Breakfast

Easy Breakfast Potatoes

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Stephen & I always make a breakfast potatoes in the morning. It’s easy and it tastes great by itself or with eggs (any style). Tons of flavor and an easy way to sneak in some veggies – you can add anything you want.

I’d say I make this at least a couple of times a week and it doesn’t have to be for breakfast, if you’re looking for something lighter. It’d be great for lunch or dinner too. Hell, it’s potatoes, you (at least I) could eat them anytime of the day.

Stephen’s dad always makes what they call “country eggs.” He sautes the potato/onion/pepper and whatever seasoning he wants to add, then adds scrambled eggs directly to the pan, and finally when the eggs are cooked he lays some slices of cheese over the top to melt. Then he dishes it out with a few bottles of hot sauce for everyone to use as desired (for us, that’s A LOT of hot sauce please).

Breakfast Potatoes

  • Olive Oil
  • 5 Small/Medium Red Skin Potatoes
  • 1/2 – 1 Orange Bell Pepper, large dice
  • 1 Medium Onion, large dice
  • 1 Jalapeño, finely diced
  • 1 Tbsp Chili Powder (or to taste)
  • Dashes Vinegar-based Hot Sauce (Crystal is my favorite)
  • Salt & Pepper

If you’re under time constraints, sprinkle a couple tablespoons of water on the potatoes and microwave them for about 5 minutes to cook them through. Heat the oil over medium high in a large skillet (I highly recommend using a nonstick pan for obvious reasons) and then add the potatoes. After a couple of minutes, add the bell pepper, onion & jalapeño. Add chili powder & hot sauce. If you don’t like spicy you can use a few dashes of vinegar instead… it just brings out the flavor. Saute for about 15 – 20 minutes or until cooked to the “brownness” you prefer (crispy potatoes, soft potatoes, browned onions, etc). If you’re making eggs too, you can add them scrambled directly into the skillet for a “country” breakfast style hash.

Amish Bread

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Today I made Amish bread! From the cookbook Stephen got me for my birthday – The Amish Cook’s Baking Book by Lovina Eicher. I modified the recipe only slightly and as my first time making bread like this, I think it turned out pretty well. It was extremely yummy. I kept pulling pieces off after I’d already had a couple of slices.

Lovina’s Homemade Bread (modified only slightly)

  • 1 Tbsp Active Dry Yeast (or 1 package)
  • 2 1/2 Cups Warm Water
  •  Lard  Vegetable Shortening (amount the size of a large egg)
  • 2 Tbsp Sugar (I used light brown sugar)
  • 1 Tbsp Salt (I used 2 teaspoons, but mine turned out a little sweet – I liked it)
  • Enough bread flour to make a soft dough

I think I used about 4, maybe 5, cups but I really have no idea. I was too focused on adding 1/2 cup of the flour at a time and watching how the dough looked to see if I was doing it right.

Grease a 5 by 9 inch loaf pan.

In a bowl, combine 1/2 cup warm water with yeast to soften. In another bowl, combine 2 cups warm water, softened vegetable shortening, sugar, and salt. Incorporate the yeast mixture. Stir until combined. Add bread flour 1/2 cup at a time “mixing until the dough is elastic and doesn’t stick to the sides of the bowl.” I was a little unsure of myself with this step because I haven’t made a lot of bread in my life but I did my best at guessing how it should look.

Once combined, cover and let rise in warm spot until doubled. Takes from 1 to 1.5 hours. Preheat oven to 325 Degrees Fahrenheit while the dough is rising. Once risen, punch down dough and form into loaf shape (for me this required a lot of extra flour but perhaps I didn’t add enough to being with). Place in greased loaf pan and allow to rise an additional 30 minutes until the dough fills out the pan and is about level with the top.

Bake for 45 minutes. Lovina suggests coating the dough with oil before baking to keep the bread soft or brushing with butter when it’s finished for similar effect. I brushed the top of mine with honey before baking.

NOTE: My vegetable shortening didn’t really start to combine until I added the flour but the warm water eventually made it melt (sort of) into the mixture.

Sooo yummy.

Blueberry Bran Muffins

/ pumpkinhoney / 2 Comments

I use the same base Bran Muffin recipe ALL THE TIME. It is the best I’ve ever found.

I change up the recipe slightly almost every time I make it, sometimes I add cinnamon, sometimes a banana, other fruit, nuts, etc. I add apple butter, change up the amounts of liquid or dairy. It is really extremely versatile. You could use a variety of flours, spices, or even liquids. The important part is the relative proportions.

Anyway, I wanted to make some muffins for Stephen before he left today so the recipe below is the variation I used. I didn’t try them but I’ve never made a bad batch of these muffins, no matter the changes I make (they’re always reasonable!). And they smelled incredible. Sometimes I want to bake muffins just so the house smells cozy.

Blueberry Bran Muffins

Makes 12 Muffins

Adapted from Super Natural Every Day by Heidi Swanson via Holly & Rose.

  • 1/2 Stick Salted Butter, Melted
  • 3/4 Cup 0 Fat Plain Greek Yogurt
  • 2 Large Eggs
  • 1 Tsp Vanilla
  • 1/4 Cup Maple Syrup
  • 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar (Light or Dark)
  • 1/4 – 1/3 Cup 2% Milk, hot
  • 1/4 Cup Dried Blueberries
  • 1 1/2 Cups Bran (Oat or Wheat – I usually use half and half, depends what I’m looking for)
  • 1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
  • 3 Tbsp Flax Meal
  • 2 Tsp Baking Powder
  • 1 Tsp Baking Soda
  • 1/2 Tsp Salt (1 Tsp if using unsalted butter)
Warm milk until hot and add dried blueberries to help reconstitute. Let them sit for as long as you can until adding them to mixture, giving them time to soak. Combine melted butter, greek yogurt, eggs, maple syrup, brown sugar & vanilla. Add bran, flour, flax meal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
The batter is usually a bit thick so don’t worry but if you think it’s too thick, feel free to add a little milk, applesauce, water, or something else you’d like to use.
Line a muffin pan with 12 muffin papers and fill about 3/4 full. Oftentimes I have extra batter so I just fill the papers extra full rather than having to use another muffin pan.
Bake at 400 Degrees Fahrenheit for 15 – 22 minutes. The range is so broad because of the variations that could be made. They usually take about 18 minutes though.
Let cool (mostly) and bon apetite!