Egg Nog French Toast

Tis the season!  WOOHOO!  Yup, things are starting to look a lot like Yuletide here at Tenderfoot Hearth.  The tree is up, the dishes are out, and we're putting up outside decorations this weekend.

In the spirit of the holiday season, my Hubs brought home a big carton of Egg Nog.  Now I must confess, Egg Nog is not a favorite of mine.  To be 100% honest, I don't like it at all.  I'm not much of a milk fan to begin with and Egg Nog is so thick, well, I just can't do it.  It does smell divine though, with it's blend of vanilla, nutmeg, and other spices. 

This morning, I was craving French Toast.  I always put nutmeg and vanilla in mine and a light bulb went off.  Why not use Egg Nog in place of the milk?  Hmmmmm....sounded interesting. 

Let me tell you, ladies and gentlemen, I will never, ever dis Egg Nog again.  It makes the most delicious French Toast you can imagine.  It even enticed my 'I don't eat breakfast' Hubs to come running to the kitchen after just on bite.  Yes, it's that good.

Hubs ate his straight up, no syrup.  I warmed up some whole berry cranberry sauce and spread on mine.  Mmmmmm.  The tartness of the cranberries went perfectly with the sweet goodness of the Toast.  We both agreed it would be delicious with some real maple syrup. 

This dish will be gracing our table for our 'Morning After Yule' breakfast.  I have a feeling we have a new tradition in our house.  I hope it becomes one of yours as well.

Egg Nog French Toast
Recipe makes 6 slices
Left over loaf French Bread (needs to be a bit stale)
2 Tablespoons real Butter
2 Eggs
1/2 cup Egg Nog
1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

Slice French Bread into 6 slices, approximately 1 to 1-1/2 inches.  Set aside.

In a shallow dish (I use one we get from Chinese take-out), beat the two eggs.

Add the Egg Nog and cinnamon and mix thoroughly.

Soak bread slices in mixture, about 1 minute on each side.

Spray skillet with Non-Stick Spray and heat to medium.
Break 1 tablespoon butter into small pieces and melt.

Once butter is melted, add slices and cook until lightly brown.

Add the other piece of butter and flip slices, making sure butter goes under slices.
 

Cook until browned.

 Put on plate and sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar.

Brrrr! Time for EASY Cinnamon Rolls!

Sorry for the long time away.  I've been in training for my newest job.  Yes, another one.  Hey, I work.  What can I say?  Don't laugh.  If all goes well, I'll have yet another new job at the beginning of the year.  This job is one is actually in my career field and doing something I absolutely love.  More on that in a later post as things develop.

So, yes.  BRRRR!  A cold front moved through Oklahoma this week.  Temps below freezing and we saw snow, sleet, & rain all day long. 

And with the cold comes a desire for something hot and sweet and gooey.  Yup, you got it.  Cinnamon rolls!  I confess.  I felt lazy and didn't make real rolls.  I just grabbed some out of the freezer case.  And to make matters worse, I wanted them quick!  That's right.  I didn't want to wait the whole, what?  20 minutes for them to cook.  No no no!  Not me!  So I broke out the waffle maker and tried what I've seen many times on other sites.  It worked.  Maybe a little too well. 

Waffle Maker Cinnamon Rolls
Tube of Cinnamon Rolls
Pecans (or your favorite nuts)
Oil or Pam-type Spray

Spray waffle maker or wipe lightly with oil.

Place cinnamon rolls on waffle maker.  Use what fits in your maker.  Mine held 4 nicely.

Close lid and cook until steam stops.

Ice while hot and sprinkle with nuts.  Eat...then make more. 

Pumpkin Spice Bundt with Maple Bourbon Cream Cheese Glaze

There is just something about the cool Fall weather that brings out the baker in me.  I want to bake cookies, pies and cakes.  Yes, I want to eat them all too but, I think I'll share. I decided to bake up a Bundt cake.  I've seen some 2-ingredient Bundt cakes popping up on the Internet and I decided today was the day.  I'm having a few friends over so this is perfect timing.

In honor of tomorrow being the first day of October, I chose Pumpkin Spice Bundt.  Nothing says fall like pumpkin & spices.  Unless it's maple and bourbon.  And pecans.  Can't forget pecans.  What I ended up with was Pumpkin Spice with Maple Bourbon Cream Cheese Glaze.  Have to say, my house smells so good right now!  Between the roasted pecans and the cake....Mmmmmmm....Heaven!

FYI:  You will have a bit of leftover glaze.  I kept mine and used it in my coffee.  Yummy!

Pumpkin Spice Bundt with Maple-Bourbon Cream Cheese Glaze

Cake:
1 box Spice Cake mix
1 can Pumpkin (don't get pumpkin pie mix. Not the same)
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Vanilla
1/4 tsp. Cardamom
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg

Glaze:
2 Tbl. Butter
2 Tbl. Cream
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
4 Tbl. Cream Cheese
1 Tbl. Bourbon (I used Maker's Mark) If you don't like bourbon, use extra vanilla.
1/2 tsp. Maple Flavor
1/2 tsp. Vanilla
1 cup Powdered Sugar

Decorative Topping:
Toasted Pecans
Craisins

Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Coat Bundt pan with cooking spray and set aside.

Dump cake mix and pumpkin in mixer.  Mix together.

Add cinnamon, vanilla, cardamom and nutmeg and mix.

This stuff is very thick!  Make sure to even out you cake or it will not be pretty!

Pour into Bundt pan and bake for approximately 45 minutes, testing to make sure center is done.

Turn out on wire rack to cook.

Toasted Nuts:

Spread nuts on baking sheet and toast at 350 degrees F. for 5 minutes.

Stir and toast another 5 minutes. Be careful not to burn as this can happen quickly.

Set aside to cool.
Glaze:

Melt butter and cream together in the microwave. Mix together with brown sugar until sugar melts.

Add cream cheese, bourbon, maple flavor and vanilla and mix until cream cheese is well incorporated.

Add 1/2 cup powdered sugar, mix well.

Then add second 1/2 cup powdered sugar.  Mix well.

Drizzle over cake, letting it run down sides. 

Sprinkle cake with decorative topping. 

Burritos Enchilada Style-Mexican Villa Copy-Cat

This another copy-cat recipe from my beloved Mexican Villa.  If you don't want to make huge burritos, you can make smaller ones using smaller flour tortillas.  If you do, obviously you'll be able to make more than two.  To be honest, smaller is better in this case as these things are massive! 

 

 

To Make Burritos Enchilada Style

(Makes 2 Very Large Burritos)

1 pound Ground Beef/Turkey

1 package Taco Seasoning

Mexican Villa Sauce

1 16 oz. can Refried Beans

2 cups Shredded Monterrey Jack &/or White American Cheese

Chopped Onion (optional)

2 Large Flour Tortillas

shredded Iceberg lettuce

diced Tomato

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown ground beef/turkey. Pour into a strainer or small-holed colander.

Drain beef and rinse with hot water, making sure to get rid of as much fat as possible. If using turkey, skip this step. 

Put back into pan and add taco seasoning and a few tablespoons sauce to beef/turkey. Let simmer for a couple of minutes until thick.

Spray a baking pan with cooking spray.

Pour a small amount of sauce into baking pan to cover bottom. I use individual serving plates for these.

Warm flour tortillas in microwave for approximately 15 seconds, just enough to make pliable.

Using one flour tortilla, fill with 1/2 of refried beans, starting off center to leave room to roll.

Add 1/2 of the ground beef/turkey,

then 1/2 cup cheese and onions if using.

Fold tortilla over filling.

Fold ends towards the middle.

Roll over folds.

Continue to roll until a you have rolled all the tortilla together.



Place in baking pan.

Cover with sauce and remaining cheese.

Bake for approximately 30 minutes until bubbly and cheese is melted.

Garnish with lettuce and tomato.

Mexican Villa serves their enchiladas with a side of refried beans and Mexican rice. If you want it truly authentic, place the enchiladas, beans and rice on a oven-proof plate, and add a few tablespoons of sauce over the beans and sprinkle with cheese, then bake until cheese has melted.

Carmalized Potatoes or Brúnaðar kartöflur

I was searching around the Web last night, looking at ideas for Mother's Night.  I am hosting a cookie exchange but the men-folk will be here too, so I want to put on a nice Julebord aka a Smorgasbord.  Since we're not strictly confined to one Northern European country, I was searching for ideas and recipes from all of them.  I ran across Brúnaðar kartöflur on an Icelandic cooking site.  I needed a side dish for dinner and these looked delish.  And they were! 

I modified the recipe a bit, adding some salt and fresh ground pepper but I think it remains true to the flavors.  I served them with apple-chipotle glazed salmon and California mix.  Hubs loved them and it gave me a chance to try them out before I serve them to company.

Be forewarned, I used canned potatoes and yes, they did splatter a bit.  I got around this by using a splatter guard but if you don't have one, try using small cold cooked potatoes instead.  Either one will work.

I apologize.  I didn't get the ingredients photo on this one.  

 Caramelized Potatoes or Brúnaðar Kartöflur 
2 15-oz can Potatoes
1/4 cup Butter
1/4 cup Sugar
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. fresh ground Pepper
Parsley for sprinkling

Open, drain and rinse potatoes.  Dry in a dish towel, getting off as much water as possible. If there are large potatoes, cut in half.  Set aside.
Put butter and sugar in a skillet and melt on medium heat. 

Add salt, pepper & then add potatoes.

Continue cooking and stirring, making sure all sides of the potatoes are covered with the butter/sugar mixture.

Be sure to put splatter guard over potatoes between stirring to avoid a  nasty little burn.  It will splatter!

Continue to cook until all the potatoes are golden brown.  Be careful not to burn the caramel mixture.  This takes about 20 minutes.  Do not get in a hurry.  If you do, the caramel will burn and taste really bad and you'll ruin the whole dish.

Take out potatoes and then pour remaining butter over and serve.   



Perfect side for salmon.