Best Bread Pudding

 From the Taste of Home Test Kitchen, this is super yummy. Always a big hit for a sweet breakfast treat. That caramel sauce is the bomb-diggity. I also use Texas Roadhouse rolls that I cut up. Note: get the half and half, it makes it. Don't try to make your own. It is different. Also, one times this recipe really is enough for two 13x9's custard wise. I only put a little of the custard mix in with the casserole after I've gotten the bread good and wet. I don't like bread pudding that is super soggy. The brown sugar is a nice touch sprinkled on. Make sure you whisk all that butter in to the brown sugar for the caramel sauce before you add the cream. Also, about 20 minutes for the caramel sauce to thicken on low. Don't try to thicken it beyond that. It will break. It is a sauce. 

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2-1/4 cups half-and-half cream
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 20 dinner rolls (1-1/4 pounds), cut into 1-inch cubes (18 cups)
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• SAUCE:
• 1 cup butter, cubed
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup half-and-half cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Whisk together the first 10 ingredients until blended. Gently stir in bread. Transfer to a greased 3-qt. or 13x9-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with brown sugar; let stand until bread is softened, about 15 minutes. Bake until puffed and a knife inserted in center comes out clean, 40-45 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, for sauce, melt butter in a large heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add brown sugar; stir until dissolved. Gradually stir in cream. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer until thickened, 15-20 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; add vanilla, sea salt and baking soda, stirring well. Serve sauce with warm bread pudding.

Banana Quick Bread and Muffins

This is a recipe that came with Aaron. He had a cookbook that his mother gave him when he went off to do his internship in California. In it she had dates and her thoughts on a recipe. Next to this one is 7/92 and "very good!" It is one that we also think is "very good" and want to keep using! We usually double this recipe and get around 2 dozen muffins. We always leave the nuts out because our people are allergic.

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
2/3 cup of sugar
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1//2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed ripe banana( we usually use 2 bananas for each recipe)
1/3 cup butter
2 tablespoons milk
2 eggs
1/4 cup chopped nuts, optional


In a large mixer bowl combine 1 cup of the flour, the sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add mashed banana, butter and milk. Beat on low speed till blended. Then on high speed for two minutes. Add eggs and remaining flour; beat till blended. Stir in nuts if using.

Pour batter into greased loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 55 to 60 minutes. Or, if making muffins, pour into greased muffin pans and bake at the same temp for about 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool for ten minutes on wire rack before removing from pan. Cool thoroughly on wire rack before storing in a closed container.

Fluffy Waffles

These are super yummy Belgian waffles that Aaron makes for the kids almost every weekend.

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups milk
2 eggs, separated
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in large bowl. Whisk milk, egg yolks, and oil in medium bowl. Whisk milk mixture into dry ingredients just until dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened. Using electric mixer beat egg whites in small bowl until stiff. Fold whites into batter, leaving a few fluffs. Preheat waffle maker. Pour 1 cup batter onto the center of the bottom grid. Close top and flip waffle maker. Bake until brown and crisp, about 4 minutes.

Makes 4 waffles.

Bacon Hearts

 I saw this idea on Pinterest and just had to try it for Valentine's day:) All you do is cut a piece of bacon in half, form it into a heart shape and bake for about 20 minutes!!!

Talk about love on a plate;)

Apple Tea Ring

I found this recipe at Flour Me with Love... and it is so very good!!! I modified it a little bit so that I could use my bread machine but other than that I followed her recipe pretty closely. If you don't have a bread machine, you can follow her recipe:)

Dough... 1st layer:
3/4c milk
1/4c butter
1/4c water
1 egg

2nd layer:
3c flour
1/2c sugar
1/4tsp salt
1 pkg instant yeast

INSTRUCTIONS FOR A BREAD MACHINE:
~Mix together milk, melted butter, water and a beaten egg... and add this to the bottom of your bread machine pan.
~Mix together flour, sugar and salt... and add this to the top of the wet mixture. Sprinkle yeast on top.
~Run these layers on the dough cycle.

***Take dough out of bread machine and roll it out into a rectangle on a floured work space. Mix together filling and spread evenly over dough.
Filling:
8oz cream cheese
1/2c sugar

***Mix together apple mixture and spread over filling.
6 apples, peeled and diced
2T cinnamon
2T sugar

***Roll the dough up and form it into a circle... make sure the ends are all sealed. Placed on a parchment lined cookie sheet and make cuts 3/4 of the way through the ring every 2 inches... all the way around. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

***After it is done cooking, you can drizzle cream cheese icing on it to make it even more delicious:) Enjoy!!!

The Most Awesome Blueberry Bread/Muffins

This truly is the most awesome bluberry bread recipe that I have ever had. It makes super great muffins, too. This is one part of my favorite breakfast. What makes up my favorite breakfast you might ask? Blueberry muffins, bacon, hard boiled eggs and orange juice. Mmmmmm. Happiness. :)


1 ½ c. flour 1/3 c. milk
¾ c. granulated sugar 1 c. blueberries
½ tsp. salt ½ c. granulated sugar
2 tsp. baking powder 1/3 c. flour
1/3 c. vegetable Oil ¼ c. butter
1 egg 1 ½ tsp. cinnamon

Combine 1 ½ c. flour, ¾ c. sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil in one cup measuring cup and add the egg plus enough milk to fill cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries; spread in pan.

Crumb topping: Mix together with fork ½ c. sugar, 1/3 c. flour, ¼ c. butter and 1 ½ tsp. cinnamon.

Spread topping over the berry loaf. Bake at 400 degrees for 35 minutes.

For Muffins: Fill muffin cups right to top of cup. Makes 8 regular sized muffins. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

 

I have made this every Christmas since I was about 15. A really awesome coffee cake.

1 1/2 cups white sugar
3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs
3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup sour cream

Cinnamon Filling

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Icing

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoon milk

Prepare cinnamon filling; reserve. Beat sugar, butter, vanilla and eggs in a bowl on medium speed. Beat in flour, baking powder, soda and salt. Add sour cream. Fill greased bundt pan, 1/3 batter, 1/3 filling, repeat twice. Bake at 325 degrees for about 1 hour. (If you set your timer for 60 minutes exactly it should be done, but it may need an extra 5 or 10 minutes depending on your oven). Let cool for 15 minutes in pan. Remove to plate and drizzle icing over top.

Breakfast Casserole

3 cups shredded freezer hash browns thawed
1 lb sausage, browned
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
8 eggs
2 cups milk
salt and pepper

Spray 13x9. Layer in potatoes, sausage and cheese. Salt and Pepper. Mix eggs and milk and pour over top. Cheese will rise to top while baking. Bake in 350 degree oven for 40-45 minutes or until lightly browned.

Plain Cake Doughnuts

A little while ago I decided that I needed to make some doughnuts so I went in search of an easy recipe:) These are wonderful...

Plain Cake Doughnuts

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 dash ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
1 quart oil for frying

Directions:
1.Heat oil in deep-fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2.In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix in butter until crumbly. Stir in milk and egg until smooth. Knead lightly, then turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll or pat to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut with a doughnut cutter, or use two round biscuit cutters of different sizes (I used different size glasses).
3.Carefully drop doughnuts into hot oil, a few at a time. Do not overcrowd pan or oil may overflow. Fry, turning once, for 3 minutes or until golden. Drain on paper towels. Enjoy:)

I hope to be able to soon try my mother-in-law's doughnut recipe... so stay tuned for that:)

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

This is a slightly altered recipe originally from my Grandma Redwine, altered by my sister, Gracie. It makes awesome bread to use up some of that extra zucchini and it freezes well.

Bake at 350 degrees. Makes two loaves.

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
2 cups grated zucchini
3 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2-1 cup chocolate chips(depending upon how much chocolate you like in yours, plus some to sprinkle on the top)

Mix dry ingredients together in one bowl and wet ingredients in another larger bowl (yes, sugar is a "wet" ingredient). Add dry ingredients to wet, mix and then fold in chocolate chips. Place batter into two greased loaf pans. I have been told that it is better to use Crisco to grease the pans rather than cooking spray. With cooking spray they still seem to stick a bit.

Bake at 350 for one hour or until toothpick comes out clean. Yummers!

Blueberry Buckle Coffee Cake

This is a yummy recipe that a friend of mine, Candice, sent our way to use some of those wonderful blueberries that many of us have picked over the last few weeks:)

Blueberry Buckle Coffee Cake

Buckle
4 c. flour
1 1/2 c. sugar
5 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter
1 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs
4 c. blueberries, fresh or frozen (thawed and drained)

Crumb topping
1 c. sugar
2/3 c. flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 c. butter

Glaze
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 to 2 tsp. hot water

~Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease two pie pans (*her note: make sure not to use very shallow pans; these cakes will be quite tall).
~Blend flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, butter, milk, and eggs; beat 30 seconds. Carefully stir in blueberries (*her note: I always gently coat mine with flour before stirring them in and it seems to help keep them from "bleeding"). Spread batter in pans; sprinkle with crumb topping.
~Bake 45 to 50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Drizzle with glaze. Served warm is best! Enjoy:)

Good Old Fashioned Pancakes

These are some of the best pancakes I've ever eaten and they are totally Aaron's contribution. We have yet to try them with anything mixed in, but every time we make them we say we should get some blueberries. I think they would make killer blueberry pancakes. I do have an awesome blueberry wheat pancake recipe courtesy of my mother-in-law, that I'll post sometime if people want it.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 1/4 cup milk
1 egg
3 tablespoons melted butter

In a large bowl, stir/sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg and melted butter; mix until smooth.

Heated a lightly oiled/ sprayed griddle or frying pan over medium heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Peach Pound Cake

My wonderful in-laws gave us so many yummy peaches last year... so many, in fact, that we are still going through them- giving me plenty of opportunities to try some new recipes:) This recipe (found on about.com) is good on its own as a dessert or for breakfast or with whipped cream... my husband preferred it this way:)

Peach Pound Cake
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks)
2 cups sugar
6 eggs
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups diced fresh or frozen peaches (I used frozen and they worked really well)

Glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 Tbsp cream cheese, at room temperature
1 Tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10-inch fluted tube pan or an angel food cake pan with a cookie sheet underneath it. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt. In a separate large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each one. Add both almond and vanilla extracts and mix thoroughly. Beginning with the flour mixture, add alternately with the sour cream to the egg mixture. Gently fold in the peaches. Pour batter into tube pan and distribute evenly.

Bake about 1 hour or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a rack for 20 minutes. Invert onto a cake dish and let cool another 30 minutes before glazing. For the glaze, beat confectioners' sugar, cream cheese, and milk until smooth. Drizzle over the top of the peach pound cake. Best served at room temperature. Enjoy:)

Monkey Bread

3 packages buttermilk biscuit tubes

1 cup sugar

1 cup butter

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 cup brown sugar

Cut the biscuits into 4 pieces each. Drop pieces into 1 cup sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon mixed together. Drop sugar coated pieces into a well-greased bundt pan, being careful not to squish the pieces. Put 1/2 cup of leftover sugar mix, 1/2 brown sugar and 1 cup butter into a saucepan. Bring just to a boil; remove immediately from heat. Carefully drizzle over roll pieces. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes in pan and then flip out onto a plate. It looks really pretty on a glass cake plate with the dome.

Notes: Whisk sugar and butter together while waiting for it to come to a boil or butter will settle on top and be difficult to mix in later.

Make sure to put bundt pan on cookie sheet to bake, just in case in seeps out through the bottom.