Sunday Morning Hash

This is a favorite for us at any time. It's easy, only uses one pan and it's very versatile. The bacon seasons the dish and adds the cooking fat, so there's very little you have to do to make this taste good!

You can also use fresh ingredients or reuse food from last night's dinner! I use bacon in this version, but it can be replaced with any protein. Just make sure you add butter or oil if you use something leaner than bacon. I've also used chopped Zucchini instead of the potatoes for a less heavy dish (make sure the onions are fully cooked as the Zucchini will only need to cook for a quarter of the time that the potatoes would need.)

As you will note in the recipe, I don't make a mise en place for this; I chop and go! I'm hardly a pro with my knifework, but I can do it fairly efficiently. If you're not fast or comfortable with the chop and go thing, cut up everything beforehand and add

Sunday Hash

3-4 Strips of bacon
1 large onion, chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic
4 large eggs
1/4 cup milk
1-2 oz cheese (we like cheddar)
2 medium potatoes chopped into 1/2-inch cubes.
1/4 tablespoon salted butter (optional, but delish)
Seasonings as desired. (I use salt, black pepper, Herbs de Provence and paprika)

1. Begin preheating a large, non-stick skillet on medium. Cut up the bacon and add to heated pan. As the bacon is rendering and beginning to brown, chop up the onion and add to the bacon (about 1-3 minutes of cook time). The bacon will not be cooked all the way, but that's fine. It will be by the end!
2. As the onions and bacon are cooking, cut up your potatoes and add them to the pan. The bacon will be getting some color and the onions will be starting to turn translucent. Don't worry if the onions don't look done as they will keep cooking along with the potatoes.
3. Once the potatoes are in the pan, add the seasonings you want and combine everything in the pan. Mince the garlic and add to pan, stirring to combine. Cover, lower heat to medium low and cook for 5 minutes.
4. Uncover, stir and cook for another 5-6 min. Repeat until potatoes are cooked through. If the outsides are getting too brown, lower heat more.
5. While the potatoes are cooking, beat eggs and milk together and put aside.
6. When the potatoes are cooked though, push contents of pan to one side. Add butter if desired (the existing fat in the pan should be enough in addition to the fact that you're using a non-stick pan. This is merely for flavor) to the empty side and add the eggs. 
7. Begin scrambling the eggs. When the eggs are almost set, combine with the potatoes, bacon and onions.
8. Sprinkle cheese on top. Serve with sour cream, salsa, hot sauce... whatever you want!
9. Eat. 
10. Coma.

Edit:

This is a variation with chicken and Zucchini:

 

Low Carb Blueberry Cheesecake

I'm not a low carber, but I have friends that are and I don't like to leave people out when I cook. While not induction friendly, the use of Splenda definitely cuts some calories and brings the net carbs to under 25 grams per serving. Not bad for a slice of cheesecake!

I'm sure there are many, many technical flaws in this, but I don't care. It's yummy and easy.

If you only use half of the blueberry swirl, it cuts the net carbs down to 14 grams per serving. You could cut it even more by using regular splenda instead of the brown sugar blend in the crust, but I think it tastes better with the brown. This IS a treat, after all!

If you want to cut more calories, you can use low fat ricotta and cream cheese, but your carbs will go up. So, pick your poison. I personally prefer the taste and texture of full fat (and real sugar, but today is not the day).

You'll need a food processor for the crust and filling and a 9-inch square pan lined in foil. I blended the blueberries with an immersion blender.

You can also add some lemon juice to the blueberries if you want to brighten up the flavor a little. To the filling, too! Just do it to taste!

Makes 9 servings.

Crust

5 tablespoons butter, melted

1 cup sliced almonds

2 tablespoons flax seed

1 tablespoon splenda brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Pinch fresh nutmeg

Pinch salt

Blueberry swirl

2 cup frozen blueberries

1/2 cup water

2-4 tablespoons splenda, depending on taste and sweetness of the fruit

1 teaspoon vanilla

Pinch salt

Pinch fresh nutmeg 

Filling

2, 8oz blocks of cream cheese

1 15oz tub of ricotta

3 whole eggs

1/3 cup Splenda

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

fresh nutmeg to taste

Method

1. Line a 9-inch square baking dish with foil. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Combine all the ingredients for the crust into a food processor and pulse until it's finely chopped and blended, but not a paste.
3. Spread crust onto the bottom of the pan, being careful to not have any holes.
4. Bake crust for 8-10 minutes and allow to cool. Turn oven to 350.
5. Combine all ingredients for the swirl in a small saucepan and cook until the berries are tender. Blend if desired. Allow to cool to room temp.
6. Combine all ingredients for the filling in a mixer or food processor until smooth. Pour over cooled crust and spread.
7. Pour cooled blueberry swirl over filling. With a butter knife or spatula, gently swirl the filling and blueberry swirl together. 
8. Bake for 10 minutes in a water bath*, then turn temp down to 350F and bake for another 45-75 min or until set (the middle of the cheesecake will have a slight jell-o jiggle to it).
9. Cool to room temp and chill for at least an hour.

Here are the screenshots from my recipe entries on MyFitnessPal.com. The top one is with half the blueberries.

 

* If you've never done a water bath, it's very easy. You're going to place the pan with the cheesecake inside a larger pan and fill the larger pan with an inch of water, being careful to not get any water in the cheesecake. The water bath is an important step with baked goods like cheesecake because it keeps the top from drying out and cracking. When you're done baking, just take the smaller pan out of the water and let the pan with the water cool in the oven. 

Basic White Bread

This is a variation of a James Beard recipe. It's good, basic bread to learn on as it's fairly forgiving. It's soft, it's got a nice mild flavor and it rises quickly. Loaves don't last long here. ;)

Makes two loaves.

Bread!

1 package instant yeast
3 teaspoons white, granulated sugar
2 cups water
5-6 cups AP flour
2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter

1. In either a bowl or a mixer, combine water, sugar and yeast. If you are substituting active dry with the instant, allow to bloom. Otherwise, go to step two.
2. Add 4 cups flour and combine.
3. Add salt, butter and rest of flour.
4. Allow to sit for 20 minutes at room temp in bowl
5. Pour dough onto well-floured board and knead until the dough passes the windowpane test* or when the dough springs back when you push your finger in.
6. Put dough into greased bowl and brush oil on the top. Cover with plastic wrap and stick in a warm place until double in size. (I like turning on the oven for a minute, turning it off and putting the bread inside.)
7. Punch down and knead for two minutes or until all the air bubbles are gone.
8. Divide in half. Shape each half into a rectangle as wide as your loaf pans are long and roll up.
9. Put dough in two greased loaf pans, oil the top, cover with plastic wrap and let rise until double.
10. Preheat oven to 375F. 
11. Brush loaves with water, slash top if desired and bake loaves until done, about 20-30 minutes.
12. Let cool for 5-10 min before removing from pans. Let cool before cutting loaves.

*Window pane test: tear off a small bit of dough and stretch it so light passes through it without tearing. Pics here.

Cinnamon Rolls

The dough can also be used as a dinner roll if you don't Cinnamon Roll it! It's a mildly altered version of this recipe.

About the room temp liquids: I think warm water at 110 hurts the yeast. Room temp water is going to be between 70-80 degrees, which is more than ample to wake up those little yeasty buggers. If you're doing this in a colder environment and your water is cold, use a slightly warm water. Or just be patient- the bread will still rise, just slower. It will even deepen the flavor if that happens, so don't worry.

Makes two pans of rolls when baked in 8-inch cake pans.

I will save the 2nd tray to make a bread pudding that's so good it might be banned in New York City.

There is an obscene amount of butter here and I'm not one bit sorry.

What Xmas Hath Brought

Cookbooks and something to cook in. :D

Now, I got the Dutch Oven last month from Terry, but as a Christmas gift. So, it's included!

Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding

This was a fluke recipe that came about from not wanting to toss a bunch of stale cinnamon rolls. It was one of the best food saving moves ever!

You could also use store bought premade rolls or a can of rolls that you bake, but doing it yourself is worth the effort if you have the time. It really does taste better! Either way, allow them to stale up before making this as it will improve the texture of the end product.

You want this to be pretty wet going into the oven. If the bread soaks up too much liquid, add more liquid.

Pudding:
6 cups cubed stale cinnamon rolls (one half of a batch of rolls)
2 cups milk
5 eggs
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch fresh nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice

Crumble:
1 stick butter, softened
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup rolled oats
pinch salt
pinch fresh nutmeg
pinch allspice

Sauce:
2 cups sugar
1 egg, beaten
half stick butter
pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup brandy

1. combine sugar, spices and eggs in a bowl and mix until combined. Add the cubed rolls and toss to combine. Pour into baking dish.
2. With a fork or pastry cutter, combine all the ingredients for the crumble. Drop over top of unbaked pudding
3. Cook in preheated 375 degree oven for 40 minutes or until brown on top and bubbling.

For Sauce:

1. Melt butter in pan on low heat. Add sugar and egg. Stir to combine. Cook until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and brandy and cook for 1-2 more minutes or until alcohol is cooked off to your liking.

Unemployment and Baking: How Sourdough Saved My Life

As many have these last few years, I've found myself without a regular source of income. I'm lucky in that there is income coming into our house via my other half and I do have other means of working until something steady comes along (or I get more clients...). Which is grand until you take into account that I cannot left to my own devices for very long. I need things to do. If I get bored, things happen. Sometimes it will be watching an entire series' worth of TV shows on Netflix. Sometimes it will be a hobby. Sometimes it will be learning something new. Sometimes, things that I do are not too successful. Sometimes the level of unsuccessfulness are rather epic.

This is why we cannot have nice things.