For the Love of Food

The other day while I was perusing Foodgawker, I came across a fantastic post on an English Breakfast. Now, the closest thing I’ve ever eaten to an English breakfast is an Irish breakfast. And, while they’re not the same, they have some similarities and are both quite tasty.

On the weekends we really like to enjoy a big breakfast, but, to be honest, an English breakfast is just too big for breakfast. However, it does make a great brunch, even better lunch, or dinner. I prefer to enjoy it for lunch since that’s our big meal of the day and we’re going to get up and move around after it. And, as in the case with all meals, with a large meal like this is is prudent to practice moderation to avoid any indigestion. And, a nice green tea after the fact wouldn’t hurt either.

I would change a few things for in this meal to make it a bit more flavorful. I would toss the tomatoes and mushrooms with olive oil and roast them in the oven on a baking sheet (at 220°C) for 30 minutes. This would have brought out the sweet flavors of the tomatoes a bit more. I would have also thrown in an onion or two with it as well. Next time I will also go with a low-sodium bacon that I can get at my local butcher instead of the traditional salt-packed bacon from the grocery store – there is plenty of salt in the bratwurst – no need to add more. Oh, and since we can’t get decent baked beans around here; I beefed them up with about 2 tablespoons of BBQ sauce.

So, if you’re looking for something to make for the family tomorrow, this is really quick, easy, and has something for everyone!

Continue Reading »

Currently, we are obsessed with popovers!

A few weeks ago my husband discovered a recipe for pop overs somewhere while stumbling. To our delight, they are quick and easy to make and taste delicious!

So, plan this for breakfast tomorrow – it is the weekend and you should take the time to pamper yourself.

Originally, the recipe we are using calls for brushing the popovers with melted butter and then rolling them in a cinnamon-sugar combination, but we prefer them plain. They have a fascinating flavor to them. Almost like a crepe. I think they would taste wonderful filled with melted cheddar and ham, others we’ve made these for have thought of filling them with jelly or nutella.

The recipe makes 12, but you may want to make more …they go really really quickly! They are so good that we eat them burning hot, the baby wiggles with excitement when he sees them, and out little one starts jumping.

Here is our recipe: Continue Reading »

As I was making my breakfast this morning, I was thinking how simple, healthy, delicious, and CHEAP this breakfast is. Why don’t more people eat this for breakfast??

I must admit that I grew-up hating oatmeal. I mean, who likes a bowl full of bugers?? Yes, that’s what I actually thought…and still think of cooked oatmeal. But, after moving to Germany I learned to eat breakfast as most other Germans: muesli. Muesli is basically some form of oatmeal, sometimes even in granola form (with lots of sugar), and other ingredients added to it such as dried fruits and nuts..and sometimes even pieces of chocolate.

For many years I bought pre-made muesli made of granola with tropical dried fruits until one day I could no longer eat sugar. A box of muesli can have a lot of added sugar in it! So, I started making my own. Throughout the winter I enjoy adding frozen blueberries and raspberries which I put together (without milk) the night before so that the berries slowly defrost and have the same consistency of the fresh berries they once were by morning. In the spring time I enjoy my oatmeal with bananas or strawberries, and in the summer I like adding peaches, apricots, or fresh blue berries. For some reason, every Fall I enjoy eating rye bread with different homemade jellies that I canned throughout the summer and generally don’t eat much oatmeal.

Not only is this a very very healthy and fulfilling meal, it is very inexpensive. For 27 cents a serving you really can’t go wrong (see my price list bellow). Continue Reading »

I had my first scone in Ireland…I believer we were stopping for lunch somewhere on the northwest shore of Ireland. They were delicious – studded with little pieces of dried apricot and raisins.

So, for St. Patrick’s day, I want to share with you one of my favorite food-memories of my trip to Ireland a year and a half ago. Continue Reading »

This is great for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner. Heck, it’s even great for in between. Quiche is just yummy at any time of the day.

And, instead of using the traditional pie crust, I used the pat-in-the-pan pie crust I blogged about the other day (minus the fructose, cinnamon, and vanilla extract). Continue Reading »

While I was on vacation in the US and visiting my in-laws, my father-in-law made us some stuffed pancakes that he learned how to make at his weekly Williams-Sonoma cooking classes.

The original recipe calls for stuffing them with blueberries, but he stuffed them with a variety of items. We had some stuffed with homemade Italian sausage, some with maraschino cherries, some with Nutella, other with pineapple, and blueberries. All-in-all my favorite were the ones with the Italian sausage in the middle because I enjoyed the sweet/savory combination.

That being said, I found that the pancakes took quite a while to make/cook and by the time they were all done, we were all starving and the pancakes were cold. You also need the special Williams-Sonoma mini round pancake pan to make them.

The recipe can be found here on Williams-Sonoma’s website.

Bellow are pictures of the process: Continue Reading »

May 21st was Father’s Day in Germany. The traditional German way to celebrate Father’s day (as a father) is to grab your favorite beer mug, get together with all your buddies, and drink a keg a beer while hiking. It’s on a holiday here in Bavaria (Jesus’ ascension) so this starts as early as 8 or 9am.

We decided to celebrate it a bit more traditionally by having a breakfast in our garden. So, I prepared everything ahead of time and packed our portable electric burner and we had french toast there!

Unfortunately, I can’t find the original recipe that I adapted this from online. Here is my version: Continue Reading »

Now that Easter is just around the corner, I thought I’d share one of my favorite Easter brunch recipes with you. My mom has been making this quiche for quite a few years now. Originally, it’s a Pillsbury recipe.

It’s great served warm or at room temperature. I’ve even made it the day before and taken it out of the refrigerator a few hours before lunch to warm up. It’s a very flexible dish. Continue Reading »

I one day somehow stumbled upon some fantastic-looking blueberry-filled muffins recipe on Mommy? I’m Hungry! and I knew i had to give it a try.

They had the right sweetness and blueberry levels. I used frozen blueberries since fresh ones aren’t in season yet…they would have been even better with fresh ones. However, I found them overly moist because of the buttermilk – even to the point that they would stick to the front of my teeth while I was trying to eat one…and who wants to walk around with blueberry on there teeth all day???

Anyways, they’re worth a second try, and I’m just waiting for that late summer day when I can make these with fresh blueberries and substitute the buttermilk for regular milk to see if that reduces the moisture content.

I don’t remember what happened that I wasn’t able to continue with the baking process, but thanks to my husband, he scoped them into the muffin tins and kept an eye on them while they baked. Continue Reading »

Happy Friday everyone.

I just thought this would make you giggle a little bit before the weekend.

This is what my son ate for breakfast the other day.

What is it?
Well, there’s a turkey hot dog and the more interesting item is a slice of apple with a slice of Gelbwurst (yellow sausage – a type of bland deli meat that is very popular among young children).

He ate all of it and enjoyed every bite!