Mom's Coffee Cake

My mom has been making this amazing breakfast my entire life. It's truly the best coffee cake I have ever had! It's so moist and flavorful and it's one of the best things to wake up too. The aroma that fills the house is just incredible. This coffee cake is a huge downfall for my mom and I, we nibble on it all throughout the day..it gets bad. It's Ellie's birthday, so she requested this for her breakfast. It's always a popular request for a birthday breakfast in the family :)

Ingredients:
Layer and Topping
Combine ingredients and set aside
1 cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons flour
4 teaspoons cinnamon
4 tablespoons butter, melted

Wet mixture. In another bowl, work sugar and shortening together with a fork & add the eggs and milk to the mixture and set aside:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2 eggs
1 cup milk

Dry Ingedients
Sift together:
3 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

Have a 9x13 pan greased and ready. Combine dry and wet ingredients together and QUICKLY pour 1/2 the batter into the prepared pan. Evenly spread 1/2 of the layer mixture over batter. Pour the remaining batter on top of the layer, then quickly spread the remaining layer/topping mixture on top.
 ** The batter can be difficult to work with, so make sure and have more batter for the 2nd layer because it's easier to cover the sugar mixture with more batter.**

Bake at 375* for 25-30 minutes.
Must server with real butter melted on top!
This heats up great the next day!

Can't forget the milk! 

Honey Nut Granola

Don't spend money on granola,the price is outrageous! So here is a recipe that taste better than store bought and way cheaper. I don't know why I've never made it before, but I did today and it turned out great! The thing I love about granola is you can add just about anything to it...walnuts, pecans, peanuts, crasins, almonds, rasins...anything. So here is a really simple recipe that only takes about an hour to make. Everyone in my family loved it and is so good on yogurt and it makes a great cereal. 

Ingredients:

3 cups quick cooking oats (I used old fashion & it worked fine)

½ cup chopped peanuts (or nuts of choice)

¼ cup wheat germ  or (I used flax seed)

1/3 cup honey + a little more when mixing

1/3 cup brown sugar (a little less than 1/3 cup)

¼ cup vegetable oil

2 tablespoon warm water

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/8 cup crasins or rasins (optional) 

Directions:

 1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet. 

2.  In a large bowl, combine oats, peanuts, and wheat germ (or flax).  In a separate bowl, combine honey, brown sugar, vegetable oil, water, salt, and vanilla. Stir well; then pour into the oat mixture, and stir. Spread out on a cookie sheet (it is really helpful to line it with parchment paper). Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool before serving.

**I cooked mine for about 1 hour and 20 minutes, but I think it's because I used old fashion oats** I was worried because it wasn't getting hard in the oven, but it hardens after you take it out of the oven and let it set. So don't worry if its still moist...it will harden up! 

More granola combinations to come! This recipe was adapted from All Recipes

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

This is one of my favorite meals in the entire world! My mom and I discovered these pancakes in the fall of last year and we are hooked on these! It is probably one of the best pancakes I have ever had in my life! The flavor is out of this world, it's downright amazing! Homemade Buttermilk Caramel Syrup, homemade whip cream and walnuts on top...nothing is better than that! We've made these pancakes for countless people and they all LOVE them! They are such a treat in the morning. Warning!!! You will crave these ALL the time! Also I think it is important that you know...you will not have any manners when you eat these, you may lick the plate. I do! 

Ingredients for pancakes:
2 1/2 cups flour
4 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 cups milk
3/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
4 tablespoons melted butter
2 eggs

Directions:
Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder cinnamon, ground ginger, salt, nutmeg, and a pinch of ground cloves. In a separate bowl, stir together milk, pumpkin puree, melted butter, and egg; fold mixture into dry ingredients. Set griddle to 350* and use non-stick spray on a griddle. Pour the desired size of the pancake. Cook pancakes about 2-3 minutes per side. Serve with Buttermilk Caramel Syrup, homemade whip cream, and walnuts on top (instructions listed below). Enjoy!



Caramel Buttermilk Syrup:
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
In a large saucepan, bring buttermilk, sugars, and butter to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat and whisk in soda and vanilla. It will bubble a lot. Use a large enough saucepan to prevent syrup from boiling over. As it cools, the bubbles will go away. Keep the left overs in a dish and store in the refrigerator. After it is stored in the refrigerator, you will have to warm the syrup before serving again. We place the bottle in warm water before serving so it becomes liquid again. Or you could microwave it.




Homemade Whip Cream:
1 cup of heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons of powdered sugar

Directions:
Make sure whipping cream is cold and place in mixer. Add the sugar. Using the whisk attachment, beat the cream on high until peaks are formed. Takes about 2 minutes. Enjoy!

Banana & Peanut Butter Sushi

I made this yummy treat for my breakfast this morning. Makes a great snack or lunch and it was super easy and delicious! Kids would love it for a snack too!

Here's what you need:
1 flour tortilla
2 Tablespoons of Peanut Butter
1 medium banana
Cinnamon & Sugar

Place peanut butter all over the tortilla. Place the whole banana on the peanut butter then sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on top! Slice up into bite sizes and place tooth picks on top :) You have just made yummy protein filled sushi!

My alternative to ice cream is Greek Yogurt!

My yummy dessert of the night!

When everyone in my family is having ice cream, I have Greek yogurt! I made my own version of a banana split tonight and it was super good! This makes a great snack or breakfast too!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
3-4 frozen strawberries (defrost in microwave)
half of a banana
1/8 cup pineapple tidbits
homemade whip cream (if desired)
walnuts sprinkled on top
stevia to sweeten yogurt

I put my yogurt in the freezer for about 2o mins so it got kind of slushy, then I put all my toppings on top!

Quick Healthy Breakfast!

Extreme Toast!

I love this breakfast when I’m in a rush! My mom usually makes an amazing homemade breakfast every morning, but when she takes a break from the kitchen, this is what I make! I especially love it on Dave’s Killer Bread! Quick, easy and healthy!

What you need:

Whole Grain Bread

1 TBS Adams Peanut Butter

Half a banana

Raisins

Chopped walnuts are super yummy on top too!  

The raisins are such a good go together with bananas and peanut butter! Must try!

Low Calorie No Crust Quiche

This is a yummy quiche recipe if you are looking for a low calorie breakfast that will fill you up! I don't miss the crust either...it saves extra calories! You can eat 1/4 of this quiche for only 204 calories & and refrigerate the rest for later :) 

7 eggs

2/3c. & a little more milk

Any veggies desired :) Spinach, broccoli, zucchini, mushrooms, red onions, peppers, squash, feta, bacon bits….Whatever is on hand! (Ps...You can also add cheese if you want to splurge a bit) 

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Oil a pie pan and chop veggies or meats into small pieces.  Spread veggies along the bottom and fill the pan. Combine eggs and milk in a bowl. Pour the mixture over the veggies & bake for 30 minutes or until lightly browned.

 204 calories for a quarter of quiche . 16grams protei&13grams fat