Sauteed Apples with Crushed Pecans

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Andrea

Sometimes I want a topping for Sunday Morning Pancakes that brings a little more umph than syrup. I want something in addition to syrup.

Since we always have a fruit with breakfast (and lunch!), I decided to make that part of the dish instead of just a side.

Sauteed bites of apple with the sweetness of crushed pecans is a great topping for pancakes.

Andrea’s Sauteed Apples with Crushed Pecans

2 Small – Medium Red Apples, chopped

1/2C Crushed Pecans

2TBSP Butter

1tsp Olive Oil

1/2tsp Cinnamon

In a medium sized skillet, heat butter and oil over medium heat. When the butter starts sizzling, add in the apples and cinnamon. Sautee for about 3 minutes and then add in the crushed pecans. Sautee for another 3 minutes, remove from heat and serve!

Makes enough topping for 3 servings.

Perfect for pancakes! The apples are warm but stil crisp since they are not cooked for very long. Plus you’re starting you day off with a serving of fruit!

Banana Nut Pancakes

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Andrea

Me: What kind of pancakes do you want this week?

Him: Something with nuts!

Me: What kind of nuts, pecans or walnuts?

Him: What did we just have with the coffee cake?

Me: Pecans.

Him: Then we should have walnuts.

Me: Done

And this is how Banana Nut or what I lovingly call, my favorite pancakes ever, were born.

Andrea’s Banana Nut Pancakes

1C Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

1C Buckwheat Flour

1tsp Baking Soda

1tsp Cinnamon

2TBSP Sugar

1C Walnuts, crushed

1 Large banana

1C Unsweetened Coconut Milk (the kind in the dairy section, not from a can)

1C Water

2tsp Vanilla Extract

1/2tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

Preheat grilled over medium heat. In a large mixing bowl combine the flours, baking soda, cinnamon, and walnuts and whisk together. In a medium sized mixing bowl combine the water, coconut milk, vinegar, extract, and banana. Mash the banana in the liquids as much as possible.

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry and stir until everything is combined. Grease your griddle with a little oil and drop batter by spoonfuls. The size is up to you! Cook for about three minutes on the first side or until you start seeing several bubbles pop up in the center. Flip and cook for another minute to two minutes. Remove from heat and continue until all the batter has been used.

Fig and Date Coffee Cake

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Andrea

It’s no secret that I like cooking with beer but I also like baking with beer. And experimenting with different ways to use beer in the kitchen.

One of my most recent experiments resulted in what is now my favorite coffee cake of all time. This coffee cake uses dried figs, dates, and nuts as part of the crumble topping.

This helps keep the cake moist while baking and gives a slight nod toward the fig newtons of my childhood. I wasn’t a huge fan of fig newtons as a kid but when I got older I enjoyed them a great deal.

Having found dried figs at the store, I knew that I wanted to use them in something. With seasonal beers out right now, the idea of making a coffee cake with one seemed like a natural fit.

I’ve made this cake several times since the first experiment and it always makes me squee with happiness when I get a chance to nibble on it.

Read more on Fig and Date Coffee Cake…

Sausage Gravy

Posted on September 14, 2011 by Andrea

While I might not have grown up eating traditional biscuits, we did eat traditional sausage gravy. If you are serving up sausage gravy in country gravy, I will be the first one at the table.

In fact, you might have to stop me from eating it before it even hits the table! I love it!

Country gravy where I’m from, is a white gravy loaded down with ground black pepper. It’s super easy to make and most times is paired with sausage or dried beef, and poured over biscuits or toast.

Using local ingredients takes this dish up to a whole other level. Once you start using local sausage, there’s no turning back.

Andrea’s Sausage Gravy

1lb Ground Bulk Pork Breakfast Sausage (or meat of your choice)

3TBSP (Heaping) of Unbleached All Purpose Flour (can also use white whole wheat flour)

2C Unsweetened Coconut Milk

1tsp Ground Sage

1tsp Poultry Seasoning

Olive Oil for sauteeing (about 2 tsp)

In a sautee pan add olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add in the sausage and cook until done. If the pan seems to have a bunch of oil in it, remove the sausage and drain. Leave some oil, add the sausage back in, add in the seasonings and stir. Then add in the flour. Combine and allow to cook for about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. If it seems dry, you’ll have to add in some more oil, just a touch!

Kale Hash

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Andrea

Friends, what I’m about to share with you is one of my favorite meals. It came into my life not all that long ago and will be with me forever and ever, amen.

We all know that I love potatoes, right? So this dish is full of my favorite things.

Potatoes
Kale
Eggs

And it’s eaten out of a bowl

It’s heaven. And so easy! I was flipping through a Ray Ray magazine a few months back and saw the title, Kale Hash. I didn’t even read the recipe because I created my own right on the spot. I think I even made it that same night.

Kale hash is pure genius. It’s also purely delicious and completely perfect.

Life will never be the same again.

Andrea’s Kale Hash

2 Idaho Potatoes, scrubbed, and cut into bite sized cubes

1 Large bunch of kale, stemmed and chopped

1/2 Onion, chopped

1/2 Green pepper, chopped

4 eggs, beaten

Pina Colda Pancakes

Posted on April 21, 2011 by Andrea

Earlier this week, I discussed how a recent kitchen flop then lead me to create one of the best pancake flavors to date. Happy day!

I had been toying around with making a summery-themed pancake one that tasted like the sun and reminds you of the beach and drinks with little umbrellas in them.

Or tasted like the sun and reminded you of being pool-side with drinks that had little umbrellas in them.

I’m flexible.

Once I trashed the failed pancakes, I got busy making some Pina Colada inspired pancakes. While I don’t like an actual pina colada, the flavors that make one up are fantastic and can be used in other applications (like smoothies!).

I knew that I could use those flavors in a pancake as well!

Andrea’s Pina Colada Pancakes

1C Spelt Flour

1C Buckwheat Flour

Pinch Ground Cinnamon

1/2C Unsweetened Shredded Coconut

2TBSP Cane Sugar

1/2tsp Baking Soda

1C Pineapple Juice

1/2C SO Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk

Chocolate Coconut Oats

Posted on April 5, 2011 by Andrea

Most times I’m just a regular old fashioned oats girl with no frills. I used to make all kinds of combos but then I moved away from that and became more old school. Or plain. However you want to label it. I found comfort in regular oats.

But some days we just need something fun. Some days we need a little pick-me-up.

Some days we just need some dang chocolate.

And on those days, I get a little sassy with my oats and make something super yummy. Nothing too terribly fancy and I’m sure others have been doing this for a while but this is my take on a classic flavor combo.

Chocolate and coconut!

Andrea’s Chocolate Coconut Oats

1C Old Fashioned Oats

1.5C Plain Soymilk (or liquid of your choice)

1 Ripe banana

1TBSP Wheat Germ

1TBSP Ground Flax

1TBSP Coconut Butter

1TBSP Unsweetened Cocoa powder

2TBSP Dried Unsweetened Coconut

Extra coconut and dark chocolate chips for garnish

In a small pot, add in the soymilk and the banana. Mash the banana around and then add in the cocoa and coconut butter. Heat over medium-high heat until the soymilk just begins to bubble. Add in the oats and reduce heat to medium-low. Also add in the ground flax, wheat germ, and dried coconut. Stir and allow to cook for about 5-7 minutes until the oats soften and the mixture starts to thicken up. Remove from heat, spoon into bowls, and top with chocolate chips and coconut for garnish. Makes enough for two bowls of oats.

Pina Colada Smoothie

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Andrea

It’s the end of March and yesterday Columbus was blessed with a snowstorm that lasted all afternoon. It was the last thing that any of us wanted. Okay, well there might be a few residents who don’t mind but the rest of us were cursing and shaking our fists in the air.

So to beat the winter blues, I’m posting something springy and fun! Something that nourishes both the body and spirit.

Pina Colada smoothie! Super green in color to perk up any blah winter day and tasty enough that you might start looking around for some rum.

Andrea’s Pina Colada Smoothie

1C OJ

1C Unsweetened Coconut Milk (like SO Delicious)

2 Large handfuls of baby spinach

1 Frozen Banana

1/2 C Frozen Pineapple

1/4C Frozen Mango

Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. This will be a thicker smoothie, like milkshake or frozen drink style. Makes enough for two large glasses.

Perfectly tart and creamy. It tastes just like a pina colada but looks like spring. The amounts of frozen pineapple and mango are estimates because I didn’t measure those out. Go by what you like. The pineapple is more tart while the mango is more sweet. You need to use enough pineapple to ensure you get the pina colada taste because that’s what makes the smoothie.

Andrea’s Basic Oats

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Andrea

I love oats in a pretty serious way. I eat oats almost every single morning in some shape, either a bowl of oats or in the form of granola.

When I first started eating oats, I made all kinds of crazy combinations but now I’m an oatmeal purist. I just like straight up oats please. Occasionally I’ll play around with oats and do something fancy, which we can talk about later. But for the most part, my oats are pretty straight forward.

I have two kinds of oats on hand, Quaker because that’s the easiest for me to get as most grocery stores have that brand, and also some bulk oats I get from Kroger. Quaker for breakfast and baking, the bulk oats for granola. Quaker oats don’t really make the best granola but the bulk oats making amazing granola. The opposite is also true, Quaker makes a great bowl of breakfast oats, while the bulk granola does not.

Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Andrea

I grew up in Pennsylvania. Western PA as a matter of fact. Home of the Steelers, The Penguins (and the Pirates if we must) and the City of Bridges. I didn’t grow up in the city but in a rural coal mining and farming town which was only an hour south of the city. I now live in Columbus, which is only 3 hours away from my hometown.

Doesn’t sound like a huge difference but in terms of weather it totally is! Ohio gets some of the most crazy weather and by crazy I am referring to how extreme it is. It goes from one end of the spectrum to the other, sometimes in the same day.

This week we have the pleasure of dealing with an ice storm and then more snow. Good times.

Thankfully Scott and I work from home which means we can stay bundled up.

On the first cold and iced-in day, I decided to kick my normal bowl of morning oats up a notch and make it something special. I’ve seen others talk about baked oatmeal before and the concept always intrigued me. Baked oatmeal sounds really decadent and like a lovely winter treat, doesn’t it?