Food Friday: Poppy Seed Bread

This is a quick and easy bread that makes two loaves.  I love it when a recipe makes more than one loaf because I can eat one now and freeze the other for later.  I would recommend waiting to ice the one you are freezing though.


Poppy Seed Bread
3 cups unsifted flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3 eggs
1 cup plus 2 Tbsp oil
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 tsp each almond flavoring, butter flavoring, vanilla & poppy seed

Mix together.  Pour into two greased and floured loaf pans.  Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees.

Icing
1/4 cups orange juice
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp almond flavoring
1 tsp butter flavoring
1 tsp vanilla

Food Friday: Mini Frittatas

I originally saw this recipe on the Food Network and put it in the back of my mind as something to make for MOPS one day. It is a Giada De Laurentis recipe and is super easy. A few days after watching this episode, I received a frantic email that we wouldn't have enough food for MOPS the next day and could I bring more. I immediately found this recipe online and am glad I tried it. It is a wonderful way to clean out the pantry as you can vary the ingredients for what you have on hand. I used leftover ham from Christmas (from my freezer) and shredded Mozzarella cheese.

Mini Frittatas

8 large eggs
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/4 tsp salt
4 oz thinly sliced ham, chopped
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (I used dried as it as all I had)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 2 mini muffin tins (each with 24 cups) with nonstick spray. Whisk the eggs, milk, pepper, and salt in a large bowl to blend well. Stir in the ham, cheese, and parsley. Fill prepared muffin cups almost to the top with the egg mixture. Bake until the egg mixture puffs and is just set in the center, about 8-10 minutes. Using the rubber spatula, loosen the frittatas from the muffin cups and slide the frittatas onto a platter. Serve immediately.

Pancake Mix

Try as I might, Food Friday just didn't happen this week. This is the recipe I was planning to post though and I figured it was better late than never. This is an easy pancake mix to make ahead and have on hand. It makes several batches of pancakes. I sometimes will make a few batches at a time and freeze them so that I have a quick breakfast on hand. We made this as a MOPS craft this week and it seemed to go over well. Sorry MOPS moms who were looking for a new and exciting recipe this week but I thought the rest of the blog world would enjoy this recipe too.

Pancake Mix

5 cups all-purpose flour 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup cornmeal 1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt

Measure the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of a large food processor. Process for 15 to 30 seconds or until thoroughly mixed. (Alternatively, stir the ingredients together in a bowl.) Spoon the mix into a 2-quart jar.

Stir in 1 1/2 cups of pancake mix, 2 eggs, and 1 1/4 cups of milk in a mixing bowl until smooth. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Cook the pancakes for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

Food Friday: Zucchini Bread

My father in law brought me an abundance of zucchini last week so I pulled out my favorite zucchini bread recipe and made a few batches. I like to keep several types of quick breads in my freezer so that I always have a last minute dessert or breakfast item on hand. It helps out the stress level to have something on hand when last minute company arrives or I find out the night before I need to bring something to school or an event.

In the past, I've dreaded grating the zucchini because it always took forever and made a huge mess in my kitchen. Since I'm now selling Tupperware, I decided to pull out my Quick Chef and see how it would do with the zucchini. In no time, I had all of my zucchini grated and there was no mess. I will definitely be using this from now on.

Zucchini Bread

3 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp vanilla
3 cups zucchini - raw, unpeeled, and grated
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Beat together the eggs, sugar and oil. Add the other ingredients and beat well. Pour into two loaf pans sprayed with baking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for about one hour.

Food Friday: Overnight French Toast Casserole

This is a great casserole for company because it can be assembled ahead and baked the next morning. It is also a very economical way to serve guests a fun meal.

Overnight French Toast Casserole

1/2 cup butter or margarine
12 slices white bread
1 cup brown sugar (I usually only use 2/3 cup)
1 tsp cinnamon
5-6 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk

Melt margarine in a 9 x 13 baking pan. Put 6 slices of bread in bottom of pan. In a bowl, mix 1 cup brown sugar with 1 tsp cinnamon. Sprinkle 1/2 of this mixture over bread. Add another layer of 6 slices of bread. In a bowl, whisk eggs with milk until well blended. Pour over bread layers. Sprinkle with remaining sugar mixture. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Bake covered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue baking 15 minutes or until set and browned.

Hashbrowns

I was baking a casserole for MOPS the other day and quickly realized I had forgot to buy the hashbrowns. In my moment of panic, I hopped on the internet and searched for recipes for hashbrowns. I'm not sure why I've been wasting my money on store bought hashbrowns all of these years because they are super simple to make. I made a few extra that morning so my husband and son could have some for breakfast. A few days later my super picky husband asked me to make them again. If he asks for something again, that means it has to be good because he very rarely ever wants me to make a new recipe again.

Hash Browns

potatoes
salt
pepper
onions or onion powder (optional)

I did not put quantities because you can adjust for the number of people you are serving. Start by heating a pan with oil (you can adjust the amount to fit your tastes and dietary needs). Next, peel potatoes and grate them. Mix with salt, pepper, and onion (if desired). Add mixture to hot pan (either as single serve patties or as one large serving) and cook until desired doneness, stirring as needed.

I made a batch with onion powder and one without and he approved of both (not knowing there was onion powder in one). My husband detests onions so I did not even try to use a real onion in them.