Crêpes

326.  Do you love crêpes?  Do you dream about them slathered with chocolate, nutella or peanut butter?  With whipped cream, bananas and berries crowning the top?  Are you hungry yet?

This crêpe recipe is the easiest and most satisfying and you have to try it!

Crêpes

2 cups flour
3 eggs, mixed
1/4 cup melted butter
3 Tablespoons sugar
3 cups milk adding 1/2 cup at a time
pinch of salt

Blend flour, egg, butter, sugar, salt and milk.  Add more milk as necessary.
Heat a non stick pan and add 1/2 cup batter to hot pan and swirl to cover bottom.  Watch the cooking process and when light browning occurs turn the crepe over and brown lightly on the second side.
Remove to a plate and fill with your choice of filling on half of the crêpe.  Fold in half and in quarter. Transfer to serving plate.

sour cream or creme fraiche
whipped cream for sweet version
Optional Fillings
Sweet:  Lingonberry Jam, any type of jam, fresh fruit, peanut butter, nutella, chocolate spread, banana
Savory:  Swiss Cheese, ham, cottage cheese, chopped sautéed mushrooms

 I used a whisk to blend the batter to eliminate lumps well.  So satisfying and I think this will create a new craving in your life.  You must try them!

"...sprinkled with sugar and eaten hot, they form an exquisite dish. They have a golden hue and are tempting to eat. Thin and transparent like muslin, their edges are trimmed to resemble fine lace. They are so light that after a good dinner, a man from Agen is still willing to sample three or four dozen of them! Crêpes form an integral part of every family celebration. Served with white wine, they take pride of place on all joyful occasions."

-Anatole France, Jacques Anatole Francois Thibault

Rösti Shredded Potato Casserole

322.  Christmas morning brunch featured a delicious potato & egg casserole called Rösti.  The recipe is from Switzerland and you can find the recipe here.
I 've made the recipe several times and found that shredding the potato raw and baking everything accept the egg is easier for me.  Once the potatoes are tender I made an indentation with a large spoon and dropped an egg in each indent placing it back into the oven for a few minutes till eggs are as desired.  The eggs will continue to cook once removed from the oven so keep that in mind if you want them softer.  I paired this dish with fresh fruit, cinnamon rolls and bacon.

 Have a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  Enjoy your family and friends and don't forget to hug the ones you love.

"Christmas, my child, is love in action.

Every time we love, every time we give,

it's Christmas."

-Dale Evans

Sausage Gravy and Biscuits

302.  Hi Y'all!  While vacationing in the South, we enjoyed several Southern comfort foods. BBQ Ribs, Southern Fried Chicken and of course Biscuits.  I found a wonderful biscuit flour mix that we fell in love with.

You just add milk and work the dough as usual following the directions.  They were beautiful! And delicious!

Many years ago a dear sweet southern lady taught me the basics of a good sausage gravy.  I have not forgotten. So in Katie Rudisill's honor, Sausage Gravy was on our breakfast menu.

SAUSAGE GRAVY 

2 lbs original pork sausage, Jimmy Dean or Bob Evans (The better the brand the less fat content)

2 - 3 Tablespoons flour

Salt & Pepper to taste

2 - 3 cups whole milk, start with 2 and add more to stretch the recipe or make it thinner

Optional: Original Tabasco sauce couple splashes

Sauté the sausage in a large deep skillet till brown.  Drain the sausage and place in a bowl.  Set aside. In the frying pan of reserved fat drippings heat till sizzling.  Add the flour one tablespoon at a time and whisk the flour to avoid lumps forming.  Continue to simmer till flour begins to lightly brown and bits on the bottom of pan are loosened.  Slowly add the milk and continue to whisk.

Lower heat and whisk till a light boil and beginning to thicken. Then introduce the reserved cooked sausage back into the skillet.

Stir together.  Test for seasoning and continue to cook for 5 more minutes or till gravy has come to just about a boil.  Place in a serving bowl or tureen.

Serve with fresh hot biscuits. 

Break open a hot biscuit. Place open sides up on your plate and pour the sausage gravy over the biscuit.  Now that is good eatin'!

"I'm good at anything that's country - biscuits, gravy, chicken-fried steak. Look at me, for God's sake.  I cook what I like to eat."

~Blake Shelton

" There's nothin' worse than sausage gravy that is white as a sheet and you can barely find a trace of meat, or was that a lump o' flour?"

~Anonymous Southerner 

Apple and Raisin Oatmeal

263. Today I woke up hungry for a bowl of hot oatmeal. But not just plain oatmeal, oatmeal filled with happiness! My method to make oatmeal is very different from the typical preparation but I think it turns out perfect every time. I follow the directions by boiling the water first and then adding the dry oatmeal to the boiling water. But then I add a pinch of salt, bring the oatmeal back to a boil, stir and then shut the heat off and place a lid on the pot. I set the timer for 5 or so minutes and threaten anyone who dares lift the lid. When the oatmeal is ready, it is always perfect, not stuck to the bottom of the pot or boiled over the sides.

Today, I added a granny smith apple, chopped, cinnamon and 1/2 cup of raisins after the pinch of salt.

It turned out beautiful. I dotted each serving with butter and sprinkled the top with cinnamon and sugar dusting. The apple and raisins added such a natural sweetness, I didn't need to add any additional sugar.

So we sat, enjoying our oatmeal, fresh strawberries and sipped our tea. I wish every morning could be this relaxed and delicious!

"All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast."

~John Gunther

Peach Pancakes

226. Peach season is a favorite time of year and I love to incorporate peaches into our daily meals or desserts.

Pancakes were on the breakfast menu this morning, our first day of "stay-cation".

So I mixed up a batch of my favorite pancake batter...from scratch. So much better than box mix.

Buttermilk Pancakes

1 egg

1 1/4 cups buttermilk (or milk and 1 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice added)

2 Tablespoons oil

1 cup flour

2 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

In a mixing bowl beat the egg with a fork. Add milk and oil and blend all together. Add remaining ingredients and stir the mixture till blended but slightly lumpy. Set batter aside to rest. Heat a griddle or skillet and lightly grease. Pour about 1/4 cup of batter onto the hot griddle. Flip when bubbles begin to pop on the uncooked side of the pancakes. Serve hot with butter and syrup.

To make the pancakes peach, I chopped a large peach and added the chunks to the batter carefully before pouring on the griddle.

This recipe is a perfect recipe to add any type of fruit or spice to.

I sliced a couple more peaches to serve on the side of the pancakes.

Sausages were a great side as well garnished with a nasturtium from my garden.

The stack of hot Peach Pancakes were sooooooo delicious!

"The ripest peach is highest on the tree."

~James Whitcomb Riley

"One does a whole painting for one peach and people think just the opposite - that particular peach is but a detail."

~Pablo Picasso