The Keys' Key Lime Scones

I am a ridiculously huge lover of scones...so far there hasn't been a scone to cross my path that I haven't at least liked, if not loved.

But sometimes I like to have a little *zing*...so I decided to have some fun with key limes. So, if you like limes, key lime pie or just some *zing*, then I think you're going to love these little goodies too.

Fruit & Nutty Cream Of Wheat

When the weather is chilly or just down right cold, I tend to head straight for a box of Cream of Wheat. 

Now, I love it just on it's own, but some mornings I feel the need to play a little bit of dress-up with it.  Dried fruit & nuts are an instant hit and give you a bit more to help you get through the morning.

First I heat the milk (or you could use water) In a small saucepan until it comes to a low boil. Once it starts to boil, I turn the heat down to low. Add a little salt. Then add in the Cream of Wheat and stir with a whisk until it thickens.

You've got to watch it though, Cream of Wheat tends to thicken up in an instant and can easily scald on the bottom of the pan.

As soon as it's done, pour the comfort cereal into a bowl.  If the cereal has become thicker than you like, simply at a tablespoon or two of milk and stir until you get the desired thickness. 

Then  top with dried fruit. (I like cranberries and golden raisins)

And then some pecan pieces. And if you need some more sweetness, add a little bit of raw sugar to taste.

Why raw sugar?  I don't know, it just seems to go well with warm cereals. You could also add a dash of cinnamon if you're feeling it. (I highly recommend it)

Isn't that a pretty bowl of comfort?

 

Then stir it all around. Mmmm

When I want to be really bad I toss in a few dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips. *Hee hee*

Stuffed French Toast ~ Pineapple & Sweet Cream

Years ago I used to go to a restaurant in Temecula, California called Columbo's. They had the most amazing stuffed French toast. I mean, this thing was absolutely addictive.

There was this sense of being almost regal as I made my way one delicious bite after another through that decadent French toast...it seriously felt like it should only be served to royalty.

I hadn't thought of it in years and it just hit me when I went to make breakfast for my kiddles one morning. "I need to make a stuffed French toast this morning." And I couldn't get it out of my head.

So there I was with this intense craving which pushed me to come up with my own stuffed French toast recipe.

Here we go, I start off by taking 2 ounces of cream cheese (I didn't say that this was going to be kind to your hips)

 

and mash it so there isn't just a big block of cheese in the bowl.

Then I add just a touch of vanilla extract. It doesn't take much to make something taste perfectly heavenly.

A little bit of powdered sugar, just to sweeten the cream cheese a bit.

Now for the fruit. I happened to have some crushed pineapple, so, why not? Drained and super sweet...perfect.

Time to spread on our cheese topping. Only on one side though, and not to the edges. The idea is to keep the filling inside the French toast, not running out the edges.

Place another slice on top and we are ready for dipping this little sandwich into some egg mix. One step closer!

Into a pie tin go two eggs and some cinnamon. You just can't have French toast without cinnamon.

A little surprise...some more vanilla extract. It just seems that this needs to happen...every time anyone makes French toast. But that's just my stance on it.

Give everything a little whip...but try not to get going too fast. It can cause cinnamon to fly everywhere...trust me, I know. There was a little clean-up before I snapped this shot.

Skillet is getting nice and hot...time to add a couple pats of butter. Move those pats of butter around the pan and get it all bubbly for our stuffed French toast.

Take stuffed French toast #1 and lay it in the egg mixture. Allow it to sit for about 45-60 seconds to absorb some of the egg and cinnamon,

then flip it over carefully and allow the backside to do the same.

Into the skillet it goes for about 3-5 minutes over medium high heat, depending on the stove.

I move my assembly line to the side of the stove. It just makes it so much easier to get the drenched toast to the skillet.

Check out that bubbling butter! When the cinnamon hits it you are just rewarded with this wonderful aroma...instant feel good.

Okay, this has been cooking for about 4 minutes and was time to flip it over. I like to check the doneness of the toast at the 3 minute mark by just quickly lifting the toast with my spatula so that I can see what the middle looks like.

Golden brown is what I'm looking for.

Then let it cook for another 3-5 minutes on the other side...be patient because the reward is so good!

Plate our first stuffed French toast and cut it on the diagonal then add a couple pats of butter. A light dusting of powdered sugar and then drizzle a little bit of syrup and we're good to go! (I like the butter flavor syrup for this one.)

Cut a little corner of this slice of heaven...take a moment to fully appreciate all of the flavors that hit the tongue...

Oh yeah, this is perfect!

What's For Breakfast? Eggnog French Toast!

Oh how I love the holidays...and eggnog....and French toast.... So I thought to myself, "Why not combine eggnog & French toast?"

Why not indeed! So, I set out to fulfill my tummy's desire for the combination that has since made me happy from taste buds to tummy. And here is the recipe of the wonderfulness of Eggnog French Toast:

It's hard to get down to fewer ingredients than this! One egg, your favorite eggnog and a couple of pieces of bread-I like wheat, but use what you will. (Oh yeah, if you're like me add a little bit of cinnamon and nutmeg just to spice it up a bit) And if you decide to make this for more than yourself, just double, triple or quadruple the recipe.

Grab a medium bowl. I prefer to use an empty pie tin. Add your egg and beat until light and fluffy.

Add 1/4 cup of your favorite eggnog. Again, beat until well mixed.

 Alright, this next step is optional...add cinnamon or nutmeg and beat until well blended into the batter.

Here's our set-up for production...a baking dish (or plate) to place battered bread, bowl of batter and our starting point of bread.

 

 Take a slice of bread, my choice is wheat, and place it into the batter. Allow the bread to soak in the batter for approximately 1 minute, then turn over the bread slice and allow the other side to soak for an additional 30 seconds.

This is the goodness of cinnamon and nutmeg...oh, how I love French toast! Once the first slice is well coated, remove it and place off to the side on a baking dish or plate. Repeat steps with the 2nd bread slice.

Preheat a skillet over medium heat. Add a pat of butter (1 teaspoon) and allow it to melt completely.

Add the first slice of our battered bread.

 
Almost immediately the wondrous aroma of the eggnog, cinnamon and nutmeg start to waft up from the skillet.

 Would you just look at that beautiful, bubbly butter doing it's magic!

 
After giving the toast about 5 minutes on the first side, go ahead and flip it over. This is the picture you should see when you do...golden and toasty good.

Give the newly flipped side about 5 minutes to cook through. The last thing you want is soggy French toast. And when the time is up, this is the picture you should see when you flip the toast to check the doneness. Time to do the whole cooking process again with the second slice of battered bread.

In the meantime, go ahead and butter & syrup your delectable slice of eggnog French toast. (you could add a sprinkling of powdered sugar, but I really think it takes away from the eggnog)

 Enjoy, enjoy & enjoy!

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

There are always open plates ready to receive pancakes in our home. And the creative side of me wants to always do something a little bit different…not just plain pancakes.

The one thing that I do consistently is rely on Krusteaz Buttermilk Pancake Mix…they always come out wonderful and with a little bit of tweaking, they become my own. And my little kiddles love them!

 P.S. ~ This is a great pancake recipe for the kiddles to get involved in. They just need and adult to man the stove for them.

In a medium mixing bowl I add the pancake mix,

then add the water called for on the mix's instructions, but reduce the amount by 1/4 cup.

Next the star of the pancake...applesauce! I add the 1/4 cup that was removed from the amount of water that the mix called for.

 I really like the flavor of the natural applesauce, not the ones that have a bunch of sugar added to them.

Time to get to whisking. Just a quick whisk to make sure that the applesauce gets incorporated into the batter.

Now for the spices....I love cinnamon and have to constantly remind myself that not everyone is as much of a cinnamon fan as I am...especially my little Grace. So the recipe listed below has less cinnamon than what I chose to add to these cakes here.

The adjustment of more will be completely up to you.

For me there are very few things that go together with cinnamon better than nutmeg...and I have to remember to hold back on the nutmeg too. (love that stuff!) So, the amount called for in the recipe is also adjusted to be less than what I personally enjoy.

Just trying to keep everyone happy here.

Alright, give it another quick whisk to get those spices in there...I love the way all of those little specks of cinnamon and nutmeg look in the batter.

Now over to the stove. Take a Teflon coated skillet and place a pat of butter in the center to melt. I take a gravy ladle to make pouring these cakes a little bit cleaner...and the same size. One ladle each makes a perfect sized pancake for my girls...and allows me to fit 2 cakes in the skillet.

Wait until the bubbles start appearing on the surface of the cakes...they let us know when it's time to do the flip.

And.....FLIP! Very nice, very nice indeed. All they need is just about 3 more minutes and they will be ready to get dressed and served.

Now I just top the pancakes with a little bit of powdered sugar and a large mountain of whipped cream for my kiddles.

They like them just like this without any syrup.

And two little pancakes are perfect for filling their little tummies.

Now for Momma, I like to make a nice big cake...2 ladles worth, right into the center of the skillet.

Just wait a couple minutes for the bubbles to start surfacing and then...

FLIP!

Just look at that color!

Mmmm...and the smell of the cinnamon and nutmeg just sing out to you.

Just a couple minutes more and then I get to dress my cake!

Now, I am not a fan of maple syrup. If you like it then go for it, but I will typically choose to use either a butter flavored syrup or a fruit one.

Since there are already mashed up apples in this cake, I'm not going to top it with anything that will take away from them.

So, I do a sprinkling of powdered sugar, a drizzle of butter flavored syrup and a mountain of whipped cream on top.

Time to enjoy my apple cinnamon pancakes...Good Morning!