Sunday Breakfast: Part 3 (The Finale)

It's hard to believe summer is already over and I already had my first day of class. Although I didn't get to spend a month in Europe this summer it was still great, and is definitely disappointing to be back in school. I guess I should look on the bright side and know that I am now on the downward slope of pharmacy school, year three of four. One of the highlights of this summer definitely has been our Sunday breakfasts. I tried to take the best parts from my last two breakfasts, and add another dish or two, to try something new. My sister was home from Boston, she salivated over the strawberry brown butter bettys from breakfast numero uno, and told me I had to make them. Since strawberry season was over, and we were in the peak of peach season, I decided to do peach brown butter betty's. Since I'm more of a peach guy than strawberry, I think I might be partial to the peach brown butter betty's, but I think any fruit you want to use will be just as good, I mean combine anything with brown butter and sugar, and its going to taste good. I have ideas for two other brown butter betty's that I can't wait to try, apple (in about a month or so when we will be rolling in fresh fall apples!), and a banana chocolate one. Other components of the breakfast were roasted red pepper and caramelized onion quiche, bacon and caramelized onion quiche, breakfast potatoes, pancakes (not homemade, thinking back though I'm not all that sure why they weren't), and a banana, brown sugar and chocolate galette, that didn't turn out according to plan (but still tasted great).

Peach Brown Butter Betty's

adapted from Deb at Smitten Kitchen

12 servings

12 pieces of white bread, de-crusted

1/2 stick of butter

1 tbsp granulated sugar

1/3 c brown sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/3 c panko bread crumbs

5-6 peaches, cubed

1/4 tsp salt

Sweetened marscapone to top them with (just add some powdered sugar and vanilla to the marscapone until its as sweet as you want it)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the crust off each slice a bread, and flatten each piece evenly with a rolling pin.

Combine cubed peaches with the granulated and brown sugar, panko, vanilla and salt.

Over medium-low heat melt the butter in a small pot. Swirl the pot and stir as the butter is melting. The butter will foam and then start to darken. When it starts to smell less like plain melted butter, and more nutty and stronger you know the butter is done, take it off the heat.

Take your cupcake pan and brush each slot with the butter, also brush each piece of bread. Then form the bread in the cupcake slots.

Fill each piece of bread with the fruit and bake in the oven, covered for 12-15 minutes, then uncovered for 10, until bread has browned nicely, and crisped up.

Breakfast Potatoes

6 servings

6-7 yukon gold potatoes, in 1/4 inch cubes

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp cayenne

2 tbsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine potatoes with the rest of the ingredients. Spread out on a baking sheet, being careful not to overload the baking sheet (if the potatoes are crammed to close together they won't brown up, and just kind of steam). Bake for 45 minutes to an hour turning the potatoes about every 15 to 20 minutes.

*I edited this recipe from what I tried when I made this dish for our breakfast. I haven't tried it out again yet, but I think I would get a better result with this recipe. When I made it, the crust was overloaded way too much (I used 4 bananas) and didn't really set right. The bananas got to watery as well so mix them with the other ingredients right before your ready to form the galette (I mixed it all together, got distracted, and let it sit for a while, and I think the sugar and salt started pulling the liquid out of the bananas). As you can see it kind of just turned into mush.

Banana Brown Sugar and Chocolate Galette

1 galette

1 frozen pie crust (or homemade if your good like that)

2 bananas, sliced in thin rings

1 good quality chocolate bar (I use Lindt), broken up in to small pieces

1/2 c brown sugar

1 tbsp granulated sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

pinch of salt

Defrost pie crust according to package instructions.

Mix bananas with the brown and granulated sugar, cinnamon, salt and half of the chocolate bar.

Place the banana mixture in the center of the pie crust leaving about 1 1/2 to 2 inch border. Crimp the border over top the banana mixture being careful not to tear the crust.

Bake in oven for 15 minutes, then add the rest of the chocolate to the top and bake until crust is crisp.

Eat well, Live well

Sunday Breakfast: Part 2

How is it possible that over a month of summer is already over. Where did it go? My first attempt at a big breakfast came out really well, so there were high expectations this time around. I'm pretty sure I delivered, everyone loved what I made, my mom is a bread pudding convert (she claimed she hated it and knew she would not like it this time around, she was wrong), my Grandpa had flashbacks to his childhood where him and his brother would call dibs on the sticky pieces of bread that stick to the side of the baking dish, so I guess the winner of this breakfast feast was the bread pudding. Along side the bread pudding, I served two quiche's one with red peppers and parmesan and one with bacon, ham and chedder, also bougata (which I made a version of last breakfast, but this time I used a little bit of a different technique), Pommes Chef Anne and some toast.

I kind of combined a recipe for bread pudding by Ina Garten and Paula Deen. Basically I used Ina's recipe but added the chocolate chips, brown sugar and cinnamon from Paula Deen's recipe, and I nixed the orange zest from Ina's (Orange is one of my least favorite flavors). It came out great, and everyone loved it, as previously mentioned, it will definitely be a recipe I go back to and use again.

For the quiche's I used this recipe, to get an idea of how to actually make a quiche, I used the same amount of eggs and cream as it calls for in that recipe as well as the baking time, but added the extras that I wanted (e.g. bacon, ham, cheese and red peppers). I also used a store bought pie crust which worked just fine.

Since I had recently seen the episode of No Reservations where Tony ate the bougata on one of the Greek Islands, I had a better idea of how it should be made. Last time, I just layered filo dough with sweetened marscapone, but what this dish is actually made by using one filo sheet putting a pile of the marscapone in the center folding it into a pocket and baking it like that. This is how I tried to make it this time, I thought it came out a lot better doing it this way, but I wasn't careful enough transferring them from the baking tray to the serving dish and they cracked open, oozing the cheese on the serving dish. It still was great but if they would have stayed intact it would have been better.

Finally for the potatoes I used this recipe, I used this recipe from Chef Anne Burrell. It came out really good, maybe a bit to crisp, but I didn't use as many potatoes as she called for in her recipe, which is I think why mine shrunk so much and turned so crispy. I actually sliced the potatoes myself instead of using a mandolin (since I don't have one), and it still worked just fine.

Another breakfast success, but it's disappointing to think that the next time it's my turn to cook breakfast it will be August, and way to close to going back to school. No reason to dwell on that though, because for the next 10 days or so I will be in New York City and Boston to stay with my cousin (NYC) and my sister (Boston). I can't wait, I think I'm in need of a change of scenery and I can't think of any better places in this country to to get that change.

Eat well, Live well

Sunday Breakfast: Part 1

Every Sunday throughout the summer, myself, my brother, my mom and dad are each taking turns on providing breakfast for us as well as my grandpa, and I would imagine my aunt will be involved some weeks as well. My brother came up with the idea because it seems the only time we eat a big breakfast is if we have it for dinner. Whose ever turn it is can do whatever they want, anything from picking up some donuts or bagels and coffee to enjoy at our house, going out somewhere or cooking for everyone. I love the idea because not only do I love breakfast, but I will get to try out some breakfast recipes that I’ve been wanting to make, needless to say when it’s my turn we won’t be going out for breakfast. My brother was up first last week, he took us to Perkins. We filled up on pancakes, eggs, bacon, breakfast potatoes and toast. Any time I get to use an exorbitant amount of syrup I’m happy with a meal. This week was my turn, I made scrambled eggs, egg beaters, bacon, Strawberry Brown Butter Betty’s in which I got the recipe from a great food blog Smitten Kitchen:

cinnamon and sugar filo dough layered with sweetened mascarpone cheese from which I got the idea from an episode of No Reservations, I think Anthony Bourdain was in Greece but I’m not 100% sure (oddly enough as I'm getting ready to publish this post the episode I am talking is on, it is from Zakynthos and the dish is called bougata, it is a little different from how I made but mine is similar):

some fresh strawberries, blueberries and peaches with homemade whipped cream and some of the best donuts around from White House Fruit Farms, it’s also where I got all the fruit. Surprisingly to at least me, everything came out really well and it all was finished on time, too. I don’t know what everyone liked more the brown butter betty’s or the filo dough, but by the time everyone was finished eating there wasn’t much left over. My brother, originally not planning on touching a brown butter betty (he doesn’t eat many fruits or vegetables), asked for a bite and ended up eating two of them, and my grandpa said it was the best meal he’s eaten since my grandma passed away, which is quite a complement because she was the definitely the best cook I will ever have known, and also where I think I get my love for cooking. It was great that everyone enjoyed the spread I made and I can’t wait until its my turn again.

Cinnamon Sugar Filo Dough w/ Sweetened Mascarpone Layers

size: 1 small cookie sheet

15 sheets of filo dough

16 oz package of mascarpone cheese

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp lemon zest

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted

granulated sugar and cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In a bowl combine the mascarpone, powdered sugar, lemon zest and vanilla, and mix until everything is combined.

Carefully trim the filo dough so it is the size of the cookie sheet you are using.

On parchment paper put 1-2 sheets of filo and brush with melted butter. Then put little dollops of the mascarpone all over the filo. (I tried to spread the mascarpone to make an even layer but it ended up just tearing the dough, so I just put dollops all over the filo instead, and it worked really well).

Place another 1-2 sheets over the first layer and gently press down to flatten the dollops of mascarpone out. Repeat with the butter and mascarpone until all of the mascarpone and dough is used up.

On the top layer sprinkle sugar and cinnamon (can also be done in each layer) then bake for about 30-35 minutes, until the dough is flaky, crisp and golden brown. Cut into squares and enjoy.

Only empty plates after this one

Eat well, Live well