Recipes: Breakfast

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Apple-Cinnamon Oat Pancakes - Sour Cream Muffins - Crustless Southwestern Quiche Cups - Mock Souffle - Oat Muffins - Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Muffins - Bran Muffins - Amaretto French Toast - Gingerbread Pancakes

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Apple-Cinnamon Oat Pancakes

These are just so full of flavor and also filling.

1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup quick cooking or old fashioned oats
1 tablespoon sugar or even splenda/sugar substitute
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
3/4 cup milk - low fat or fat free
1/2 cup sugar free applesauce
2 tablespoons canola oil
Optional: 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Stir together flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a mixing bowl.

Beat egg in separate bowl; stir in milk, applesauce, and oil.

Add liquid mixture to dry ingredients, stirring just until blended. Fold in walnuts.

Heat greased griddle or skillet over medium heat or to 375 degrees. Griddle is ready when a few drops of water bubble and skitter rapidly around.

For each pancake, pour scant 1/4 cup batter onto hot griddle. Cook pancakes until puffed, bubbly and dry around edges. Turn and cook other sides until golden brown.

Sour Cream Muffins

This recipe can be made to be low-fat and diabetic friendly so I have put the substitute behind ingredients.

1/4 cup butter margarine (diet margarine or canola oil)
3/4 cup sour cream (low fat sour cream)
1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar (or equivalent in sugar substitute such as splenda)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 Egg beaten

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cream margarine and sugar; add sour cream; mix well. Sift dry ingredients. Add alternately with egg to first mixture. Spoon into greased muffin tins; bake for 15 minutes.

Optional:
6 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup sugar (sugar substituted can be used also)
2 teaspoon cinnamon

Roll immediately in melted butter, then in mixture of sugar and cinnamon. If you want to skip the butter just roll the hot muffins into he sugar and cinnamon mixture and it will stick and melt and crystallize onto the muffin while cutting fat.

Crustless Southwestern Quiche Cups
6 large eggs (or equivalent of Egg Beaters which is what I used)
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheese (I used a little lowfat Cheddar and then some Mozzarella)
1 cup of cooked chicken chopped up
1/2 cup of tomatoes chopped up
one 4 oz can of diced green chilies
1/2 cup diced onions
A little cayenne pepper to taste (can use a little hot sauce or chili powder also)

Preheat oven to 350 or 375 degrees F. Beat eggs with wire whisk in large mixing bowl until completely blended. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well with spoon.

Spray a large size nonstick muffin pan (6 cups with 1 cup capacity each) with cooking spray. Divide mixture as evenly as possible into each cup. (You do not need to use foil baking cups.) Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean. They will rise during cooking and fall while cooling.

Note: You can use a smaller-capacity, 12-cup muffin pan if desired, or even a loaf pan. Quiche cups (or slices) can be frozen and reheated in the microwave.

Variations: Any combination of appropriate vegetables, chopped (green or red bell peppers, onions, zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli, spinach, mushrooms, etc.), meat (browned ground turkey sausage, crumbled turkey bacon, cubed lean ham, Canadian bacon) and cheeses may be used.

Examples:
Country Quiche Cups - browned ground turkey sausage and cheese
Garden Quiche Cups - Tons of Veggies & Cheese
Canadian Bacon - Put a piece of Canadian bacon down and then mix up your quiche in your favorite way pour on top of the Canadian bacon and bake
Ham & Swiss Cheese Quiche
Pizza Quiche - turkey pepperoni chopped up, plus your favorite pizza toppings

Mock "Souffle"
4 eggs or 2 cups egg substitute
1 1/2 cups (fat free) milk
1 1/2 cups shredded (reduced fat) extra sharp cheddar cheese
4 slices bread cubed -- I use whole wheat and love the flavor just as much when using any other bread
1 can sliced mushrooms
1 cup broccoli florets or 2 spears of asparagus - trimmed and chopped
4 ounces (lean) smoked ham - chopped
salt and pepper

Preheat the over 350 - Coat a 2 quart baking dish with cooking spray. In a large bowl, beat the eggs until frothy. Stir in rest of the ingredients. Pour into a greased baking dish. Bake for 45 minutes or until golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Makes 4 servings.

Notes: I have also used crumbled bacon and sausage and different types of cheeses before too and it was great!

Oat Muffins

Make a double batch and freeze half for later

3/4 cup + 2 tbsp oats
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour or whole grain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup canola oil
1 egg, beaten
1/3 cup brown sugar (substitute)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 12-cup nonstick muffin pain with cooking spray or line with paper baking cups. In a small bowl, combine the 3/4 cup oats and buttermilk. Let soak for 30 minutes. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, salt and walnuts. In a large bowl, stir together the oil, egg, brown sugar and vanilla, until well blended. Stir in oat mixture. Stir in flour mixture until just combined. Do not over mix. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, filling about 2/3 full. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 tbsp oats. Bake for 11 to 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserts in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool on racks for 5 minutes. Remove to the rack to cool completely. Makes 12 muffins.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour (or you can use 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all purpose)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg - beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chip

Preheat oven to 400°F. Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, vegetable oil and vanilla. Pour the liquid mixture into the well of the dry mixture. Mix until just moistened, then fold in the chocolate chips. Spoon into 12 greased muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes.

Bran Muffins

These are my favorite as they bring me back home...my Mom made them all the time.

1 1/2 cups wheat bran
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners. Mix together wheat bran and buttermilk; let stand for 10 minutes. Beat together oil, egg, sugar and vanilla and add to buttermilk/bran mixture. Mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a medium sized bowl. Stir flour mixture into buttermilk mixture, until just blended. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool and enjoy!

Amaretto French Toast

2 tablespoons amaretto
4 eggs -- well beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons brown sugar
12 slices french bread (also can use amaretto bread for extra amaretto taste)

In shallow bowl mix all ingredients except bread. Soak bread in mixture. In large skillet, melt some butter. Drain bread. Cook in butter until both sides are golden brown.

Gingerbread Pancakes

3 eggs
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup molasses
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
4 tablespoons butter, melted

Cream together the eggs and brown sugar. Add the buttermilk, water and molasses, and stir until smooth. Set aside. In a separate container, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cloves, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. Combine the egg mixture with the flour mixture, and stir in the melted butter. Makes about 3-1/2 cups of batter, or enough for 8 to 10 pancakes.