Zucchini Slice with Bacon Sausage

We're going to continue on the zucchini theme for a little while yet. I for one am not yet ready to embrace all things pumpkin and spice. The trees are still green, the sun is still warm, and most importantly, it's still summer! I'm going to hang on to every last second as long as I can. Today I have for you another somewhat different way to use up some zucchini you might have hanging around; it's my take on the zucchini slice, something I'd never heard of before I stumbled across it over at The Clever Carrot. Apparently it's an Australian thing, but other than that I know nothing about it. If someone out there would like to enlighten me feel free! 

I thought the recipe looked intriguing, full of zucchini and eggs with a relatively little amount of flour, like a cross between a savory quick bread and a frittata. And that's really how it turned out! I'd say the texture was more like a frittata, but a little less egg-y due to the flour. It'd be a great thing to have on hand for a quick and filling breakfast, or a light lunch. Easy to whip together and open to endless variations. A fun late summer project, and a great way to use up some zucchini and eat well all at the same time!

The original recipe called for some bacon, but when I went to the butcher, my eye's were drawn to a new sausage that was in the case, bacon sausage!! I thought this would be a fun place to try it so I went with the sausage instead of the actual bacon. I also added some red pepper along with the onion and topped it with a wonderful dry sheep's milk cheese that I picked up at the farmer's market last week. Feta would be a wonderful substitute, or creamy goat cheese for that matter. I also used 100% whole wheat flour in mine, which is probably why my slice does not look as beautiful and light as the pictures at The Clever Carrot looked, but don't let that stop you from trying out this fun recipe. 

Zucchini Slice with Bacon Sausage
Adapted from The Clever Carrot
Ingredients

• 3 cups grated zucchini, well drained
• 1/4 medium red onion, roughly chopped
• 1/2 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
• 1 bacon sausage, or alternatively 3 slices of bacon
• 5 eggs
• 2-3 tablespoons bacon fat
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• Crumbled sheep or goat's milk cheese

Directions
Preheat your oven to 350 F.Line an 8x8 square pan with parchment paper for easy removal. Coat with cooking spray (even when lined with parchment, the eggs can sometimes stick).

Using a box grater, shred the zucchini. Line a bowl with a clean kitchen towel and place the zucchini inside. Twist it up to close, and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Set the zucchini aside until ready to use.

In a large non-stick skillet, sauté the onion and red pepper until softened and just starting to take on some color, 10-15 minutes. 

Meanwhile, crack the eggs into a large bowl. Add the bacon fat. Season with black pepper and whisk well to combine. Toss in the sautéed onion and pepper, and the reserved zucchini. Crumble in the cooked bacon sausage (or bacon).  Mix well to combine everything. 

To the bowl, add the flour and baking powder. Continue to mix until it looks like pancake batter. Pour into your lined baking pan. Sprinkle the sheep or goat cheese over the top.

Bake until the filling is set, about 40-50 minutes. The top and bottom should be deep golden brown. Rotate the pan halfway through cooking time for even browning.

Remove from the oven and cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Date and Almond Breakfast Bars

Quick post this week. You may or may not have noticed my love for snack bars. Usually oat based, hearty, filling and on the healthier side. Well, here's another winner! These bars are soft, but not chewy, more of a sandy texture. They are slightly sweet, just enough for me, and a little salty (which I love!). The dates add a nice natural sweetness without being an overwhelming flavor. They bars bake up pretty firm and hold together unless it's really warm out, or they sit in a hot car for a while! Whoops!! 

I cut back slightly on the honey in these bars, just by 1 tablespoon. They may have been slightly firmer with that additional tablespoon, but I didn't mind them at all the way they turned out. While the title of this recipe is "breakfast bar" I really found them to be more of a homemade granola bar. But in the end it doesn't really matter what they are called. I just know I enjoyed them!

Date and Almond Breakfast Bars
Adapted from Donuts, Dresses and Dirt
Ingredients

• 2/3 cup (90-100 grams) chopped dates
• 1 1/4 cup (110 grams) old fashioned oats
• 3 tablespoons (22 grams) whole wheat flour
• 1/3 cup (20 grams) wheat germ
• 1/3 cup (35 grams) chopped almonds
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (65 grams) almond butter
• 1/4 cup (50 grams) olive oil
• 3 tablespoons (63 grams) honey
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Line a 8x8 inch pan with parchment paper and spray with oil. Set aside. 

Combine the dates, oats, flour, wheat germ, almonds, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond butter, olive oil, honey, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry mixture, and stir together until evenly combined. Spread the batter into the prepared pan, pressing the mixture firmly onto the bottom, edges and corners.

Bake the bars for 30-35 minutes, until they are golden brown all over. Cool the bars completely in the pan on a cooling rack. When mostly cool, transfer to the fridge and let them chill for a few hours. This will make it easier to cut into neat bars.  Remove from fridge and cut into bars.

Polenta Breakfast Squares with Kale and Quinoa

Given the choice between a sweet breakfast or a savory breakfast, I will pick sweet almost every time. There is almost nothing I like better than sitting down in the early morning with a steaming cup of coffee and a delicious, fresh baked pastry. Scones, cinnamon rolls, danishes, muffins, you get the picture, that's my idea of the perfect breakfast. This, however, does not mean that a savory breakfast is never appreciated, on the contrary, some days a perfectly fried sunny-side up egg served over a piece of cheesy toast is ideal. Or a big plate of scrambled eggs, fresh bread and a side of breakfast sausage. I won't discriminate. 

This recipe came from one of those mornings when sweet wasn't at the top of the list. I was feeling like something hearty and savory. I liked the idea of a fancied up polenta bake so I added in a little bit of what I had floating around the fridge; onions, kale and some quickly cooked quinoa for a little extra protein, but you could really add whatever you'd like in the flavor department. It ended up being the perfect fix for my savory breakfast craving. 

I used a recipe I found on The Kitchn as a starting point for these squares, but then adapted it for what I wanted and what I had in the fridge. What I was really hoping for is that these squares would hold together when they were cut and not just fall apart in a crumbly mess. Thankfully they ended up holding together quite well, but I did end up waiting until after they were refrigerated and thoroughly chilled before cutting them up, just to make sure. 

I ended up finding that my favorite way to eat these squares was to broil them in the oven until crisp and hot, then topping each square with a generous piece of cheese and letting the residual heat in the oven melt the cheese to perfection. I nice drizzle of romescu sauce, a poached egg, or even a good spoonful of salsa would also be wonderful. The square reheat well so let your imagination go wild!

Polenta Breakfast Squares with Kale and Quinoa
Adapted from The Kitchn
Ingredients

• 1/4 small onion, minced
• 2 handfuls kale, chopped into small pieces
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup (158 grams) cornmeal
• 90 grams quinoa, cooked according to package directions
• 2 1/2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Pepper
• 2 cups boiling water

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9-inch square baking dish (or something of similar size).

In a skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat, add the onion and cook for 8-10 minutes, until the onion has softened. Stir in the kale and cook for a few more minutes until kale is starting to wilt. Remove the skillet from the heat and add the cooked quinoa, stirring to combine. 

Beat the eggs in a large bowl and whisk in the milk, then whisk in the cornmeal and 1 1/2 tablespoons of the Parmesan cheese. Fold in the cooked onion and kale mixture, along with the salt and a generous quantity of black pepper. Pour into the prepared baking dish.

Pour in the 2 cups of boiling water and whisk to combine in the dish. Bake uncovered for 60-80 minutes total. After the first 20 minutes, whisk thoroughly, moving the polenta from the edges of the pan in to the center, and moving the center of the polenta out, to ensure the polenta is baking evenly. Continue baking until the polenta looks firm and golden-brown on top, and a knife comes out clean. Sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoons Parmesan over top while the casserole is still hot.

Serve warm, cold, or hot. The polenta will be fairly soft while hot, but will firm up as it cools. If you want nice, even slices, allow to cool and then refrigerate until chilled before cutting. 

Note: square reheat very well under the broiler; broil until nice and crisp on top, then top with a slice of cheese and allow to melt before digging in. 

Peanut Butter and Banana Baked Oatmeal Cups

I've been busy on my current rotation, it's been good, just some long days. Because of this, these oatmeal cups have been the perfect solution. They are super simple to whip together, and easy for a grab and go breakfast when I don't have much time to make anything else, or much time to spend eating breakfast. Having these in the freezer keep me from being tempted to waste my money on something less than nutritious at the hospital cafeteria, or buying something processed from the grocery store that is never as healthy as something I can make on my own. They freeze up so well so you can bake up a big batch and always have them on hand for busy mornings. They're definitely something you can feel good about eating. 

These baked oatmeal cups are hearty and healthy, full of nutritious whole grains and naturally sweetened with bananas. They are also super easy to adapt to your personal preferences. This time I added cranberries and walnuts, but I've also done chocolate chips, as well as other dried fruits or nuts. You can add whatever you want, which is so nice! I personally love oatmeal, but it's not exactly the easiest thing to eat on the run. These baked oatmeal cups are the perfect solution to the conundrum. You get all the deliciousness and health benefits of oatmeal with the convenience of a portable breakfast. 

Peanut Butter and Banana Baked Oatmeal Cups
Adapted From Celebrating Sweets
Ingredients

• 2 bananas (approximately 8 ounces total), mashed
• 1/4 cup (64 grams) peanut butter
• 3 tablespoons (45 grams) maple syrup (optional, depending on your desired sweetness)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons (50 grams) milk
• 2 cups (160 grams) old fashioned rolled oats
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 ounce raw walnuts
• 3/4 ounce dried cranberries

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil 8 muffin cups, set aside.

In a large bowl combine the bananas, peanut butter, maple syrup, vanilla and milk. Add oats, cinnamon and salt, stir to combine. Add walnuts and cranberries and mix until evenly incorporated.

Divide the mixture evenly between the prepared pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Nutrition: each cup is approximately 200 calories.

Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars

I had three very black bananas on my counter a few days ago that needed to be used. So when this banana oatmeal bar popped up on one of my recipe searches and called for 3-4 bananas, I knew what I needed to do. It was the perfect way to use those bananas up and provide me with a breakfast treat for the upcoming week. I love killing two birds with one stone! 

Another bonus; these bars are pretty healthy. Most of sugar comes from the bananas, with the addition of just a bit of brown sugar for a little extra sweetness. There is actually no wheat flour in these bars either, just oat flour that I made in my food processor. Chocolate chips and a few walnuts added in bring the whole thing together into a tasty and hearty bar. 

The original recipe called for 1/4 cup applesauce, but I rarely have applesauce in my house, so I just used an egg instead and it worked out just fine. It also used 1/4 cup maple syrup that I replaced with just a couple tablespoons of brown sugar. I cut back a little on the sugar, using only 2 tablespoons, but if you like things a little sweeter you can go ahead and use the full 1/4 cup.

I also didn't put tons of chocolate or walnuts into the bar, but feel free to use more if you want. It's really just a preference thing. Play around with it and find out what you like best!

Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bars
Adapted From Lauren Kelly Nutrition
Ingredients

• 2 1/3 cup (185 grams) oats, ground into flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 ripe bananas (14-15 ounces total)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 2-4 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1.5 ounces chocolate chips
• 1 ounces walnuts (optional)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 8 inch square pan with baking spray and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together oat flour cinnamon, soda, powder and salt. In a medium bowl, blend the bananas, vanilla, egg and brown sugar until well combined and mostly smooth.

Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and blend to combine. Add in the chocolate chips and walnuts and stir until evenly distributed. Pour batter into your prepared pan and bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool completely and slice.

Almond Bear Claws

Starting a couple of years ago, my mom, my sister and I began a wonderful weekend tradition. Almost every Saturday morning without fail, we have been leaving our house bright and early and driving into Grand Rapids to eat pastries and drink hot coffee at our favorite bakery. It is the highlight of my week, giving me something to look forward to at the end of some long, tiring weeks. This is our time to chat, talk about our week, what's been going on, and to just unwind and enjoy some of my favorite things. 

While I love all pastries and other baked goods, and could order anything at the bakery and be happy with my choice, I have gotten stuck ordering the same thing week after week because it is just so good. Almost every single Saturday I order myself a nice big vanilla almond bear claw. I've had bear claws at other bakeries, but these are the absolute best I've ever had. They are big, buttery and generously packed full of a wonderful almond filling. Over the past year, I've been trying to figure out just what exactly this filling is made of. I even contacted someone at the bakery to see if they could help me at all, and while they of course wouldn't tell me what the filling is made of, they gave me a few hints that helped guide me in my search. 

Then just a few weeks ago I found it. A recipe popped up online that sounded like what I was looking for so I dove in and gave it a shot. The verdict? It was exactly what I was hoping for. To me it tastes almost exactly like the filling from the bakery. My bear claws turned out beautifully and absolutely delicious. It is so satisfying to have solved the puzzle. Even if the recipe is not exactly the same as the bakery's, it tastes right to me and that's all that matters. 

This is definitely not a quick recipe, and I won't be making these bear claws every week, but it is always nice to know that I can if I want to. You need to make a laminated dough to start, the recipe I was using called for danish dough, but I had some croissant dough in the freezer that I used instead and it worked out just fine. Then there is the filling which mainly involves a lot of cake scraps. Since I don't make cakes constantly and have cake scraps just lying around, this meant I just baked up a plain butter cake and then crumbled it up to use in the filling. It worked out great, but does involve another step. 

Once you have all of this set it is really not too difficult to assemble. Roll your dough out, fill it, and cut it how you would like. I ended up making smaller bear claws (cub claws I guess we could say) because I don't need a ginormous pastry every morning, but you can really do whatever you want. However you go about doing it I can guarantee it will be delicious! 

Almond Bear Claws
Adapted from The Village Baker's Wife by Gayle C. Ortiz, Joe Ortiz, and Louisa Beers
Ingredients

• 1/2 recipe Danish dough (or croissant dough, that's what I had, so that's what I used!)
• Bear claw filling, at room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 1/2 cups sliced almonds
• Powdered sugar or simple glaze for drizzling, if desired

Directions
Lightly flour your work surface. Roll your dough into a long rectangle that is 5 1/2 -6 inches wide and however long it needs to be so that the dough is about 1/4 inch thick. Form the filling into a long log about 1 inch in diameter and place it along the top third of the rectangle of dough making a continuous strip of filling that runs the length of the dough. 

Fold the top third of the dough over the filling, then fold the filled section over the last third so that the seam is in the center underneath the folded dough. 

With the heal of your hand, flatten one long side of the folded up piece of dough. Cut each log into pieces, mine were each about 2 1/2 inches long, the original recipe suggested 5 1/4 inch pieces, so really however big you want them to be. 

Make cuts along each flattened side of dough about 3/4 inch into the dough and about 1/2 inch apart. 

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk to make an egg glaze. With a pastry brush, coat each pastry with the egg glaze and sprinkle with the almonds, pressing down slightly to make them stick. Transfer the pastries to a parchment lined baking sheet, leaving enough room between them so that they can rise. Taking each end of the pastry in your hands, bend into a horseshoe shape by bringing the ends toward one other. 

Let the pastries rest at room temperature for about 1 1/2 hours until double in size and feel like a marshmallow when pressed gently with a finger. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees about 30 minutes prior to baking. 

Bake the pasties for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown on the top and the bottom. When pastries are completely cool drizzle with a simple powdered sugar and water glaze if desired, or dust generously with powdered sugar.

Bear Claw Filling
From The Village Baker's Wife by Gayle C. Ortiz, Joe Ortiz, and Louisa Beers
Ingredients

• 8 cups (1 1/2 pounds) lightly packed cake scraps (see note)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
• 1/4 - 3/4 cup water
• 1/2 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons (1 oz) butter, melted and cooled

Directions
Combine all of the ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low until smooth and combined. The filling should be soft, but firm enough to hold its shape. 

Note: If you, like me, don't have 8 cups of cake scraps lying around, a quick yellow cake is easy enough to whip together. I made this Plain and Simple Golden Cake from King Arthur Flour and it gave me almost the 1 1/2 pounds of cake crumbs needed. I supplemented the rest with a few leftover sugar cookies and mini cupcakes from Christmas that were in my freezer, but you could probably get by with just using this cake. 

Christmas Morning Breakfast Wreath

Today I'm excited to share one of the most beautiful and delicious recipes I've ever made. Last week I went to one of my favorite bakeries because I had to get a loaf of their stollen before Christmas was over. I'd never actually tried stollen, but I knew I would love this dense, heavy fruitcake filled with boozy dried fruit and almond paste, covered in butter and sugar. I was right, it is one of the most delicious breads I have ever eaten. Inspired by this bread, I decided to make something along the same lines for my Christmas morning breakfast. This recipe that I found from The Kitchn was the reminiscent of a traditional stollen, but with a twist, perfect for a festive breakfast to celebrate Christmas morning.

The ingredient list may look long for this recipe, but it really isn't any more difficult than most yeasted breads. The whole concept is similar to making cinnamon rolls, but with a filling of dried fruit and almonds instead of cinnamon sugar. 

I actually halved the original recipe since there was only two of us to eat this cake and we certainly didn't need the whole recipe. There were no problems halving the recipe, the only thing that changed was that the wreath wasn't as big as the original, there wasn't much of a hole in the middle, but this this didn't affect the finished product in any way other than looks. 

The recipe called for the wreath to be baked for 25 minutes, but when I checked mine at this point it wasn't anywhere near being done. I ended up baking it for about 50 minutes total. I don't know where this discrepancy came from, but I thought my wreath was baked perfectly at 50 minutes, I don't know why it took double the time called for in the original recipe. The only thing I can think of is that since I halved the recipe and my wreath was much more compact, it took longer for it to cook through, but who knows. Regardless, this recipe turned out so absolutely delicious, the perfect way to start off my Christmas morning!

Christmas Morning Breakfast Wreath
Adapted from The Kitchn
Ingredients
For the bread:

• 1 1/2-1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 3/4 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
• 1 teaspoon instant yeast
• 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
• 1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
• 2 tablespoons warm water 
• 1/4 cup warm milk
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten 

For the fruit-almond filling:

• 1/3 cup dried cranberries, cherries, and/or raisins soaked in 1/2 cup brandy or other liqueur
• 2-3 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
• 2 1/2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour 
• 1/3 cup finely chopped almonds
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 4 oz almond paste, crumbled
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon peel
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated orange peel
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

For the sugar glaze:

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon orange juice
• 1/8 teaspoon cardamom powder

Directions
Prepare the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together the flour, sugar, salt, cardamom powder, yeast, lemon and orange peel. Add the butter, water, milk and egg and mix until starting to form a shaggy mass. Then turn on the mixer and knead until it forms a smooth and supple dough (add more water if it is too dry and more flour if it is too wet as needed).

Place dough in a lightly oiled mixing bowl large enough to accommodate dough when doubled in size. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.

Prepare the cranberry-almond filling: Drain the dried fruit from the liqueur and reserve the liqueur for another use. In a small bowl, combine the drained fruit with remaining filling ingredients. Cover and refrigerate.

Shape the dough: When dough has doubled in size, punch it down and turn it out onto a lightly floured board, kneading just enough to release any air bubbles. Roll the dough into a long rectangle. Crumble the filling over the dough to within 1 inch of the edges. Starting along a long side, tightly roll up the dough, pinching edge against loaf to seal. With a sharp knife, cut roll in half lengthwise. Carefully turn the halves so the cut sides are facing up, and then loosely twist the halves around each other, keeping cut sides up. (Check out the photos from The Kitchn if you're having a difficult time visualizing this.)

Line a baking sheet with parchment or non-stick baking mat. Carefully transfer the rope to the baking sheet and shape into a wreath, pinching the ends together to seal. Let it rise, uncovered, in a warm place until puffy, about 45 minutes. (Alternatively, place wreath immediately into the fridge and let it rise overnight. In the morning, remove from fridge and allow to come to room temperature, 1/2-1 hour before proceeding with baking.)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake the wreath until lightly browned, 45-50 minutes. While the wreath is baking, stir together the ingredients for the glaze and set aside.

When wreath is done, transfer to a cooling rack by picking up the sides of the parchment and then sliding the parchment out from underneath. Cool for a few minutes then drizzle the glaze over the warm wreath. Serve with extra butter if you're feeling decadent.

Blueberry Mango Parfait

Blueberry season is officially in full swing here in Michigan, and I'm loving it! They are so good, and so good for you, a great combo. I also like that they aren't too expensive, and they last for a while in the fridge. I love raspberries and blackberries but it seems like you have to eat them in a day or they start going bad. I bought some blueberries at the farmer's market on Saturday and they made it until Thursday, and still looked really good. I only had to pick out a few bad ones here and there over the week, but the majority lasted just fine, they probably would have made it a whole week if I hadn't eaten them before that. 

One of my favorite ways to have fresh fruit for breakfast is in a parfait. All it takes is a couple of different types of fruit, yogurt and granola. It is super easy and absolutely delicious. I almost feel like I'm eating dessert for breakfast, just how I like it! This week I picked up a couple of mangos at the grocery store and made a couple of blueberry mango parfaits. Let me tell you, it's a winning combination. The tartness of the blueberries mixed with the sweetness of the mango is a wonderful mix, and the colors are so beautiful too! I think everyone should try it out before blueberry season has ended, trust me, you won't regret it. 

I'm partial to my plain, homemade yogurt, but you can use whatever kind you like. Whatever brand you get, I strongly suggest trying out plain yogurt instead of the flavored. There is so much sugar in the flavored yogurts it's kind of ridiculous. It takes a little getting used to the plain yogurt, but if you mix it up with some fruit and granola you won't even miss the added sugar. And as a bonus, plain yogurt is good for so many different things, from salad dressings and sauces, to baked goods, it's a great thing to always have on hand. If you need a little sweetness, add your own sugar, it will still be way less than what is added to the kind from the store. 

I'm also partial to homemade granola. It is so easy and cheap to make, and it tastes so much better than store bought. There are so many recipes out there, you are sure to find one that you like. I'll be sharing my current favorite recipe soon, so stay tuned! 

Blueberry Mango Parfait

Ingredients

A handful of blueberries

1/2 a mango, cut into bite-sized chunks

1/3-1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

A handful of granola

Directions

Grab a tall glass and starting with a little yogurt start layering; yogurt, granola, fruit. Repeat until you've used it all up. Top with an extra sprinkle of granola. Grab a long spoon and dig in!