St Patrick’s day to me conjures up many fun memorable moments. As a kid it was the St Patrick’s Day parade in NYC, wearing all green even down to the elastic in my hair. Trying to find a four leaf clover in our grass, and calling my cousin Patty Powers Smith to say Happy Birthday!
My father always wearing his green hat from Ireland, which now proudly sits a top the bust on my bar in the living room.
Memories are travels for the soul.
Read MoreWell, I know you know it’s almost Valentines . Stevie is always the one to make coffee every morning, warm the milk, and get me out of bed so we can share “coffee talk” in the nook, a great little room off my kitchen. This valentines day I will make him breakfast in bed and I am giving you some really easy ideas if you choose to do the same.
Read MoreToday is National Egg Day and let's be honest; every day should be National Egg Day! I love eggs! On this day I'm sharing one of my favorite childhood recipes, the Soft Boiled Egg. As a kid this was my favorite breakfast. I liked that my mom put my soft boiled eggs into little egg dishes and I cracked the egg open myself with the back of my spoon which she showed me how to do, and then added a little salt and pepper. To this day I eat soft boiled eggs. Once a week my neighbor Bella makes me soft boiled eggs while she tries to teach me French. Bella adds her own twist by serving the eggs with matzoh she has burnt on her gas stove with fresh sweet cream butter. I love to dip the matzoh into the egg yolk.
SOFT BOILED EGG
Serves 1
Ingredients:
Caramelized Bacon
Preheat the oven to 325oF. In a small heavy saucepan mix together the syrup, mustard, and sugar and heat slowly on low heat, stirring often. Cook until syrup thickens, about 10 minutes. Set aside. Fry bacon in a large pan on medium-high heat using a “bacon weight” to keep the bacon really flat as it cooks. When the bacon is cooked to your liking, drain the bacon on a paper towel. Lay the flattened bacon on a jelly roll pan and brush the glaze on both sides. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
Patty P’s French Coffee Cake
When I was growing up in Connecticut I knew it was Sunday or a holiday when this cake was brought out. My husband and my friend Leslie love this cake today.
Preheat oven to 350˚. Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one a time beating well after each addition. In a large bowl whisk together: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, vanilla pudding. Add dry mixture alternately with sour cream to the wet mixture. Add vanilla and almond extract. In a small bowl mix nuts or oatmeal, brown sugar and cinnamon. Grease a tube pan or bundt pan with Pam. Pour half the batter into a pan. Put half of the topping over the batter. Finish with the remaining batter and sprinkle with the rest of the cinnamon mixture. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes (depends if it is a heavy pan or if your oven temperature is about right). Stick a skewer in to test if it is done or push gently with your hand. If it springs back it is done. Let it cool in the pan for an hour or more. Take out and wrap in foil or place on serving piece.
BLUEBERRY BUTTERMILK PANCAKES
I always used to ask”what are we having for breakfast on a Friday night.” I always new it wold be something yummy but blueberry pancakes were my favorite…….My mother would melt the unsalted land o lakes butter and heat up the Vermont maple syrup. Yes, I practically licked the plate …….
Sift the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk, eggs and butter. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and stir just until incorporated. Batter should be slightly lumpy. Carefully fold the blueberries into the batter. Batter may be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to twelve hours.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add a portion of butter or cooking spray to pan. Use a 1/4 cup to drop batter into pan leaving at least two inches between pancakes. Cook on first side until small bubbles on the upper surface start to pop and edges are smooth or set, about 2-3 minutes. Using a spatula, turn the pancakes and cook on the second side until golden brown—the second side will not take as long to cook as the first. It may be necessary to adjust the temperature to get a nice golden brown pancake that is cooked thoroughly,
Preheat oven to 4oo degrees. Mix egg with water in a small bowl. Mix together cheese with maple syrup in small a bowl.
Lay out thawed pastry. Roll into 16-inch square. Cut into 8 uniform rectangles and then into 16 triangles. Spread each triangle with a thin layer of cheese mixture. Put about a tablespoon of bacon in the middle of each triangle. Starting at the wide end, roll each triangle up bending the edges in. Place seam side down on baking tray. Brush tops with egg.
Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Happy Father's Day to all the marvelous fathers out there! This recipe is dedicated to all of you but most of all, my dad. When I was little I had memories of him stashing some of mother's muffins away in the freezer. Then when it was time for afternoon tea, he'd take a couple out, cut them in half, butter them, and toast them. They were just as good a couple days later. It used to always make me laugh but was so clever. He was a man with many tricks up his sleeve. Here's to you dad! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SUGAR CRUSTED RASPBERRY MUFFINS
Variations: Substitute other berries such as blueberries, blackberries or strawberries. Or combine all for mixed berry muffins
Happy National Egg Day! Eggs are so wonderful because they are so diverse. They can be the star of a dish or help hold it together (literally!). For this special day I'm going classic and serving brinner. For those of you who aren't familiar with the term, it means serving a traditional breakfast dish for dinner! There's something about having eggs when the sun goes down that whimsical and 2x more delicious. Bon appetit!
Egg-in-the-hole toasts with ricotta
Prep time: 5 min. Total Time: 30 min.
Serves 4
Baked with bread and cheese, eggs go from morning staple to delicious dinner.
4 slices rustic bread (1 inch thick)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil from brushing, plus more for drizzling
8 ounces (1 cup) fresh ricotta cheese
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 ounces (1/4 cup) shaved parmesan cheese, for serving
