Breakfast Fridays! On the menu: Dairy-free, Egg-free Banana French Toast

At our house, we have a tradition we like to call "“Breakfast Fridays.”  That’s where we have breakfast food for dinner and my darling son gets to stay up late with daddy watching TV and eating snacks until they both fall asleep on the couch. LOL. He looks forward to this bonding time with his dad every week.  And it gives mommy some much needed “me time” on a Friday night to catch up on my Netflix, blog, or finish reading that novel on my nightstand that I keep telling myself I’m going to finish.

Well, this past Friday we had Dairy-free/ Egg-free Banana French toast. Wait? You can make French toast without eggs?  Yes!!!! You can!  And I’m gonna show you how.

Dairy-free/Egg-free Banana French Toast-makes about 4 slices

Ingredients:

• “safe” bread (I just used 4 slices of a "safe" whole wheat sandwich bread)
• ¼ cup of banana puree ( I mashed mine with a fork, but you can totally use a blender)
• ¼ cup non-dairy milk (we use Almond milk in our house)
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tsp. cinnamon

Mix together the banana puree, non-dairy milk, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon in a dish flat and wide enough for dipping the bread. Coat each side of a piece of bread by dipping into the mixture.  Now, be careful with this process. Dip one side, then flip the bread immediately to dip the other side.  Don’t allow the bread to sit in the mixture.  If you do, it will be a soggy mess and just won’t cook up right.  Next, brown each side of the bread slices in a medium-high skillet. About 3 minutes per side.  Flip them over a few times while they're browning to prevent burning on either side.

Next transfer the slices to a 400 degree oven to finish cooking. Bake about 10 mins., flipping halfway through.

I topped ours with some powdered sugar, sliced strawberries and bananas, and warm maple syrup.

Enjoy!

Oatmeal Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

I’m glad football season is back for a ton of reasons, but one of the Top 3 is that I now have someone to give these baked goods to! My baking slows down severely in the offseason because I can’t afford to have piles of cookies, bars, and cakes all over my kitchen. There are now a bunch of hungry offensive lineman eager to help me out with all the extra treats.

This is a recipe that I am constantly tweaking. It can take adjustments and additions so I love to play around with it. This combo is my favorite right now!

Ingredients 

1/2 cup rolled oats, chopped
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
8 oz. cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. lemon juice
2 eggs
3 cups miniature chocolate chips
1-1/2 cups finely chopped walnuts (optional)

Instructions

1. Prepare oats and walnuts. Use a blender/or food processor to pulse the rolled oats till they are roughly chopped. This gives you a chewier cookie.
2. Cream together butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and lemon juice. Mix in the eggs one at a time, until combined.
3. In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon). Stir into wet ingredients till dough forms. Gently fold in the oats, walnuts, chocolate chips.
4. Chill the dough overnight. BE PATIENT!*
5. Bake cookies at 325 degrees for 15-18 minutes. You are looking for barely brown edges and cracked tops.
6. Let cool, Enjoy!
7. *It’s easiest to scoop the dough onto plates covered with wax paper before you refrigerate the dough. Scooping cold dough is not fun.

TIPS

Get creative with your add-ins! Try coconut flakes, pecans, dried cranberries, or butterscotch chips. 

Dairy-free, Egg-free S'mores Sandwich Cookies

Do you love S’mores? I do. No, correction…I LOVE S’mores!  It’s that fluffy marshmallow melted onto that crunchy sweet graham cracker with just a hint of saltiness, all smothered in smooth, rich melted chocolate! OMG…all that ooey-gooey deliciousness, that’s what I love!

In fact, I love it so much that I have multiple S’mores recipes. And today, I want to share with you one of my favorites: S’mores Sandwich Cookies.  This yummy recipe is quick, easy, and best of all, it’s dairy and egg-free, which is a must in our house due to food allergies.  Now don’t panic! Just because there’s no dairy or eggs, doesn’t mean there’s no flavor. These cookies are fantastic! Trust me, you won’t be disappointed!

Dairy-free, Egg-free S’mores Sandwich Cookies-makes about 18 cookies, depending on size

Ingredients:

Cookie Dough:

2 ¼ cups of flour

1 cup crushed graham crackers

1 tsp. baking soda

Dash of salt

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup white sugar

1 tbsp. vanilla

1 cup vegan butter

¼ cup non-dairy milk

1 cup of miniature marshmallows (I chopped mine to make them even smaller)

Chocolate Filling:

1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips
1 tbsp. non-dairy milk

Let's get started!

Mix dry ingredients (first 4) together in a bowl. In a separate bowl mix wet ingredients (remaining 5), except for marshmallow.  Add dry ingredients, a little at a time, to bowl of wet ingredients.  Mix together. Gently fold in marshmallow.  Scoop cookie dough onto parchment paper lined baking sheet (may use a small ice cream scooper for small size). Flatten slightly. Bake at 350 degrees, for 15-18 mins. until golden brown.  Let cool.

To make the chocolate filling, mix together chocolate chips with non-dairy milk and microwave on high for 20 seconds to melt.  To make the sandwiches, flip one cookie over so the bottom side is up. Spread on some of the chocolate filling and top with another cookie to form a “sandwich”.  Enjoy!

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

I don’t bake too often anymore. There is nothing worse than delicious little baked goods sitting around tempting you all day. I can’t help but pop in the kitchen and snag a muffin/cookie/ slice of cake every chance I get. These muffins were worth the temptation though. They are the perfect morning treat. I love to wake up to sunshine flooding into my kitchen and these bright, kind of tart, not-too- sweet muffins sitting in a basket on my counter. PS: The basket of muffins help distract people from the dishes in the sink!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C Flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp poppy seeds
8 tbsp of unsalted butter, melted
1 C sugar

2 eggs
2/3 C plain greek yogurt ( 1 single serve container)
1 tsp vanilla extract
the zest and juice from 1 lemon

For the Glaze

3 tbsp of lemon juice
1 C of powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line the muffin pan (I used these silicone liners from Amazon—http://amzn.to/1OOfs9y) or coat with nonstick baking spray.
2. In a small bowl, combine sugar and lemon zest. Combine until sugar is slightly wet and fragrant.
3. Whisk in all the dry ingredients except for the poppy seeds.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the greek yogurt, eggs, vanilla, lemon juice and melted butter.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix gently until combined. Stir in the poppy seeds.
6. Divide batter evenly among 12 muffin cups.
7. Bake for 16- 20 minutes. Transfer muffins to cooling rack before adding glaze.
8. TO MAKE GLAZE: place powdered sugar in a bowl. Add lemon juice until it’s a consistency you like. I prefer a thin glaze that drips off the spoon.

TIPS:

The instructions are a little involved but don’t look for shortcuts; they’re worth the time.

I have tried several lemon poppy seed muffin recipes and I find that the less mixing and whipping of the ingredients the better.

Add some blueberries for a nice twist!

Holiday Recipe: Easy Apple Crisp

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With all these holiday parties coming up, you are going to need a go-to recipe.  Might I suggest an apple crisp? It calls for tart Granny Smith apples, old fashioned oatmeal, and fresh cinnamon. This recipe is a crowd pleaser. Funny story: I made the crisp, put it in the oven and was anxious to take it out. I let it cool, drizzled on the caramel, and opened my freezer looking for the ice cream and I didn't have any! I was immediately disappointed but then I remembered that lone cup of vanilla greek yogurt in the refrigerator. I was in a desperate state and took a huge spoonful and plopped it on top of the crisp. Would you believe me if I told you it was DELICIOUS? It added the right amount of creaminess and wasn’t too sweet. If you want to save a few calories, give it a try. I love kitchen accidents turned successes.

Ingredients 

Crumb Topping 

• 1/2 C Flour
• 1/2 C Brown Sugar
• 1/2 C old fashioned oats
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp of cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp of salt
• 1/3 C of butter (cold)
• 1/4 c pecans, chopped

Apple Filling 

• 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced thin
• 3 tbsp butter, melted
• 3 tbsp of flour
• 3 tbsp milk
• vanilla extract
• 1/4 C of brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp of cinnamon

Caramel for drizzling on top (optional)

Instructions 

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients for the crumb topping. “Cut in the butter” (Here is a tutorial if you are unsure how to do it) and mix until it resembles crumbs.
3. For the filling, stir the melted butter, milk, vanilla extract, brown sugar, and cinnamon together. Add the apples. For the last step, stir in the flour.

4. In a buttered baking dish, add the apple mixture followed by the crumb topping.
5. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for about 10 minutes.

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Enjoy with greek yogurt or ice cream. Don't forget the caramel drizzle!

Marissa A

Cinnamon Apple Pancakes

WHEN BREAKFAST COMES A CALLING..

As a wife and mom of two busy boys I love recipes that are easy,quick, and semi-home made. I am known for doctoring up recipes. So here's an easy recipe that I know the whole family will enjoy!

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Ingredients

Pancakes

• 2 c favorite pancake mix (Semi-home made: Remember, I don't always have time to start from scratch especially when the family is HUNGRY)
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 to 1 1/4 c milk (until perfect consistency)
• 1 tbsp melted butter
• 1/4 to 1/2 tsp cinnamon (depending on your liking)

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Do not over mix. A few lumps is OK. Pour 1/4 c of batter onto griddle (this is my preferred method but a skillet is fine too). Cook until bubbly and golden on the bottom. 3-4 min for bottom and 2 min on the other side. DO NOT OVER FLIP! ONCE IS ENOUGH!

Now for the good stuff...

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Cinnamon Apple Topping

• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 apples (diced)
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon (use more if you like cinnamon)
• 1/4 to 1/3 c 100% maple syrup
• 1/3 c pecans (optional)

Instructions

Mix butter, diced apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a saucepan. Cook on medium heat until the apples are tender about 5-7 min. I like my apples with a little bite so I cook them 3-5 min. Pour in maple syrup and pecans. Once warm, pour all that goodness over the pancakes. TA-DAH! Warm cinnamon apple pecan pancakes.

*APPLES CAN BE SUBSTITUTED WITH PEACHES

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You're welcome :)

Coconut French Toast Casserole

Football season is here! This means a few things:

1. I am busy every Sunday until some time in January (or February!)
2. I will host at least 10-20 people in my home during that 5 month span.
3. They will undoubtedly be hungry.

One of my duties is to feed these people. What can I possible make that's easy and can be done ahead of time, tasty, and requires minimal clean up? That’s where this Godsend of a recipe comes in! It can be prepped the night before and all you have to do is pop it in the oven for about 45 minutes (and you look like the most gracious host ever)!

I found this beautiful loaf of white chocolate, coconut sourdough bread at the Farmer’s Market that just added such a unique flavor to this dish. Don’t worry though, it is equally delicious with regular sourdough or even french bread!

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Ingredients

• 1 Loaf of Sourdough Bread, French Bread, or Texas Toast
• 8 eggs  
• 2 Cups of Milk (I used 2%)
• 1/2 cup of Half and Half
• 1/2 cup Sugar*
• 1/2 cup Brown Sugar*
• 2 Tablespoons Vanilla Extract

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Topping

• 1/2 cup Flour
• 1/2 cup Firmly Packed Brown Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• ½ cup of shredded coconut
• ¼ cup of pecan pieces
• 1 stick Cold Butter, Cut Into Pieces

Warm Syrup, For Serving

Butter, For Serving

* If you find a loaf of specialty bread, use half of the sugar recommended

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Caribbean Jerk Chicken Tacos

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So my husband is from the Southside of Chicago. Some of the best food I have ever eaten has come from the Southside of Chicago. That being said, I am always down for a trip to Ain’t She Sweet Cafe located in the Bronzeville neighborhood. They serve a Caribbean Jerk Chicken Wrap that can’t be touched. It’s full of warm marinated chicken breast, cool crisp lettuce, and a “zesty” Jerk Sauce. In an attempt to satisfy my craving for this wrap, I had to find something similar that could tide me over in the mean time. Enter Jerk Chicken Tacos.

This recipe is one of our favorites because it’s a beautiful combination of spicy, sweet, and it can be done in the slow cooker! That means it can be prepared before the game and when you get back, your house smells amazing and dinner is practically ready. The mango salsa is necessary but I suggest you prepare it fresh, as it only takes about 10 minutes to do. 

Once again, you are impressing your guests while barely spending half an hour in the kitchen! For the sake of time and ease, I used a prepared Jerk seasoning and jazzed it up a bit. You are more than welcome to find a blender marinade but this one passed my husband’s seal of approval and I was able to get everything done before the baby started crying! That’s what matters the most right?

Ingredients

• 1 ½ pounds of chicken breast*
• 3 Tbsp of Jerk Seasoning 
• 3 large cloves of garlic, crushed 
• Juice of half a lime 
• Juice of half an orange
• 2 Tbsp of brown sugar 
• 1 tablespoon of cilantro, chopped
• salt + black pepper, to taste 

Mango Salsa 

• 1 mango, cubed; about 1 Cup
• 1 avocado, diced 
• ½ a red onion, diced; about ½ Cup
• cilantro, chopped
• Juice of half a lime
• salt + black pepper, to taste 

Plus,

• corn tortillas 
• extra cilantro for serving 
• limes for serving 

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Instructions 

1.  In a small bowl, mix the jerk seasoning, crushed garlic, and brown sugar together. Coat the chicken breast. 
2.  Add the chicken to the slow cooker and squeeze lime juice and orange juice over the top. Add the crushed cilantro.
3.  Cover with the lid and cook on high for 2 ½ hours or low for 5 hours. 
4. The chicken should start to fall apart. Take two forks to shred the remaining pieces. 
5.  Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and discard half of the remaining liquid. Replace the chicken to keep it moist. 

Serve on grilled corn tortillas topped with plenty of mango salsa, lime wedges, additional cilantro. 

Mango Salsa 

Mix all the prepared ingredients in a bowl. squeeze lime juice over the top and give it a stir. Add salt and pepper to your liking. Serve immediately.

*If serving more than 4, use three pounds of chicken and double all the ingredients

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