Category Archives: Breakfast ideas

Chocolate Zucchini Whole Wheat Muffins

My husband and I went to our local farmer’s market yesterday after our bike ride. We bought their homegrown zucchini in bulk. I love baking with zucchini. I made these this morning for my 19 month nephew. He loves his vegetables! Hopefully he will love these too!

Ingredients:

1 cup of Shredded Zucchini (blotted well with paper towel to remove moisture)
1/2 cup agave nectar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup AP flour
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/4 cup Dutch processed cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoon vietnamese cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 and line 12 standard cupcake liners.

1. Sift dry ingredients together in a medium bowl.

2. In a separate larger bowl mix wet ingredients (except the zucchini).

3. Now add wet mixture to dry mixture.

4. Once mixture is mixed well.

5. Now fold in zucchini.

6. Make sure zucchini is spread out evenly throughout batter.

7. Spray liners with cooking spray. Scoop 1/4 cup of batter into each cupcake liner.

Rhubarb Cardamon Whole Wheat Scones

Good Morning! What’s baking?

I just placed these scones in the oven.

Ingredients:

2 cups Rhubarb chopped
1 1/4 cup of whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/4 Cup of AP flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1teaspoon of Cardamon ground
1/2 teaspoon of salt
3/4 cup of heavy cream
One stick of butter cup chopped (1/2 cup) Unsalted
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla
1 TB of vanilla sugar & 2 TB of sugar
1/4 cup of sugar

Dusting:
1.5 TB of vanilla sugar
2.5 TB of sugar

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2. In a small bowl take chopped rhubarb and coat well with 1 tb of vanilla sugar and 2 TB of sugar. Set a side.

3. In a separate bowl sift together both types of flour, salt, cardamon, 1/4 cup of sugar and baking powder.

4. Cut butter into the flour mixture.

You can use a pastry cutter for this but I prefer using my hands. Cut until butter is in pea sizes.

5. Add rhubarb and liquids.

6. Use a spatula to mix. And knead until dough form and everything is incorporated. Don’t over knead/mix.

Make sure no flour is left behind.

7. Separate dough evenly into a Pam Spray coved scone pan.

Looks like this

8. Now sprinkle with dusting sugar

9. Bake scones for 20 to 24 minutes on 425 or until golden brown.

Yields 16 to 20 scones depending on the size of your scone pan. As pictured the scones are 2.5 by 2.5 by 3 inches.

Special note: next time I make these I am going to try using fat free half and half to decrease the saturated fat content.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Whole Wheat Shortbread

Strawberry Rhubarb Shortbread

My grandpa gave me fresh rhubarb from his garden this past weekend. I couldn’t wait to use it. I love baking with rhubarb!! I have made rhubarb muffins, rhubarb cupcakes, rhubarb bars, rhubarb pancakes but never have I made shortbread using rhubarb. We had a very special birthday in the office today so I researched for a new rhubarb recipe to try and when I came across this recipe for Rhubarb Shortbread I had to give it a whirl. This recipe was adapted from a recipe on PBS’s website http://www.pbs.org/food/kitchen-vignettes/rhubarb-cardamom-shortbread-bars/. The original recipe called for a few different ingredients so I switched it up slightly since I didn’t have spelt flour , cane sugar, nor did I have red wine on hand.

Ingredients:

Dough:

1 Cup of Whole Wheat Pastry Flour

1 Cup AP Flour

A pinch of salt

1 Teaspoon of baking soda

2 Teaspoon of ground cardamom

2 sticks of butter (unsalted and brought to room temperature)

1 Cup of Sugar

2 Egg Yolks

Baking dish needed: 10 inch tart pan

Rhubarb Compote:

2 Cups of Rhubarb Chopped

1/2 cup Strawberries chopped

1/3 Cup of Sugar

1 Teaspoon of Water

1 Teaspoon of Pure Vanilla

Directions for the Dough:

Sift all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

2. In a separate bowl, cream the butter until fluffy.

3. Add the eggs yolks one at a time and sugar and mix well.

4. Add the dry ingredients ingredients and combine the two until a soft dough has formed.

5. Form the dough into two balls, make sure to form one larger than the other.

Wrap the dough in plastic cling wrap and place in freezer for 30 to 45 minutes. them for a minimum of 30 minutes.

6. For the Compote: Place a 2 quart sauce pan on low heat, add water, sugar, strawberries, rhubarb into the pan. Make sure to stir often. Add the sauce to come to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low continue to stir often.

7. Remove from heat after thickened and stir in the vanilla. Place the compote in a freezer safe bowl and sit on ice in the freezer for at least 30 to 45 minutes to cool completely.

8. Preheat oven to 350. Once compote is cooled get the larger piece of dough out of the freezer and start to grate with larger holes on a grater directly into a Pam Sprayed 10 inch tart pan.

9. Pat down the dough into the pan lightly.

10. Spread the rhubarb compote over the first layer of dough evenly. MAKE sure to leave a least a half inch from the perimeter to prevent leaking on the outside.

11. Now take out the second dough ball and grate over the top of the rhubarb compote.

12. Pat down the dough very lightly. You will still see some compote poking through but it is okay.

13. Bake at 350 for 35 to 45 until the entire top is evenly golden brown.

14. Allow the pan to cool completely before cutting into this delightful treat.

Leftover Mashed Potato Cinnamon & Sugar Donuts

Baked Leftover Mashed Potato Cinnamon & Sugar Donuts!!

Makes about 18 donuts and Donut holes (3 Inch diameter)

I made mashed potatoes and meatloaf last night for my husband and I’s anniversary dinner. I always make too many mashed potatoes. So we of course we great deal of leftovers. I remembered my Grandma Lee telling me she use to make left over mashed potato donuts for my dad growing up whenever she had leftover mashed potatoes. I have been wanting to try a recipe for sometime now. I thought I would try and make the donuts a little healthier by not frying them and cutting the butter in half by using no sugar added applesauce. I wanted to do a test run this morning so that I could make them for my dad tomorrow for Father’s day. My dad also has to watch his sugar intake so I cut the sugar in half by substituting half splenda for sugar. My husband and I fried a few to see the difference and these fry up nice too…. But give the baked version a try first.

Ingredients:

2 cups of left over mashed potatoes
1/2 stick of butter (melted)
1/2 cup no sugar added Applesauce
4 cups of Self rising flour
Two pinches of nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
2 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup of Splenda for baking

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°

1. In a standing mixer cream together potato, splenda, sugar butter, and applesauce.

2. Add one egg in at a time.

3. Add flour in 2/3 cup increments

4. About halfway through switch to dough-hook attachment.

5. Knead with dough hook until it forms a ball.

6. Turn onto floured surface.

7. Roll out to 3/4 inch thickness.

The dough will not be sticky.

8. Line half sheet pans with parchment paper. Place donuts six to a pan.

9. Bake for 17 to 19 minutes. The donuts will not look golden brown (The Splenda doesn’t allow it to caramelize).

10. Spray each doughnut with Pam spray (both sides). And toss the donuts in the cinnamon and sugar mixture.

Cinnamon and sugar mixture:

Half a cup of sugar to 2 tablespoons of cinnamon. Place in paper bag or Ziploc. Brown paper bag works best.

Salsa Sausage Breakfast Cups

This is usually a casserole I make in 8 by 8 but placed into muffin tins today.

Ingredients

5 Cooked Sausage Links
1/2 -3/4 cup shredded cheese
1/2 to 3/4 cup salsa
3 slices of day old Italian bread
3 eggs
1 cup of skim milk
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/4 tsp salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut up the day old bread.

Start browning up the sausage.

Spray Pam in 12 muffin tins. Place 3 cubes of bread in each tin.

Place a tablespoon of salsa in each tin.

Cut up sausage after cooled slightly. And place 4 pieces of sausage in each tin.

Beat 3 eggs, 1 cup of milk, salt, pepper, mustard in a medium bowl. Mix well.

Add a pinch of cheddar cheese to each tin.

Place in oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

Enjoy!

Chinese Five Spice French Toast Bake

I’m always wondering what else can I create using left over heels from bread. One of my favorite tricks is using it to make croutons or breadcrumbs both secrets I learned from the food network. What you can do is every time you get to the end of the loaf throw the ends in the freezer and wait until you have enough to make bread crumbs, stuffing, croutons, or this recipe. Check out this link for more ideas http://housewifehowtos.com/cook/how-to-use-bread-heels/

Meanwhile I was trying to figure out another way I could incorporate my vanilla from Dominican Republic that my husband and I purchased in bulk on vacation! This seamed like the right to go and well it’s breakfast time so french toast it is.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup of egg substitute or two egg whites
1/4 cup of a Agave nectar
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of Chinese five spice (or if you don’t like Chinese five spice use Cinnamon or Pumpkin Pie Spice)
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla
4 heels of 100 % whole bread or light whole wheat if you are trying to reduce calories
1/2 cup skim milk
Vanilla Sugar to sprinkle. ( You can make your own or purchase penzey’s brand)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.

Cut heels of bread Into 1 inch squares.

Set aside.

In a medium bowl place, agave nectar, egg substitute, milk, vanilla, and chinese five spice whisk together until incorporated well.

Add bread cubes and let soak up the liquid mixture for 5 to 10 minutes.

Make sure that all pieces of bread sponge up with liquid mixture. You will need to gently fold the bread to evenly distribute the liquid mixture.

Once settled and bread has absorbed as much liquid as possible spread evenly the mixture onto a swallow 8 by 8 dish (pictured is from fiesta).

Sprinkle with vanilla sugar.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes depending on how crunching you want the bread to get.

Enjoy !

Belgian Waffles….Remake

Belgian Waffles…Remake

This original recipe called for 1 whole cup of butter. Yikes! I quickly changed that ingredient and swapped half of the butter for one of my favorite tricks of the trade a really, really, ripe banana. No one will even know the difference.

Ingredients

1 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar or splenda for baking
3-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 eggs, separated
1-1/2 cups skim milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
Small ripe banana (mashed)
1 teaspoon Mexican vanilla extract
Pinch of cinnamon

Directions

In a bowl, combine both flours, sugar and baking powder ( I always like to sift these ingredients together). In another bowl, lightly beat egg yolks. Add milk, butter, banana, and vanilla; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until combined. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form; fold into batter.

Bake in a preheated waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions until golden brown. Serve with powdered sugar, peanut butter (my favorite), jelly, or syrup.

Enjoy!

Love Pockets of Ham, Egg and Cheese

Love Pockets of Ham, Egg, and Cheese

If you are on the go and want to make a tasty treat quick please continue reading. Not to mention these are something you can take on the road and eat in the car (if permitted by the car owner). I call these pockets of love because they are filled with all my husbands favorite breakfast foods. You can be very creative with the ingredients (use your favorites, sausage, chilies, spinach, peppers, etc) . This morning, I am stuffing them with egg beaters, ham and coby and monterey jack cheese. If you want to make them a tad lighter, you could even use canadian bacon and fat free cheddar cheese to cut back on the fat and calories.

Ingredients:

One can of Pilsbury Buttermilk Biscuits 10 biscuits (I like the smaller ones this usually comes in a 4 pack)

1/4 cup of egg substitute or 1 egg
Salt and Pepper to taste
Splash of Skim milk
1/2 cup of 2% shredded coby and monterey jack blend cheese

1/2 cup of chopped ham or canadian bacon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Get a small pyrex dish or oven safe baking dish ready spray with Pam cooking spray). Precook the egg beaters with splash of skim milk plus (salt and pepper to taste) and set a side.

Roll out each individual biscuit using a fondant roller (I love using this tool in the kitchen and not just for fondant).

Sprinkle a 1/2-1 teaspoon of the cheese down on the rolled out biscuit. And follow with 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of ham and eggs.

Fold in the sides and place folded side down on the bottom of the baking dish.

Place in oven at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Enjoy!

Grab them fast because trust me they don’t last…..

A Pinch of Luv

from scratch baking and cooking blog

Category Archives: Breakfast ideas

Chocolate Zucchini Whole Wheat Muffins

Rhubarb Cardamon Whole Wheat Scones

Strawberry-Rhubarb Whole Wheat Shortbread

Leftover Mashed Potato Cinnamon & Sugar Donuts

Salsa Sausage Breakfast Cups

Chinese Five Spice French Toast Bake

Belgian Waffles….Remake

Love Pockets of Ham, Egg and Cheese