Baked Oatmeal

As I said in the post before this one, I'm trying to make a warm breakfast for my children a few days out of the week this school year. A friend passed this one along to me and it is a winner! You have to prepare it the night before, but it's easy and all you have to do is pop it in the oven first thing in the morning. I substituted applesauce for the oil, and I don't think it effected the taste at all. My children gobbled it up this morning---and so did Mommy!!! You can alter this recipe to fit your family's needs. You could substitute the raisins for craisins, add pecans, flax seed, ect. (This is from the website, allrecipes.com)

Baked Oatmeal
1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
3/4 Cups White Sugar (I used Splenda)
2 Eggs
1 Cup of Milk
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
3 Cups Quick Cooking Oats
1/2 Cup of Raisins
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Cinnamon

*Beat together oil and sugar. Mix in eggs, milk, salt, baking powder and oats. Beat well, then stir in raisins. Pour into a lightly greased pie pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Refrigerate overnight.

*The next morning, preheat oven to 350 and bake until firm, or about 35 minutes. Serve hot.

Ham and Cheese Muffins

Now that school has started, my goal for this year is to make a hot breakfast for my children at least 3 out of the 5 school mornings. I've been looking at different recipes this week, trying to get many options and I came across this one in this month's Family Fun magazine. I happened to have all of the ingredients on hand, so we whipped up a batch and they are pretty yummy! These would be perfect for on-the-go. They are not a sweet muffin...kind of a cornbread muffin with ham and cheese. We liked them, though! I think next time, I will add a little bit more of the cheese.

Ham and Cheese Morning Muffins

1 1/4 Cups unbleached flour

3/4 Cups Fine Yellow Cornmeal

1/4 Cup Sugar (I used Splenda and it worked fine)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 Cup Milk

2 large eggs

1/3 Cup corn oil (I used Canola, and again, it was fine)

1 Cup finely Diced Ham

1/2 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1/4 Cup finely chopped chives or scallions (I omitted this)

*Heat oven to 375. Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or line the wells with paper liners.

*In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs and oil, then pour the mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until blended. Fold in the ham, cheese and chives or scallions.

*Spoon the batter into the prepared cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake the muffins until their tops are lightly browned, about 20 minutes. Let them cool in the pan on a wire rack for 3 minutes, then turn them out onto the rack and let them cool completely. The muffins can be frozen in a plastic freezer bag up to three months.

Banana Bars

1 cup Sour Cream
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup margarine or butter, softened
2 eggs
2 mashed bananas (or 1 1/2 cup)
2 Teaspoons vanilla
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Vanilla Glaze (blend together)
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup margarine or butter, softened
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 Tablespoons HOT water

Directions:
Heat oven to 375. Mix sugar, sour cream, margarine and egg in large mixing bowl on low speed for about a minute. Beat in bananas, vanilla on low for about 30 seconds. Beat in flour, salt, baking soda on medium. Stir in nuts (optional).

Spread in greased and floured pan. Bake until light brown (20-25 min). Cool. Frost w/ vanilla glaze. Cut into bars.

"Berry" Special Muffins

I got this recipe in an email from Earth Fare. They are somewhat healthy and VERY good. My family loves when I make them, especially my son! Most of the ingredients are usually on hand and they take hardly any time to "whip up"!

"Berry" Special Muffins

1 3/4 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 T Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 Cup vanilla or lemon yogurt (I used Blueberry and they turned out perfect)
1/4 Cup Milk
1/3 Cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
1 Egg
1 Cup Fresh or Frozen, thawed berries (I used Blueberries)

Crumb Topping:
1/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
2 Tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp Butter or Margarine, softened

*Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 12 muffin tins with paper baking cups or spray with cooking spray. In medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Set aside.

*In large bowl, combine yogurt, milk, brown sugar, vegetable oil, and egg. Add the egg mixture all at once to the dry mixture and stir just until moistened. Stir in berries.

*Prepare the crumb topping. Blend until crumbly. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins and sprinkle with crumb topping. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Poppy Seed Loaf

This bread is delicious! It's very sweet and moist--almost a dessert! It makes 2 loaves, so make one for yourself and one for your neighbor!

3 C flour

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 C vegetable oil

2 1/4 C sugar

2 T poppy seeds

3 eggs

1 1/2 C milk

1 tsp almond extract

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 T melted butter

Glaze:

1 T melted butter

1/2 tsp almond extract

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 C orange juice

3/4 C sugar

*Grease and flour 2 medium loaf pans. Combine all bread ingredients and pour into prepared pans. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

*Combine glaze ingredients in a small bowl. Prick HOT bread with toothpick. Pour on glaze and let stand for 15-20 minutes before removing from pans. Cool completely before slicing.

-Recipe from "Capitol Classics" Junior League of Washington, DC

French Toast Casserole

This yummy casserole is perfect for when company comes to town. I am making this for tomorrow morning, since my sister and her family are coming today for the weekend. This needs to be prepared the night before so the egg mixture can fully be absorbed by the bread. Each time I make this, it is a huge hit and there are never left overs! In fact, the last piece is eyed by everyone to see who gets to take it:)

1/2 C Melted Butter

2 T. Light Corn Syrrup

3/4 C Light Brown Sugar

8 Eggs

1 Cup Milk

1 T Vanilla Extract

1 T Cinnamon

French Bread

Syrrup

-Melt butter and combine with corn syrrup and brown sugar. Spread on bottom of 9x13 dish.

-Mix eggs, milk, vanilla and cinnamon.

-Slice bread in 1-inch slices and layer on top of butter mixture.

-Pour egg mixture on top and refrigerate over night. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. When finished baking, pour syrrup over top and sprinkle with powdered sugar and chopped pecans if desired.

Brown Sugar Bacon

My friend, Amy, gave me this recipe and said it is THE BOMB DOT COM w/ the Firehouse Pancakes. I haven't posted on Roof with a View yet so it is hot off the email presses.

Brown Sugar Bacon
-Bacon
-Brown sugar

Spray a cookie cooling rack with nonstick spray. Lay over foil-lined roasting pan or something deep enough to catch bacon drippings. Lay out bacon on cooling rack.Sprinkle brown sugar over each piece of bacon, as much as you like. Bake according to package directions (it’s usually around 400 degrees or so) until desired brownness. The brown sugar caramelizes and it is soooo good.

She also mentioned that she's seen Ina Garten on Barefoot Contessa do this too, but she used real maple syrup instead.

Firehouse Pancakes

I got this pancake recipe from Roof With a View recently. I made them for dinner recently on a cold, snowy night and it was a hit with my family. They are so easy to whip up and they are so yummy and filling. I have said sayonara to Bisquick! Next to my Daddy's famous pancakes, these are SO good!

Firehouse Pancakes

Servings: 4-6

1 1/3 cups milk
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, melted
2 cups sifted all -purpose flour
1 cup confectioners' sugar
4 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Vegetable oil

*Mix the milk, eggs, and butter in a small bowl. In another bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir the milk mixture into the flour mixture until moistened.
*Heat a lightly oiled griddle until hot. Spoon the mixture onto the griddle by ¼ cups and cook until bubbles appear evenly over the top of each pancake. Turn; cook on the second side until golden. Repeat until all the batter is used up.

-Nick SantimauroLadder 166, F.D.N.Y.

Sausage Breakfast Casserole

This recipe is a family favorite...it's also as healthy as something so cheesy and sausage-y can be. For anyone following Weight Watchers, it's 3 points per serving.

Sausage Breakfast Casserole

3 cups (1-in. cubed) French Bread
Cooking Spray
1/2 lb. bulk turkey sausage (such as Louis Rich)
1/4 cup chopped green onions (about 4 green onions)
3/4 cup (3-oz) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup fat-free milk
1 cup egg substitute
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Arrange bread cubes in an 11x7x1 1/2-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place skillet over med-high heat until hot. Add sausage and green onions; cook until sausage is browned, stirring until it crumbles. Drain, if necessary.

Layer sausage mixture and cheese over bread cubes.

Combine milk and remaining 4 ingredients; pour over bread mixture, bread and cheese. Press down on bread mixture with a spatula to cover totally with milk mixture. Cover and chill 8 hours or overnight.

Bake casserole, uncovered, at 350ºF. for 30 min. or until set and lightly browned. Let stand 5 min. before serving.

Yields: 6 servings