Eggnog French Toast

The colder it gets, the more I bake. I know it may sound impossible, but if I could bake everyday, I would and I do most days. Everyone migrates to the kitchen, the southern light comes pouring in, it's warm, cheerful and inviting. I baked a couple loaves of my English Muffin Bread this week and wanted to try making French Toast with it. French Toast tastes great using stale bread. But fresh bread is still very nice. English Muffin Bread is a hearty, thick dense bread full of nooks and crannies and has a great flavor.  I used a rich delcious eggnog from our Health Food Store. This week, we have been having so much fun wrapping gifts, singing Christmas Carols and drinking egg nog, I had to try dipping English Muffin Bread in the Eggnog Mixture. I think you will love it too! Perfect for Christmas Morning! Nettie

FRENCH TOAST 

Ingredients

Whisk together in a shallow bowl:

1/3 cup milk or half and half

1/3 cup eggnog
4 eggs
2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

One at a time, soak both sides of bread, then place in a hot well-buttered skillet.Cook on each side 3-4 minutes or until golden brown. Serve hot sprinkled with Confectioners sugar or maple syrup, or jam. 

Recipe adapted from The Joy of Cooking

Number of Servings: 8

Vegan Pumpkin Bread

Vegan Pumpkin Bread

This was supposed to be a weekend of catch up. But life doesn't always work like that.  Since there is a world record  storm coming up this way, FRANKENSTORM, worst storm since 1938, that is a priority. So we have been buckling down, getting the generator ready, putting away boats, furniture, draining pipes, and I have been been baking up my own kind of storm. Since I used most of my flour last week, I cut this recipe for Vegan Pumpin Bread in half, unfortunately, because this is such a delicious moist pumpkin bread, no eggs, no dairy, perfect storm bread!  The only ingredient that I switched was walnuts for pecans, still very good! If you would like the recipe for Vegan Pumpkin Bread, make sure to check out Joy the Baker Cookbook for so many amazing recipes including this one. Nettie

Cranberry Clementine Almond Bread

I have been on a cranberry kick, first the Cranberry Sauce and now this moist delicious Cranberry Bread. I have always thought that another type of berry, okay it's color is blue, has the highest antioxidants than other fruit, but I was wrong, cranberries are the highest by 1.96%. Well I'll be darn. Anywho, they are a healthy treat, so have two pieces of bread!! For this bread you will need, flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, salt, 4 Clementine's, 1 egg, vegetable oil, cranberries and sliced dry toasted almonds (unsalted).

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Squeeze Clementines for their juice.

Add clementine juice and throw in another clementine if you are tired of juicing like me!

Beat an egg.

Add egg and grated Clementine peel to dry mixture. Blend well.

Add Cranberries.

Add almonds, mix well.

Mix all ingredients well.

Grease a loaf pan.

Spread batter evenly in loaf pan.

Place on baking sheet to prevent dripping in the oven. Bake at 350 degrees F for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Allow bread to cool on rack before taking it out of dish.

Nice transfer.

Allow bread to cool completely before glazing.

Glaze away!

This is an easy recipe that is moist and delicious. The cranberries are full of flavor and the clementines add the perfect zest in addition to the almonds crunchiness, great combination.

A slice is a perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea.

• Cranberry Clementine Almond Bread
  
  Ingredients for bread
  
  2 cups flour
  1 cup sugar
  1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  1 teaspoon baking soda
  3/4 cup clementine juice ( about four clementines)
  2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  1 tablespoon grated clementine peel
  1 egg well beaten
  1 ½ cups cranberries
  ½ cup sliced dry toasted unsalted almonds
  
  Ingredients for glaze:
  
  1/4 cup confectioners sugar
  3-4 teaspoons clementine juice
  
  Method for bread
  
  Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  Grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.
  Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda.
  Stir in juice, oil, clementine peel and beaten egg.
  Mix until blended. Spread batter evenly in prepared loaf pan.
  Bake for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  Cool on rack for 15 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely. Drizzle glaze over bread. Makes one loaf.
  
  Method for Glaze:       
  
  Add juice 1 teaspoon at a time to sugar until a glaze consistency appears.
  
  Semi Adapted from The Oceanspray Cranberries bag.
  
  
  
  This recipe has been shared at these wonderful blogs:
  
  
  
  

Easy Cinnamon Pumpkin Cake Muffins

Because, it was 42 degrees this morning - in October- no way- yes way - I know, I was in shock too, especially after being in Boston this week with 75 degree weather! Because, it was so cold I was holding my tea mug just to get my hands warm. Because, it is fall and this happens in New England. Because, everywhere I turn I see pumpkins - subliminal food/baking advertising. Because, I am not making pumpkin pies until that wonderful day in November. Because, I am not ready to start raking, but rather baking. Because, I am not supposed to start every sentence with a preposition, that was drilled into my brain in parochial school. So I will not start off by saying because, just that I really want to turn on the oven and bake Easy Cinnamon Pumpkin Cake Muffins.

Easy Cinnamon Pumpkin Cake Muffins

I think that the word muffin is another word for cake. " Mommy, may I have a slice of cake for breakfast?" - No. " Mommy, may I have a muffin for breakfast?" - Sure go ahead, have two! Makes sense to me! So, these are Easy Cinnamon Pumpkin Cake Muffins. Or you can just tell yourself they are muffins.

Here is what you will need. Flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin, vegetable oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, sugar and cinnamon. I used the large can of pumpkin and doubled the recipe. I usually double recipes and give baked goodies as gifts, my waistline is much happier about this. The recipe on this page is not doubled.

Mix Pumpkin, oil, eggs, sugar and pumpkin pie spice together with a whisk.

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Then add to wet mixture.

Mix dry mixture and wet mixture until just combined.

Use your favorite ice cream scooper and  place two scoops into muffin tins.

Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top of muffins before you place in oven to bake.

Bake for 25 minutes, insert a knife or toothpick to test if it is done, it should come out clean.

MMMMMM- warm- cinnamony- pumpkin perfection.

If you love pumpkin and cinnamon- you will love these- super moist and fluffy.

Pretty morning breakfast pumpkin muffins.

Ray's Chinese dragon peeking his head out of the foliage protecting our home. I think of my father in law every time I pass the dragon.

Pee Gee Hydrangeas. During the fall months, they start turning a beautiful shade of cream and rose.

Easy Cinnamon Pumpkin Cake Muffins


 Ingredients for Muffins

• 15 ounces solid packed pumpkin
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Cinnamon Sugar topping

• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Method

1.  Preheat oven to 350 F. Place liners in muffin tins.
2. Blend with a whisk in a large bowl- pumpkin, oil, eggs,sugar and pumpkin spice. In a separate bowl mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix dry ingredients to pumpkin ingredients until just combined.
3. In a small bowl, mix cinnamon and sugar.
4. Use an ice cream scooper and place two scoops of batter in muffin tins. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake until puffy and golden brown and when inserting a knife or toothpick comes out clean, about 25 minutes.
5. Cool in pan on rack for five minutes, transfer muffins from pan to rack and cool to warm or room temperature.

Adapted from Gourmet Magazine and Smitten Kitchen.

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Recipe blog hop on: Strut Your Stuff Saturday at Six Sister's Stuff and Something Swanky, Sweet as Sugar Cookies, Muffin Monday, Joy of Desserts, Shine Your Light.

www.shineyourlightblog.com