Whether you are "empty nesters", newly weds or single, this scaled down recipe for individual potatoes au gratin is easy, tasty and reheats well too!! This recipe makes 6. 

2 large russet potatoes
1/2 cup grated Colby Jack cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 tablespoons heavy cream PER PORTION
1/2 cup finely chopped ham or crisp bacon

Peel the potatoes and put them in the food processor along with the ham (or bacon). Pulse the potatoes and ham just until you get pieces about the same size as medium hashbrown chunks. Remove from the food processor and stir in the cheese and salt and pepper.



Spray your cupcake pan with cooking spray and fill each "well" to the top (patting down VERY lightly). 

Pour 2 full tablespoons heavy cream over EACH portion. Cover with foil and bake at 375° for 40 minutes (take the foil off the last two or three minutes and put them under the broiler to get some color).

Remove from oven and let them sit for about 5 minutes before lifting them out of the pan with a large spoon.


These are deliciously creamy, cheesy and "ham-y"; they will go with almost anything. Recipe makes six portions. One portion is perfect for children, but adults can easily eat two portions.... well, WE can anyway 😉

IMPORTANT:  I like to use a Texas size muffin pan, but a standard muffin pan will work too. If you are using a standard cupcake pan, put a baking sheet under the pan because the cream tends to bubble up a little during cooking.

ENJOY !!!

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October 09, 2020

Picky-picky husband loves these little omelets with diced ham and cheese in them, but I like them with chopped mushrooms, broccoli and bacon. Either way, two mini-omelets make a very filling (and fun) breakfast. 

 Another reason I like this recipe is that it can easily be doubled for a crowd with no standing over the omelet pan while your company is waiting for you!!

  

EASY BAKED MINI-OMELETS        (makes 12)

1 pound of breakfast meat cooked and drained (ham, bacon or sausage)
1 cup favorite veggies, sauteed (optional)
8 large eggs
1/4 cup milk (or cream if you're feeling self-indulgent)
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt (depending on how salty your meat is)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 

Preheat oven to 375° and spray cupcake pan with vegetable spray.

Whisk the eggs, milk, oil, baking powder and salt and pepper together until smooth.

Divide meat and vegetables evenly between the 12 greased cupcake wells; top with a little cheese.  Pour enough egg mixture in each well to come very close to the top.

Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes (my electric oven takes 22 minutes exactly). During this time, they will really DOME UP like a cupcake, but after you take them out of the oven, they will slowly flatten back down as they cool.

Remove from oven and garnish with another pinch of cheese (I use a little sharp cheddar). Let the mini-omelets rest in the pan for 5 minutes before you take them out (they will easily lift out of the pan after 5 minutes).

NOTE: Use your imagination regarding veggies you want to use in this recipe, just remember the veggies have to be pre-cooked.

NOTE: These little muffins stay warm for quite a while and they reheat VERY well in the microwave. They would be a fantastic addition to any brunch table because they are still tasty at room temperature.

EMPTY NESTERS TIP: When I make these for just the two of us, I cut the recipe in half, which gives us 2 mini-omelets each and a couple to snack on later.

ENJOY !!!

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October 02, 2020

These are absolutely the best home made pancakes we have ever eaten!! They are super tall, light and fluffy and yet they don't get all mushy when syrup is added.

Since I first cross-posted this recipe over on Pinterest,  almost 2 MILLION people have visited the recipe .... it is just THAT tasty... I promise!!

3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons white vinegar (see note)
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tablespoons white sugar (I used 3)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine the milk and vinegar in a small bowl for 10 minutes to "sour". This is an important step and it is called "soured milk" which is much different that sour milk. I guarantee you will NOT taste the vinegar in the final product. Set this aside.

Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk the soured milk, egg, vanilla and melted butter together. Pour into the dry ingredients and whisk until most of the lumps are gone, but DO NOT OVER BEAT!!

The batter will be thick, don't add any more liquid. LET THE BATTER SIT UNDISTURBED FOR TEN MINUTES!! 

After 10 minutes, you will see bubbles in the batter, very important: DO NOT STIR AGAIN.

GENTLY dip out (don't pour out) 1/2 cup of batter and place it on a buttered grill or frying pan. Cook until bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake and then flip with a spatula and brown the other side.

NOTE: This recipe only feeds about 3 or 4 people, but doubles or even triples nicely.

NOTE:  Don't skip the soured milk part of this recipe, you will not taste the vinegar in the pancakes. The vinegar super-activates the baking soda.

NOTE: A few people have written to me and said that their pancakes weren't quite as fluffy or tall as mine. I suspect they are stirring the batter just before cooking the pancakes.

Stirring or pouring the batter essentially deflates the air bubbles in the batter. Personally, I use a half cup measuring cup and GENTLY dip out batter and put it on the griddle and I always get super fluffy pancakes.

ENJOY !!!

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September 06, 2020

These bear claw pastries are not only delicious, but they are real "show-stoppers". The dough mixes very easily (no kneading) and the filling for the pastry is equally as easy. The only frustrating part is that there are a lot of steps. The steps are not hard to do, and you can spread the process out over a couple days if you want. I hope you try this recipe. It makes 12 good size pastries and they freeze well.

PASTRY DOUGH
1 1/2 cups COLD butter (cut into TINY cubes)
5 cups flour (divided)
1  pkg instant yeast
1 1/4 cups evaporated milk (or half & half)
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg - well beaten

Cut the COLD butter into tiny cubes, then add it to (3) cups flour and  pulse it in your food processor, 2 or 3 SHORT times. Set this flour-butter mixture in the refrigerator for now.

In your stand mixer, mix (2) cups of the reserved flour and 1 tablespoon yeast.

Warm the milk a little (I call it baby bottle warm) and add the sugar and egg to it. Stir well, then add it to the flour-yeast in your stand mixer bowl. Mix well. 

Add the cold flour-butter mixture to the stand mixer bowl and mix well.

Lightly flower your counter and turn the dough out onto it. Pat or roll the dough into a 12" x 20" rectangle.

Fold into thirds, lightly flour and roll out again to a 12" x 20" rectangle (a 2nd time).

Fold into thirds, (a 3rd time)...wrap it in plastic wrap and chill it at least 4 hours or up to three days.

FILLING

1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
1 + 1/3 cups unsifted powdered sugar
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
8 ounces (1 cup) almond paste (pinched into pieces)
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 egg whites
3/4 cup finely chopped almonds (use food processor)

Beat softened butter and powdered sugar until smooth. Add 2/3 cup flour and almond paste. Beat with electric mixer until evenly mixed; add lemon zest and two egg whites. Beat until smooth. Stir in ¾ cup finely chopped almonds. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until firm (this filling keeps well in the fridge for 1 to 3 days which is nice because that means you don't HAVE to make all of the pastries at once).

ASSEMBLY

Take your dough out of the fridge, cut it in half and let it sit at room temperature for about 1/2 hour (not necessary, but it helps). 

Roll each half out on lightly floured counter to 14" square. Cut each square into 6 equal pieces. Place a heaping tablespoon of the chilled almond filling onto the middle of each square. Fold over and pinch edges, then very gently press on the filling to even it out a little, re-pinch edges.

Using kitchen scissors, cut 4 slices into folded side of the pastry and spread them out just a little.

Sorry, I'm NOT an artist 

Brush folded and cut pastry with well beaten egg white + 1 teaspoon water, then sprinkle with a little sugar. Place on parchment lined cookie sheet and cover lightly with plastic wrap and let raise for 1 1/2 hours.

Bake at 375° for 15-17 minutes or till light golden brown. Remove to a rack to cool, then frost and sprinkle with sliced/toasted almonds.

NOTE: I hope I have not scared you away from this recipe. It really is no harder than a piecrust.

FROSTING
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk (more if you need it)
Mix well

ENJOY !!!

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August 11, 2020

I don't buy refrigerator ("whomp tube") biscuits very often, but I DO buy them for this recipe. My family absolutely loves this quick and easy breakfast. As a matter of fact, the first time I made this, I was told "this is gold!!"  Even Picky-picky Hubby gave double thumbs up which is rare!!

This weekend treat can easily be "tweaked" to suit your family. Here are the basic ingredients:

8 ounce Pillsbury refrigerated crescent rolls
1 pound (total) cooked breakfast meat (see  note)
1 1/2 cups frozen shredded hash browns (thawed)
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar
4 eggs  (don't be tempted to add more)
1/4 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Open the refrigerator rolls and press into an ungreased 12" pizza pan, pinching all of the seams shut. Important: make sure you press some of the dough up onto the sides of the pan to create a "lip". DO NOT PRE-BAKE THE CRUST.

Cook (and completely drain) one pound of your favorite breakfast meat (NOTE: I used equal parts of crisp bacon, breakfast sausage and finely diced ham...but ANY combo will work well. Just make sure the total weight is about a pound).

Sprinkle the cooked breakfast meat, evenly, over the unbaked crescent dough. Next, evenly sprinkle the thawed hash browns and cheddar cheese over the cooked meat.

In small bowl, whisk the 4 eggs, black pepper and milk together. Drizzle evenly over everything.  NOTE: Don't be tempted to add more eggs. It is going to SEEM like it isn't enough, but trust me...it is perfect.

Lastly, sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over all.  Bake in a 375 pre-heated oven for 30 minutes (my oven took 28 minutes). Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before you cut it.

Sauteed mushrooms, peppers, etc. would be wonderful in this breakfast pizza. Just add them the same time as the thawed hash browns. You might have to add a couple extra minutes to the total baking time if you add a LOT of extra veggies.

NOTE: Use the loose frozen hashbrowns that come in a bag...just make sure they are thawed out before mixing into this recipe.

ENJOY !!!

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June 01, 2020

I have been playing around with popover recipes for a while now, so I thought I would "get serious" and buy a popover pan. The new pan makes a HUGE difference, not so much in taste, but in appearance AND how big the air bubbles are inside of the popover. 

Popovers could not be easier or cheaper to make and they are such a treat, hot out of the oven with honey butter or strawberry jam!! 

If you do not have a popover pan, see note at the end of this post.

This recipe has several mini-steps

but they are ALL VERY EASY

and the popovers are delicious!!!

• Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. 
• Put your popover pan in the oven while it preheats (do not grease the pan while it is preheating in the oven).

• While your oven and pan are preheating, whisk together:

3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup of milk (see note)
1 tablespoon melted butter


NOTE ABOUT MILK: IF you have whipping cream on hand, put about 1/4 cup of whipping cream in a measuring cup and then fill the rest of the cup with 2% milk...if you have NO cream on hand...just use regular milk.

• After the ABOVE ingredients are whisked together well, add one cup of all purpose flour (spoon flour into measuring measuring cup and level off with straight edge). Whisk everything together for about 30 seconds or until it looks very smooth and creamy. LET BATTER SIT UNTIL YOUR OVEN (AND PAN) HAVE REACHED 425°
• 
  
• Next step....work quickly!!

• Take the HOT popover pan out of the HOT oven and quickly spray each cup with vegetable spray, then put roughly 1/2 teaspoon of CHILLED butter into the bottom of each HOT cup. 

• QUICKLY put batter into cups, filling half way full (makes six BIG popovers).

• Bake popovers at 425 for 20 minutes.
• 
  
• After 20 minutes, turn the oven down to 325 and bake for another 15 minutes.

• Remove popovers from pan and poke a tiny hole (I use a toothpick) in the bottom of each popover to relieve a little steam (not totally necessary if you are going to eat them right away).

 NOTE ABOUT POPOVER PAN: If you do not have a popover pan, you can use 6 ounce (oven safe) custard cups (I used the clear Pyrex ones, for a long time, with great success). I placed them all on a cookie sheet for easier handling. The popovers will not get quite as tall (as they do with a popover pan) but they taste every bit as good.

Someone from outside the USA wrote and asked me what a popover pan was, so here is a photo. As you can see, it is almost like a cupcake pan, but the cups are a lot deeper and spaced far apart so the hot air can circulate around each cup.

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March 13, 2020

I thought I had the best cinnamon roll recipe, but oh my goodness..."Katy bar the door".....

Drop everything and try this recipe!!! 

Here's why:
.
1. The dough is light and fluffy, not "bready"
2. There is NO KNEADING, but it sure tastes like there is
3. The flavor is outstanding!!
4. They have the texture of a good donut
5. Covered, they stay fresh and delicious for 2-3 days
6. They freeze beautifully

Do I have your attention yet? Click on this photo so you can see the light and airy texture of the baked rolls.

2 cups buttermilk (no substitutions)
1/2  cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup sugar
1 packet Quick Rising yeast 
4  1/2 cup all purpose flour *DIVIDED*
1/2  teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

FILLING
3/4  brown sugar
1 teaspoons cinnamon
pinch of salt
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
2 tablespoons butter (soft)

Mix the buttermilk, vegetable oil and sugar in a bowl and put it in the microwave just long enough to get it a little warm (I call it baby bottle warm) Let it cool down if necessary.

Stir in the yeast and let it sit for about 10 minutes.

Stir in 4 (of the 4½ cups) of flour to the buttermilk mixture and stir well (no need to knead, just mix well). Dough at this stage will be extremely sticky and more like a thick batter. Cover dough with plastic wrap and let it sit in a warm place for an hour.

In a small, separate bowl, mix the final ½ cup of flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. After the sticky dough has raised for an hour, stir it down and add this final half cup flour mixture. Mix until well incorporated (by hand or electric mixer)...just takes a minute.
 
Turn batter (which will still be quite soft and sticky) out onto WELL-floured counter and roll the dough around a few times, coating the surface with flour so it is not super sticky. 

Roll (or pat) dough out into a rectangle that is about ½” thick. Spread dough surface with 2 tablespoons room temperature butter then evenly spread on the filling ingredients and top with nuts if you are going to use them (pat the nuts into the sugar a little). 

Roll up, jellyroll style, keeping it as tight as you can. Pinch the seam shut tightly. Cut 1½” slices and lay them, cut side down, in a greased 9x13 baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 60 minutes (or until double in size). 

Bake in pre-heated 375F oven for about 20-25 minutes or until golden and they sound hollow when you tap on them. Frost while still hot.

FROSTING

3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
4 tablespoons* milk (less if you want thicker frosting)

*Mix the powdered sugar + butter + extracts and just a couple tablespoons of the milk. If frosting seems to thick, add just a little more milk. If it seems too thin, add just a little more powdered sugar.

ENJOY !!!

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January 28, 2019

A dear friend of mine, posted a video (from Foodstyle.com)about
poaching eggs in the oven and I was quite intrigued. Not only can poaching eggs, in the traditional method, be a disaster be challenging but you can only make 2-3 at a time!!

Here is what I found:

The video said to put about a tablespoon of water in each cup of a regular muffin pan, then crack an egg over the water and bake at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes.........well, that ALMOST worked.

I DID use the scant tablespoon of water, and I DID preheat my electric oven to 350°, but when I tried it using a standard cupcake (muffin) pan, the egg + water filled it to overflowing and took a full 20 minutes to cook, not 8 to 10.

On my second attempt, I had excellent luck using a jumbo size muffin pan (I think they call them Texas size?) and I gave it a light mist of vegetable spray, then put in the scant tablespoon of water and a large egg. I baked them at 350° for exactly 12 minutes (not 8 to 10)
and they lifted right out of the pan with a spoon.....YUM!!!

  A PERFECTLY POACHED EGG !!

Whether you are making one or 30, this method (with my tweaks) really does work and it couldn't be easier!!

The difference in cooking time (between my oven and the Foodstyle video) COULD be that their oven simply runs hotter than mine or maybe they were using smaller eggs (?)With so many variables, I suggest you do a "test egg" to see how long it takes in your oven before you make a whole pan of these.

One other note: When your eggs are done to your liking, take them OUT OF THE PAN right away or they will continue to cook.

Don't you just want to

dunk your toast in this one?

ENJOY !!!



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May 26, 2017

This recipe is SO easy that it would make a great weekend cooking project for that kid in the family that is a "wanna-be" chef. There are several steps, but they are all EASY.

You will need:
2 cups all purpose flour (divided)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/3 cup milk 
2 teaspoons KOSHER salt(kosher measures different than table salt)
1 envelope of yeast
yellow corn meal
6  large mason jar rings

In a large bowl, mix:

1 cup all purpose flour (you'll use other cup later)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt (not regular salt)
1 envelope yeast (I buy it in bulk, so I use 1 tablespoon)

In a smaller, microwave safe bowl, mix:

1 1/3 cups milk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Microwave the milk-oil for 1 minute. Take it out of the microwave and stir it, then test it with your finger. It should feel nice and warm, but  NOT hot (I call it baby bottle warm).

Stir the milk-oil into the dry  mixture, until everything is very well mixed, then add ONE MORE cup of flour and stir until WELL mixed. Cover the bowl and set it in a warm part of your kitchen for 45 minutes.  After 45 minutes, it will look puffy like this:

Stir the air out of the dough (it will be very sticky). 

Preheat your dry (no grease) electric fry pan to 250°. Now here is a hint: everyone's fry pans cook at different rates, so cook ONE "test muffin" to see if you need to turn your heat up a little or down  a little. You want the muffin to look nice and golden when you flip it over after 5 minutes, like this:

 My electric fry pan is perfect at 250°.

Now you are ready to make the rest of the muffins. Spray the inside of the jar rings with vegetable spray (these are going to be your English muffin molds). Set them on your PRE-HEATED dry electric fry pan and sprinkle a little corn meal in the circle before you put the dough in.

Spoon batter into ring molds (it's pretty thick and sticky at this stage). I used about 1 1/4 large ice cream scoops of dough for each muffin.

When all 6 rings have dough in in them, put a lid on the fry pan, but cock it sideways so that it doesn't cover the whole pan. If your fry pan doesn't have a lid, you can cover it with a cookie sheet, but make sure the cookie sheet doesn't touch the muffins.

Cook at 250° for five minutes, then (before you flip it over) sprinkle a little corn meal onto the top of the muffin and then GENTLY flip it over (ring and all).

NOTE: It isn't absolutely necessary, but a Teflon pan works great for these muffins.

Put the lid back on the pan (leaving it open a little) and cook for another five minutes.  Remove from rings (they slide right out) and put the muffin on a baking rack to cool.

Cool completely, then split them open with a fork. To do this, insert the fork into the side of the muffin, half way between top and bottom. Twist the fork JUST A LITTLE, then remove it. Repeat this all the way around the muffin. When you get back to the place where you started, the muffin should just come apart.  Just make sure you do this AFTER the muffin is completely cooled.

To serve, toast in toaster or under broiler until light golden.

If you don't have mason jar lids, you can use anything (that can withstand heat) that is about the same size.

ENJOY !!!

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October 10, 2016

If you are a tater tot fan, you will adore these homemade tots. If you are NOT a tater tot fan, you WILL be after you try these, they are THAT good!!

It isn't accurate enough to just say these homemade tots are better than commercial tater tots .... it is more accurate to say they are worlds above commercial tater tots, and very easy to make.

2 pounds Russet potatoes
1 tablespoon flour
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (not garlic salt)
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 cup vegetable oil (for frying)

Wash and peel the potatoes (leave whole) and put them in a pot of cold water on high heat.

 

As soon as it comes to a boil, turn heat down to medium high and boil for 6 minutes (they will not be cooked all the way through).

Remove the potatoes from the hot water and drain on a towel. Cool to room temperature (takes about 30 minutes) (important step).

Grate partially cooked (and cooled) potatoes with a box grater.

Mix the flour and seasoning together. Spread the grated potatoes out a little and evenly sprinkle with four-spice mixture. Gently toss with two forks. The potatoes will seem a little dry, but that OK, it's the way you want them.

Heat 1 cup of oil to 375° (I use my electric skillet) and squeeze a small handful of seasoned potatoes in your hand until you get a nice little nugget. I couldn't get them round, but that's OK.

Fry about 2 to 3 minutes per side, depending on how big or small your nuggets are (don't crowd the tots, just fry a few at a time). Turn them over when they get nice a golden.

Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with kosher salt.



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November 20, 2015