Weekend Brekkie: Cheesy Tomato Egg Casserole

I wanted to  make something different from what breakfast normally is around here. After making it, though, I've searched for terms to describe it and it turns out that what I was doing very slightly resembled a type of Tomato Strata. The strata recipes are really delicious sounding. I'm going to have to try one next time! But for now, here's my 'new' eggy breakfast:

Place 2 Tbs butter into baking dish and place in oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Meanwhile, add 5 eggs and 2 Tbs milk into a bowl and beat well. Pour into melted butter in heated baking dish.

Sprinkle 1 cup cheese all over and add 1 tomato, cut into thick long slices. Place back in oven for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, stir it all up and replace in oven for 5 minutes. Stir and replace for 5 minutes. Repeat until eggs are cooked to your liking. This is how it looked after the first 10 minutes, mostly cooked on the edges, but still raw in the center.

Very hot! Let cool for 5-10 minutes and then serve. It was pretty tasty and very easy, which is always a plus when it comes to a hot breakfast for us : ).

Happy Weekend : )

Weekend Brekkie: Boxty

I made boxty! Very filling and entirely delicious, which is amazing to me because I don't really like potatoes. I'm more of a rice kind of girl. Hubby, however, loves the tubers so I'm trying to find ways to use them more. Baby Boy is turning out to have a hankering for spuds too, so I guess it's a good thing that there are a world of different ways to have potatoes.

So, the recipe says use grated potatoes. Surprise! I forgot to pack my grater. Huh. So, 3 cups thinly sliced potatoes it is :)

Coat with 2 cups flour

Mix well 4 Tbs milk with 2 eggs

Add to potatoes and mix well until potatoes are well coated with a thick batter. Better use your hands for this part.

Heat 1/4 cup oil in a pan and place boxty in sizzling oil in 2 to 3 inch wide patties. Cook for 3 to 4 min on each side until golden brown. Drain and serve with a pat of butter on top and a side of your favorite meat.

I forgot to take a photo of the finished ones! Well, that's because I couldn't make them fast enough for our growing boy to eat. Hubby and Baby Boy were in tasty tater cake heaven.

Yesterday, I shaped left over mashed potatoes into patties and browned them for lunch. So, imagine the beautiful golden brown and deliciousness of this photo on the boxty in the last photo :) Only the boxty tasted much much better. Baby Boy loved the mash patties, which made me start searching for more potato recipes. So, I have my little man to thank for finding the boxty recipe :) Now I can't wait to try colcannon! Maybe for to'ona'i (Sunday dinner)! Yum.

Up for a quick peek at the 'boxy' sizzling away in the pan. He told me the boxty was singing :)

And back to cooking his own ' yum yum boxy' in the drawer next to the stove :) He kept giving me tastes of his dish. I think he was hoping that I'd return the favor.

I feel like Baby Boy and I have worked extremely hard this week, so we're having a Jammie Party! Which means we get to stay in our PJs for as long as I can stand it and watch cartoons and play tag and pillow fight and generally act like very silly people with no responsibilities. I hope you all have a lovely jammie wearing weekend :)

Easy Awesome Jelly Buns

The other morning, we were in the mood for something pastry-like but the smell of fresh coffee reminded our stomachs that waiting for a traditional dough to rise was out of the question. So, after a look into the fridge and finding a canister of refrigerated biscuits (Yay!), inspiration hit and I had to share this quick how-to: 

I love Pillsbury biscuits.

Flatten each precut biscuit 

Place a spoonful of your sweet filling in the center. Remember, this is supposed to be easy, so use what you have. We had grape jelly, but I think this would be great with any kind of jelly or preserves.

Bring ends together and pinch to close. Place on cookie sheet, pinched ends down, and bake according to package instructions. Jelly leaked out of a few buns, so next time, I'll brush the inner edges with egg wash so they seal better.

10 minutes later.....

Mmmmm..... quick and delicious :)

We loved these! Baby Boy wolfed one down and then asked if he could have another "Awesome", hence the name. Am I the only one who thinks this week seems unbelievably long? I'm working on some crafts today and trying to keep my mind off my headache. Creating always seems to put me in a better mood :)

 Wishing you a wonderful and Wacky Wednesday....

UPDATE: Blintzes

ade blintzes for the first time using the recipe I posted earlier. They are SO GOOD! You've got to try making them!



Our blintz making station :) The fresh strawberries are beautiful this year! I just had to bring some home for a compote. See our blintzes in the platter on the left? Near the end, I was able to get them round and pretty. Practice makes perfect.

 Here's a closeup of one of the prettier ones ready to serve with compote and sour cream. The sour cream made all the flavors so much more intense. I was surprised, but it was quite nice. The blintz filling was so rich and creamy! I actually used one package of regular cream cheese and one package of Neufchâtel cheese. The Neufchâtel actually tasted better to me than the cream cheese. Surprising, because it's 33% less fat than cream cheese. Next time, I'll just use two packs of Neufchâtel.

I love trying new recipes! Some of them are disasters, needing a more talented hand, but I was so happy with how these turned out, especially after hearing how tricky blintzes can be. Letting the batter rest before cooking seems to be the key. I'm glad we took that advice. Good advice makes for yummy brunch :)