Perfect Poached Eggs

In our house, I do most of the cooking. It's not that T-rav isn't willing, just that I enjoy cooking, and more specifically, eating the things I make. Our cuisine is generally much simpler (and less full of vegetables--he calls it an obsession, I call it healthy) if T-rav is in charge. But there's one thing, however, where T-rav reigns supreme: poached eggs. Growing up, my mom used to feed us poached eggs when we were sick. Poached eggs on soggy white toast. It wasn't until I got married that I ever ate a poached egg just because; they quickly went from being "sick" food to becoming breakfast, lunch, and sometimes dinner.

The trick to a perfect poached egg is three-fold. First, and most importantly, you must not pour the egg into boiling or bubbling water, or you'll end up with a weird, separated, snot-like white with a teeny weeny ball of yolk. Yuck! You want the water to be simmering but not have any sizable bubbles yet. Second, it's very helpful to let the egg hang out in some white vinegar before cooking it. This tightens the white so it's less likely to spread out while poaching. You can skip this step (T-rav usually does), but your egg will look prettier if do it. And third, well, this third point may be a little trickier for most of you. The Best Poached Egg I ever ever ate was one that was cooked literally 5 minutes after being laid by my lovely hen Roger. The egg poached to a buttery perfection with a thick, bright, orangey "barnyard" yolk...it was heavenly.

Avocado-Banana Smoothie

Think of this as the other green smoothie. The one without leafy greens that still makes a lovely addition to breakfast. Or lunch. Or maybe even dessert. 

The last time I made avocado-banana smoothies on a regular basis was when I lived in Guatemala. I didn't have a refrigerator or ice, and the milk was so pasteurized that it came in a box with an expiration date til then end of time, but the avocados and bananas were picked fresh (and naturally ripened) so none of that seemed to matter. They were always slightly warm (remember- no fridge), but still delicious. When I returned to the US, I continued making them, but they just weren't the same. My taste-memory protested every time I used inferior produce, so I gave it a rest for a while. 

Pumpkin Waffles

I've been making a lot of pumpkin things lately, the natural consequence being that I have had a tupperware packed with pumpkin pretty much consistently since mid October. No, no, it hasn't been sitting there since October. I've been using and replenishing. I really think that someone should tell the pumpkin packing companies that we don't need 15 oz of pumpkin, we need a nice even 16. And the huge cans? Aside from making 2 pumpkin pies, what recipe have you ever used that actually required the whole over-sized can? 29 ounces? Really?! Most recipes require one to two cups of pumpkin, which means that I'm constantly using up the half in the fridge only to replace it with 1 1/2 more. It's a vicious cycle.

Bacon Egg and Avocado Sandwich

If I could skip the meal of lunch, I would be one happy woman. It's my least favorite meal and I generally do my best to ignore it. For a while I just tried not eating lunch, but then I wound up so famished by 2:30 that I felt I couldn't go on with life. No really. I occasionally collapsed. Low blood sugar, you see. Then I moved into the "bird food" phase: carrot sticks, nuts, yogurt, apple/other form of fruit. This was less dangerous to my blood sugar, but I was still ravenous by early afternoon. If I'm lucky, I make enough dinner the night before to have at lunch the next day, but even that is pretty sketchy. I'm exceedingly picky about leftovers, and if it doesn't involve rice or rice or possibly soup, I'm probably not interested.

Granola

Granola (noun): a breakfast food consisting of rolled oats, brown sugar, nuts, driedfruit, etc., usually served with milk. Granola (noun): a person who enjoys nature, living free, and not showering more than necessary. Which definition do you like better? Which definition did I get off of dictionary.com? If you guessed the first, you are correct, but if you are about my age you remember that in high school there was a group of people that we referred to as the "granola's", kindof sub-par hippies I guess. And I am willing to bet that these so called "granola's", liked to eat granola. 

What does this have to do with this recipe? Absolutely nothing, just thinking about the two words, and wondering if a person is described as a "granola" and is eating granola, what does that make them? Hmmm....I'm just sayin'

Lemon-Ricotta Pancakes

Good news: I moved! Which means I have a real kitchen which means I can cook and bake and have my kitchen things in my very own kitchen rather than a box. I haven't ever had so much cupboard and counter space or a gas stove/oven. And a dishwasher. And a fridge that spits ice at you when you press the button. It's all quite exciting.

Blueberry-Cornmeal Pancakes

Pancakes, a simple meal, and one most people like. There is just one problem in my mind with a standard pancake - they tend to get soggy. Solution: add cornmeal! If you have never had a cornmeal pancake don't be worried, they aren't grainy or too "mealy" (if that is a word). Now, they do have a slightly different textue than a standard pancake, but in my mind it is a welcome change. They have a slightly heartier texture, but this helps them to not get overly soggy under your mass of butter and syrup. And the amazing part is that there is only 2 tablespoons of cornmeal in the recipe!

German Apple Pancake

Welcome to Josh, our first guest post!

Josh (and Lindsey) have been our friends and neighbors for years. Lindsey is an excellent cook- her mashed potatoes have no rival- but Josh has also been known to whip up a few amazing dishes from time to time. Here's one that makes my heart flutter with anticipation. He says:

Steel-Cut Oatmeal

Steel-cut oatmeal is one of the finer things in life. I could eat this stuff every day. Actually, I usually do. When my alarm goes off, I stumble into the kitchen half dressed, bedraggled, and blind; I mindlessly throw some oatmeal in a pot, set the timer, and drag myself into the shower. By the time I'm out of the shower and dressed (mostly), my oatmeal is ready. It's different from regular oatmeal (and a completely different beast when compared to the nasty instant stuff); it's much chewier (the oats haven't been smashed flat by the rollers), and the flavor is a bit nutty. I love it.

I usually buy my oatmeal in the bulk section. You can buy it in a package from companies like Bob's Red Mill, but it's nearly twice the price. And this is also one thing I always buy organic. I can always taste the difference between the non-organic and organic, and the difference is not a good one. Stick with organic oats. They just taste better.

Steel-Cut Oatmeal
Recipe by Kelly
Picture by Kelly

Makes 2-3 servings

1/2 tablespoon butter*
1 cup oats
2 1/2 cups water
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup milk (optional)
brown sugar, cinnamon, chopped fruit, and milk, for topping

1. In a small saucepan, melt butter and add the oats. Stir for about 1 minute on medium heat to toast the oats (they should be fragrant).
2. Add the water and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer and cook 15 minutes without stirring.
3. Stir in the salt. Simmer uncovered 5 more minutes or until the water has been absorbed. Remove from heat, spoon into bowls, and add sugar, cinnamon, fruit, and milk.
4. For less chewy oatmeal, stir in 1/4 cup milk and simmer 10 more minutes after step 2.

*Adding butter to your oatmeal makes it delicious. But some days I feel guilty adding butter to something that doesn't actually need butter...so sometimes I omit it and "dry" toast the oats. It's still very tasty. And fat-free.

Caramel Sticky Rolls

All last week was cool and rainy and cloudy and mysterious. Possibly because I grew up in upstate NY, I love weather like that. To me, fall is clouds and wind and rustling leaves that make a delightful crunch when you ride your bike over them. And it's caramel and granola and my mom's homemade whole wheat bread and something cinnamon coming from the oven. So when I woke up on Friday morning with no class to teach and a perfect blustery day, I felt in my bones that it was a sticky roll day.

Raspberry Buckle

Is this a dessert? Is it a coffee cake? Is it cake? No folks, it is a buckle.  What is a buckle you may ask, well, according to Lori Longbotham who wrote this recipe, "A buckle is a buttery one-layer cake made with fruit, often berries, and sprinkled with a streusel topping. The cake rises and puffs up as it bakes, then it buckles. The result is a golden cake with berries peeking through the crispy topping."

Whatever it is, it is delicious. I made it for dessert the first night and ate it with ice cream and it was tasty. The next morning, I had some for breakfast, and I think it was almost tastier because it seemed that all the flavors had matured and combined together even more. Try it, love it!

Blueberry Buttermilk Waffles

Another blueberry dish, which makes me dearly hope that you like blueberries at least a little. But what you didn’t know is all the blueberry things I haven’t been posting. Like blueberry muffins, blueberries and cream, or steel cut oatmeal and blueberries. I’ll save those for another day. For now, I recommend you ignore any protests about having breakfast for dinner and go whip up a batch of these babies.

Blueberry Yogurt Muffins

I love blueberries. I think they are delicious. I love them fresh, in oatmeal, in fruit salads, in crisps, on ice cream, in fruit smoothies, and of course, in muffins. But here is the thing about muffins, I often think they are too oily, especially store bought muffins. So imagine my happiness when I found this recipe from Tosca Reno, the Eat-Clean Diet lady. While I didn't follow every ingredient in the recipe, I did substitute the egg with a flax seed/water mixture (the picture above left is ground flax seed, which I regularly add to my oatmeal, yogurt, etc) and use Greek yogurt - which is yummy. These muffins weren't as sweet as I maybe would have liked them, but I think using coconut oil instead of olive oil (which is what I used) would add a great flavor. I might also add about 1/4 cup of sugar if I wanted them to be a bit sweeter, but I don't know if I defiantly would, because as you can see from the picture above, the dough is thick, and closer to a biscuit dough than your average muffin batter. So whether or not to make them sweeter would be a personal choice. Either way, I enjoyed these fresh out of the oven with a bit of melted butter and I really appreciated that they were not oily like many muffins I have tried in my life.

Red Pepper, Asparagus and Spinach Frittata

I've made some variation of this dish at least 4 times in the past 2 weeks (which may not sound like a lot, but I hate to repeat meals within memory...what can I say, I like variety). It's been great for those days when I'm totally in a rush for dinner, but still want to manage to get some veggies in for the day: voila, a frittata. But what is it?

Think of a frittata like an omelet. An Italian omelet. It can have any combination of meats, cheese and vegetables and is usually first cooked in a pan on the stove and finished off in the oven. But unlike your typical omelet, in a frittata, the vegetables are cooked first. Once softened, you add the egg/cheese mixture and cook until the egg is firm. Some frittatas (like this one) are broiled briefly to fluff and brown the top. And I'd eat them for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Red Pepper, Asparagus and Spinach Frittata
Recipe by Kelly
Pictures by Caroline

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red bell pepper, chopped into small pieces*
1 bunch asparagus (about a 2 inch bunch), chopped into small pieces
1 small onion, chopped
3-4 cups spinach, roughly chopped
4 eggs
3 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup white cheese (like mozzarella, fontina, or parmesan)

1. Heat oil in large oven-safe skillet. Add bell pepper, asparagus and onion and saute about 5 minutes, or until beginning to soften. Add spinach and cover for 2 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, combine eggs, milk, salt, pepper and cheese in a small bowl. Preheat oven to broil.
3. Reduce heat to low and cook about 2 minutes, until most of the water has evaporated from the pan. Add egg mixture, but do not stir! Gently spread some of the egg mixture through the pan, if needed.
4. Cook about 10 minutes, until eggs are mostly firm when you shake the pan. Place pan in oven and broil 2 minutes. Eggs should be firm and just barely starting to brown.

*Mushrooms, arugula, green pepper, zucchini, or your other favorite vegetable would be a fine substitute for any of the vegetables in this frittata.

Crepes

Crepes are a very thin pancake that originates from France. There are many ways to eat them, either as a breakfast food, or you can sweeten them with a little sugar and have them as dessert. This morning I made them for some of my family who are in town.

Generally, when you eat a crepe you put spread something on the flat crepe, roll it up, and then spread something over the top. I prefer to spread a little butter on them, roll up my crepe, squeeze on some fresh lemon and powdered sugar. I've also had them served with maple syrup, berry jam, fresh fruit, whipped cream, and of course Nutella; really the options are endless.
They are very versatile and fun to make.

As a side note, if you are making crepes for a large group, heat up two skillets and recruit someone else to help with the twisting and turning of the pans.

Crepes
Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens
Pictures by Caroline

1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup all-purpose flour 2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cooking oil

Directions:
1. In a bowl combine milk, flour, eggs, oil, and salt. Beat well, until the batter is smooth.
2. Heat a lightly greased medium skillet. Remove from heat, spoon in approximately 1/4 cup of batter (or less for thinner crepes). Lift and tilt in a circular motion to spread the batter. Return to heat; brown on one side only.
3. Invert pan over a paper towel lined plate and remove crepe. Repeat with remaining batter, greasing skillet occasionally.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

The day my friend Ginny brought me a slice of this bread, I knew we would be friends. And we were. Our mutual love of food provided us with many a conversation while our husbands discussed guns and biking.

I guess this bread is really more like chocolate cake that happens to have zucchini in it than the other way around. But if you take something that already tastes pretty dang good and isn't too bad for you and then add chocolate, you know it just can't go wrong.

Brocolli-Cheese Quiche

Quiche. Quiche in essence is an egg pie, which does not sound appetizing, but quiche is so much more than egg pie. It is creamy goodness. I like to combine the flavors of broccoli, onion, cheese, and bacon, but you could definitely experiment with other combinations. And quiche is great because you can serve it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Broccoli-Cheese Quiche
Recipe and pictures by Caroline

1 pie crust (I used a pre-made crust, or you could try this)
4 beaten eggs
1 cup half-and-half
½ cup milk
½ med yellow onion, chopped
½ cup chopped broccoli
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Dash ground nutmeg
4 or 5 pieces thick slice bacon (or ham), cut into ½” pieces
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon flour

1. Cut bacon into ½” pieces and fry in a skillet until cooked through. Put bacon on a paper-towel lined plate and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl beat together eggs, half-and-half, and milk until well combined. Add the onions, broccoli, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Stir in the bacon (or ham).
3. In a small bowl toss together the flour and cheese. Add to the egg mixture.
4. Pour egg mixture into pie crust (I like to place the quiche on a baking sheet while cooking to ensure that the quiche doesn’t overflow onto the bottom of my oven). Bake in a 325° oven for 40-45 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Banana-Chocolate Chip Muffins

Do you have some fusty, black banana's laying on your counter, but you don't want to throw them out and waste them? Here is the answer. These muffins are wonderful and a change from banana bread. And, they are made from whole wheat, so they are even healthier! These muffins are not as sweet as banana bread and they will freeze well, so you can make a batch or two and freeze the rest for later. If you don't want to add the chocolate chips you can substitute them for walnuts, or just leave them out all together.

Banana-Chocolate Chip Muffins
Recipe by King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking (awesome book, I highly recommend it)
Pictures by Caroline
Yield: 12 muffins

½ cup unsalted butter
½ cup packed light or dark brown sugar
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups mashed ripe banana (about 3 medium-to-large bananas)
¼ cup honey
2 large eggs
2 cups whole wheat flour, traditional or white whole wheat (I used half white and half whole wheat)
2/3 cup chocolate chips

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with muffin cups, and grease the muffin cups with nonstick vegetable oil spray.
2. Beat together the butter, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth. Add the banana, honey and eggs, beating until smooth. Add the flour and chocolate chips, stirring until smooth. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and let it rest at room temperature, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
3. Divide the batter among the muffin cups; they’ll be nearly full. Bake the muffins until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 23 to 28 minutes. Remove them from the oven, and after a couple of minutes transfer the muffins to a rack to cool.

Black Walnut French Toast

This is a recipe that twolittlechefs reader, Kelly, submitted. It is a variation on traditional french toast, and it is delicious. Now I happen to love french toast, so I may be bias. However, when I make this again I will make it with my own french toast recipe and add the banana-nut topping. When I make french toast I don't use any milk, and I add a bit of vanilla and cinnamon. Anyway you make it though, the topping is sure to be a crowd pleaser. Thanks Kelly!


Black Walnut French Toast
Recipe from Southern Living Magazine (submitted by twolittlechefs reader, Kelly)
Picture by Caroline

Ingredients

2 tablespoons chopped black walnuts (or traditional walnuts or pecans)
1 tablespoon light butter
1 large ripe banana, sliced
1/4 cup honey
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup fat-free milk
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
8 white bread slices
Vegetable cooking spray
1/4 cup reduced-calorie maple syrup.

Directions

1. Place a small skillet over medium-high heat until hot; add chopped black walnuts, and cook, stirring constantly, 5 minutes or until toasted. Remove from skillet.
2. Melt butter in small skillet over medium heat; add banana slices, and cook 3 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Stir in toasted black walnuts and 1/4 cup honey, and remove from heat.
3. Meanwhile whisk together eggs and next 3 ingredients in a shallow dish or pie plate. Lightly press bread slices, 1 at a time, into egg mixture, coating both sides of bread. Cook bread, in batches, on a nonstick griddle coated with cooking spray over medium heat 2 minutes on each side or until done. Repeat procedure, if necessary. Transfer to a serving plate. Serve with banana mixture and syrup.

*From Kelly who submitted this recipe: “I love breakfast and so this was a great twist to a classic. I made it this morning for some family and they were asking for the recipe - always a good sign! We had it on corn cakes instead of French toast and it was good that way too.”

Buttermilk Pancakes with Blueberries

To my great delight, it's finally blueberry season! If you're not taking advantage of the fresh blueberries finally available, you're missing out on some serious deliciousness. And if you happen to get bored with eating blueberries in your cereal, muffins, or as a snack (though I really can't imagine that happening), throw some in these buttermilk pancakes. Or go really wild and make them for dinner one night. I bet your kids will love it.

Grandma Jane's Buttermilk Pancakes with Blueberries*
Recipe by Grandma Jane
Pictures by Kelly

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons oil
2 eggs
1 cup blueberries (optional)

1. In a large bowl, whisk all dry ingredients together.
2. In a separate bowl, combine buttermilk, oil and egg.
3. Add buttermilk mixture to dry ingredients and mix just until combined (the batter will be quite thick).
4. Scoop batter onto a hot, well greased griddle (try about 1/3 cup of batter for each pancake). Sprinkle a few berries onto each pancake before flipping.

*This recipe comes courtesy of my friend Lindsey's dear grandmother. She's famous for this delicious pancake recipe.

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