Thursday, December 29, 2016

French Lasagna (Breakfast)

Found the recipe I am going to be making for New Year's Day breakfast at the farm!!

French Lasagna (Breakfast)  

Nigella Lawson recipe


for Donald



Ingredients:
4 cups whole milk
1 clove garlic, peeled and lightly crushed
4 large eggs, beaten together
5 stale croissants, halved lengthwise (like sandwiches)
5 thin slices ham
1 4-ounce ball fresh mozzarella, cut into 5 slices
8 ounces grated cheddar

Procedure:
In a medium saucepan, combine milk and garlic, and place over high heat until almost at boiling point. 

Remove from heat and allow to rest for 15 to 20 minutes. 

Discard garlic, and drizzle eggs into milk while whisking vigorously. Set aside.

Place bottoms of croissants, cut side up, into a baking dish large enough to hold them snugly in a single layer. (A 10 x 13-inch dish works well.) 

On each croissant half, arrange a slice of ham and a slice of mozzarella. Top with remaining croissant halves, cut side down.

Sprinkle about 2/3 of cheddar on croissants, and pour milk mixture over everything. Press croissants down with a fork so they are almost covered by milk, repeating once or twice until tops absorb some of liquid. Set aside for 20 minutes; meanwhile, heat oven to 325 degrees.

Sprinkle remaining cheddar over croissants. Bake until puffy, golden and set, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

Sunday, December 18, 2016

Tourtière

Christmas Eve dinner at my house this year:

Tourtière is a traditional Québecois meat pie typically served around Christmastime.


Classic French Canadian Tourtière



Ingredients:
1 pound ground pork
1 pound ground beef
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 medium-large baked potatoes, mashed with skins removed (or about 1 cup of mashed potatoes)
3/4 cup beef or vegetable broth
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. salt

For the Butter Pie Crust:
2 1/2 cup flour of choice
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small cubes - VERY COLD
1 cup ice cold water

For the egg wash:
1 egg
1 Tbsp. water

In a large skillet or wok, combine the finely chopped onion with the olive oil and sautée for about 10 minutes on medium heat, until onions are soft and golden.

With your hands, mix the ground pork and beef together in a bowl. Add the mixed ground meat to the onions and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring it to break up the meat so it doesn't clump together.

Add all the remaining ingredients (broth, spices, mashed potato, salt and pepper) and mix together.

Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for about 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat. Taste the meat mixture and add a bit more salt, pepper, or spices, to suit your preferences. Cool in the fridge for about 2 hours, until completely chilled. (You can do this the day before).

To make the pastry:
Using a food processor or a pastry blender, chop up the butter into the flour and salt until it is small and crumbly, the size of very small peas.

Pour in 1/2 cup of the ice cold water and mix into the flour.

Add more water, 1 tablespoonful at a time, until the dough comes together into a ball. DON'T OVER PROCESS - use your hands to get the mass to finally come together.

Form two balls and flatten them slightly into discs. Wrap and cover them in wax paper or plastic, and let them rest in the fridge for 1 hour.  (You can do this the day before, too)

Remove from the fridge and allow to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. Roll out each disc on a floured surface to about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thickness. (Or use premade crust if time is a pinch)

Line a 9 inch pie plate with the first circle of dough. Spoon in all the meat filling, patting it down lightly to compress it a bit.

Brush the pie rim with water and place the second circle of dough on top, pressing the edges together to seal. Trim and flute as desired.  I like to use little mini-cutters on left-over crust dough and "glue them on with the egg wash.

The egg wash is what will give your tourtière a golden glow, so don't skip this step! Beat the egg and water together and brush the mixture all over the top of the crust and around the edges.
Cut some steam vents on top of your pie. (or cut out three designs with those mini-cutters.

With the rack in the bottom third of the oven, bake at 375F for about 50 minutes or until the top of the crust is golden.

Yield: Makes 1 meat pie, about 8 servings

Traditionally served with a good tomato-based ketchup - I love Stonewall Kitchen's with this.

Basic Monkey/Gorilla Bread

Great fun to make with kids!!



Monkey/Gorilla Bread




Ingredients:3 (12 ounce) packages refrigerated biscuitdough
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup margarine
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)


Procedure:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 
Grease one 9 or 10 inch tube/Bundt(R) pan.
Mix white sugar and cinnamon in a plastic bag. 
Cut biscuits into quarters. 
Shake 6 to 8 biscuit pieces in the sugar cinnamon mix. 
Arrange pieces in the bottom of the prepared pan. 
Continue until all biscuits are coated and placed in pan. If using nuts and raisins, arrange them in and among the biscuit pieces as you go along.
In a small saucepan, melt the margarine with the brown sugar over medium heat. Boil for 1 minute. Pour over the biscuits.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 35 minutes. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a plate. Do not cut! The bread just pulls apart.

*****

You can up the ante from Monkey to Gorilla by flattening out the balls of dough and wrapping around small cubes of cream cheese, chunks of banana, or bits of chocolate (or all 3!) before reforming into a ball and THEN rolling in the sugars and cinnamon.

Pizza Monkey bread

I used to make breakfast sweet monkey bread for staff luncheons.  Having those little "pull-apart" rolls is so much fun.  I'm finding more and more of these recipes - my next task is to start experimenting with my OWN biscuit dough instead of using the refrigerated stuff (too many ingredients I can't pronounce means I don't really like to use them!!)   My Bundt pan may never get put away again!!


Easy Pull Apart Pizza Bread



Ingredients:
2 Cans of pizza Dough or Biscuits (I pick up a ball of dough from my local pizzeria!)
2 cups Mozzarella cheese (or your favorite cheese)
2 tablespoons of a really good Italian seasoning  - Penzey's is so good
⅓ cup olive oil
1 – 8 oz package of pepperoni
1 cup Parmesan cheese
Optional: Add a ½ teaspoon of fresh garlic or garlic powder

pizza sauce (to serve on the side)

Procedure:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
Cut pizza dough or biscuits into quarters (or pinch off small bits of dough from the dough ball and quickly roll into a small ball the size of a cocktail meatball)
Cut the pepperoni into smaller pieces
Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss so that the oil is spread evenly on each piece of dough
Bake for about 30 minutes (or until the top is brown and the center is thoroughly cooked) TIP: Be sure to check it in the middle before you pull it out. If the middle is still not cooked thoroughly be sure to leave it in another 5 minutes at a time until it’s done.
Flip over onto a plate while it’s still hot.
Serve with a side sauce



Mexican Bubble Bread

I used to make breakfast sweet monkey bread for staff luncheons.  Having those little "pull-apart" rolls is so much fun.  I'm finding more and more of these recipes - my next task is to start experimenting with my OWN biscuit dough instead of using the refrigerated stuff (too many ingredients I can't pronounce means I don't really like to use them!!)   My Bundt pan may never get put away again!!



Mexican Bubble Bread





Ingredients:
2 12 oz cans of refrigerated Biscuits tubes - cut in quarters
1 1/2 cup of Mexican Cheese
1 1/2 cup of Mozzarella Cheese
1 stick of butter melted
1 4.5 oz can of chopped Green Chilies
1 1/2 teaspoon of dried parsley
chopped cilantro - optional
jar of jalapenos - optional

Procedure:
Heat oven to 350*
If you have a non stick bundt pan there's no need to grease your pan - grease your a regular ceramic/metal pan prior to adding any ingredients.
Melt butter
In a large bowl, mix butter, cheeses, green chilies, cilantro & dried parsley together
Then open biscuit tubes & cut them in quarters. Once you're done, gently toss the biscuit quarters in a large mixing bowl with the other ingredients.
Place in bundt Pan & gently pat down your mixture to even it all out.
Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Please check to make sure the center of your Bubble Bread is cooked thoroughly. Serve with Chili or Soup.








Sausage Egg and Cheese Breakfast Bread

I used to make breakfast sweet monkey bread for staff luncheons.  Having those little "pull-apart" rolls is so much fun.  I'm finding more and more of these recipes - my next task is to start experimenting with my OWN biscuit dough instead of using the refrigerated stuff (too many ingredients I can't pronounce means I don't really like to use them!!)   My Bundt pan may never get put away again!!



Sausage Egg and Cheese Breakfast Bread



This breakfast bread is so yummy, but may be a little hard to pull apart, so you could just slice it. We also used some Cholula hot sauce to liven it up a bit!




Ingredients:
3 cans of regular biscuits (generic are perfectly fine)
8 eggs
splash of milk
1 tsp ground mustard
1lb of breakfast sausage
1 4oz pkg of shredded cheese (your choice, cheddar or mexican is best!)

hot sauce of choice, Cholula, or ranch dressing

Procedure:
Brown the sausage in a skillet and drain well. Beat the eggs into a bowl and add the splash of milk, ground mustard, and salt and pepper to taste. Slice the biscuits into quarters. In batches, dip the biscuits into the egg mixture and place in a bundt pan.

Layer in biscuits, sausage, cheese into 3 layers.

Pour any leftover egg mixture on top.

Bake at 350 for about 35-40 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Serve immediately! Goes great with Cholula, which is more flavorful than regular hot sauce. Or you could dip in ranch!







Herb and Cheese Monkey Bread

I used to make breakfast sweet monkey bread for staff luncheons.  Having those little "pull-apart" rolls is so much fun.  I'm finding more and more of these recipes - my next task is to start experimenting with my OWN biscuit dough instead of using the refrigerated stuff (too many ingredients I can't pronounce means I don't really like to use them!!)   My Bundt pan may never get put away again!!




Savory Herb & Cheese Monkey Bread


Ingredients:
2 (16 ounce) cans of jumbo refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
5 or so different herbs and/or cheeses, as coatings (such as fresh chopped parsley, chopped dill, chopped almonds, grated Parmesan, and shredded cheddar)

Proced
ure:Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously grease a 9- to 10-inch Bundt pan with butter, or spray with nonstick cooking spray.
Stir garlic salt into melted butter. Cut each biscuit in half and roll into a ball. Dip each biscuit ball in butter, then roll in desired coating. Arrange biscuits in the pan so that the various coatings are alternated.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until biscuits are done and surface is golden. You may want to start checking bread at about 25 minutes, and if it's browning too quickly, lay a sheet of aluminum foil on top for the remainder of the baking time.
Cool in pan for 5 minutes. Run a thin, soft rubber spatula around the edge and down the sides of the pan to loosen any stuck cheese. Invert onto a plate, then lay serving platter on top and flip bread over onto serving platter so that the attractive side is on top.



Notes:
If you wish to assemble the bread ahead of time, you may do so, then cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours, up to overnight. Take the pan out of the refrigerator as you preheat the oven, and then bake as directed.

If you don't want to alternate your biscuit coatings, you can mix the cheese and herbs together and use the same coating for all of the biscuits. Whatever you decide, you need to use some sort of cheese on at least some of the pieces since that's what holds the monkey bread together once you unmold it.

Keep in mind that dried herbs are more concentrated than fresh herbs, so adjust amounts accordingly.

You may use just about any type of refrigerated biscuits or bread dough. You just want the total amount of dough used to be around 32 ounces.


Bacon Egg and Cheese Monkey Bread

I used to make breakfast sweet monkey bread for staff luncheons.  Having those little "pull-apart" rolls is so much fun.  I'm finding more and more of these recipes - my next task is to start experimenting with my OWN biscuit dough instead of using the refrigerated stuff (too many ingredients I can't pronounce means I don't really like to use them!!)   My Bundt pan may never get put away again!!


Bacon Egg and Cheese Monkey Bread

Author:Cathy Trochelman

Ingredients:
*Ingredients listed are for a 6 cup bundt pan. If you are using a 12 cup pan, double the ingredients.
1 (16 oz.) can refrigerated biscuits
4 Tbsp. salted butter, melted
6 large eggs, scrambled
½ pound bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
2 Tbsp. fresh chives
For sauce:
¼ c. lowfat mayo
¼ c. sour cream
1 tsp. lemon juice
½ tsp. dijon mustard

Procedure:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook bacon and eggs; set aside.
Remove biscuits from package and cut into sixths.
Place biscuit pieces in a gallon size ziplock bag and toss with 4 Tbsp. melted butter.
Add scrambled eggs, bacon, shredded cheese, and fresh chives to the bag and shake to distribute.
Pour mixture into a greased 6 cup bundt pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
While bread is baking, combine sauce ingredients in a small saucepan and heat, stirring, over medium heat until smooth.
Cool in pan 5-10 minutes, then use a knife or spatula to loosen edges.
Invert bread onto a plate and drizzle with sauce before serving.