Bacon, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Muffins

YUM! What's better than a big, delicious, full breakfast? Well, miniaturize it into muffins and it's not quite as high in calories! I think these would freeze well and then just pop them into the microwave and enjoy a tasty breakfast in a hurry! Homemade convenient food. A friend and I were talking through good 'ol FB about food- surprise, surprise!! I wondered what a regular blueberry muffin recipe would be like if you switched the blueberries for eggs, bacon and chunks of cheese and modified it a little. To my surprise, it was more delicious than I thought it would be. You could leave out some of the sugar but I love the salty/sweet combination so I left it in.

Thanks, Mary R., for your help in figuring these things out and for the idea of mixing the eggs on top rather then leave them whole. I think it would fun to try these in a LARGE muffin pan with a whole egg and see how they turn out!! These regular-sized muffins cannot hold a whole egg! LOL :)

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Breakfast Muffins

Muffin batter:
2 cups flour
2 T - 1/3 cup sugar (depending on if you like the salty sweet combination)
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, well beaten
1 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, melted (or 1/4 cup oil)
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, cubed
4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped

Topping for muffins:
3 eggs
course salt
pepper
shredded or thinly sliced cheddar, about 2-4 oz 

-Makes about 18 muffins

If bacon needs cooked, start by cooking it in either a frying pan, or in a jelly roll (Large Stoneware Bar Pan) in the oven till crispy. Cube cheddar if needed.

Preheat oven to 425'

1.Mix the dry ingredients for muffin batter in a large mixing bowl, add the milk and butter and mix till just combined. (Batter will still be lumpy). Add cubed cheese and bacon. Mix evenly.  

2. Line muffin pan with paper liners. Fill 1/2 full with batter. Bake for 10 minutes.

3. Remove from oven, leaving oven on.  

4. In a small bowl, beat 3 eggs very well. Spoon about 1/2 - 1  1/2 tablespoonfuls of beaten egg over each baked muffin, trying not to spill over the paper liner. Lightly sprinkle with course salt and pepper.

5. Bake muffins till eggs are done, or about 8-10 minutes. Watch them!

6. Remove muffins from oven. Top with shredded or thinly sliced cheese. Allow to sit until cheese is melted. Serve while still warm!

For visual learners follow along with the photos or.... if you just want to be tempted to make them! :)

I LOVE cooking bacon in my stoneware Bar Pan. (Pampered Chef of course!) I usually cook it at 400' for about 15 minutes. Save the bacon grease in a covered jar in the fridge for frying up eggs! (I didn't say this was a healthy way to cook them, but it's delicious and adds great flavor! You don't need much to add flavor either!)

Crispy, perfect bacon. You don't want chewy pieces in your muffins. Nope. Just not good.

Chop it up till it's about 1/2''.

Thickly slice cheese, then cut it into 1/2'' strips.



Cut it again the other way and you have cubes! (duh, I know... I just thought you'd like looking at Tillamook Cheddar cheese.... ha ha)

                            

Mix in cheese! Mmmm



Mix in bacon. Use a Medium Scoop to fill muffins 1/2 full.



Don't fill muffin liners any fuller than this... this was even a little too much in this picture. Remember they expand and you will be adding eggs, which expand too! Bake.



Add thinly sliced cheese, or shredded cheese and let sit till the cheese is all melty and gooey.



Enjoy!

Homemade Granola



MMMmmm golden baked homemade granola. Simply delicious!



Here is something delicious and HEALTHY that the kids and I made today. This is the best kind of recipe to do with kids! Just melt, mix, pour, mix and bake! (Well, there's a little more to it than that but it's very simple!) The original granola recipe is from my friend Marett, I've adjusted some of it to what I had here. It's one of those recipes that I've had for years but forgot about. Forget no longer... this stuff is awesome! Just don't forget the vanilla, it adds such a cozy flavor! ha ha

Homemade Granola

Combine and melt in a saucepan:
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup butter
3 T molasses
1 cup raw sugar
1 cup honey
1/2 tsp salt (a MUST! It goes well with the sweet!!)

Take off of heat and add vanilla.

(NOTE: I did not have enough honey so I used part pure maple syrup. Also, I used sweetened coconut so I left out the sugar. It's plenty sweet without it if you make it that way!)

Mix together in a large pot or bowl:
6 cups oats

4 cups coconut

1/2 cup sesame seeds
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup slivered almonds
...or whichever nuts...

(Another NOTE of course: I used oats, coconut, pepitas (pumpkin seeds), whole almonds, a few cups of puffed brown rice cereal and sunflower seeds.) I plan to try different nuts/seeds.

Pour melted mixture onto oat mixture. (By adding less dry ingredients, it will be a stickier, thicker granola- otherwise it's pretty fine crumbles). Make sure the mixture is all "wet".

Bake at 350' for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or until browned. Be careful not to burn it!

Add raisins or dried cranberries while it's still warm.
This recipe makes MANY cups! I should have measured but I'm guessing that it makes like 20 cups?? A LOT anyway! Store in airtight containers or use a vacuum pack sealer.

It's great for trips, easy breakfast or snacks!



The granola on the left is with Craisins, the one on the right is without. (Our oldest doesn't prefer the fruit in it..silly kid!)

 Serve warm, cooled or in milk! Mmmm The kids couldn't get enough of it!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Fresh out of the oven! These will come off the wrapper better once they've cooled a bit---if you can resist!

These are a great muffin for breakfast or for a snack.  You can add flax seeds or other non-wheat flours to make it more healthy too. I usually don't put quite as much sugar in them when I use the full amount of chocolate chips either. They really are quite a treat!

Mix together in a large bowl:

3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
 1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3 beaten eggs
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups plain canned pumpkin
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup oil (I've used applesauce too but they tend to stick in the paper muffin liners.)
1 pkg large milk chocolate chips

Bake at 350' for 20-25 minutes.

OPTIONAL: I added Pampered Chef Sweet Sprinkles to the tops to give them a little more interest and crunch, but really, once a bite is taken, you need no more enticing!

Homemade English Muffins

Who knew you could make these so easily?

This recipe is from "The Old Farmhouse Kitchen" cookbook. They were super easy! Tonight I was thinking, 'why are they so good? Why would I prefer them to the store-bought kind that takes you 5 minutes to get (in and out of the store)?' It's like everything else homemade; because they are FRESH and that is no comparison to something that was cooked 2 weeks ago or longer! You know how good homemade bread is -hot out of the oven with butter melting through?? Ya... it's good.

By the way, have you ever thought about a package of cookies? They were baked and then they sit on the shelf in a store for MONTHS sometimes! EEWW! I wouldn't eat my own cookies that were that old! ha ha And if the cookies have to have preservatives to stay "fresh", they are probably not fresh! LOL Anyway, I hope you are inspired to make something homemade- even if it's not these! (Please do not think that I NEVER buy things from the store because I love Oreos or Nutter Butter cookies too! This is just a fun challenge to 'do things the way they used to' and I enjoy doing baking!)

Homemade English Muffins


Scald:
1 cup milk


Stir in:
2 T sugar
2 tsp salt (The recipe called for 3 tsp but I thought that seemed like SO much and I didn't want to ruin them. Try it if you'd like- these were not very salty with the 2 tsp.)
1/2 cup butter

Add:

1/2 cup cool water
Dissolve 2 pkgs yeast in 1/2 cup warm water (takes about 5 minutes to get frothy)
6 cups flour (I exchanged some of the white flour for wheat. I think I would add other flours to make them more "whole grain" next time.)

When milk mixture is lukewarm, blend in yeast mixture. Mix in flour a little at a time. Knead several times until dough is smooth and elastic. let rise 1 hour or until doubled in size. (I set in a greased bowl with a non-fuzzy towel over it and warm it next to the wood stove) Punch down; roll out on cornmeal. (Set 1/2 of your round on cornmeal, lightly sprinkled on the counter and then roll it out to about 1/2 thickness, maybe a little less.) Cut with a 3-inch cutter (or large drinking glass). Let stand for 30 minutes. Cook on griddle on top of stove, not oven (medium heat is what I used). Turn when bottom is browned.

Cool on a wire rack then cut in half with a serrated knife and toast! Also good just hot our of the oven with butter and jelly or plain!



I made breakfast sandwiches out of them with ham, farm eggs and a bit of Havarti cheese. Comfort food!



Cranberry-Blackberry Crepes

Last night we had a feast for dinner! We had turkey, stuffing, mashed red & yellow potatoes, turkey gravy, a few left-over deviled eggs, left-over peaches, green beans and homemade Cranberry- blackberry sauce. I think I've mentioned that I'm doing a "Biggest Loser" challenge with some friends and others from church so I did try to not over-do it. (I easily could have though!! That's my favorite meal!) So I had already decided, when I did my meal planning for this week, to make crepes. We thought the Cranberry-Blackberry sauce would be perfect to go along with crepes! It almost tastes like a tart Little Wild Blackberry jam. Another NW favorite! 

So, first make your sauce, then serve it warm with crepes, or cold- either way would be scrumptious!

Cranberry- Blackberry Crepes

Kristin's Cranberry -Blackberry Sauce

Combine 2 cups water and 2 cups sugar in large saucepan; stir to dissolve sugar. Heat to boiling; boil 5 minutes. Add 1 bag fresh cranberries (12 oz bag) and 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blackberries. Cook about 10-15 minutes, depending if you want it to "jell". (The longer amount of time will allow it to jell). Skins will pop so be careful about it splattering on you! Serve warm or chilled. makes about 4 cups! 

Derek's Crepes

Crepe batter

1 cup flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, 2 eggs, 1 1/2 cups milk, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 1/8 teaspoon salt

In bowl, combine all ingredients; beat until smooth. Lightly grease a 6-8" skillet (use a small amount of oil and swirl it around the pan); heat to medium. Remove from heat, pour in 1/3 cup batter. Swirl around quickly so that it covers the bottom of the pan.  Return to heat. Lightly brown each side. It only takes a few seconds to cook on the 2nd side.  Store in a tortilla warmer until ready to serve. Fill with fruit or fruit or jam and top with whipped cream! 

We double this recipe to serve our family of 5, and had a few leftovers.

Pour about 1/3 or less into 6-8" skillet. Non-stick works well for this!

  

These only take a short amount of time to cook. Some recipes say to cook one side but we like both sides cooked.

These go quickly but if you want everyone to eat at about the same time, store them in a place to keep warm!



We used a tortilla warmer! Works perfectly!



Butter is a nice addition before you fill them. If you're cutting back on fats/calories, then leave this step out. (boo hoo)

Spread a small amount of butter on the inside of the crepe.

Scoop about 1 tablespoon of fruit filling inside. Fresh strawberries are AWESOME but it's not that season right now....

Roll up like a burrito!

What a great looking crepe Derek! (He made the crepes while I got the kids started with school today. Then I came back and assembled them. It's so nice to have him home!)



Now, if I had homemade whipped cream, I'd use that but I've been trying to stay away from buying creams and fattening stuff. So, I grabbed this out of the freezer. It's still yummy! (and fattening... I know!)



And here they are!

 So.... what did the kids think? See for yourself!

 

The kids are using the plates they created at a local ceramic shop. FUN! Caleb gives it a thumbs up!



Talia's devouring hers!

  

haha Aidan licked his plate clean!

I felt like doing the same thing... but I refrained.

It hardly needs washing now!

Amazing Muffins! "To-Die-For Cherry Almond" and Cream Muffins

Tonight I tried a great new recipe so I wanted to share it with you! It will be included in my Family Favorites album , for sure!


Here's the recipe! On the website it's called "To Die For Bluberry Muffins" and I'm sure blueberries would be just as wonderful! I'd maybe decrease the amount of sugar for blueberries though. I made these muffins with Almonds and Cherries because that's what I had and it sounded SO good! Reminds me a lot of the sour cherry muffins that Costco makes during the holidays!


So, start with clean, fresh or frozen cherries... and pit them. Make the batter.. I added 1 tsp vanilla and 1/2 tsp almond flavor PLUS I added 1/2 Cup chopped almonds to the batter. You could also get creative and exchange some or all of the flour for brown rice flour or a little bit or others like millet, white rice flour, or spelt. I also added 1/2- 1 tsp of cream cheese (because it was on a closeout). And I the last thing I changed was adding 1/4 cup chopped almonds to the crumble topping plus a bit of Pampered Chef's Lemon Sprinkles.

And here they are! Fresh out of the oven!

You did want to see the gooey cream cheese right? I can't even tell you how wonderful it was to bite into a bit of crunchy topping, warm cream cheesy goodness, a tart cherry and the fluffy cake-like muffin! Add these to your list of recipes to make and you wouldn't be dissapointed!