Tuesday, May 17, 2011

SuperSonic Breakfast Burrito

This recipe is simply delicious... it comes together easily and fills you up! I used burrito sized tortillas, so it did not make 8, but that's to be expected.

This recipe comes from Pioneer Woman and is her take on Sonic's breakfast burrito! See, even Pioneer Woman eats fast food from time to time. :)

Ingredients

  • 50 whole Frozen Tater Tots
  • 8 whole Flour Tortillas, Fajita Size
  • 1-½ cup Grated Cheddar Cheese
  • 8 whole Eggs Beaten
  • 2 Tablespoons Half-and-half
  • 1 pound Breakfast Sausage
  • Salt And Pepper, to taste
  • 1 whole Medium Onion, Chopped
  • ½ cups Jarred Jalapeno Slices
  • 3 whole Roma Tomatoes, Sliced
  • Salsa, On The Side
  • 1 Tablespoon Butter

Preparation Instructions

Bake or fry tater tots according to package directions. Make sure they’re a little on the crisp side. Warm tortillas in the oven or microwave; keep warm and soft.

Brown breakfast sausage in a large skillet, breaking it up as you go along.

Mix eggs, half and half, salt, and pepper, and beat with a fork or whisk until totally combined. Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat and cook the eggs, scrambling them until they’re in smaller pieces and no longer wet.

To assemble, add ingredients to the middle 1/3 of a warm tortilla in this order: cheese, eggs, sausage, tater tots, chopped onion, jalapeno, and tomato slices. Wrap one side of the tortilla, then the other. Wrap burrito tightly in a square of foil and keep warm. Reheat in the oven if necessary.

Serve with salsa on the side.

Friday, May 13, 2011

Oat and maple syrup scones

These are yummy and simple, great for company, even if it's last minute!

Another winning recipe from Smitten Kitchen.

This recipe should make 8- 10 scones.

1 3/4 cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting surface
1/2 cup (80 grams) whole wheat flour
1/2 cup (35 grams) rolled oats (I used quick-cooking)
1 very heaped tablespoon baking powder (I only slightly heaped; wish I’d heaped more!)
1 very heaped tablespoon superfine (caster) or granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
Scant 3/4 cup (160 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup milk or buttermilk
1 egg, beaten (for glaze)

Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Butter a baking tray, or, if you’re me and your baking sheets are in horrendous condition, line them with un-buttered parchment paper.

Whisk the flours, oats, baking powder, sugar and salt together in a large bowl. With a pastry blender or your fingertips, work the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. In a small dish, combine the milk and syrup, then add these liquid ingredients to the butter-flour mixture. By hand or with a rubber spatula, bring everything together to form a softish dough. If it feels too dry, add a little more milk but not enough that the dough is sticky. “The dough should not be stick at all,” the book admonishes.

On a lightly floured surface, pat or roll the dough out until it is 1 1/4 inches (3 cm) tall. Using a 2-inch (5-cm) cutter, cut the dough into rounds and place them on the prepared tray so that they almost touch. Glaze the tops with beaten egg and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the scones are lightly golden. The scones will stick together, so pull them gently apart when they’ve cooled a bit — pull-apart scones!

Serve warm.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Oatmeal, Chocolate chip, and Pecan Cookies

I tried these cookies with a bit of trepidation, as I don't usually like nuts in baked goods, and there are some odd/ daring ingredients included in these (orange zest in chocolate chip cookies? Weird!). But boy, am I glad I took the risk! These are great, and they were a hit at playgroup (parents and kids alike)! People kept asking, "What is IN these?" Yum, yum... also, pretty quick and easy.

All credit to Smitten Kitchen for this recipe!

** Note: I didn't measure the orange zest that I used. It was about 4 or 5 microplanes worth. I just added them one at a time, so it didn't get overly orangey (which was a big concern of mine).

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground clove
1 cup quick-cooking oats
2 cups chopped pecans
2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment or a Silpat (nonstick baking mat). Using an electric mixer, beat the butter in a bowl until light and fluffy. Add both sugars, salt, and vanilla, and beat until well mixed, about three minutes. Stir in eggs, one at a time. Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove in a separate bowl. Add half of the flour mixture to the butter with the mixer on low speed. Once the flour has been incorporated, add the second half. Stir in the oats, pecans, orange zest, and chocolate chips. Drop the dough, by the tablespoon, onto the cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and cool the cookies on a rack. Store at room temperature in a cookie jar or other airtight container.

Chocolate Blizzard Bars

Once again, I'm skipping many other recipes in my queue to share this dessert with you. It's super fun, decadent, and messy. Also, it's very easy-- most of the time required is just for allowing the bars to set (5-6 hours-- so plan ahead!)

This recipe comes from Mel's Kitchen Cafe!

*Makes an 8X8- or 9X9-inch pan of bars

12 ounces chocolate chips, semisweet, bittersweet or milk chocolate
1/2 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter
3 cups crisp rice cereal (like Rice Krispies)
2 cups mini marshmallows
1/2 cup chocolate chips or M&M’s

Garnish: mini marshmallows and additional M&M’s

Lightly grease an 8X8- or 9X9-inch baking pan and set aside.

In a large, microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips for one minute. Stir. Then continue to microwave in 30 second increments until the chips are completely melted. Stir in the peanut butter until combined. Let the mixture cool slightly, about five minutes. Add the rice cereal, marshmallows and chocolate chips and/or M&M’s. Fold together with a rubber spatula until well combined.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Press additional marshmallows and M&M’s into the top of the bars, if desired. Let the bars cool and set for 5-6 hours until they are firm and no longer gooey and melty. These bars take a lot longer to set up than the Avalanche Bars, in fact, when I made them, I kept pressing on the top wondering if they would ever set up. Sure enough, after a long enough rest, I finally cut into them (even though they still felt soft on top) and they were gloriously decadent and messy. Once the bars are firm and set, cut into squares and serve.