of salt and pepper

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Banana Bread + Choco Chips

Jul 31, 2011 by Gina Mueller

I realize this was supposed to mainly be a fashion blog… but lately I have been a better cooker than dresser.  Plus I have so many yummy recipes I want to share.

There is one thing you should know about me before you start reading my recipes and notice a common trend.  I LOVE bananas, always have.  I think it is their neutral taste.  Perfect for the morning.  Perfect for a snack.  Perfect for dessert when you are tricking yourself into thinking you are eating a huge mountain of ice cream and half of it is cut up bananas (I highly recommend trying this).  It is the perfect food.

So clearly one of a banana lovers favorite foods would be… banana bread

Therefore I am on a quest.  A quest to find the best banana bread recipe out there.  I usually make my mothers banana bread (recipe to come in the near future) but I decided I want to explore around… to make sure im not missing out on any amazing recipes!  The first recipe I tackled was from the lovely blog of SmittenKitchen

And what makes banana bread even more delicious?  Chocolate chips! I added a couple handfuls.

Ingredients

3 to 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted salted butter
3/4 to 1 cup light brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon bourbon (I did not use the burbon … but hey if you are feeling risky go for it!)
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Pinch of ground cloves
1 1/2 cup of flour

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