Breakfast Turnovers

A few posts ago, I promised I’d tell you what I did with the rest of my puff pastry. I’m sorry it took me so long! I used 1/3 of the puff pastry to make some breakfast turnovers for Jeff. If you like eggs in the morning but seem to be unable to put in the time (and wash the dishes!) they require, you would love these. I usually make a double recipe, freeze the turnovers on a baking sheet, then slip each one into its own individual baggie and pop the baggies in the freezer. The morning you want to eat a turnover, all you have to do is pull the turnover out of the bag, place it on a baking sheet, and bake it off.

Granola

I’m always on the hunt for a good granola recipe. I’ve tried many, such as this one, this one, one from a Sarah Foster cookbook (Foster’s granola is the ultimate in my book), and several recipes from friends. None of them quite cut it, so I’m still hunting. I tried again with this recipe because I wanted to give a little something to a friend and thought granola would be a good treat. It was the best recipe I’ve tried so far, although still not perfect. I think I’d try messing around with the juices next time; it tasted too orange-y to me. Nonetheless, it was more than adequate, and certainly better than most store-bought granola!

Granola with Coconut and Dried Fruit
Makes about 10 cups

5 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup pecan pieces
1 cup sliced almonds
3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup unsweetened apple juice
6 tbsp. vegetable oil
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups assorted dried fruit (such as cranberries, golden raisins, tart cherries, and chopped apricots)

Preheat oven to 300F. Spray 2 rimmed baking sheets with nonstick spray. Mix oats, pecans, almonds, coconut, brown sugar, wheat germ, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Bring orange juice, apple juice, oil, and syrup to boil in small saucepan. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Drizzle orange juice mixture over dry ingredients; toss to coat. Divide granola between prepared sheets, spreading evenly.
Bake granola until golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 50 minutes. Divide fruit between sheets and toss to coat; bake granola 10 minutes longer. Cool completely.

From Bon Appetit

Sunday Brunch

With several relatives in town this weekend (my mom, brother, and Jeff’s sister) and a busy schedule all around, we planned a last-minute brunch as a chance to see everyone. I fixed a baked egg dish and a peach bread pudding, both of which turned out well, though in the rush of things I forgot to take pictures!

I’ve been saving this recipe for quite some time. If you don’t know Sara Foster… well, you must not live in NC and even then, you should feel very deprived. My family demands a trip to Foster’s Market each time they visit and I’m pretty sure it’s part of the reason my brother decided to attend college here next year. This bread pudding recipe is from the cookbook “Fresh Every Day.” The note at the beginning suggests substituting any day-old bread, biscuits, or cake. Well, since we were at Foster’s Saturday morning, I thought I might as well use something to continue the Foster’s theme. They had some day old coconut muffins. Since coconut is one of my favorite flavors, as well as a favorite of several other family members, I couldn’t resist.