This Puts the Cake in Pancakes

These are my all-time favorite pancakes. They are a Williams and Sonoma Waffle recipe-gone-griddle-style. These are awesome because they are so fluffy! And they taste ridiculously amazing! I might add 1 tsp. of vanilla once in a while, and most of the time we add blueberries. Then I serve them with some sweet buttermilk syrup. For a link to my recipe for the syrup, click here.

2 cups flour
4 tsp. baking powder
2 Tb. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
2 cups milk
5 Tb. melted shortening or oil
4 Tb. metled butter

Simply throw everything in a bowl and mix, or a blender, occasionally substituting some of the flour with something super healthy like oats or wheat flour or maybe even some flax seed, pour onto a hot griddle and enjoy!

Restaurant Review: Finn's Café, plus their recipe for Traditional Norwegian Waffles

There is a little café here in Sugarhouse called Finn's Café, which serves Scandinavian food. They are especially known for their breakfast menu, which they serve all day. They have a fun variety of dishes, and everything we tried there is simply delicious!

 One of my favorite things on their menu is the Eggs Benedict Royale, which serves a poached egg with hollandaise sauce over an english muffin and smoked salmon. 

Another popular item on their menu is the Jule Kake French Toast. A Jule Kake is a Danish Christmas bread with raisins and spices. 

They have some fun drinks as well. They flavor the lemonade with mint, and serve a green drink made of cucumbers and a few other veggies. Their hot cocoa is amazing! The flavor is mild and delicate, not the rich American cocoa. 

They also serve Norwegian Waffles, and have the recipe listed on their website. So, naturally, we tried them at home. 

Traditional Norwegian Spiced waffles - served with maple syrup, sour cream and lingonberries.

Ingredients:

6 eggs 
1 cup sugar 
1/4 cup sour cream 
1 cup flour 
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg 
1/8 teaspoon cardamom 
1/8 teaspoon dried ginger 
cooking spray 
waffle toppings 


Batter:

Combine 6 eggs and 1 cup of sugar. Whip until firm peaks are formed. Blend in 1/4 cups of sour cream. Add 1 cup flour and 1/8 teaspoon each of nutmeg, cardamom and dried ginger; fold in until thoroughly mixed. Chill batter in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Cooking:

Preheat waffle iron and mist with cooking spray (Pam). Gently pour in batter. Cook until golden brown (2-4 minutes). Traditionally served with sour cream and lingonberries, but also goes great with any of your favorite jams, or syrups!

Note: I found my lingonberry preserves at IKEA, or at a local store here- Harmons. I haven't found it at other grocery retailers yet. 

Cracked- Wheat Meat Loaf

This meat loaf has more fiber and less fat than regular meat loaf!

2 1/2 C. cooked cracked wheat
2 lbs. ground beef
1 1/4 c milk (3 3/4 T. dry powdered milk + 1 1/4 C. water)
1/4 t. pepper
2 t. salt
1/4 c. ketchup
1 extra large egg (2 T. dry powdered eggs + 1/4 c. water)
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. dry mustard
1 envelope onion soup mix

Mix all ingredients together. Turn into greased loaf pan or shallow baking dish.
If desired, spread surface with a thin layer of ketchup. Bake a t 325 F for 1 hour.

Boston Baked Wheat

This is similar to Boston Baked Beans

2 cups cooked wheat
2 cans pork and beans
1 C. catsup
1 onion, cooked and chopped
1/2 C. mild molasses
3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
3/4 tsp. mustard
1 C. water

Combine everything in baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 1/2 hour. Makes 6 servings.

Nauvoo Bread

5 cups hot water
1 1/2 Tbs salt
1/2 cup potato flakes
1/2 cup oil or shortening
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbs yeast
1 cup powdered milk
5 cups whole wheat flour
5 cups white flour

Combine hot water, shortening, potato flakes, powdered milk, and sugar. Stir to dissolve shortening. When temperature is tepid, add yeast. Mix in 5 cups whole wheat flour and salt. Stir to a smooth sponge. Add white flour to make smooth and elastic dough while kneading for 15 minutes. Let rise until double (about 1 hour), punch down and let rise again. Shape into loaves and allow to rise. Bake in 375 degree over for about 35 minutes.

After making this we found out it makes 4 loafs of bread!!

Blender Wheat Pancakes

Easy peasy pancakes: dump, blend, bake. Yum!

1 C. milk ( or 3 T. dry powdered milk + 1 C. water)
1 C. wheat kernels, whole and uncooked
2 eggs (or 2 T. dry powdered eggs + 1/4 C. water)
2 t. baking powder
1 1/2 t. salt
2 T. oil
2 T. honey or sugar

Put milk and wheat kernels in blender. Blend on highest speed for 4 or 5 minutes or until batter is smooth. Add eggs, oil, baking powder, salt, and honey or sugar. Blend on low.  Ready for some baking!

Wheat Berries

Crockpot Wheat Berries

1 cup whole wheat berries
3 cups water
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
a Crock Pot or a Slow Cooker

First you need to pick over and wash your whole wheat. I do this by putting it in a fine mesh strainer and running water over it in the sink. When the wheat is well washed, place it in your slow cooker. Add the water and salt if desired. Set the cooker on low and put the lid on. Let it sit overnight, or all day, at least 8 hours, or up to 12 hours. In the morning you will have lovely well cooked wheat to use for all of your favorite wheat recipes.

If there is extra water in the slow cooker, you may drain it off. If you want to cook the wheat on High instead of Low, then let it cook for 3 hours and then check it. If it is tender then eat it, if it isn’t tender yet, then give it another hour on High to cook it through. Store the cooked wheat in the fridge, or freeze it if desired. It keeps for about 2 weeks in the fridge. This recipe may be doubled or tripled if desired. The cooking time remains the same.

You may use this wheat in recipes or eat it plain. I like it for breakfast with milk and honey, or mixed with yogurt and bananas. It is also good as a substitute for rice on the dinner plate.

Lemon and Parmesan Risotto

I tend to cook according to my cravings, and this week I was craving lemons. I decided to make some lemon risotto, and found this recipe in Giada's book, Giada's Kitchen: New Italian Favorites, and decided to serve it alongside the lemon chicken. It turned out fabulous! It was a great, fresh meal for spring! This recipe calls for mascarpone cheese, which is hard to find here, and expensive, so I substituted it with some cream cheese and a little bit of butter milk. You can also substitute with a combination of sour cream and whipping cream or butter.

4 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, divided

3 Tb. butter

2 shallots, or 1/2 onion, diced

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup mascarpone cheese

Zest of 1 lemon

3/4 tsp. kosher salt

3/4 tsp. black pepper

2 Tb. chopped parsley

In medium saucepan, bring broth and 1/4 lemon juice to simmer. Cover and keep hot over low heat.

In another saucepan, or large skillet, melt the butter and sauté the shallots or onions 1-2 minutes. Add the rice and stir until coated with butter. Add the wine and remaining lemon juice and simmer until almost completely evaporated. Add 1/2 cup of the broth and stir until almost completely absorbed. Continue cooking and adding the broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring after each addition until all the broth has been added. This should take about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and and stir in the Parmesan cheese, the mascarpone cheese, the lemon zest and salt and pepper. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and garnish with parsley and serve.

Apple Oatmeal Muffins with Brown Sugar Streusel

I love muffins. If I had to choose between eating a sweet or savory breakfast, nine out of ten times I'd go with the sweet side. Some of my favorite breakfast items include fruits, sugar, and cream in one form or another, although I enjoy eating them with a crispy piece of bacon or a nicely seasoned egg, and I wouldn't give up those things without a fight. These muffins are filling and healthy. I substituted brown sugar for the white sugar in both the muffin and the streusel recipe, because I like the caramel-y taste of brown sugar. I got this recipe from my brother-in-law, who got it from a friend, who got it from who-knows-where. I just like to be clear about where I find these recipes and where to give the credit.

1 cup rolled oats

1 apple cored and cut

1 Tb. baking powder

1/2 tsp. soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. grated orange peel

1/3 cup chopped nuts

1/4 cup sugar or honey (or brown sugar)

1 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

2 Tb. oil

1/3 cup raisins

Put dry ingredients into a blender (except raisins) and pulse a few times. Pour in bowl and add remaining ingredients and stir till moistened. Sprinkle over streusel topping. Bake at 400• for 12-14 minutes.

Streusel Topping:

1/2 cup sugar (or brown sugar)

2 Tb. flour

1 tsp. cinnamon

3 Tb. butter, softened

Put all ingredients in bowl, and cut butter into mixture, to resemble crumbs. Sprinkle over muffins before baking.

Best Blueberry Streusel Muffins from Cook's Country Magazine

makes 12Streusel:

1-1/4 C all-purpose flour
1/3 C packed dark brown sugar
1/3 C granulated sugar
1/2 t ground cinnamon
pinch salt
7 T melted butter, melted

Muffins:

4 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly, plus extra for preparing the muffin tin
1 large egg
2 C all-purpose flour, plus extra for preparing the muffin tin
1 t vanilla extract
1 C granulated sugar
1 t grated lemon zest
1/2 C buttermilk
1 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
1-1/2 C frozen blueberries*

* don't take the blueberries out of the freezer until the very last second, otherwise it'll streak your batter too much

1. For the streusel: Combine flour, sugars, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Drizzle with melted butter and toss with a fork until evenly moistened and mixture forms large chunks with some pea-sized pieces throughout.
2. For the muffins: Preheat oven to 375°. Grease and flour 12-C muffin pan. Whisk egg in a medium bowl until plae and evenly combined, aout 30 seconds. Add vanilla, sugar, zest and whisk vigorously until thick, about 30 seconds. Slowly whisk in melted butter, add buttermilk and whisk until combined.
3. Reserve 1 T flour. In a seperate bowl, whisk remaining flour, baking powder, and salt. Forl in egg mixture until nearly combined. Toss blueberries with reserved flour and fold into batter until just combined.
4. Divide batter in muffin pan and top with streusel. Bake until light golden brown and toothpick inserted into center of muffin comes out with few dry crumbs attached, 23~27 minutes. Cool muffins in tin for 20 minutes.

Yummy, Homemade Granola!

We love to make this! It seems like it makes a lot, but it only lasts a few days in our house.  This recipe is from Williams and Sonoma and adds some orange juice. The citrus is subtle but certainly adds to the flavor!

10 C oats
1/2 tsp. salt
1-2 C almonds, chopped
1/2 C butter (1 stick)
1/2 C olive oil
1 C brown sugar
1 C honey
6 Tb orange juice
1 tsp. vanilla 

Preheat oven to 325. Heat butter, oil, brown sugar, salt, honey, vanilla and orange juice in saucepan until sugar dissolves. Meanwhile, mix together oats and almonds in a large bowl. (Tip: may add other nuts or coconut, depending on your preference.) Pour syrup over oat mixture and stir together. Pour in large cookie sheet, or deep baking pan. You may need to use two cookie sheets. Place in the oven and stir every 15 min. for about 45 min. or until light brown and toasted. Let cool and store in airtight container. (May add your favorite dried fruit after cooling.)