Coconut French Toast and a Give-away!

So I have been REALLY bad about blogging this summer, I admit it but I am not ashamed...there is just too much good stuff happening! One of the best thing is a friend and I have started a little canning operation, Inappropriate Jam.  Basically we want to create slightly more exotic flavors of jam that could be used in between cake layers or as interesting ice cream mix ins or...basically not just for toast, although that's good too!
This morning SA was still sleeping like a baby and I wanted to surprise him with breakfast in bed, so this recipe was created out of what caught my eye when I opened the fridge!

Coconut French Toast with Whiskey Bitch and Fresh Blueberries
4 slices of bread
two eggs slightly whisked
1/2 tsp of cinnamon
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup shredded coconut (not sweetened)
1 tbsp butter

In a large skillet or griddle over medium heat melt the butter.  Add the vanilla and the cinnamon to the eggs and whisk until well combined.  Dip the bread in the egg mixture quickly and then sprinkle with coconut and toast in skillet until lightly browned and then flip (about two minutes) and do the same on the other side.  Top with jam of your choice (I used Whiskey Bitch) and fresh blueberries!

Now if you have read this far:  Go check out my friend Bekah's blog:http://couponstocanning.blogspot.com and follow her(heck, even leave her a comment, that would be rad!)
Add Inappropriate Jam on Facebook
And of course, follow In the Kitchen With Butters (once again, comments are RAD!)
Tweet/Facebook this give away!(link IJ back to facebook please!)
Each one of these steps gets you an entry to win one jar of YOUR Choice of Inappropriate Jam either
Strawberry Wet Dream (Strawberry Lavender) or Whiskey Bitch (Bourbon Vanilla Bean Peaches) or Bals' Deep (Strawberry Balsamic).

breakfast burritos

SA and I love breakfast for dinner, lunch, brunch or breakfast, and one of our favorite meals is breakfast burritos.
I don't really think this requires a recipe because they are so versatile, but more of a list of the ingredients we like to put in them!
These particular burritos included
--black beans
--cheddar cheese
--potatoes
--scrambled eggs
--bacon
--cilantro
However SA and I like to also do black beans, sausage, cheese and eggs with onions, garlic and tomatoes.

Egg Bake

Some days are just meant for comfort food.  Today SA and I spent the entire day (almost) going through cabinets in the kitchen and reorganizing, cleaning and throwing out expired food.  I am pretty embarrassed to say that we threw away food that EXPIRED in 2007 today.  I really don't understand how we still had it because we did this last year! While I was cleaning I was trying to figure out what the heck I was going to make for dinner.  I am not going to lie we are in a pretty bad place when it comes to groceries but I didn't want to stop mid project and go grocery shopping.  This recipe is one that I got from my best friend who has at times fed 9 kids with it.  Yes, I said 9 kids, and no she didn't birth them all! Seven are step kids, and not all of them live at the same place, but needless to say this recipe feeds a ton! So know in advance, these amounts make enough for one casserole to freeze and one to serve, or in her case enough for 9 kids! For SA and I, I halved it and there was still plenty leftovers for lunches tomorrow and then some!

SA prefers his with a little of our favorite green cilantro sauce on top!

Egg Bake
4 1/2 c. Seasoned croutons
1 c. Shredded cheese
1 medium onion chopped
1/4 c green pepper
1/4 c. mushrooms
8 eggs
4 c. milk
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground mustard
1/8 tsp black pepper
8 bacon strips cooked and crumbled

Sprinkle croutons, cheese onion, peppers and mushrooms into two greased pans or one large 9x11 pan. In a bowl combine eggs, milk, salt, mustard and pepper and pour over veggies.  Top with bacon and more cheese and bake uncovered @350 for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Ok...so great recipe, but here are the changes I made ;) I added chopped spinach to the onions and croutons, plus a little garlic.  I omitted the peppers and mushrooms and added a bit more black pepper and a little bit of paprika for a little flavor and then I topped mine with cheese and stuck it back under the broiler to get a little color on it once it was cooked.

lol my plate looked a little artistic with the grape jelly smears!

Keeping the Southern Girl Card Biscuits

     Food blogging is a funny thing.  For me reading food blogs is kinda like going to the store on an empty stomach.  I like to sit down and read the new blog posts when I come home from work, but sometimes this can be detrimental to my own cooking plans! Its hard when you read about other peoples successes and look at their drool worthy pictures.  All of a sudden your simple meal is lack luster, or you start obsessing about making something that they made on their blog.  For me it was biscuits.
     Now for most people biscuits aren't a big deal, but for me they are up there with pancakes(highly desirable and one of the few things I absolutely SUCK at making!) I swear I almost lost my Southern Girl Card over not being able to make them, but Rachel over at Bakingtruehappiness (go check her out, her blog is new but her breads rock!~) made some delightful looking biscuits and got me thinking about biscuits. So much so that I had to make them! I researched recipes online until I found the one that I thought would give me what I wanted (tall flaky biscuits) and then decided that I wanted to add buttermilk. The end result was the best biscuits I have ever made and a DEFINITE keeper recipe!
(And yes people, I dorked out and made flower shaped biscuits---in my defense, I was inspired by Rachel's heart shaped ones.)

Keepin the Southern Girl Card Biscuits


3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon sugar
3/4 cup butter -- let partially freeze and then grate with cheese grater!
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup buttermilk



Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. With a knife or pastry cutter cut in, flour, baking powder, cream of tartar,salt, sugar and margarine. Cut in until it becomes course and crumbly. Whip together milk and egg with a fork. Mix with the flour mixture until it forms a soft dough. Add flour if the dough is too sticky. I made a well and stirred it as little as possible. Roll out dough with a rolling pin to about 11/2 to 2 inch thickness. I think mine were about an inch. Next time I am going to push it to the 1.5.
Cut out the biscuits. (I made flowers!) Place biscuits on a cookie sheet.  Bake for 12 to 14 minutes. (mine took 14-15) Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes and brush the tops with a bit of melted butter.

p.s. if you have been wondering why I haven't been blogging as much it is because I sprained my wrist and typing pretty much sucked my will to live!

Poached Eggs with Creamy Brussels Sprouts

There is something coy about a Brussels sprout:how its tender leaves curl over its crunchy green inside. How many flavors they can take on... I just love them.  Tonight dinner needed to happen and it needed to happen quick! This recipe was amazing! The Brussels sprouts were flavorful and slightly crunchy and the eggs made it even more creamy.  The bacon was the perfect amount of salt and once the yolks were broken and it all mixed together it was AMAZING! I modified this recipe from the Feb/March episode of Fine Cooking.

Poached Eggs with Creamy Brussels Sprouts

4 Slices of toast

2 c. Brussels sprouts trimmed and shredded

4 slices of bacon

2 tbsp. butter

1 large shallot sliced

1 garlic clove diced

1/4 half and half

4 poached eggs

Parmesan for garnishing

salt and pepper

Cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crispy, and once cooked pour off all but 1 Tbs.  of the left over oil. Add 1 Tbsp. of butter and the shallot and garlic and cook over medium heat until softened, about two minutes.  Add 1/3 c. water and Brussels sprouts, cream and salt and pepper to taste.  Cover the pan and cook, stirring occasionally until the Brussels sprouts are just tender 5 to 7 minutes.  Put two toast triangles (or flowers!) on each of two plates and top each toast with an egg. Season the eggs lightly with salt and pepper and spoon the Brussels sprout mixture on top.  Sprinkle with the bacon and a few shavings of Parmesan. (Obviously I didn't follow these instructions and instead piled up the sprouts, put the bacon on top and added the egg.)



Daring Cooks Challenge: Poached Eggs/ Huevos Hollandaise

DARING COOKS CHALLENGE: POACHED EGGS!
I was sooo not looking forward to poaching an egg.  Gross. Runny Yolks. No thank you! However, the night I made this I was craving huevos rancheros but thought I would just suck it up and make the the poach eggs (and get it over with) but it was amazzzzzzzzzing!
This recipe kind of evolved as I was making it and ended up quite over the top.  BUT OVER THE TOP TASTY!
Its kinda hard to tell in the picture but on the bottom there are my own version of borracho beans topped with a garlic toasted muffin, then a sausage patty, poached egg(I promise its there!), crumbled cotija cheese, green salsa and homemade hollandaise. (and now I am going to go work out, LOL!) It was sooooo stinking good that even my husband who detests runny eggs finished his bowl and my leftovers. The yolk was so good when it mixed in with the beans and the cheese.
HECK YES to HUEVOS HOLLANDAISE! and I've been converted!

Borracho Beans(or drunken beans)
1 pound dried pinto beans, washed

2 quarts chicken stock
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
1  can or bottle beer
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1 white onion, diced
3 pieces of cooked bacon
6 cloves garlic, chopped
3 bay leaves
1 1/2 tablespoons dried Mexican oregano
1/2 cups chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon of cumin
1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne

Soak beans over night in a large pot of water, or just do what I did and follow the directions on the back of the bag for a quick soak!

Drain beans, and refill the pot with chicken stock and enough water to cover the beans with 2 inches of liquid. Season with salt and pepper. Cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for 1 1/2 hours.
In another skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat untill done, and remove from pan being careful to save your bacon grease, add onions and cook untill translucent.
Stir beer, tomatoes, onion, bacon, garlic, bay leaves, oregano, chili powder, cayenne, cumin and cilantro into the beans. Continue to cook uncovered for 1 hour, or until beans are tender.
With a potato masher, crush the beans slightly to thicken the bean liquid. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper to taste.

Hollandaise
modified slightly from Alton Brown's Recipe
3 egg yolks

1 teapsoon water
1/4 teaspoon sugar
12 tablespoons cut into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Pour 1-inch of water into a large saucepan; over medium heat, bring to a simmer. Once simmering, reduce the heat to low.

Place egg yolks and 1 teaspoon water in a medium mixing bowl and whisk until mixture lightens in color, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Add the sugar and whisk for another 30 seconds.
Place the mixture over the simmering water and whisk constantly for 3 to 5 minutes.
Remove the bowl from over the pan and gradually add the butter, 1 piece at a time, and whisk until all of the butter is incorporated. If your butter isn't melting, put the bowl back over the simmering water so that it will melt. Add the salt and cayenne pepper.
I was talking to one of my friends about this recipe and he recommended after you whisk the egg yolks, water and sugar  simply pouring the mixture in a blender and adding softened butter.  I'm not sure if that would work but I think its worth a try!


Blog-checking lines: Jenn and Jill have challenged The Daring Cooks to learn to perfect the technique of poaching an egg. They chose Eggs Benedict recipe from Alton Brown, Oeufs en Meurette from Cooking with Wine by Anne Willan, and Homemade Sundried Tomato & Pine Nut Seitan Sausages (poached) courtesy of Trudy of Veggie num num.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins

     I saved the recipe for these muffins almost a year ago and then I held onto it for about three months before I ever even made them.  To be honest, it was this recipe that got me into blogging.  My friend (both in real life and in the blogging world) Amber sent the recipe to me and said that she endorsed them.  These were RIDICULOUS.  And by ridiculous I mean ridiculously good.  Its a pretty easy recipe and it makes just the right amount because in my opinion they don't keep too well and they are really rich with the addition of cream cheese. 

Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins
delightfully borrowed and somewhat modified from Angel in the Kitchen <--click there to see the original recipe and to check out her super tasty recipes!
8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/4 c. butter, softened
1 egg, at room temperature
1 c. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 3/4 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1 c. fresh or frozen blueberries
1 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. sugar
4 Tbsp. butter pecan cake mix*
1 Tbsp. butter

      Preheat an oven to 400 degrees and grease a jumbo muffin tin.
      Using a stand mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until well combined. Add egg, milk, and vanilla. Mix until combined, but cream cheese is still chunky.
      In a large bowl, combine flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the mixture and add the cream cheese mixture. Stir until combined.
     In a small bowl, combine blueberries and 1 Tbsp. flour, shake till blueberries are coated in flour. Gently fold blueberries into batter.
      In a small bowl, combine cake mix and 1 Tbsp. butter with a fork, until crumbly. Sprinkle mixture evenly across muffins.
     Bake for about 28 minutes, until muffins are golden and a toothpick comes out clean.


     *the original recipe calls for white cake mix and I have used that as well as the butter pecan but I prefer the depth that the butter pecan adds.