BitterSweet

An Obsession with All Things Handmade and Home-Cooked

Tag Archives: breakfast


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Breakfast for Dinner

How can it be that I’ve gone about my life for 24 years, blissfully ignorant of the glorious celebration that is National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Month? That’s 24 wasted Aprils, 24 missed opportunities to indulge in this childhood pleasure. No- Make that only 23 chances to indulge in melted cheesy goodness between two pieces of toasted bread, because this is the year that I start making up for lost time.

The time to start small with the standard assemblage has passed; I’m plunging in with gusto. Ditching the standard white or wheat bread, the party gets started with two fluffy pancakes on either end. Ever so lightly sweetened, they provide the perfect counterpoint to the salty, savory ingredients that they flank. After cooking and cooling, the pancakes go back into the frying pan, this time topped with a heaping handful of Mexican Style Shreds, so graciously provided by Go Veggie! (formerly known as Galaxy). Once melted to a magnificently gooey consistency, one pancake is topped with a hefty serving of the eggiest, creamiest tofu scramble I know, while the other is garnished with thinly sliced ripe tomato. Grilled until warmed through, the two halves come together to create one monster of a sandwich, better than a mere grilled cheese and yet one that carries the same comforting nostalgia. Break out the fork and knife for this one, because it’s messy, it’s sloppy, and oh so satisfying.

Oh April, if only I knew of your cheesy charms sooner. If this is just the start, this will be a good month, indeed.


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A Sweet Start to Spring

There may be a fresh coat of snow on the ground, but here’s some news that will surely put a spring in your step: The spring 2013 issue of Allergic Living Magazine has been been unleashed! Even if the weather doesn’t cooperate with our calendar-assigned seasonal switch, a responsible publication will always follow the rules. Like clockwork, the latest quarterly will hit newsstands near you well before the flowers bloom.

It was my pleasure to work with the incomparable Alisa Fleming once more, illustrating her latest batch of tempting recipes. For this issue, it was all about bringing a bit of sweetness to the early hours of the day, all without any gluten or dairy, and easy options to accommodate any dietary restrictions.

Crisp on the outside but light and fluffy within, Strawberry Shortcake Waffles are sure to pull anyone out of even the deepest winter funk. Softly whipped coconut cream tops off each ridged breakfast cake, complete with gently macerated and fork-tender ripe strawberries. It’s the complete package for anyone who’s craving a bit of decadence first thing in the morning.

Cinnamon Roll Pancakes were clearly designed with the voracious sweet tooth in mind, satisfying that sugar craving without starting the day in a sugar coma. Luscious ripples of brown sugar and cinnamon are swirled throughout each and every flapjack, perfectly fitting their namesakes both in taste and appearance. The whole short stack wouldn’t be complete without a light drizzle of icing, of course.

Recipes this good really shouldn’t be relegated only to the morning’s first meals… Either of them are more than worthy of a dessert or after dinner treat, too!


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The Second Storm

“This is the worst winter ever!”

“You do realize it’s still early November, right?”

To that I could only groan, burying my frozen face as deeply into my wind-whipped hair as the paltry jacket hood would allow. Flecks of snow and tiny, sharp pieces of hail battered us head-on as we climbed uphill. It was a silly mistake, really, underestimating the power of the latest apocalyptic weather predictions while overestimating the strength of the car’s tires. Everything would have been just peachy if we had stayed inside, tending the pumpkin seeds in the oven and putting off our trip to the store until morning. We were just too ambitious.

Our grave error in judgement came into clear focus as the car slid slowly down hill, hugging the curves just fine but continuing along without consulting the driver. It was this very Curve of Death that got me last year, so my mom smartly stepped up to man the wheel. Thus, we were in this together, assessing the situation minute by minute with carefully chosen words, attempting not to alarm one another. Eventually the bottom of the slope met our gently free falling vehicle, and it was game over. Nothing could have convinced those wheels to grip and carry us home. The only choice was to set the hazard lights blinking, abandon ship, and trudge a mile home. There are certainly far worse outcomes, but I can’t say it’s exactly how I wanted to spend my evening, nor the most fun challenge to tackle in open high heeled shoes.

Naturally, the pumpkin seeds we left for “just a moment” were roasted to an extra-dark shade of doneness… Otherwise known as burnt.

So what was it that compelled me to suggest leaving the warm, safe house in the first place? Some matter of pressing urgency, a critical need that needed to be addressed immediately?

Oatmeal. Pre-cooked and frozen steel-cut oatmeal from Trader Joe’s, if I must be humiliatingly precise. I never meant to get so impossibly hooked on the stuff, regarding it as a novelty at first but now depending on it for a daily fix. Every single day for at least three years now, this is the stuff that gets me out of bed in the AM hours. Proper oatmeal cookery continues to elude me, and the time required for this morning meal would otherwise be prohibitive. At least, that’s what I tell myself as I reach for a 4th and 5th box on my weekly Joe’s run.

No more. After this little incident, I’m determined not to be completely dependent on Joe to satisfy my craving. Better yet, I can make something that he can’t put in a box, something that can’t be bought, and will hardly take any additional time. It’s all thanks to my handy pressure cooker that it’s possible, and completely painless. Toss ingredients in, set the timer, and in mere minutes the oats are tender, pleasantly chewy, and creamy all at once. A crisp caramelized sugar topping puts standard steel-cut oats on a whole new level, perfect for a holiday breakfast, brunch, or just any day that a treat is in order. Straddling that fine line between healthy oats and indulgent custard, its far richer than the stuff from the freezer aisle, but still something to feel good about getting a second helping of. With or without the added thrill of a brûléed top crust, oats have never had it so good.

Steel-Cut Oat Brûlée

1 3/4 Cups Plain Non-Dairy Milk
1/4 Cup Raw Cashews
1/2 Cup Quick-Cooking Steel Cut Oats
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Cup Maple Syrup
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Brûlée Topping:

3 Tablespoons Dark Brown Sugar, Firmly Packed
1 Teaspoon Water

First, place the non-dairy milk and cashews in your blender and thoroughly puree, until completely smooth. This will create a thicker, richer “milk” to cook the oats in. If you don’t have a high-speed blender, soak the cashews for 4 – 6 hours beforehand so that they break down more readily. Otherwise, you may also substitute 2 cups of full-fat coconut milk or vegan creamer for the two ingredients and skip this step altogether.

In your pressure cooker, combine the blended cashew creme, oats, salt, and maple syrup, and stir well. Bring to high pressure and cook for 11 minutes, and then let the pressure fall naturally (natural release) until the seal is broken and the lid can be opened. Mix in the vanilla extract.

Divide the cooked oats equally between 4 – 6 ramekins, and let cool to room temperature. The oatmeal can be refrigerated and stored for up to 5 days at this point, frozen for 3 – 4 months, or Brûléed right away. If using frozen oats, allow them to fully thaw first, and if using chilled oats, allow them to come back up to room temperature.

Mix together the brown sugar and water to create a thick sugar paste. Spread 1 – 2 teaspoons over the tops of each ramekin filled with oats, to evenly coat the surface. Place the ramekins under a hot broiler set to high, and cook until the sugar bubbles and caramelizes. Serve immediately, with berries or sliced bananas if desired.

Makes 4 – 6 Servings

Printable Recipe


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Nog, Nog Everywhere…

…But far too much to drink! Delightful as it is to open up the fridge and see a fully stocked shelf of nothing but vegan nog, it’s simply too much for one person to polish off alone, obsessed with the seasonal beverage or not. After a couple of egg-nog-creams (Inspired by the traditional egg cream: Equal parts nog and seltzer water, plus a splash of vanilla) and then numerous ginger-nog milkshakes (Plop 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream into a blender, pour in nog to cover, add ground ginger to taste and blend. Add an extra flourish of whipped coconut creme and finely chopped crystallized ginger on top if desired), I’ve hardly begun to make a dent in that stockpile. Time to get serious and turn on the oven.

Lightly sweetened breakfast biscuits with an extra measure of holiday cheer, scones are not only an excellent way of using up some extra nog, but are also ideal for harried bakers who must soon accommodate hungry family members for Christmas breakfasts and brunches. A fine sprinkling of turbinado sugar seals the deal, providing that lightly crunchy but readily yielding crunch, adding addictive textural contrast to the whole affair. Feel free to swap out the walnuts for any other nut or even chocolate chips if that strikes your fancy, but whatever you, don’t even dream of skipping that sweet final touch.

Managing so much of this limited edition treat at once, it was inevitable that I would start serving up nog for breakfast. Happily, these scones are considerably more elegant and dignified than the alternative- A generous splash of nog over cold cereal!

Holiday Nog Scones

1 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
1 Cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
3/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
5 Tablespoons Non-Dairy Margarine, Chilled
3/4 Cup Toasted and Chopped Walnuts
2/3 Cup + 2 – 3 Tablespoons Vegan Nog
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

4 Teaspoons Turbinado Sugar

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with either parchment paper or a silpat.

Mix both flours, sugar, baking powder and soda, salt, and spices together in a large bowl until thoroughly blended. Cut the margarine into tablespoon-sized pieces before dropping them into the dry goods. Using a pastry cutter or two forks, cut in the margarine until you have coarse crumbs with chunks of margarine no larger than the size of a lentil. Toss in the walnuts, and pour in 2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons of the nog along with the vanilla. Switch over to a spatula to mix the dough, drizzling in additional nog as needed if the batter is on the dry side. You should end up a slightly sticky dough but cooperative dough.

Measure out around 1/3 – 1/2 cup of batter for each scone, and use lightly moistened hands to shape them into even rounds. You should end up with 8 equal scones. Sprinkle each with 1/2 teaspoon of turbinado sugar.

Bake for 14 – 16 minutes, until golden brown all over. Serve warm or cool on a wire rack for later. Place in an air-tight container or wrap tightly in plastic and store in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Makes 8 Scones

Printable Recipe


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Make Room for Mesquite

Wrapped up in soft long sleeves and knee-high socks, the night air still felt unseasonably harsh. Pumpkins and butternut squash looked like aliens in the produce department, suddenly materializing out of nowhere. Have they always been quite so orange, or so large? A year is a long time to go without seeing a close friend, and any small change (or constant, for that matter) seems magnified to outlandish proportions. Considering that it’s now mid-September, the annual shift in temperatures and available vegetables is right on schedule, but it’s me that is behind the times.

Nightfall comes to earlier, too, and the air is much too dry. Autumn is no doubt a beautiful time of year with many good aspects to look forward to, but I’m just not ready to embrace it yet. There are still cherry tomatoes ripening in the garden, for crying out loud!

But fall waits for no one; an impatient and demanding guest at best. Unwilling to dive into the deep end right away, a gentle dip into the season sounded like a more comfortable approach. One toe at a time, feeling out the waters, trying hard to settle in no matter how swift the current. Passing the squash for now, I moved on to a long-forgotten bag of flour in my pantry that seemed like an easier way to greet autumn. Yes, flour: Mesquite flour, to be precise.

Mesquite flour isn’t seasonal per se, but it has cooler weather written all over it if you ask me. Mesquite reminds me of autumn because it has a warm, toasty flavor, reminiscent of a crackling, smokey wood fire in the fireplace. That rich, earthy scent that fills the air as the smoke rises up through the chimney and is whisked away with the brisk breeze; That’s what I think of every time I open up that bag of flour and inhale deeply. Just like that, I’m feeling warmer and lighter in spirit already.

Turning on the oven never felt more satisfying. After nearly record breaking stretches of silence over the summer, it creaked grumpily back to life before returning to a contented purr. Something simple and comforting was in order, and I knew just the thing. Muffins, inspired by those made by Amanda Chronister (previously of Vegan Core) as part of a swap practically a lifetime ago, sounded like a tender and sweet vehicle for this dark, warm flavor. Continuing to tweak as I went, the muffins became anything but the simple crumb-topped treats I had first envisioned. Coffee took the place of soymilk and cacao nibs made a crunchy companion to the chocolate chips, further enhancing the roasted essence of the mesquite. Ending up with something entirely different from the inspiration, I was happy nonetheless to still have found the original recipe, still as cute and carefully drawn out as ever.


Click to see the original recipe at full size

While mesquite may not be an everyday sort of ingredient, it’s worth the pantry space when it can deliver such a unique and satisfying flavor as this.

Chocolate Chip Mesquite Muffins

1 Cup + 2 Tablespoons All Purpose Flour
1/3 Cup Mesquite Flour
3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
2 Teaspoons Ground Flaxseeds
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
Pinch Cinnamon
1/2 Cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips or Chunks
1/4 Cup Cacao Nibs
1/3 Cup Canola Oil
3/4 Cup Brewed Coffee, Chilled

Turbinado Sugar, to Top

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees, and either lightly grease or line 10 standard muffin tins with cupcake papers. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the both flours, sugar, ground flax, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Toss in the chocolate and cacao nibs, and mix lightly to coat the pieces with flour.

Separately, stir together the oil and coffee before pouring both into the bowl of dry goods. Stir just enough to combine and create a mostly smooth batter. Distribute the batter equally between your prepared muffins tins, and lightly sprinkle the tops with turbinado sugar.

Bake for 15 – 18 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center pulls out clean. (Make sure that gooey chocolate chips don’t trick you into over-baking the muffins!) Let cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before letting them come to room temperature on a wire rack.

Makes 10 Muffins

Printable Recipe


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Oldie but Goodie

Recipes come and go as the years pass, but coconuts are forever. At least, the latest coconut craze seems like its a trend that could last until the end of eternity. Looking back on older posts where I declared 2009 the “year of the coconut,” I have to wonder what that made 2010, and now 2011, too, because that tropical fruit was still king of the health food castle last time I checked.

Not everything is the same since that original review though. Branding has become more dangerous, a fine line between enticing and deceiving customer, and wording on packages more careful. You’ll no longer find coconut kefir in the marketplace, but “cultured coconut beverages” instead. Same thing, new name. Perhaps it was deemed a more accurate description of the opaque bottles’ contents, or just a more approachable label for those intimidated by fermented edibles, but I can’t say for sure. All I do know is that it can still make a mean stack of pancakes.

Though these pancakes originally showed up around the same time as that review post, I never shared the recipe. Unsurprisingly, the no-bake “kefir” cheesecake stole the spotlight at the time. It’s a damn shame, because these are some of the fluffiest pancakes to escape my frying pan, and the added nuance of subtle coconut flavor adds an irresistible element of salty, savory goodness. Their naturally tropical flavor makes them the perfect fit for a summer breakfast or brunch, but still every bit as tasty served up in any season.

If you can’t find the cultured coconut beverage in your area, you could very happily substitute 1 cup of plain coconut yogurt plus 1/2 cup of plain coconut beverage (or any non-dairy milk) instead. To really bump up the coconut flavor if you want more than a gentle hint, add a splash of coconut extract.

Fluffy Coconut Pancakes

1 Cup All Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup Coconut Flour
1 Tablespoon Granulated Sugar
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
Pinch Salt
1 1/2 Cups Original (Plain) Cultured Coconut Beverage
1/3 Cup Water
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Like most pancakes, these couldn’t be easier to whip up. Just combine both flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl, and whisk to distribute all of the dry goods. Separately, stir together the coconut beverage, water, oil, and vanilla, and then pour these liquids into the large bowl as well. Whisk just to combine; a few lumps are just fine here, so don’t over-mix.

Place a large (preferably non-stick) skillet over medium heat, and very lightly grease. Use about 3 – 4 tablespoons of batter for each pancake, and cook on the first side for 4 – 6 minutes, until bubbles burst on the top and they feel sturdy enough to flip. Flip, and cook on the second side for an additional 2 – 5 minutes, until golden and fully cooked through in the center. Serve immediately, or keep warm in an oven preheated on the “warm” setting.

PS, for a treat that combines the best of breakfast and dessert, try a short stack of these babies with a generous scoop of coconut ice cream on top!

Makes 3 – 4 Servings

Printable Recipe


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Quirky, Crunchy Quinoa

Craving a thick slice of cake first thing in the morning isn’t such an unusual thing in this house; Typically, one would simply need to pick up a knife, and shave a hunk off of whatever was made the day prior to indulge that impulse. The breakfast of champions, we would joke to anyone who could hear it, and possibly question that breakfast choice. Lately though, the cake stand has remained clean and empty, tucked away with the other stacks of plates and props in the closet. Time is getting the best of me, with the demands of so many freelance assignments on top of a brand new school semester to juggle, and the pastries just aren’t flying out of the kitchen like they used to. Plus, working on an ice cream cookbook demands that the oven remain silent for the better part of the week, lest I end up contending with a very messy and sticky photo shoot mid-afternoon.

So, what’s a gal with a yen for something sweet supposed to do in the early morning, craving something reminiscent of cake? Given the time to think about it and prepare in advance, make something healthier.

Perhaps I’ve strayed too far off the pastry path for some of you, but believe it or not, this quinoa concoction fulfilled that breakfast craving. Think carrot cake with a crunchier outcome, this simple cereal is more like granola in texture, but still much lighter than the typical nut- and fruit-heavy options.

I like it best with the sweetness and gentle twang of vanilla coconut yogurt (that early in the morning, I can almost pretend it’s cream cheese frosting) plus fresh berries, but the beauty of this basic formula is how easy it is to dress it up or down. Go crazy with mix-ins, or just eat it out of hand, on the go. This was just the healthy remodel that my “cake for breakfast” habit was long overdue for anyway!

Carrot Cake Quinoa Cereal
Inspired by Oh She Glows

1 Cup Uncooked Quinoa
2 Cups Carrot Juice
1 Tablespoon Flax Seeds, Ground
1 Tablespoon Chia Seeds
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
3 – 4 Tablespoons Agave Nectar
1 1/4 Teaspoons Ground Cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Ginger
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Pinch Ground Nutmeg
Pinch Salt

Begin by cooking your quinoa in the carrot juice. Simply bring the carrot juice to a boil in a small pot, and add in the dry quinoa. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and let cook gently for 15 – 20 minutes, until the liquid has all been absorbed. Let cool completely before proceeding. You can speed this up by transferring the cooked quinoa to a large bowl and stirring it around a bit, to let it air-dry more quickly.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees, and lightly grease a baking sheet with sides.

In a medium bowl, mix the cooled quinoa in with all of the remaining ingredients. Spread the mixture out on your prepared sheet, in as thin and even a layer as you can manage. This will help the cereal bake up nice and crispy, so take your time smoothing it out with either a spatula or lightly moistened hands.

Bake for 45 – 60 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so, until lightly browned and seemingly dry. It may still have a little bit of “bounce” to it, but don’t worry; it will continue to crisp up as it cools.

Let cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Makes about 2 – 3 Servings

Printable Recipe

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