Showing posts with label brunch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label brunch. Show all posts
This is a fabulous recipe that really goes together quickly and that your family will love. You can serve this either for breakfast spooned over some yogurt or cereal, or even pancakes. Or on it's own with a dollop of yogurt on top or a muffin on the side.
It makes an excellent side dish if you are having people over for brunch. Simple, colourful and very tasty!
Its basically just a mix of various fruits marinated in their own juices with some lemon juice, water and a touch of sugar.
If you really wanted to get fancy you could use a lemon lime soda, which would make it a bit fizzy. Children love that.
It takes two ripe bananas. I don't like to use them when they are over-ripe. I tend to err on the side of a bit more green than ripe. Peel and cut into slices.
You will need one ripe peach or nectarine. Again, don't have it too ripe. You may want to peel the peach. (Just dip in some boiling water for about 30 seconds and then peel. Easy peasy.)
Cut that into bite sized pieces. I used a nectarine today . . .
You will also need one large orange, or naval orange. Cut both the ends off and then peel away all of the skin and outer pith.
Cut this into chunks also. (Put all the fruit into a bowl as you are cutting it.)
There is one sweet eating apple in this. I used a Pink Lady.
Cut cut in half, core and then cut into chunks. I leave the skin on for fibre and flavour. Again pop it into the bowl with everything else.
One kiwi fruit. I saw yellow ones at the shops the other day, but I bought the normal ones. Peel and cut into half moons. Add these to the bowl also.
Finally you will need 10 or so grapes. I used green, but black would be really pretty. Cut these in half and add to the bowl.
Give it all a good mix together along with the juice of one lemon and some sugar (Or honey). Just enough to make it palatable.
It all depends on how sweet or ripe your fruit is. The less ripe the fruit the more sugar you will need, but you don't want your fruit to be overly ripe either because it doesn't hold up well.
This also makes a great and healthy snack. You do need to eat it on the day, which usually isn't a problem
You could use other fruits if you wanted to. This is just the fruits that I usually use. You can vary it according to what fruit you have in the house or that you enjoy!
Macedonian Fruit Salad
Yield: 4
This fabulous fruit salad makes a great addition to breakfast or a brunch, or even as a light dessert. Its a really tasty way to get in some of your five a day.
ingredients:
- 2 bananas
- 1 ripe peach or nectarine
- 1 sweet eating apple
- 1 kiwi fruit, peeled
- 1 large orange, peeled and chopped
- 10 grapes, halved
- 120ml water (1/2 cup)
- the juice of one lemon
- 1 tsp sugar or as needed
instructions:
How to cook Macedonian Fruit Salad
- Prepare all of your fruit. Peel the banana, and orange. Cut all of the fruit into bite sized pieces. Cut the grapes in half. Put into a bowl. Pour in the water and add sugar as needed. Stir everything together. Cover and chill for an hour prior to serving.
I am sharing a really great traditional recipe with you tomorrow! Irish Tea Brack! (Its a loaf bread/cake.) It uses a mix of dried vine fruits (raisins, sultanas and currants) and some cold tea. You are going to love it!
If you wanted to get the fruit ready today, you will need 350g mixed dried fruit (2 1/2 cups) and 300ml cold tea.(1 1/4 cups). Just mix the fruit together with the tea tonight before you go to bed and you will be ready to bake it in the morning. I'll have the recipe posted by then!
The recipe I am sharing with you today is a very old recipe that I have had for many, many years. It is not a coffee cake in the sense that there is any coffee at all in the cake, but in the sense that it is meant to be enjoyed with a hot drink . . . usually coffee, or tea . . . hence the term coffee cake.
It is a beautiful cake . . . with a lovely well flavoured moist batter . . . with a ribbon of cinnamon nut streusel running through the middle . . . as well as baked into and gracing the surface.
It is a recipe that I have been making since the early 1980's. I can't tell you where I got the original recipe as it comes from my Big Blue Binder and is handwritten in my own hand all those years ago. Home Internet wasn't even heard of back then, so the idea that I would ever be sharing these recipes with anyone other than my closest friends never occurred to me, so I never ever noted the source, unless it was from a friend.
I strongly suspect it came from a magazine clipping or the newspaper. I did not own many cookbooks back then. I had a Purity cookbook, a Fanny Farmer Cookbook, my BHG cooking encyclopedia and a cookbook I got free for subscribing to Chatelaine magazine. I still have all of those and this recipe isn't in them . . . . just in my Big Blue Binder.
When I went to make it today, I realised that this is the first time I have baked it since moving over here to the UK! I don't know why I haven't!
Its unbelievable as it is a really great cake. It has to have been at the very least 20 years since I have baked it, but it is a cake that I baked frequently when my children were growing up for the family and also for friends if I was entertaining a coffee party, or a family brunch for the extended family.
It makes a nine inch square cake, which cuts beautifully into exactly 16 squares.
The batter is a simple one made with sour cream, butter, eggs, etc. You could also use plain yogurt instead of sour cream if you wanted to. Today I did not have quite enough sour cream so I used part yogurt.
And both were full fat. I couldn't tell the difference.
The streusel is a very simple one . . . brown sugar, cinnamon, chopped nuts. The original recipe did not call for chocolate chips but for one reason or another I added them once, and it was so tasty that I have always added them ever since.
Half the batter gets spread into the pan and then topped with half the streusel . . . then the other half batter gets spread on top and the remaining streusel over all. The second half of the batter can be a bit difficult to spread over top so what I do is to dollop it all over the middle layer of streusel in smaller bits . . . and then carefully tease the bits with the back of a spoon until they meet each other and cover it. This is the best and easiest way to keep the layers distinct.
Oh but it smells like a little bit of heaven when it is cooking. Cinnamony and warm and toasty . . . just like every happy memory I have of home sweet home.
Yield: 16
Sour Cream Coffee Cake
prep time: 10 minscook time: 50 minstotal time: 60 mins
An incredibly moist and flavourful cake, with a streusel filling and topping, meant to be enjoyed with a nice hot cuppa! From my Big Blue Binder.
ingredients:
- 120g butter (1/2 cup)
- 190g caster sugar (1 cup)
- 2 large free range eggs, beaten lightly
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 120g sour cream (1 cup)
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 245 g plain flour (1 3/4 cups)
- 2 tsp baking powder
For the Topping:
- 200g soft light brown sugar (1 cup)
- 60g finely chopped toasted nuts (walnuts or pecans)
- 1 TBS ground cinnamon
- 90g semi sweet chocolate chips (1/2 cup) optional
instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a 9 inch square baking tin with some baking paper. Set aside.
- To make the streusel combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl, mixing together well. Set aside. (The chocolate chips are an optional ingredient.)
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat in the vanilla. Combine the sour cream and the soda. Sift the flour and baking powder together. Add the sour cream mixture to the creamed mixture alternately with the dry ingredients, making three dry and two wet additions, beginning and ending with dry. Spread half of the batter in the prepared pan. Sprinkle half of the streusel over top. Cover with the remaining batter. Sprinkle the remaining streusel over all.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly touched.
- Serve warm or cold, cut into squares.
Created using The Recipes Generator
Todd polished off two pieces of it before I could say Jack Robin! Yes, it is that good of a cake. I hope you will give it a go! I guarantee you will fall in love. I don't think it will be another 20 years before I bake it again. At least I hope that it won't!
If you are looking for a simple and yet delicious breakfast to serve for the holidays, look no further! Spiced Pumpkin Waffles fit the bill on all counts!
Quick and simple to make, these are absolutely the tastiest, and the smell when you are cooking them is amazing! I don't know about you, but this is the time of year that I love pumpkin anything!
They are fabulous served for breakfast with some warmed Maple Syrup and homemade applesauce.
You can cook some sausages and bacon curls on the side to go with them as well, especially if you are serving them for a holiday brunch! Yum!
You could also serve tinned fruits, or a fruit compote on the side.
I like to warm the syrup . . . its really nice warmed, and I always buy amber grade. It has more flavour.
These are not only great for breakfast however, they also make a great holiday dessert!!
You can serve the warm waffles topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream (Or maple walnut!) . . .
and a drizzle of warm caramel sauce . . . now doesn't that sound delicious!
Another great thing about this recipe is you can make the batter up to one day ahead and store it covered in the refrigerator. Just bring it to room temperature for half an hour prior to using.
If its thickened up a bit upon standing overnight, you can whisk in a bit of milk to loosen it up a bit without any making any difference to the finished result.
Another thing which makes these perfect for the holidays, or indeed any time is that you can bake and freeze them for up to a month, just taking them out when you want to serve them.
Smaller sized ones can be reheated briefly in the toaster, or you can warm larger ones in a moderate oven (180*C/350*F) for about 10 minutes to warm them through! Easy peasy!
Yield: 4 - 6
Spiced Pumpkin Waffles
These waffles are light and airy, crisp on the outsides with a lovely warm spicy flavour. Serve with some warmed maple syrup and a pot of applesauce on the side for a fabulous holiday breakfast!
ingredients:
350g of plain flour (2 1/2 cups)
1 TBS baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 TBS pumpkin pie spice (see my sidebar for a recipe
on how to make your own)
pinch freshly grated nutmeg
4 large free range eggs
100g soft dark brown sugar (1 cup, packed)
180g pumpkin puree, not pie filling (1 cup)
60g butter, melted (1/4 cup)
480ml buttermilk (2 cups)
1 tsp vanilla
non-stick low fat cooking spray
To serve: (all optional)
icing sugar to sprinkle
apple sauce
warmed maple syrup
whipped cream
vanilla ice cream
warm caramel sauce
instructions:
Preheat your oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas
mark 6. Have a baking tray ready. Heat waffle iron according to
manufacturer's directions.
mark 6. Have a baking tray ready. Heat waffle iron according to
manufacturer's directions.
Whisk together the
flour, baking powder, soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice and nutmeg in a
bowl. Whisk the eggs, brown sugar, pumpkin puree, melted butter,
buttermilk and vanilla together in another bowl. Add the flour mixture
to the wet mixture and stir to combine until smooth.
flour, baking powder, soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice and nutmeg in a
bowl. Whisk the eggs, brown sugar, pumpkin puree, melted butter,
buttermilk and vanilla together in another bowl. Add the flour mixture
to the wet mixture and stir to combine until smooth.
Spray
you waffle iron with a bit of cooking spray. Pour in enough batter to
just fill the waffle iron, spreading it out evenly. Close the iron and
bake until the waffle iron opens easily, stops steaming and the waffles
are golden brown on the outside. Remove to the baking tray and keep
warm in the oven while you cook the rest.
you waffle iron with a bit of cooking spray. Pour in enough batter to
just fill the waffle iron, spreading it out evenly. Close the iron and
bake until the waffle iron opens easily, stops steaming and the waffles
are golden brown on the outside. Remove to the baking tray and keep
warm in the oven while you cook the rest.
Serve warm, sprinkled with some icing sugar and your chosen accompaniments. We like maple syrup and applesauce!
Note
- You can make the batter up to 1 day ahead. Cover and keep in the
refrigerator, removing from the refrigerator half an hour prior to
cooking them. Whisk before using. If the batter has thickened up too
much, whisk in a couple TBS of milk. You can freeze the cooked waffles
for up to a month, reheating in a moderate oven until warmed through to
serve.
- You can make the batter up to 1 day ahead. Cover and keep in the
refrigerator, removing from the refrigerator half an hour prior to
cooking them. Whisk before using. If the batter has thickened up too
much, whisk in a couple TBS of milk. You can freeze the cooked waffles
for up to a month, reheating in a moderate oven until warmed through to
serve.
Created using The Recipes Generator
So that's my holiday breakfast sorted . . . I love this time of year, don't you? Bon Appetit!
I spied this Breakfast Casserole on a site called Dinner Then Dessert the other day. It looked really, really tasty.
I adore Breakfast types of casseroles, and I don't think you can ever have too many different recipes for them. They all come in handy, especially around the holidays!
I also love McDonald's Egg McMuffins. Usually over here I get the sausage and egg one because I am not fond of the bacon that they use at our local McDonald's.
I do love their English Muffins however. I don't know how McDonald's get them so soft. It must be a special brand of English Muffin that they use. I think they're just lovely.
So, anyways . . . when I spied this Egg McMuffin Casserole on Pinterest I knew it was something I wanted to make. I loved everything about it.
I sent my husband to the shops for some English Muffins. He came back with these . . .
Oven bottom muffins. It seems that somehow my elderly husband has gotten to the ripe old age without knowing the difference between an English Muffin and an Oven Bottom Muffin.
He saw the word muffin and that was that. I suppose I should be happy he didn't come home with these . . .
Totally edible of course, but not fit for purpose.
He ended up having to go out again once I showed him what I wanted properly. Grocery shops are filled with men wandering up and down the aisles with a look of stunned stupor on their faces.
We got there in the end (which is what counts!) but he had to go to about 4 different shops to find them. When he did find them, he got the very last package on the shelf.
They were marked down as they were right on their due date. I wasn't too bothered with freshness for a casserole anyways, so that was alright.
Friday is a bad day to buy English muffins I guess!
Back to the casserole. You cut a thin slice from each side of the muffins and use them to line a baking dish.
Once you've done this you butter the main bits of the muffin, cut them into 1 inch cubes and toast them in an oven. This helps to crisp them up a bit.
I like to cook my bacon in the oven, so I just cook the bacon at the same time.
You won't want the bacon to be really crisp as you will be cooking it again in the casserole. So a bit flimsy is what works best, not crisp.
The toasted muffin cubes get put into the baking dish. You then pour a mixture of beaten eggs, seasoning and milk over top.
Finally you scatter the crumbled bacon and some crumbled cheddar cheese over top. Easy peasy.
You could just grate the cheese, but I like the crumbles best. When you use crumbled cheese you get little pockets of cheese throughout.
I like the un-dyed cheese best. I also always use a strong cheddar when cooking. I find it has the best flavour.
I really, really love cheddar cheese. My husband thinks there is no other cheese but cheddar . . . that's an Englishman for you!
He was shocked when we went to France and he couldn't get cheddar. Every other cheese in the world, but NO cheddar. Talk about disappointed!
But I digress. Once I have everything in the dish, I smoosh things down a bit with a fork so all of the muffins get a bit damp.
It also helps to cause some of the bacon and cheese to fall down into nooks and crannies. You then bang the casserole into a moderate oven for about half an hour . . .
Until the top is golden brown and the eggs are set, and everything is gloriously tasty! Oh boy, but this is some good!
Yield: 6
Bacon & Egg McMuffin Casserole
prep time: 20 minscook time: 40 minstotal time: 60 mins
This is like having your favourite fast food breakfast sandwich in the comfort of your own home. This is a delicious casserole and is sure to please the whole family! You can have it for breakfast, but in all honesty, we enjoy it for supper. You can serve it with ketchup if you like or syrup. I am partial to Maple syrup on this.
ingredients:
6 large free range eggs
480ml whole milk (2 cups)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 pound bacon
240g strong cheddar cheese (8 ounces)
6 large English Muffins
softened butter
To serve:
Tomato Ketchup or Maple syrup (optional)instructions:
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a 9 inch square casserole dish.
Cook
the bacon in the pre-heated oven until 3/4 cooked. You want it to still
be a bit flimsy as you are going to be cooking it some more in the
casserole dish.
the bacon in the pre-heated oven until 3/4 cooked. You want it to still
be a bit flimsy as you are going to be cooking it some more in the
casserole dish.
Cut the cheese into chunks and
then blitz in a food processor until crumbly. (Alternately you can just
grate it, but I like the crumbles better.)
then blitz in a food processor until crumbly. (Alternately you can just
grate it, but I like the crumbles better.)
Cut
a thin sliver from the tops and the bottoms of each muffin. Place
these bits overlapping in the bottom of the casserole dish. Butter the
muffins and cut them into 1 inch cubes. Place them onto a baking tray
and bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, until crispy. Put them into
the casserole dish.
a thin sliver from the tops and the bottoms of each muffin. Place
these bits overlapping in the bottom of the casserole dish. Butter the
muffins and cut them into 1 inch cubes. Place them onto a baking tray
and bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, until crispy. Put them into
the casserole dish.
Beat the eggs and milk
together with the salt and pepper to combine. Pour this over top of the
muffin cubes. Chop the bacon and sprinkle it on top of the casserole
dish and scatter on the crumbled cheese. I like to push down the muffin
pieces a bit so that they absorb more of the egg/milk mixture and so
that some of the cheese and bacon go down into any spaces.
together with the salt and pepper to combine. Pour this over top of the
muffin cubes. Chop the bacon and sprinkle it on top of the casserole
dish and scatter on the crumbled cheese. I like to push down the muffin
pieces a bit so that they absorb more of the egg/milk mixture and so
that some of the cheese and bacon go down into any spaces.
Bake
uncovered in the heated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until golden brown
and set. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting into squares to serve.
uncovered in the heated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until golden brown
and set. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting into squares to serve.
Created using The Recipes Generator
My husband enjoyed his with tomato ketchup, I had mine with Maple Syrup (in true Canadian fashion). We both enjoyed this very much.
It made a beautiful light supper on the first day and he enjoyed the leftovers warmed up on the second day. (I only made half the recipe as there are only two of us.) All in all I would call this a winner/winner of a tasty dinner!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
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