Day Three Hundred Sixty: Egg-cellent Eggs

A few weeks ago I had dinner at one of my favorite restaurants: Brennan's.  Dinner there never disappoints, but if you can't schedule dinner, show up for brunch.  Brennan's and Antoine's in New Orleans have magnificent weekend brunch menus.  One of the things they are famous for is Eggs Sardou, which is a dish made with poached eggs, artichoke bottoms, creamed spinach and Hollandaise sauce.

Boy is it good.

It's legend that Eggs Sardou was invented at Antoine's.  It's named after a famous French writer who happened to be in New Orleans when the dish was invented.  I wonder if he liked this dish.  If there were a dish named after me, I'd be satisfied with this one.

Or some sort of chocolate mousse cake.  Possibly a cocktail.  But I digress...

Martha's recipe for Sardou-Style Eggs is pretty similar to what I've had before.  She uses collard greens instead of spinach. Pop open a can of artichoke bottoms, sauté up some collard greens and onions, and top with a poached egg.  That's a little cayenne pepper on top.

Sinfully delicious.

Day Three Hundred Fifty Two: Gettin' My Jam On (Everything)

As I mentioned when I made the Personalized Gift Tags, my birthday was Friday.  My husband planned a dinner with a few friends, and I wanted to make little boxes of late-night snacks for them to take home.  As part of the boxes, I thought to include a little something for breakfast the next morning.  I decided on Martha's Jam-Filled Coffee Cake Muffins because they look seriously decadent and I thought the crumbly, brown-sugar top would keep them moist until they were ready to eat.  (I don't know this to be the case, I was just guessing.)

Martha's recipe calls for the muffins to be made in 2 3/4-inch by 2-inch panettone papers, which are basically fancy, slightly sturdier, cupcake liners.  Despite heroic efforts, I was unable to find panettone papers that size.  I decided to try these adorable, slightly smaller paper muffin cups.  Since these cups are smaller than the suggested cups, I divided the batter between fifteen muffins cups instead of twelve.

Divided batter in ridiculously adorable muffin cups:

A teaspoon of strawberry jam on top:

Covered with a brown-sugar crumble:

I can smell success...or is that just the brown sugar?



About twenty minutes later I checked the oven to find this:

Hmmm.  Looks like I should have used a few more cups.  Nary a single muffin was presentable for my guests.  If you ignored the dripping dough on the outside, however, and actually ate one... They. Are. Delicious.  A herd of elephants or Justin Beiber fans could not keep me from trying this again.

Day Three Hundred Thirty Eight: Cinnamon Buns

With all these photos I've been snapping and saving lately, my poor little computer is filling up.  He's like your grandpa after Thanksgiving dinner:  slow and sleepy.  I've made some efforts to clean up and delete extra files, but in my deleting fervor, I permanently deleted some photos for this blog that I had not posted yet.

:bangs head against wall:  

So, while on Thursday I made Martha's Cinnamon-Nut Buns, (sans nuts) this is the only photo you will see to illustrate their yummy goodness.  Martha's photo:

Since you won't get to see the photo of the cinnamon buns I made, I might be tempted to tell you how wonderful they were and how I basically knocked this recipe out of the proverbial ballpark.

I didn't.

The baseball metaphor may still be appropriate, however, since my cinnamon buns were hard as rocks.  

Day Three Hundred Thirty Seven: Scones For You

Thursday I made Martha's Blueberry-Almond Scones...without the almonds.  I am sure they are lovely with almonds, but since my son has a nut allergy I decided to leave them out.  These are surprisingly easy to make, and you get to use a pastry blender, which is this little medevial-looking torture device.

In case you were wondering, a pastry blender cuts the butter into little crumbly pieces, which results in lovely, flakey breads.  You could accomplish the same thing with a couple of knives, but a pastry blender looks much cooler.

I guess there are several ways to make scones.  After the dough is made you can either: scoop them with a spoon and drop them onto a baking sheet (like a traditional cookie), or you can pat the dough into a circle and cut the into pizza-style triangles.  If you use the latter method, you end up with these perfect triangles of flakey, blueberry goodness:

These were so pretty they looked store-bought.  I was unreasonably proud of them and took more photos of them than a Vogue cover model.   I was so proud, in fact, I packed some up and left them on the doorstep of my British BFF.  She enjoyed them throughly.

And I didn't even have to impress her with my pastry blender-wielding skills.

Day Three Hundred Twenty Nine: Apple Pie Muffins

On Tuesday I made Martha's Applesauce Muffins.  I wanted to make my kids something different for a breakfast treat, so I decided to forgo the cream cheese topping.  Even without the sugary topping, these muffins were great.  Unfortunately, they didn't look nearly as delicious without the icing.

Martha's photo:

....Versus my photo:

Admittedly, my version doesn't look quite as appetizing.  You'll have to take my word:  these were like tiny, cinnamon-apple-pie flavored muffin.

Delicious.    

Day Three Hundred Twenty Eight: Outlaw Cheddar Biscuits

The other day I was craving a biscuit.  I don't know why.  My fat intake must have been terribly low.  Those poor little fat cells were probably starving. To fatten them up I made Martha's Cheddar Biscuits. They are pretty easy to make: cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender, then add buttermilk and cheese until a sticky dough forms.

Roll it out and use a handy cookie cutter to make tidy little biscuits:

Biscuits ready for the oven:

And these are my completed Cheddar Biscuits....

Don't they look gorgeous?  I felt like quite the 1950s housewife when I finished.  

These biscuits are amazing.  They are soft with a hint of cheddar-cheese flavor.  Had I been ignorant of the stick of butter in the recipe, I would have enjoyed them more. They are probably illegal in several states.  

Day Three Hundred Fifteen: After-Christmas Gingerbread

Before Christmas I made Gingerbread cookies for my kids.  They loved them.  In fact, they loved them so much, they have been asking for a repeat performance for weeks.  Instead of cookies, Tuesday I made Martha's Gingerbread Snacking Cake for them.

Gingerbread has a ridiculous amount of spices in it. This one has something called unsulfured molasses in it.  The grocery clerk was flummoxed on that one.  (I took some masochistic pleasure in it.)  This one is delicious and not too sweet.  Martha calls it a cake but it could be eaten for breakfast.  Think of it like banana or pumpkin bread.  It's sprinkled with a little powdered sugar.

Delicious.

My kids loved this.  Especially my one-year old who devoured more than her fair share after dinner on Tuesday.  If I'd caught it on camera, this is where I'd insert a photo of a child with food smeared all over her adorable little face.

Day Three Hundred Eleven: Blueberry Muffins, Part II

A few days ago I tried Martha's Double-Blueberry Muffins.  It would have been a great recipe, but it includes corn meal in the batter and the course texture didn't fly with my family.  I thought it tasted like I mixed sand in the batter.  In order to redeem myself, Friday I tried Martha's Blueberry Muffins.  This recipe doesn't include corn meal in the batter and therefore tastes more like a lovely cake-y batter.

With my second attempt I learned that my one-year old loves blueberry muffins.  She shoves huge pieces into her mouth like a hungry little hippo.  Crumbs flying everywhere.  It's a beautiful (if slightly amusing) sight.

Day Three Hundred Nine: Double-Blueberry Muffins

I've wanted to make Martha's Double-Blueberry Muffins for a while now.  They look delicious in her photo and there is something intriguing about a "double" blueberry muffin.  Are there two kinds of blueberries?  Are there double the amount of blueberries?  I had to find out.

This recipe is interesting because it includes flour and corn meal.  The final texture is....interesting.  It's course and almost like a cornbread.  The "double" portion of the recipe is that some of the blueberries are crushed and mixed into the batter.  It makes the batter look slightly grey, but don't worry.  Like Martha's photo, they look incredible.  Unfortunately, my husband was not shy in telling me he thought they were terrible.

He hated the texture, but I think some might like it.

:sigh:  How disappointing.

Day Three Hundred Six: Return of the Banana Bread

Months ago I had an epic banana bread disaster.  I made Martha's Banana Bread using a slightly smaller bread pan than the recipe suggested.  After much of the banana bread had escaped its pan, fell to the bottom of the oven and filled the house with smoke, I realized the importance of a correct-size pan. My house smelled like burned bananas for days.

Lesson #1:  If a specific-size pan is called for, use it.

After this disaster, I tried the same Banana Bead recipe again, using the correct pan.  I was determined that it was going to be delicious:  it has sour cream in it, for goodness sake!

Alas, my banana bread was lovely and moist, but nothing to get excited about. I kept searching for a great recipe.  I've found a few good ones, but kept coming back to this recipe.  Maybe the sour cream was calling my name. I don't know. 

So Sunday I gave the sour cream banana bread another try.  This is the last time, I swear.  I felt like I was taking back a worthless ex-boyfriend, actually.  I had pretty low expectations.

The good thing about this banana bread is that is comes together lighting fast.  Truly, it goes into the oven in less than twenty minutes.  And thanks to the sour cream, it is also very moist.  

The disappointing thing is that this recipe isn't that great.  It's always a little dense.  I'm not a true baker, but I know that baking soda causes baked goods to rise.  I'm wondering if there is not enough baking soda in this recipe, or if the baking soda in my pantry is suspect.  

I know I said I wouldn't, but I may have to try this recipe again...with new baking soda.  

Didn't I say something about a worthless ex-boyfriend? 

Day Two Hundred Ninety Three: Irresistible Mini Quiche

As I mentioned before, I love quiche.  On Christmas Eve I made Martha's Mini Quiche because Martha says you can make them in advance and reheat before serving.  I made some for my family to eat on Christmas morning and some to give away.

These are just like a regular quiche except they are made in a mini-muffin tin. They measure about two inches across and are compulsively edible.

As in:  you-won't-be-able-to-keep-your-paws-off good.

You'll be popping these babies in your mouth all day, warm or not.

Day Two Hundred Ninety-Two: Easy Asparagus Quiche

I love quiche.  It's great for breakfast.  It's chic for lunch. It can be served at room temperature and makes a gorgeous presentation. And (if you aren't convinced), it's ridiculously easy to make.

Really, how many dishes can say that?

If I'm expecting a holiday drop-in from a friend, I like to have a quiche handy.  Sunday I made Martha's Asparagus, Leek, and Gruyere Quiche.  If you use a frozen pie crust (I promise I won't tell), all you have to do is cook the veggies, spread them onto the pie crust, then top with a mixture of egg and half-and-half. Cook for about an hour and you have this:

I served mine with a spinach salad for lunch:

I told my kids this was pie and they totally bought it...until they grew suspicious:  why is mommy serving "dessert" first?

Day Two Hundred Seventy-Eight: Blackberry Crumb Bars for Breakfast

As a hostess gift, I tried Martha's Blackberry Crumb Bars.  It's sort of like a blackberry crumble cake, that you can cut into little bars.   The cake is sweet and tender and the blackberries are tart.  It's all topped off with a crunchy, brown-sugar topping.  

Since it's filled with fruit, it seems almost healthy.  Wholesome.  Some people might even eat these for breakfast.

After a very late party.

:looking at you Ginnie:

Day Two Hundred Forty-Three: Second-Chance Banana-Walnut Bread

I made Martha's secret-ingredient banana bread a while back and despite the secret-ingredient (sour cream!?!) it was just mediocre.  :sigh:  I was so disappointed.   I decided to try Martha's Banana-Walnut Loaf instead.  It doesn't have a secret ingredient but I'm all equal-opportunity at my house.

:so diplomatic:

Even without the secret ingredient, this banana bread was amazingly moist.  It's a winner.  I had a hard time getting a photo of it because my family kept stealing the piece I cut to photograph.

Just goes to show: if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Day Two Hundred Twenty-Seven: Eggs, Part II

On Friday afternoon I went out of town for a long weekend at the beach.

On Friday morning I realized I needed to complete my Martha chore for the day.

Thus I present to you:  Eggs, Part II.

Really, I'm always looking for an excuse to use my darling egg cups of which the British are so fond.   Martha's Soft-Cooked Eggs present the perfect opportunity.

Soft-cooked eggs are obviously as easy as boiling water...but there's a trick.  Bring water to a boil then gently drop in eggs.  Take off the heat and let set for four to six minutes, depending on whether you want a hard- or soft-boiled egg.  BUT, this only works if your egg is room temperature.  Take it from me, it took me two several tries to get this right. (If anyone had money on four tries, you won.)

These were so good....and who wouldn't enjoy eating out of these egg cups?

Day Two Hundred Twenty-Six: Poached Egg Virgin

The other day someone asked me the trick to poaching eggs and I was a little embarrassed...and it's not because I don't know the trick.  Here's the thing:

I've never poached an egg before.

Determined to rectify the situation, I ran home and found Martha's recipe for Easy Poached Eggs.  This recipe is basically Poached Eggs for Dummies.

After putting the eggs in simmering water and allowing to cook, I was pretty sure I needed some remedial help.  My eggs looked like this:

(There are two eggs hidden under that froth somewhere.)

But when I removed them with a slotted spoon, they looked like this:

I'm pretty sure I'm a poached egg savant or something.

Day One Hundred Eighty Nine: Not Just for Breakfast Cookies

A few weeks ago, I made some Oatmeal Toffee Cookies and joked that because there was oatmeal in them, I could serve them to my kids for breakfast.  (Joke!) After that, one of my friends pointed out that Martha actually has a recipe for Breakfast Cookies.  Of course, I had to try them.

These cookies are packed with nuts, fruit, seeds and oats.  They are topped with a banana chip. (That's a dried banana slice, if you were curious.)  Since my son has a nut allergy, I omitted the nuts, but BOY are these good.  They are chewy and sweet and they just feel wholesome.  Forget breakfast.  These babies are stars at any time of day.

(I wrote the above before I uploaded the photos below.  Please ignore the fact that each of these cookies looks like a little boob with a banana nipple.)

I'll never look at breakfast the same way again.

Day One Hundred Eighty Eight: Muffins for Swingers

I have friends who are Cereal Monogamists.  (Not Serial Monogamists.  What kind of blog do you think this is?)  Cereal Monogamists.  They eat cereal for breakfast every morning.  Every.  Morning.  Maybe you are a Toast Monogamist.  Me, I am a swinger of sorts:  I usually eat a piece of fruit for breakfast, but sometimes, just to spice things up, I'll have yogurt and granola.  I'm such a wild woman, I know.  

 Yesterday, just as an experiment, I made Martha's Chunky Apple Muffins.  They look good and kid-friendly.  Like peanut butter and jelly, they combine a classic combo: cinnamon and tart Granny Smith apples.  Yum.

These were easy and turned out great.  The kids got a kick out of the slice of apple baked on top.  My husband ate three five.   He's pretty wild too. 

Day Twenty Nine: Ode to the Boiled Egg

You weren't expecting an actual ode to the boiled egg were you?  Because I don't really rhyme.  I gave it up for Lent.

Or something like that.

We have an egg hunt for our kiddos and family every Easter. While I'm sure it is nothing like Martha's Easter Egg Hunt, the kids look forward to it.  But it means I must boil and dye several dozen eggs.  The prospect is always a little daunting...I'm always afraid that I will under-boil the eggs and wipe out the entire family in one fell swoop.  I imagine the headlines:


Mother Kills Entire Family with Easter Egg Blunder

Mom Claims She "Thought The Eggs Were Cooked" 

Egg Hunt Gone Wrong


Martha gives us tips for Perfect Hard-Boiled Eggs  and I followed them to the letter...Let this serve as evidence of any lack of premeditation on my part.

Eggs covered by one inch of water:

Water brought to boil:

I even checked one just to make sure:

Perfectly cooked.

Looks like our Easter should be Salmonella free.

Now, on to writing that Ode...