My New Favorite Breakfast

Traditionally I have always favored sweets when it comes to breakfast food (that darn sweet tooth of mine!) but I have been experimenting with savory starts to my day this Summer and have come up with a combination I am absolutely in love with! It's fast, easy, healthy and oh so yummy! It's like a little Caprese Salad but the breakfast version.

I start with half a cup of cottage cheese (give or take, I don't really measure), top with fresh tomatoes, fresh basil leaves, a drizzle of olive oil and some fresh ground black pepper. If I'm feeling really decadent then I might add some walnuts. I love having this meal before yoga because it's light enough to have before working out but gives me a little protein boost which keeps me full but gives me lots of energy. This breakfast is definitely going to be added to my long term repertoire, yum!

Homemade English Muffins

For Christmas this year Eric got me some amazing bread baking supplies and cookbooks. I now have the start of a great bread baking library and since one of my new years resolutions was to continue my bread baking journey it has been the perfect thing to get me going.

The fact that it has been such a cold and sometimes snowy winter has also encouraged me in my baking and I have really been enjoying trying new recipes and learning more about the art of baking. One of the fabulous books Eric got me is called "Baking Bread, Old and New Traditions" And it is in this book that you can find the recipe I used for my home made English Muffins. Baking Bread is  a good basic bread cookbook with a decent variety of recipes as well as some baking technique that is nice to know. It's a really nice addition to my cookbook collection.

I have been scarfing these things down for breakfast and they are so much better than store bought muffins! They really came together pretty quickly and easily too. Check out the recipe:

Ingredients
1 Tablespoon dry yeast
Pinch sugar
1/4 cup warm water
4 to 41/2 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 egg
1/14 cup warm milk
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 cup cornmeal for sprinkling

In a small bowl combine yeast, sugar and warm water, stir to combine and let stand until foamy.  Place 2 cups flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook and make a well in the middle. Add egg, milk, butter and yeast mixture and blend until smooth. Gradually add remaining flour 1 cup at a time until a soft dough that just clears the side of the bowl forms. Turn dough on to a lightly floured surface and knead for about 3 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to coat and cover with a dishtowel. Let stand until doubled in size, about and hour and a half. Lightly sprinkle work surface with cornmeal and roll dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Sprinkle top with cornmeal and use a upturned drinking glass to cut out biscuit shapes. You can re-roll and cut out extra dough  until it is all used up. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat and lightly grease. Cook muffins for about 6 to 7 minutes on each side until well browned.

This recipe makes about 12 3 inch muffins. They taste great with melted butter or homemade strawberry jam :-)

I hope to share some of the other baking we've been doing with you soon. We have been cooking up some truly delicious breads but I just have't been good about documenting it. Hopefully I can get my act together this month and post more recipes!

PB and J Yogurt Parfait

Ya'll, I have found the next big thing for breakfast! This is truly a fantastic combination and I must say I'm patting myself on the back for coming up with it :-)

I have been in to making granola lately and recently came across this recipe from A Beautiful Bite. I liked it because it had simple ingredients and seemed easy to make. We love granola in this house but it can be very expensive, it's amazing how much money making your own can save you.

We also have a lot of homemade yogurt on hand since Eric has been making it regularly and I have been experimenting adding different flavors and toppings to it. One of the ways I like to flavor my yogurt is by adding a swirl of jam to it. We have some fantastic raspberry jam that my mother in law gave us (homemade by a friend of hers) and it goes great in yogurt, it tastes just like the yogurt you buy at the store that has fruit on the bottom.

Yesterday morning around breakfast time inspiration struck and I realized that peanut butter and jam were a natural combination and the PB and J yogurt parfait was born!

If you make your own yogurt or just buy plain from the store I highly recommend this combination, delish!