Category — Breakfast + Brunch Recipes

After a month of putting up only photos, I decided I couldn’t go another day without putting up a recipe. I’m wracked with guilt over my inattention to creating useful contributions to the blogosphere. OK, not really. But here’s a recipe anyway!

This recipe combines two delicious things: wine and cake! This cake is moist and flavorful, with a tender crumb and rich flavor- thanks in part to the “secret” ingredient: red wine in both the cake batter and the glaze.

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A few weeks ago I posted about this Banana Caramel Upside Down Cake. I made it again recently, but instead of bananas I upside downed pears sliced on a mandoline, put some orange zest in the caramel, and used whole wheat pastry flour instead of white flour.

Divine! Although I did dump it out and realize it wasn’t done yet, so I had to re-upside-down it, cook it some more, then re-un-upside-down it. It worked surprisingly well in the end although there was a period of severe swearing that involved liquid hot caramel magma all over the kitchen and my pants, but the cake looked good after all that so no big deal in the end.

Got leftover steaks and baked potatoes from last night’s dinner? Turn them into breakfast GOLD by making an easy, delicious hash.

Here’s the how to: Chop potatoes and steak (or chicken, pork chop, meat loaf, whatev) into roughly equal size cubes (1/2 inch-ish). Chop a couple shallots or onions finely. If you’re like me, then for some odd reason your leftovers also fortuitously include a ziploc containing 5 cooked bacon slices and you should definitely chop those up as well. If you’re lucky enough to own a vegetable, like a bell pepper or broccoli or something, well then your fridge is better stocked than mine. Go ahead and pat yourself on the back, then give that the chop chop as well.

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Think I’m talking about pancakes? Think again. I’m talking about one of the best and easiest sweet treats I’ve come across in a long time: the flapjack. It’s a tantalizing triangle o’ tasty.

I received an issue of Bon Appetit in the mail the other day. I have no idea why since I don’t subscribe to it or any other food magazines because if I did, then what would I read at my Mom’s house? I thank the magazine gods because in this particular issue Molly from Orangette wrote a story about British flapjacks and included a recipe. I give it four thumbs up: 2 for the story and 2 for the recipe.

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I have been really busy lately, but one of the bright spots of my recent days was making this cornbread and then eating it all.

Cornbread can be too sweet or too mealy or too dry or too boring, but this cornbread is none of those things. I’m guessing it’s largely because of the copious amounts of bacon and bacon grease that go into it, but there could be other reasons. I like it warm out of the oven or lightly toasted. With all the fat in it, even I don’t need to put butter on it… and that’s saying quite a lot since I like to put butter on EVERYTHING. But it’s not solely enhanced by the pig products- it’s rounded out with caramelized onions and a measure of parmesan cheese just for the heck of it. So swine up your cornbread- one bite and you will wonder why you have spent all these years eating stupid regular non-porked cornbread.

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My friend Lori raved about a french toast panini she had at a restaurant in the Hamptons, called the Elvis. She described it as “2 slices of french toast with peanut butter and bananas inside, smooshed together in a panini press.” I was sold on the idea, and she had just had a baby so I was trying to be nice and stuff because having a baby is hard. So I offered to try and recreate it, with a few twists of course.

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Some of the best recipes are inspired by a visit to the Farmer’s Market. On this particular day, I picked up a bunch of fresh, fragrant dill, which was a welcome addition to my breakfast plate. Using farm fresh eggs takes this from “ooooh” to “wow”.

Market Eggs with Peas on Toast
serves one

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp butter
• 1/4 c freshly shelled peas
• 2 eggs, well beaten
• 1 tsp chopped fresh dill
• 1-2 Tblsp fresh ricotta
• salt and pepper
• thick slice of crusty buttered toast

Method:

• Heat butter in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Add peas, about a tablespoon of water, and some salt. Cook peas until water evaporates.
• Add eggs and lower heat. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, flipping with a spatula, until eggs are soft scrambled.
• Remove from heat and stir in dill and ricotta. Serve on top of buttered toast.

My friend Robert (of oatmeal cookie fame) also makes amazing homemade chilaquiles for a hearty weekend breakfast. He makes everything without measurements, which he refers to as doing it “Mexican style”, so it was a little tricky to pin down the measurements. After a few years of prodding and cajoling, he finally allowed me to shadow him in the kitchen and try to furiously transcribe his methods.

If you’ve never had chilaquiles before, it’s a traditional Mexican breakfast dish that consists of fried tortilla chips coated in a green or red sauce, layered with scrambled eggs and chorizo, and baked with cheese on top. While it makes it something of a royal pain in the butt, the key to this recipe’s tastiness lies in frying up the tortilla chips yourself. If you have an avid and patient kitchen helper (even one who lacks culinary skillz), this chip-frying task would be a good time to call on them.

Chilaquiles are also commonly lauded as a hangover cure. To that end, Robert always makes this on the Sunday of our yearly Spring wine-tasting weekend. To protect his precious family recipes, I have made some key changes in this version! Robert: you can sleep easy knowing that while now everyone can enjoy some delicious chilaquiles, they will never be exactly the same as the ones you make.

Robert’s Chilaquiles
serves 8

Ingredients:

• 1 pound fresh corn tortillas
• 2 – 29 oz cans tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 Tblsp chili powder
• 3 cloves crushed garlic
• 3 chicken bouillion cubes
• 1 Tblsp flour, shaken in a jar with 2 Tblsp water
• 1 pound fresh Mexican chorizo
• 12 eggs, beaten well
• 1/2 pound grated cheese (Monterey Jack, mild cheddar, or shredded Mexican blend)
• 1 cup queso fresco, crumbled
• salt and pepper to taste
• vegetable oil for frying

Method:

• Cut tortillas into chip-sized wedges. Heat about 1 inch of oil in a large saute pan. Fry chips in batches until golden on both sides, removing to drain on paper towels.
• Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine tomato sauce, cumin, chili powder, garlic, and bouillion. Heat over medium heat until bubbling. Lower heat and leave to simmer. Stir in flour/water mixture and salt and pepper. Taste and add more seasonings if you wish.
• Continue simmering over low heat for about 30 more minutes, stirring to make sure sauce doesn’t stick to pot.
• Preheat oven to 350.
• Combine half of chips and half of sauce, tossing to coat well. Lay in 9×13 pan. Bake for about 10-15 minutes, until chips have dried out a bit.
• While chips are baking, cook chorizo, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until browned. Add eggs, salt and pepper to taste, and cook until scrambled.
• Spread egg and chorizo mixture over chips. Mix remaining chips with remaining sauce and spread on top of eggs.
• Sprinkle grated cheese on top, then crumble queso fresco over the top.
• Bake for about 20 minutes, until cheese is melted. Serve with refried beans, Spanish rice, avocadoes, and sour cream.

I made Heidi’s Salt-Kissed Buttermilk Cake from 101Cookbooks last week, and want to encourage you to try it! The cake came out incredibly moist and delicious, and was easy to make.

I made it as a dessert, which was OK, but I think it would be an absolute knock-out for brunch. Next time I’m going to cover the entire top with berries. I used big smooshy blackberries and wished I had one in every bite!

It’s a yucky, wet, rainy Tuesday right now and I am reminiscing about a lovely sunny Saturday a few weeks back when I made these pancakes to share with friends. I wanted to use a combination of white flour and whole grain flour, because while I love the health benefits of whole grains I feared that going 100% whole grain would yield spiced blueberry rocks as opposed to pancakes. I opted for oat flour, which really shines in this recipe- it doesn’t have all the heft of whole wheat flour, but it’s got a nice texture and flavor while offering that whole grain goodness.

I love the combination of berries and oranges, so I incorporated both orange zest and juice into the batter, along with some vanilla yogurt for tang and sweetness. Using the yogurt, which I always have on hand, also prevented me from buying a quart of buttermilk and only using 1 cup, then letting the rest rot in my fridge… which is what has happened every single time I have ever bought buttermilk in my entire life, without fail. Seriously, it’s a real problem.

You should feel free to play with the spices or flavors in this recipe to mix it up. Other combinations that would be delicious would be…

• replace the orange with lemon, and replace blueberries with raspberries
• replace the orange with lime, and replace blueberries with blackberries, omit the cinnamon, and add toasted coconut
• keep the orange and replace blueberries with chocolate chunks, with or without the cinnamon and ginger (I’d keep ‘em in)
• keep all as is but add chopped toasted nuts and/or a handful of granola in the batter

Spiced Orange Blueberry Pancakes
serves 4-6

Ingredients:

• 1 cup oat flour
• 1 cup white flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• zest of 2 oranges
• 2 cups vanilla yogurt
• 1/2 cup fresh orange juice
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 pint blueberries, rinsed and dried
• butter for pan, and to serve

Method:

• Combine flours, baking powder, baking soda, spices, salt, and sugar in a bowl.
• Add orange zest, yogurt, juice, egg, and butter and stir to combine. (Batter may be lumpy.)
• Heat skillet over medium heat and add a small dollop of butter (about a teaspoon.) When butter bubbles, pour about 1/3 cup of batter into the skillet for each pancake. Sprinkle about 8-10 blueberries over each pancake.
• When pancake is golden on the bottom, flip and cook the other side until done.
• Repeat with remaining batter. To keep warm while cooking, you can put the cooked pancakes in a 175 degree oven while you’re finishing up.
• Serve warm with maple syrup and butter.