Tag Archives: brunch

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BeerBerry Pancakes

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If you’ve been reading for a while, you may already know I have a thing for putting beer in my waffle batter. Not just because it’s a fun excuse to have booze in the AM (it IS fun, though…), but because the effervescence of the beer gives the batter lift and a yeasty-malted flavor that I find irresistible and the perfect foil for copious amounts of maple syrup.

The resounding reason why these pancakes are not waffles is because sometimes I just don’t want to dig my waffle maker out of the recesses of the cabinet. That’s just true life and laziness at it’s finest…thus, the pancake. These pancakes take the griddle-standard blueberry and pairs it with zesty orange and yeasty beer. While the beer and baking powder give these pancakes their lift, the buttermilk brings tenderness, and coconut oil adds a bit of richness, while a teensy bit of cinnamon brings a little interest to the background. Blueberries and citrus are already friends, adding an orange-friendly beer to the mix just makes it a party.

BeerBerry Pancakes

Adapted from THIS recipe. 

I added a dash of Cook’s orange extract and vanilla paste* for a creamy-sweet-citrus note–both are totally optional, but fun additions. 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 Tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 cup beer (I used Blue Moon Valencia Grove Amber)

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 large egg

1 Tablespoon orange zest

1/2 teaspoon each vanilla paste/extract and orange extract (optional)

3 Tablespoons coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly

Preheat oven to 200˚F and set an oven safe dish inside.

In a mixing bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and cinnamon. Set aside. In a large measuring cup combine the buttermilk, egg, zest, and extracts, whisk to combine well, whisk in the beer. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the beer/buttermilk mix, fold gently for a few turns and add the coconut oil. Continue to fold until just combined–some lumps and streaks of flour are okay, do not overmix. Gently fold in the blueberries.

In a non-stick pan or griddle over medium-high heat, ladle out as many pancakes as you will fit in the pan and cook until bubbles begin to appear around the edges and the surface of the pancakes and the bottoms are golden-brown, flip and continue to cook through. Place cooked pancakes on the dish in the preheated oven and repeat with the remaining batter. Serve with butter and syrup.

 

 

*Cook’s provided me with a complimentary sample of some of their extracts. Though the products were provided to me, free of charge, all opinions expressed are my own. 

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Orange Chocolate Chip Pancakes

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Hey, Tuesday! I hope everyone that had a long weekend here in the US had a great time. We went impromptu car shopping on Saturday (our beloved, old car kicked the bucket and refused to budge) and Sean left for a business trip Sunday. It was a busier,  more emotional weekend than anticipated with the dying of the car and the need to find something in a single day. Which, in retrospect felt like a HUGE, overwhelming deal at the time, but now that things are back in order that huge deal has become NBD (I know, first world probs ya’ll).

I made these pancakes on Sunday as a little Hurray/Farewell, I think they helped AND I think that these are maybe my favorite pancakes ever. Sean always requests chocolate chip pancakes, they are his fave, and since we’re big fans of the classic orange-chocolate combo, I added the zest and juice of an orange for good measure. This pancake recipe is a breezey wet+dry situation and, with the addition of chocolate and orange, they are the kind of special that’s made easy. The pancakes cook up fluffy and tender and perfect. The decadent mix-ins make them irresistible even without syrup and butter, but there’s no judgement if you want a little extra sweetness. Sometimes you need it, ya know?

Orange Chocolate Chip Pancakes

adapted from Mad Hungry: Feeding Men and Boys 

Make about 20, 3-inch pancakes

I add the juice from the orange to the milk–much like I would to make a buttermilk replacement with lemon and milk in a recipe. The acid from the orange may curdle the milk a bit, but that’s totally fine, go with it. If there isn’t enough orange juice to make 1/4 cup add store-bought orange juice to make up the difference or when mixing with the milk, add a bit more milk to make 1 1/4 cup total of liquid. I like mini chips in my pancakes because they suspend in the batter and are less likely to burn on the bottom of the pan. 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 Tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons baking powder

generous 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

zest of 1 orange

1/4 cup orange juice (squeezed from the zested orange)

1 cup milk

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

vegetable oil, for brushing the pan

maple syrup and butter, for serving

Preheat the oven to 200˚F, place an oven safe dish on the middle rack.

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the flour, brown sugar, salt, and baking powder. Toss in the chips and coat lightly with the flour mixture. Set aside. In a large measuring cup whisk together the orange zest, juice, and milk. Whisk in the egg and vanilla, to combine well. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and pour the milk mixture into the center of the well. Add the butter and fold the wet ingredients into the dry mixture until just combined–there may be a few small lumps, that’s okay. Do not overmix! or your pancakes will turn out chewy. Allow the batter to rest 5-10 minutes.

Heat a skillet (I use nonstick) or griddle over medium-high heat. Lightly brush the surface of the skillet with oil and pour in a scant 1/4 cup of batter, cook until bubbles begin to form all over the surface of the batter and the bottom is medium, golden brown. Flip the pancake and cook an additional minute or until the middles of the pancake are cooked through. Place the cooked pancake on the warmed plate in the oven. Repeat with remaining batter.  Serve warm with butter and syrup.

 

 

 

 

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Banana-Yogurt Muffins

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Muffins, ya’ll.

Sometimes a girl–or dude–just wants to bake something that’s homemade, but stress free. Muffins are both of those things and they almost never disappoint.

My favorite thing about the humble, homemade muffin is that it can be almost-healthy to actually-healthy–using flours and germs and brans and fruits and healthy fats to boost the health factor. See, most store-bought varieties are packed with enough sugar and other stuff that makes them basically cake. I mean, cake is delicious and sometimes makes the BEST breakfast, but even I can’t go for cake-breakfast everyday. That’s why I love a muffin. It’s a quick bread in a cupcake outfit.

These muffins are of the almost-healthy variety. They use pantry staples and fresh, ripe banana for tenderness and flavor. The sunflower seeds are in there for some crunch–because I can’t resist adding texture to most things. The batter comes together by simply folding the whisked up wet ingredients into the sifted dry ingredients, and uses only a few dishes. The baked muffins are ultra-moist due to the combination of yogurt, banana, and olive oil. The dusting of powdered sugar is totally optional but makes for a pretty and slightly sweeter muffin.

Banana-Yogurt Muffins

Adapted from Donna Hay Modern Classics Book 2

Makes 12 regular muffins. 

For tender and light muffins, be sure to mix the batter until the dry ingredients are just incorporated. Lumpy batter is okay, over-mixing the batter until it’s completely smooth will result in a chewy and dense muffin. 

2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup sunflower seeds plus more for sprinkling (optional)

1/2 cup plain yogurt (I used greek yogurt)

2 very ripe bananas, mashed with a fork

2 eggs

1/3 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350*F. Spray/grease or line a muffin tin with paper cups.

Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Toss in the sunflower seeds and mix to combine. In a large measuring cup whisk together the yogurt, banana, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Add the yogurt-banana mixture to the dry mixture and fold with a rubber spatula until just combined. Divide the batter between the 12 prepared muffin cups and bake in the center of the oven for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days.

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Coconut + Chocolate Chip Cream Scones

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Guys, these scones!

Oh man, what a dream! I mean, toasty coconut and chocolate chips are always a fine pair, but in these scones they are even better.

These are cream scones, which means the main liquid is rich and buttery cream. The cream gives these scones the dreamiest crumb that is at once light and decidedly rich. They are super tender with the help of a soft, low protein flour–like White Lily or even a pastry or cake flour. The soft flour has less protein, meaning less gluten, meaning less elasticity, plus more tenderness. While yeasted doughs benefit from some chew, supple scones definitely do not. The chocolate and toasty coconut make these already special scones a bit more decadent. They would be perfect in a brunch spread or even an easy weekend breakfast. They also make the perfect afternoon treat alongside a cup of something warm and caffeinated.

Coconut + Chocolate Chip Scones

Adapted from Take a Megabite and Smitten Kitchen

Makes 12, 3-inch round, scones.

These scones are still good as leftovers the next day, but are at their very best still warm from the oven. For super fresh scones, I like to freeze the cut and unbaked scones in a single layer on a sheet pan for several hours, then I transfer the frozen scones to a zip top bag and return the the freezer. The scones can then be baked, as needed, from frozen. Just bake an additional 1-2 minutes. 

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 Tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter, cubed and chilled

2 cups low-protein flour (like White Lily brand, pastry or cake flour)

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons sugar

1/2 cup shredded coconut, toasted, plus more for sprinkling

3/4 cup chocolate chips

1 egg + 1 Tablespoon milk

Preheat the oven to 425*F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or silicone baking mat.

In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the coconut stirring and watching so as not to burn.  Once the coconut is golden and toasty, scrape it into a bowl and set aside to cool completely.

In a measuring cup mix together the cream and vanilla. Set aside.

Whisk together the egg and tablespoon of milk. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Work in the chilled butter quickly with your fingertips, rubbing the butter into the flour until the bits of butter are no larger than peas. Toss the coconut and chips into the mixture to distribute. Add the cream mixture and bring the dough together by folding gently with a spatula. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead–the goal is to bring the dough together in under 12 turns of kneading. Once the dough has just come together, pat it out into desired thickness (go for a rough circle to cut triangles, makes about 8), cut with a biscuit cutter and place on the prepared baking sheet. Brush the tops of each scone with egg wash and sprinkle with coconut. Bake in the center of the oven for 10-13 minutes or until tops and bottoms are just golden and scones are baked through.

 

 

 

 

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Double Chocolate + Pistachio Muffins

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Sometimes you want need chocolate for breakfast. Sometimes it’s a perfect pair with your third cup of coffee. Sometimes it’s just what you needed to make a gloomy morning seem brighter.

Chocolate muffins always make me happy–it’s like dessert for breakfast without actually being dessert. These muffins keep it real with healthful yogurt, a touch of olive oil, some nutty wheat germ, a bit of cocoa, some nuts for crunch, and a handful of chocolate chips for good measure. They aren’t too sweet, so go ahead and smear some berry jam on there. Or, if you want need to, a smear of nutella or cookie butter would be amazing–I totes won’t judge.

Double Chocolate + Pistachio Muffins

Makes 8 standard size muffins.

Adapted from this recipe. 

You could definitely leave out the pistachios and make these nut-free, or switch them out for another nut. 

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

7 Tablespoons brown sugar

2 Tablespoons wheat germ (optional)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 egg

1/2 cup plain greek yogurt

3 Tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/3 cup chocolate chips

1/4 cup coarsely chopped pistachios, plus 1-2 tablespoons for topping

Preheat oven to 350*F. Line a muffin tin with 8 paper liners.

In a mixing bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa, sugar, wheat germ, salt, baking powder, and soda. Fold in the chocolate chips and 1/4 cup nuts.

In a large measuring cup whisk the egg, whisk in the yogurt, oil, milk, and vanilla to combine well. Pour the wet mixture into the dry and fold until just combined. Divide the batter between muffin cups and sprinkle remaining nuts over the tops of each muffin. Bake in the center of the oven for 16-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 days.

 

 

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Blueberry Muffins with Streusel

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Heeeeyy! I am currently in arrid Nevada, getting ready for my friends wedding, we have poolside plans, drinks, silly bachelorette festivities, baby-niece play time, and about a billion other things in the game plan before I leave next week.

Every time I travel solo, I always miss Sean a ton. I also always try to make him a little something, to remind him how much he misses me…ha! This time I made him these muffins, classic blueberry with a little sugary streusel for good measure, and yogurt for moisture.

Blueberry Muffins w/ Streusel

Adapted from this recipe. 

1 cup all-purpose flour

6 Tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 egg, beaten lightly

1/2 cup plain yogurt

3 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup blueberries

Streusel

3 Tablespoons flour

3 Tablespoons sugar

2 Tablespoons butter

pinch of salt and cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350*F. Line a muffin tin w/ 8 liners.

FOR STREUSEL: In a small bowl work the butter for the streusel into the flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon until the mixture is crumbly. Set in refrigerator until ready to use.

In a medium bowl whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

In a large measuring cup mix the egg, yogurt, oil, milk, and vanilla to combine well. Fold the wet mixture into the dry to just combine. Fold in the blueberries. Divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups and top with streusel. Bake for 15-18 minutes. Cool on wire racks for a few minutes before eating.

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Meyer Lemon Pull-Apart Bread

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This bread is one of those recipes that immediately caught my eye, I love lemony treats. It’s also one of those recipes that has been lost in my abyss of bookmarks for months. As it is the season for citrus, my local grocery store has been stocked with all kinds of zesty goodness. We are big fans of oranges and grapefruits, simply segmented maybe with a drizzle of maple syrup or a sprinkle of Pico de Gallo (I love this stuff on apples and mangoes too), but I do most of my citrusy baking with Meyer Lemons. I love them, sweet-sour and such a perfect sunny yellow.
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