These are recipes that Grandpa has served for breakfast. Some of them are really easy, cause Grandpa is not a morning person. Some are good for when Grandpa is feeling a bit frisky in the morning.
4 C Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 C Sugar
2 sticks butter – cold
Pulse together till it looks like coarse meel
Add water until it starts to ball up
Wrap in plastic and refrigerate 1 hour
Flatten on board
Refrigerate 15 minutes
Let rest at room temperature for 3 minutes
then transfer using your rolling pin to tray
Put onto baking tray
Sprinkle with sugar
fresh fruit
sprinkle with sugar
wrap edge
425º for 25 minutes
Optional: Substitute wheat flour, but pulverize it in a food processor
STEP BY STEP
Combine flour and salt
Mix butter into flour
Drizzle water only until large crumbles begin to form
Add water 1 tsp at a time until a ball STARTS to form
If you add too much water, the dough will be sticky
Ball should NOT be sticky. If it is, add more flour.
Cut the dough ball into eight pieces and roll into balls
Flatten balls with hands
Using a small lightly oiled tortilla press, or parchment paper circles
Squeeze till flatter
Heat 1/4 C canola oil to about 360º – 400º
Carefully slide disks into oil and cook until browned
Set aside on newspaper topped with a paper towel, blotting top with paper towel
Serve hot as a side, with an egg on top, or make a breakfast sandwich
ALTERNATE PREPARATION STARTING WITH STEP 8
Squeeze in tortilla press, then spray lightly with canola and put TWO disks together, the press again.
You will NOT be frying these, but rather heating them in a dry pan.
Carefully put the combined disks on a hot dry skillet and cook each face 20-30 seconds
Flip and carefully remove one disk from the other
Cook the “insides” that are now free from each other
This is a powder that I mix up and keep on hand. It is good for many things, but mainly French Toast. It used to be called French Toast Powder, so you may see it call that in other recipes.
This WILL NOT be a large sandwich, but is closer to the small ones you might remember from family or Scouting camping trips if you lived through the 60s and 70s.
Your crepe batter should be like EXTREMELY thin pancake batter, but not as thin as milk. After pouring into the skillet quickly tip the pan to spread the batter around making it as thin as possible.
HINT: Mix only half of your liquid into your flour and stir until smooth, THEN pour in the rest of your liquid. This will help avoid lumps.
Quick and Simple All-Purpose Crepe Batter
1 C flour
1/2 milk
4 TBL butter (melted)
1/2 C water
3-4 eggs
1 tsp canola oil or melted butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 TBL CinnaSugar
• for savory – sub 1/4 C of buckwheat flour for AP flour,
and add a dash of French Toast seasoning or cumin
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, sugar, and salt. Mix in flour, 1/4 – 1/2 cup at a time, until a runny batter forms. Whisk in the oil and let rest for about 15 minutes.
In a 10 inch skillet or pan, rub a little oil and heat over medium low to medium. Once thoroughly heated, add 1/4 – 1/3 cup batter to the center and immediately tilt the pan in a circle to coat the bottom in a thin layer. Cook until bubbles begin to form and the bottom turns golden, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until the other side is golden, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Remove to plate. Rub the pan with more oil and repeat with remaining batter.
Soak thick slices of the bread for 1/2 hour – 2 hours
Thicker breads need to soak longer
Heat clarified butter in a non-stick skillet
Cook the bread 6 minutes per side, then 3 minutes per side ( 6 flip 6 flip 3 flip 3 serve )
Serve with real maple syrup or macerated fruit
You can also break bread apart and put into a greased baking dish, and skip steps 5 and 6 above. Just bake at 350º for 20 minutes and serve with berries on top.
GOING THE EXTRA MILE
Macerate fruit: Toss 1/2 C strawberries, 2 TBL lemon juice, 1/2 blueberries and 1/2 C sugar, and a splash of Balsamic vinegar.
Let rest for about 30 minutes.
OPTIONAL CRUNCH TOPPING
1/2 C Brown Sugar
1/2 C Flour
3 TBL melted butter
3 TBL maple syrup
2 TBL raw oatmeal
Optional 1/4 C chopped pecans
Mix together and put on top of soaked bread
SIMPLIFIED
You can use the above ingredients, or you can buy 1 pint of vanilla ice cream, then skip right to step 4 above.
You have PROBABLY had a taco some time in your life, or at least heard of one, so are familiar with the concept. With this breakfast recipe, you eliminate the taco shell and replace it with an egg.
INGREDIENTS
1 egg for each taco
1 thin slice of toast
1-2 tsp salsa
a few sprigs of cilantro
STEP BY STEP
Heat your non-stick skillet to a low heat – about 300º
Beat the egg and pour it into the pan, allowing it to spread itself thin into a pancake
Let the pancake “dry out” until it looses it’s shine
Carefully flip the pancake and put shredded cheese onto it
Slide the pancake onto your plate and top with salsa, bread and cilantro
Once it has set (2-3 minutes) you can add your yolk back on
Continue to let it cook until it becomes harder (like a taco shell)
Add a piece of toast and some salsa.
Very good, but very messy.
NOTE: It is not quite so messy, if you break the yolk 60 seconds before serving and let it set slightly in the hot skillet.
Here is a VERY simple salsa that is as mild or as hot as you like. The one shown below has 4 cherry tomatoes, a wedge of bell pepper, a small piece of celery, one garlic clove, a bit of onion, and that is all. I pulsed it in the blender for about 5 seconds. DONE.
A frittata is just a fancy way to say casserole. You can really put just about anything in your frittata. Here is something that I made that turned out very well.
INGREDIENTS
Left-over breakfast ham
Left-over French Fries
Left-over peas
1/4 C left-over cottage cheese
4 eggs
1/4 C milk
Shredded Mexican Cheese Blend
Basil leaves
1/4 C frozen/thawed spinach
STEP BY STEP
Oil your eight inch cast iron skillet or individual ramekins
Heat your meat and your french fries (both cut up) in a skillet
Pour into mixing bowl with peas, milk, eggs and shredded cheese
Move to ramekins and bake in oven at 350º for about 15-20 minutes
Think of this recipe as a general idea and improvise. Use cooked greens like spinach and chard instead of all or part of the potato. Or before cooking the vegetables, saute several slices of good bacon or pancetta in the skillet until barely browned. Remove from the skillet and set aside. Discard the fat in the pan and proceed with the rest of the recipe. Add the bacon to the egg mixture before pouring it over the potatoes.
INGREDIENTS
Zucchini (cubed fairly small)
2 Roma Tomato (pieces)
1 TBL olive oil
1 sm onion (diced)
½ TBL thyme
scant salt & pepper
3 eggs – beaten
2 TBL whole milk or yogurt
1/3 C shredded cheese
STEP BY STEP
Place zucchini, onion, thyme, salt& pepper in an oven safe skillet with EVOO
Saute in olive oil till tender – 8-10 minutes
Cook uncovered till most liquid evaporates
Add 3 mixed eggs, 2 tbl whole milk or yogurt.
Turn heat to med low and add eggs to pan
Lift zucchini just enough to let eggs flow thru.
Add sliced tomatoes and 1/3 cu shredded cheese
Distribute over top, cook on stove top 15 min.
Sprinkle lightly w/more shredded cheese, and bake in over 15 minutes
If you eat at Olive Garden, you know that you receive an unlimited supply of breadsticks.
Take them home and you will have a great breakfast surprise.
INGREDIENTS for preparing two breadsticks
Take-home left over breadsticks
One egg
2-3 TBL buttermilk (or whole milk)
2-3 TBL of melted butter
2-3 TBL of canola oil
2-3 TBL granulated sugar
1 TBL Grandpa’s CinnaSugar®
STEP BY STEP
Using a dry paper towel, brush the outside of the breadsticks. Most of the butter will remain, but most of the garlic will be brushed away.
Cut medallions about 1/4 inch thick – discard the tips
Mix all of the above ingredients (except the breadsticks) together in a large mixing bowl
– when adding your milk, melted butter and canola oil, whisk continually to emulsify the fats
Toss the bread medallions in the mixture
Allow to soak for about five minutes
Toss again and soak for five minutes
Toss again and soak for five minutes
Lightly grease your skillet
Place each soaked medallion in the skillet
Let cook about 5 minutes then flip each one
Let cook about 4 minutes then flip back to the original side
Let cook about 2 minutes, then place on plates
There is no need for butter because we added it into the batter
Simply serve with hot mashed fruit, syrup or honey – depending on your tastes.