Pork Roll Breakfast Strata

A nice (yummy!) way to start the weekend!

4 slices of pork roll, diced into small bite size pieces
1 small red pepper, diced
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3-4 slices of thick 'day old' wheat bread
1 c shredded cheddar cheese
5 eggs
1 c milk
salt, pepper

Coat a large skillet with non stick spray and heat to medium high heat.  Add pork roll, pepper, and onion and add garlic after 2-3 minutes.  Cook until vegetables are tender.  Be sure not to burn garlic.  Grease an 8x8 pan and line bread in bottom (do not overlap-tear apart if needed to make an even layer of bread.  Top with pork roll vegetable mixture.  Sprinkle with shredded cheese.  In a bowl, whisk eggs and milk together.  Pour evenly over cheese.  Cover and refrigerate over night or at least for 3 hours.  Remove from frig 30 minutes prior to baking.  Bake uncovered for 30-35 minutes.  Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

Banana Crumb Muffins

We've begun to overbuy on bananas lately so instead of repeatedly making banana bread, I've been on the hunt for different banana recipes.  I made Banana Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting last week.  I wonder if I'll run out of banana recipes...  Anyway, I actually preferred these cupcakes over last week's.  The nutella frosting was a little rich for me (I cannot believe I just said that!) but I guess when eat a lot of bland food, anything is too rich for you ;)

1 1/2 c all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 c sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla
5 tbsp butter, melted
1/3 c packed brown sugar
2 tbsp all purpose flour
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp butter, softened

Preheat oven to 375 F.  Lightly grease 10 muffin cups or line with muffin papers.  In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  In another bowl, beat together bananas, egg, sugar, vanilla, and melted butter.  Stir banana mixture into flour mixture until moistened.  Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.  Fill to top.  In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, 2 tbsp flour, and cinnamon.  Cut in 1 tbsp softened butter until it resembles a coarse cornmeal type mixture.  Sprinkle topping generously over muffin tops.  Bake for 18-20 minutes or until center of muffin comes out clean.

Golden Apple Snack Cake

Since it has felt like Fall the last few days, I decided I'd make a Fall-ish dish :)  Delicious warm with cool whip!!  It has apples so it's completely healthy, right?!

1 stick of butter, softened
1 c sugar
1 egg
1 c all purpose flour
1/4 c packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 1/2 c chopped peeled apples (about 3 small Granny Smith Apples)

Preheat oven to 350 F.  In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar.  Add egg and blend well.  In a small bowl combine, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and baking soda.  Gradually beat into butter mixture.  Fold in apples.

Transfer to a greased 9x9 square pan.  Bake at 350 F for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool on rack.  Serve warm with cool whip and ice cream.

Morning Mix Up... for dinner

This was our dinner last night... but I hit the hay at 8pm and therefore, blogging was not happening... I feel so old.  For some reason, I had acquired 36 eggs in my frig and since there is not too much baking in my future, I figured breakfast was the way to go :)  Despite being a "Serves 4" recipe, we polished this off sans toast or bagels.

2 c frozen hash browns
1/2 lb fully cooked ham, chopped (I used ham steak so there were chunks of ham)
4 oz sliced pepperoni, diced into quarters
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp vegetable oil
6 eggs
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese

In a large non stick skillet, heat vegetable oil over medium heat and add meats, garlic, and hash browns.  Cook for 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender.  In a small bowl, combine eggs and seasonings.  Add to pan, cook, stirring occasionally until the eggs are cooked through.  Remove from heat and stir in cheese.  Serve with toast or bagels for a meal for 4.