The breakfast experiment

Posted on March 17, 2013 by Laura

Last week, I sought the wisdom of Facebook and asked with other mothers were feeding their kids in the morning. Breakfast is most definitely my least favorite meal and as a result, Sylvi is the only one who actually eats it most days. Periodically, I’ll get in a breakfast-y mood and start making baked goods or couscous… but it never lasts. Anyway, this week it suddenly hit me that since I’m not a big breakfast eater, I tend to just spend my morning handing out snacks to the kids.

My kids love their carbs (like their mama, of course) and so our snacks are often some form of a cracker or another. The more I thought about it, I realized that when I snack on carbs, not only am I hungry about 10 minutes later, I feel crummy and grouchy because I’m hungry again. But, you see… I can communicate this because I’m an adult and I fully understand my hunger cues. My three and half year old? Not so much. So I’ve committed to making a breakfast daily that incorporates protein in an attempt to see how things go and if it makes any impact our days for the next two weeks.

So here we are on day #3 and I had planned to make cinnamon rolls and eggs, but forgot to start the dough last night. We woke up to find that a leprechaun left us green snot for our holiday. Boo. Anyway, I decided on waffles and since there was a left over sweet potato in the fridge, I made this recipe. I have no idea where the original recipe came from, but my notes have lines all over it, as I adapted it significantly. I just have no self control when it comes to making my own creative mark on a meal, I guess. Even with the addition of the sweet potato, these waffles are your typical golden color, but they are sweet and fluffy. Sylvi ate two entire waffles and a piece of bacon!

Orange Sweet Potato Waffles

1 sweet potato, mashed (about 1 cup)
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 melted butter
1/2 Tbsp. orange extract
2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix the sweet potato, eggs, brown sugar, butter, orange extract and salt together. I find that a hand mixer is very helpful since the sweet potato makes the batter very thick. Sift together the baking powder and flour and alternate adding it and the milk until all ingredients are incorporated. Put a scoop of the batter into each well of your heated waffle iron and cook until golden brown.

To make these waffles even more tasty, melt 2 Tablespoons of butter with 1/2 cup pure maple syrup and the zest of one orange in a small pan over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for two minutes, whisking constantly. Then pour the syrup over your warm waffles and listen your family sing your praises!

Cranberries: food of power!!!

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Laura

Today, I wrote a food spotlight for the Mommy and Me Fitness Blog on Cranberries… gosh I love them! So check out the blog and then go make a batch, or two of these muffins. You’ll thank me, I’m sure of it!

Cranberry-Citrus Power Muffins

3.5 cups flour
¼ cup flax meal
¼ cup wheat germ
2 tsp. Baking powder
1 tsp. Baking soda
1 tsp. Salt
3 cups raw cranberries
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups plain Greek Yogurt
1 cup canola oil
3 tsp. Orange extract
zest of half an orange

In a large bowl, combine the wet ingredients and mix well. Sift together the dry ingredients and stir into the wet ingredients until well mixed. Pour in the cranberries and stir to combine. Fill 3 dozen muffin cups with batter about 2/3 full. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Flexible

Posted on October 30, 2012 by Laura

Recently, my husband came home with a brand-new, beautiful, four waffle-iron and all the yuck of my day slipped away. And by yuck, I mean a very poor mama attitude that made poor kiddo attitudes worse. I made a full batch of pumpkin pancakes and poured them over the hot griddle knowing that once the butter and syrup sunk into those fluffy grids, the gloom that had settled over my home would be gone. There is nothing like warm, solid, comforting food to soothe emotions.

And on that note, there is nothing like comfort food to start your day out. Make a full batch and freeze the leftovers to pull out on a day when you need a quick breakfast. Spread cream cheese on them and fold or roll them up for a snack.

Pumpkin Spice Batter

1 1/4 cup flour
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/8 tsp. cloves
1 cup milk
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg

Whisk the ingredients together into a loose batter and either pour them over a hot waffle iron or in spoonfuls onto a hot griddle. The pancakes or waffles keep for 3-4 days in the fridge or a month in the freezer. Top generously with butter and syrup.

Retreeeeaaatttt!!!!

Posted on August 5, 2012 by Laura

That was me yelling up there in the title. Yep. I went away this weekend for the first time since November 2009. This year, I’m the new Publicity/Media person for my church’s MOPs charter. I joined MOPs while I was still pregnant with Liam and I think that at times, it’s fair to say my sanity is a direct result of getting connected. I don’t have much family in the area and it’s been great to make new friends every year.

Anyway, I was wreck about leaving my kids overnight and had a hard time relaxing and enjoying the other moms and our “work” of planning out the 2012-2013 year. Once I settled in and we started talking I managed to sit back and appreciate this time away from my home to recharge. Although, use of the word recharge is only applicable in the mental sense as I stayed way past my bedtime and am still feeling the effects of treating my aging body as though I were still in college. :D

For me, one of the best parts of the weekend was coming in from a short morning run and having breakfast already made! Eggs, pancakes, fruit, yogurt, granola… oh my. Breakfast is tough in this house because it’s time consuming and the kids almost always steal my plate. Thankfully, last night, I managed to finally figure out a quick hash brown recipe that will keep overnight in the fridge. Initially, this was a side dish for our supper last night, but since we had leftovers, I tried them 2 different ways this morning and now cannot wait to get back to the farmer’s market and pick up more new potatoes!

Yes. That's a homemade iced mocha in a Ball jar. Recipe to come!

Farmer’s Market Hashbrowns

2 pounds small red/new potatoes
1 small green pepper
1 small red pepper
1 medium candy onion
2 Tbsp. butter
seasonings of your choice (I used garlic salt, paprika and mustard powder)

Wash the potatoes and cut them however you like best. I chose to quarter mine since they were so small. Place them in a steamer basket and then into a medium sauce pan with about 2 inches of water in the bottom. Steam the potatoes until they are just fork tender. The fork should be able to pierce the potato, but not smash it. Bottom line: the potatoes still need to be a bit firm. In the meantime, chop or slice the peppers and onions in a size that is comparable to the potatoes. Heat a skillet over a medium burner and add the butter. Saute the peppers and onions until tender. When the potatoes are done cooking, add them to the skillet with the peppers and onions and saute for about 5 more minutes. Add more butter if necessary and then season to taste. If you are making these ahead, store them in the fridge for up to 3 days. They can be reheated in the microwave or (like I did) just tossed into the pan after you’ve cooked your eggs.

What do you like to eat for breakfast?

Finally…

Posted on January 24, 2012 by Laura

I have a kind of love-hate relationship with snacks. Love in the sense that I am a salty, crunchy, grab-a-bite-walk-out-of-the-room-do-something-come-back-grab-another-bite-repeat-repeat-repeat sort of person. Hate in the sense that I am a grab-a-bite-walk-out-of-the-room-do-something-come-back-grab-another-bite-repeat-repeat-repeat sort of person. Seriously. I have no self control. My biggest downfall in the world? Cheetos. It’s a shame really that my self control is in such short supply when it comes to those things…

Anyway. The subject of this post. Snacks. Considering how often I am nursing Sylvia, I’m frequently hungry and have been looking for something that was filling and nutritious, but could be eaten with 1 hand. And I wanted something I could toss in the basket on my nightstand and eat at 330 in the morning without feeling guilty. Granola bars fit the bill for this request the best, but let me tell you, I’ve not had the best luck with homemade granola bars. Either they come out with the consistency of re-bar or they crumble with the first bite. The search for the perfect granola bar has been ongoing for over a year.

I order books from the library a few times a month and often don’t see the books before I pick them up. I tend to order based on topic and in December, I was looking for more ideas for vegetarian meals so the book The Organic Family Cookbook caught my eye. I’ve tried several recipes from her book and must tell you that I’ve really enjoyed it. So much so that I put it on my Amazon list and was delightfully surprised to open it as a Christmas gift! This granola bar recipe is adapted from the formula listed in the book and I am truly pleased with how they turned out. I cut and wrapped the bars individually and they’ve stored quite well.

Granola Bars (adapted from The Organic Family Cookbook)

2 cups whole oats
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup chopped dried cranberries
2 Tbsp. flax seed
2 Tbsp. wheat germ
1 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup almond butter
3/4 cup local honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp. coconut oil

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the oats, seeds, flax seed and wheat germ. Spread the mixture out on a lined baking sheet. Toast for 8 minutes. Then, pour the warm mixture into a mixing bowl and add the cranberries, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. In a small saucepan combine the almond butter, honey, brown sugar and coconut oil. Heat through, until the ingredients are thoroughly melded and liquid-like in consistency. Remove from the heat and pour over the dry ingredients and mix well. Line a 9×13 baking dish with parchment paper and grease well. Press the granola mixture into the pan with a spoon. Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool for at least 2 hours before cutting.

(Makes18 bars about the size of Cascadian Farms granola bars.)

Tropical wishes Pancakes

Posted on January 16, 2012 by Laura

Yesterday morning dawned cold and bright as the sun sparkled on the snow. I like to make pancakes for the family on the weekend, but we’ve had trouble with Sylvi and dairy. She always wants to participate in meals with us, so I played around the recipe to cut out the dairy. In addition to these changes, I also took the opportunity to cook the pancakes in my stainless steel skillet. I haven’t touched the teflon one in weeks, which means we haven’t had pancakes since then either. Both changes turned out perfectly and I am pleased to tell you that these pancakes somehow turned out lighter than those I’ve made with baking mixes! I couldn’t find the syrup when I made breakfast, so instead, we spread strawberry jam on them. They were wonderful and I’m a little sad they’re all gone. Oh well. Next weekend!

Pancakes

1 1/2 c. All purpose flour
3 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. coconut milk
3 Tbsp. coconut oil
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Sift together the dry ingredients and mix together the wet ingredients. Slowly stream the wet ingredients over the flour mixture while whisking constantly until fully incorporated. Pour batter onto a hot griddle or skillet spoonfuls at a time and cook until browned on both sides. Serve with strawberry jam, fresh fruit and yogurt. Then, take a bite, close your eyes and pretend you’re on a sandy beach. Make as needed to cure the winter blues.

A good start

Posted on January 3, 2012 by Laura

I know it will sound odd, but my most important personal change this year is to start eating breakfast. It’s shameful that I really don’t eat well until the weekend when my husband is home and I can actually finish chewing a bite before I swallow. However, I also don’t really care for breakfast foods. Except for scrambled eggs, but those get boring after a week or so straight. I’d been looking through several vegetarian and vegan cookbooks for ideas for our Meatless Mondays when it occurred to me that I could just use some of the whole grain side dishes ideas, add in the seeds or nuts I like and have a healthy, protein packed meal without having to eat cereal from a box.

This isn’t a recipe so much as it’s a guideline. I bring to boiling 1 1/4 cup water and 1/4 tsp. salt and then add in 1 cup of couscous. Cover the pan, and remove from the heat. Allow to set for 5 minutes. Remove the lid and using a fork, fluff up the couscous. At this point, I add in 1 Tbsp real butter, flax or coconut oil, 1/2 cup each of dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds. Then a generous 2 Tbsp. of local honey, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. nutmeg, and stir to combine. These are the flavors I like, but you could easily change out the cranberries for raisins and the pumpkin seeds for slivered almonds. Don’t like couscous? Try this with brown rice or Quinoa.

I make a large batch and then reheat in the mornings. I rediscovered grapefruit and often will have one with a scoop of the couscous. The point is that by eating a whole grain first thing in the morning, I’m getting a number of nutritional benefits not the least of which is fiber which helps to break down starches into glucose and lower cholesterol. Nutritional benefits aside, I feel like a new person eating a real breakfast. I’m not pounding cups of coffee all morning, no matter how sleepless my night was and I feel better focused.

Bagels and the week in review!

Posted on August 18, 2011 by Laura

It’s been busy around here! I learned how to make amazing chocolate pudding, a necessity in my opinion. I won’t be sharing the recipe since I wrote it and a few changes on a scrap of paper, but didn’t credit the original source. Just believe me when I tell you it’s heavenly!

Yesterday, I canned my first batch of corn. It took me most of the day since I had to work around naps and meals and train track building. And I was nervous about using a pressure cooker all by myself. As luck would have it when I placed a paniced phone call to my friend about how to close the lid, she was a few blocks away and dropped by to walk me through the process until I got the cooker up to the right pressure. Even after her help, I was still paranoid about the steam, so I did let the cooker cool down to a far lower temperature than was strictly necessary. However, in the end, I had 20 neatly packed pints of corn to add to the shelves in my store room.

Since the pressure cooker heated up my kitchen as much as it did, I went ahead and made a batch of Michael Symon’s spicy ketchup. I didn’t read the directions right and wound up doubling it, so I tried canning it in a hot water bath. I’m excited to open those little jars, but need to remember to buy some reusable lids for my small jars since I only have wide mouth jar lids. The small lids will come in handy when I start cracking open my jams, too!

And while I was at it, I went ahead and made a batch of bagels. I love these bagels so much. I’ve played around a little with the flavors, but I just keep coming back to the plain ones. If you like a bagel with a hard crust on it, you’ll want to do an egg wash before you bake them, but I don’t. These are so easy for Liam to eat and we go through a batch a few days.

Simple Bread Machine Bagels

1 c. warm water
3 c. flour
2 Tbsp. white sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 1/4 tsp. yeast
3 Tbsp. brown sugar

Combine the first 5 ingredients in the pan of your bread maker and process on the dough cycle. (If you don’t have a bread maker, mix these ingredients well and knead for 10 minutes. Allow to rise for 1 hour.) Remove the dough from the pan and divide until 8-12 balls. Flatten each ball and poke a large hole in the center. Shape into the general bagel shape and place on a dry silpat. Cover and rise for 30-60 minutes.

Boil a pan of water and add the brown sugar to it. (The brown sugar can be interchanged with Malt Syrup if you’d like. It’s purpose is to give the bagels that nice golden color we’re all used to, so if you don’t want to add the sweetener, you don’t have to; the bagels will still be wonderful.) Boil each bagel for 1 minute, flipping halfway through. Drain them on a towel before placing them on a buttered baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes at 375 degrees. Keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week… if they last that long!

Breakfast in one hand

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Laura

Oh goodness, it’s been a week and a half since I last posted. I have a long list of topics/recipes to share, but between the heat, my undone to-do list and life with 2 little kids, I haven’t had the time to settle down and think clearly. In addition to life itself, I’d have to guess that the fact that I haven’t done well with my own personal nutrition lately would probably be a reason for my fatigue and lack of focus. Breakfast has been at the bottom of my daily routine. I make it, but as in today’s case, I only got a few bites in before Sylvia woke up and needed fed, once she was done, I had a toddler meltdown to diffuse. Once that was done, there were visitors and cookies in the oven and suddenly, it was lunchtime and my breakfast plate was sitting on the counter, cold and sad.

This bar “cookie” is my current solution. I tripled the amount of oats in the original recipe and used whole wheat flour. Instead of raisins, I used cranberries and then threw in some dark chocolate chips. This recipe makes a 9×13 pan that can be sliced and wrapped individually. You can then freeze these bars as well if you choose to make a double batch.

Mama needs a grab-n-go breakfast bar

1/2 c. melted butter
1/2 c. applesauce
1 c. brown sugar
1 (scant) c. white sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
2 -2 1/2 cup. flour
3 cups whole oats
1 1/2 cup mix ins (cranberries, chocolate chips, peanut butter chunks, raisins, dried apricots, etc.)

Melt the butter completely and then stir in the sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and salt. Add in the applesauce. Once the butter isn’t scalding hot (adding the applesauce will bring the temperature down), whisk the 2 eggs and add them to the mix. Stir in the baking soda and powder, oats and 2 cups of flour. Add more flour if needed to make the batter slightly stiff in texture. Stir in your mix-ins and then spread across the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish (well greased). Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes.

**You could certainly feed this bar to your cheflets as long as they are comfortable with chewing and have tried whatever extra fruit you decide to mix in. If you are nursing, oats are known for helping your milk supply, however, from personal experience, I’d suggest not eating these every day… lots of fiber can lead to lots of gas in the little ones!

Breakfast for a Monkey

Posted on January 4, 2011 by Laura

When Matt and I got married, Jack Johnson was just gaining popularity in the music world. We bought his cd while we were on our honeymoon and I must tell you that every time I hear those songs, I am suddenly in the front seat of our rented Pontiac Grand Prix, driving around Georgia. When Liam was a tiny baby, I would often play the cd for him to wind down to and eventually, we discovered that he would last for the hour-long drive to visit his grandparents much better if Jack was singing. For years, Matt has asked me to come up with a version of banana pancakes that we could use to pretend it was the weekend. Recently, I combined 2 recipes and Liam ate 4 pancakes the first time I introduced them!

This recipe is the perfect blend of comfort and convenience. I tweaked the recipe for a pancake mix I found online keep a batch in my cupboard all the time. When I want to make plain pancakes, I do, but when the mood strikes for a flavored option, it’s easy to change. What’s even better is that these pancakes freeze very well and will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days. Since Liam and I are the only ones eating breakfast in the house right now, it works out for us!

Pancake Mix:

4 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup wheat germ
3 1/2 cups ground whole oats
3 Tbsp. sugar
4 Tbsp. baking powder
1 Tbsp. salt

Mix all the ingredients together thoroughly. Sift if you’d like. Store in an airtight container in the freezer indefinitely or on the counter/in your cabinet for up to 3 weeks. When you are ready to prepare the pancakes, all you have to do is take 1 cup of the mix, 1 cup of water/milk/buttermilk and 1 whole egg. Beat them together and cook them on an ungreased griddle until golden brown on both sides.

For the monkeys: Replace the 1 egg with a whole banana, smashed as smoothly as you like. I mash mine into a puree so I’m certain that the cake cooks the whole way through. Add 1/2 tsp. cinnamon and 1/4 tsp. nutmeg to the mix, banana and milk. Beat together and cook as above. It’s like having dessert for breakfast!

* For the cheflets: This is a perfect way to introduce a wholesome breakfast to your budding foodie! As long as you are certain your little one has no reactions to wheat, tear a cooled pancake into little strips and let your son/daughter go to town! This is an excellent way to encourage self-feeding and also a good method to make sure there is a variety of nutrients in that meal!