Have you ever tried cutting the bottom off of a tuna can? Boy, is that ever hard. Alton Brown said in his episode about English muffins, that you can save tuna cans and you can use them for  biscuit cutters. I saved my tuna cans, since I eat plenty of that fish. I tried using the can opener  and got a hole punched in it, and then tried using either a scissor or a knife to cut that. No luck. So, if anybody knows the proper method for removing the bottom of a tuna can please do tell me.

Fresh homemade English muffins are the best. I like it when the melted butter gets in between those cracks and they’re really good with peanut butter. I really want to try making Eggs Benedict and Hollandaise sauce, now that I’ve made my own. They’re a little bit time consuming to make, but well worth it. . I suggest going out and buying some biscuit cutters too, since I didn’t have any.

—————————————————

Ingredients from Alton Brown

1/2 cup non-fat powdered milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon shortening
1 cup hot water
1 envelope dry yeast
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup warm water
2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
Non-stick vegetable spray
Special equipment: electric griddle, 3-inch metal rings, see Cook’s Note*

Directions

In a bowl combine the powdered milk, 1 tablespoon of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, shortening, and hot water, stir until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Let cool. In a separate bowl combine the yeast and 1/8 teaspoon of sugar in 1/3 cup of warm water and rest until yeast has dissolved. Add this to the dry milk mixture. Add the sifted flour and beat thoroughly with wooden spoon. Cover the bowl and let it rest in a warm spot for 30 minutes.

Preheat the griddle to 300 degrees F.

Add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt to mixture and beat thoroughly. Place metal rings onto the griddle and coat lightly with vegetable spray. Using #20 ice cream scoop, place 2 scoops into each ring and cover with a pot lid or cookie sheet and cook for 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the lid and flip rings using tongs. Cover with the lid and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes or until golden brown. Place on a cooling rack, remove rings and cool. Split with fork and serve.

The tops for these muffins came out weird. Some of them looked like they were about to explode or reminded me of popover muffins. Who doesn’t love a muffin or a popover for breakfast anyway? Especially, if there’s  chocolate in it.

I thought it was weird this recipe had red wine vinegar in it, but when I tasted them, you can’t even taste the vinegar. My guess is they used the  vinegar to bring out the chocolate flavor more. I added in some white chocolate chips too, so I guess you could change the name of these muffins to Triple Chocolate Chip Muffins.

I made these after Ben had got done painting the kitchen a pretty sky blue color on Sunday. If you look at the walls where there’s no light, it actually looks like it’s the color green. The kitchen is finally getting close to being and all the hard parts are done anyway. We still have to put up the new vent and paint the yellow trim around the door and window. I will post a picture of it when it’s completely done.

—————————————————

Nutrition Info: Calories: 191 | Fat: 7.6g | Carbohydrate: 29g | Fiber: 1.5g | Protein: 3.1g

Serves: 12

Ingredients from Cooking Light (May Issue)

7 9/10 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 3/4 cups)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate minichips, divided
Cooking spray

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 5 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Make a well in center of mixture. Combine 1 cup water and next 4 ingredients (through egg) in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Stir in 1/4 cup minichips. Add oil mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until moist.

3. Place 12 muffin-cup liners in muffin cups, and coat liners with cooking spray. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup minichips evenly over batter. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in pan on a wire rack.

I’m really starting to like the idea of taking a picture of every step like the lady does over at Pioneer Woman. That is my new favorite cooking blog. All her pictures are really good. I figured out the lighting situation above the stove tonight. Just need to buy one of those plug-ins so that I don’t have to un-plug the microwave all the time.

I used to work at Taco John’s years ago and when I left there they had just gotten a breakfast menu. They had a breakfast taco with cheese, eggs, bacon, and potato oles. That was probably one of the yummiest breakfasts I’ve ever had. I also need to make one of those breakfast tacos myself soon. The seasoning that they put on the potatoes will be hard to figure out. This breakfast quesadilla is just as good though.

1. Melt a tablespoon of butter in a non-stick skillet.

2. Place one tortilla on the skillet and layer some cheese on top.

3. Scramble one egg.  I did mine in the same skillet because it was large enough. Otherwise you can microwave the egg for about 45 minutes in the microwave. Make sure you cover the dish you put the egg in though.

4. Place the last tortilla on top of the cheese and flip until the other side is golden brown. I had sour cream and salsa with mine.

Ingredients

Dough:

4 large egg yolks, room temperature
1 large whole egg, room temperature
2 ounces sugar, approximately 1/4 cup
3 ounces unsalted butter, melted, approximately 6 tablespoons
6 ounces buttermilk, room temperature
20 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 cups, plus additional for dusting
1 package instant dry yeast, approximately 2 1/4 teaspoons
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
Vegetable oil or cooking spray

Filling:
8 ounces light brown sugar, approximately 1 cup packed
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Pinch salt
3/4-ounce unsalted butter, melted, approximately 1 1/2 tablespoons

Icing:
2 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened, approximately 1/4 cup
3 tablespoons milk
5 1/2 ounces powdered sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups

Directions

For the dough: in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add approximately 2 cups of the flour along with the yeast and salt; whisk until moistened and combined. Remove the whisk attachment and replace with a dough hook. Add all but 3/4 cup of the remaining flour and knead on low speed for 5 minutes. Check the consistency of the dough, add more flour if necessary; the dough should feel soft and moist but not sticky. Knead on low speed 5 minutes more or until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface; knead by hand about 30 seconds. Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl, lightly oil the top of the dough, cover and let double in volume, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until well incorporated. Set aside until ready to use.

Butter a 9 by 13-inch glass baking dish. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently shape the dough into a rectangle with the long side nearest you. Roll into an 18 by 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the 3/4-ounce of melted butter, leaving 1/2-inch border along the top edge. Sprinkle the filling mixture over the dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border along the top edge; gently press the filling into the dough. Beginning with the long edge nearest you, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Firmly pinch the seam to seal and roll the cylinder seam side down. Very gently squeeze the cylinder to create even thickness. Using a serrated knife, slice the cylinder into 1 1/2-inch rolls; yielding 12 rolls. Arrange rolls cut side down in the baking dish; cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight or up to 16 hours.

Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and place in an oven that is turned off. Fill a shallow pan 2/3-full of boiling water and set on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy; approximately 30 minutes. Remove the rolls and the shallow pan of water from the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

When the oven is ready, place the rolls on the middle rack and bake until golden brown, or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, approximately 30 minutes.

While the rolls are cooling slightly, make the icing by whisking the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy. Add the milk and whisk until combined. Sift in the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Spread over the rolls and serve

———————————————————————–

Whoever says they don’t like Alton Brown after trying these cinnamon rolls we be converted. I know some people that don’t even like Alton Brown. *Gasp. My fiancee likes him a lot and whenever I have a question about something, he will say you should check out Alton Brown’s episode on french toast, or whatever type of food it is. So, he’ll google his recipe or try and find the video on line for me.

His recipes always come out perfect and to a T. I haven’t had a single problem with any one of them.

The nice part about this recipe, is that you can make the dough the night before and let it rise in the refrigerator over night. They only take 30 minutes to bake in the oven and you can prepare the frosting the night before. I skipped some steps in this recipe.. like where it says to place a pot of boiling water in the oven underneath the cinnamon rolls to let them rise. They rose a lot during the cooking process actually. I used instant yeast for these and they didn’t really rise that much in the fridge. I used 2 1/2 teaspoons like it says too on the active dry yeast packets. Maybe I need more? I think I need to google that too.

Ingredients from Joy the Baker

For the Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
1 large egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 large egg (for brushing the dough)

For the Filling:

3/4 cup pureed pumpkin
1 large egg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup granulated sugar

Maple Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons milk

To prepare the Crust:

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar and salt.  Add the cold butter and break it up in the flour mixture using your fingers, a pastry cutter or a food processor.  There may seem like there’s a ton of butter in your flour.  There is.   Work it in until only pea sized lumps remain in your mixture.  The mixture should also hold together when squeezed into a ball.
In a small bowl, beat the egg with the milk.  Add the mixture all at once to the dry ingredients and stir to make sure that moisture is introduced to all of the flour mixture.  Lightly dust a clean counter with flour and knead the dough on the floured counter for a few turns until it really starts to come together.  Divide the dough in two, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.  I find that the dough is just a bit easier to work with when it’s chilled.
While the dough is chilling, prepare the filling:

In a small sauce pan, heat pumpkin puree and spices over medium heat.  Just heat through until the spices become fragrant.  This helps to bring loads of flavor into the filling.  Remove from heat and place spiced pumpkin in a medium sized bowl.  Whisk in egg, salt and sugar and place in the fridge to rest while you roll out the dough.
On a well floured work surface, press dough into a 3×5-inch rectangle, roll the dough out to about 1/8-inch thickness.  The dough should be slightly larger than 9×12-inches.  Trim dough with a pizza cutter, creating a rectangle that is 9-inches tall and 12-inches long.  Using the pizza cutter, cut each side into thirds, creating 9 squares.  Place dough squares in the fridge while you roll out the second piece of dough in the same way.

Brush one set of 9 squares with beaten egg.  This will act as the glue for the top layer of dough.  Spoon about one tablespoon of pie filling into the center of each brushed dough square.  Top with a piece of dough and use a floured fork to crimp the sides closed.  Use the tines of the fork to create vent holes in each tart.
Position a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.  Let tarts rest in the fridge for 30 minutes while the oven preheats.
Remove tarts from the fridge and place in the oven to bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown on top.While the tarts bake, whisk together ingredients for the glaze and set aside.
Let baked tarts rest on a cooling rack to cool completely before glazing.  Best served within 2 days.

————————————————————————————————-

I had some leftover pumpkin butter that I had made from another week ago and was wondering what I could make with it. Then I had  saw that you could make your own homemade pop tarts online.  I like pop tarts because it’s a quick and easy breakfast to make in the morning. My favorite is the S’mores or hot fudge kind. I read online that they even have pumpkin pie pop tarts in the stores now. These, I have yet to try, but if you make these I promise you, you won’t be disappointed  and have to go to the store to get the pumpkin pie pop tarts.

The crust for this recipe, almost reminds me of puff pastry. Made mine in the food processor and had to add a little bit of extra milk because the dough was kind of dry.  This tastes exactly like a pumpkin pie, and the best part is you can have it for breakfast if you’d like. They might all be gone by then. Just think of all the endless possibilities you could make with these homemade poptarts, and all the flavors that the Kellog’s Poptarts have. Oh my goodness… There is something else I’ve been meaning to stuff in some puff pastry. Stay tuned for that post.

Ingredients from Everday Food

Serves 4 to 6

8 tablespoons (1 stick) melted unsalted butter, plus more for waffle iron
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs, separated, room temperature
2 cups buttermilk, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Grease waffle iron with a small amount of melted butter, and heat. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg yolks, buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla. Pour into dry mixture, and combine.

3. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold whites into batter.

4. Ladle about 1/3 cup batter onto each section of the waffle grid; spread batter almost to the edges. Close lid, and bake 3 to 5 minutes, until no steam emerges from waffle iron.

5. Transfer cooked waffles to a baking sheet; place in an oven set to low heat, about 200 degrees, while using remaining batter.

—————————————————————————————————–

For my birthday I got the Villaware V2002 UNO Belgian Waffler. This is the waffle iron Alton Brown recommends in his show Good Eats. It is a very good waffle iron and only costs 46.99 on Amazon’s website. It makes crispy waffles and soft. I am very happy with this product. I’ve been trying different waffle recipes since I’ve got it and I have to be honest. I didn’t really care for Alton Brown’s waffle recipe. Yeah, as much I love Alton Brown, I still love his other recipes though.

I used Martha Stewart’s recipe for buttermilk waffles.I didn’t use all the butter recommended in the recipe and only used about 1/4 of a stick. It was very good covered with syrup (real, not the fake) and topped with strawberries and blueberries.  There are some blackberries sitting in our fridge right now, that probably could have gone on top, but those will be used in a different recipe.