I just had my baby Samuel two weeks ago today and it has been a whirlwind for my husband and I taking care of a newborn and a 3 year old little princess.  I admit that throughout my first pregnancy I was very health conscience of what I ate and my nutritional intake. This pregnancy was the complete opposite. Whatever fast food I could get my hands on went into my mouth. Biggest addiction was Taco Bell’s chicken burritos. I could have eaten these daily if I didn’t know better. For some reason though, now that he’s here, I find myself cooking better meals and trying to get those much needed vitamins and nutrients that I miss out on during my pregnancy.  Yesterday’s breakfast was a prime example.

First I diced one slice of turkey bacon and sauteed it in a small frying pan until it was crispy. I then added one scrambled egg to the bacon and cooked it until it was no longer runny, adding salt & pepper to taste. I folded the cooked egg in 1/2 and 1/2 again and placed it on some whole wheat toast with a slice of muenster cheese to make a sandwich. The sandwich was certainly tasty but I wanted – no I needed something else to go with it other than my mango peach V-8 splash. I then thought of the perfect accompaniment. I sliced some strawberries, diced some green apples and tossed them into a bowl with some blueberries . Then I topped the fruit with 1/2 of a single serving container of  a Vanilla Creme Yopliat Whips! I needed a crunch so I sprinkled two spoonfuls of Planters NUT-rition Digestive Health Mix over the top of the fruit and yogurt. The mix has dried cranberries, whole almonds, granola clusters, whole pistachios and dried cherries. When I saw the few granola clusters I knew that was the finishing touch. I grabbed my bag of BEAR NAKED FIT® Vanilla Almond Crunch natural granola out of the pantry and sprinkled a little extra on top. And viola,  I had the tasty and nutritious compliment to my egg sandwich that I was looking for.

The taste was so delicious that I thought I could use it again that evening for dessert.  For dinner, I sliced and grilled some Hillshire Farms Beef Polska Kielbasa and cooked up some Zatarain’s red beans and rice. (I know that doesn’t sound very nutrious but I need the calories since I’m feeding a new born. Well that sounds convincing to me.)  I also baked some carrots in a sweet caramel sauce and grilled some onions to go with the sausage.  For the dessert, I made the same dish as that morning but instead of vanilla yogurt I used Chocolate Raspberry Yoplait Delights Parfait.  I added the NUT-rition Digestive Health Mix and the granola but for an added touch I used a micro-plane to grate a Hershey’s kiss over the top and added a sprig of mint for flair.  My husband and daughter dove into dessert first and you know, that’s OK because it was the most nutritious part of the meal.

This morning my lovely husband, Adam, had what he called on his twitter feed a #RandomBreakfastCraving for #tinypancakes – in other words, crepes.  He searched online and found a great Basic Crepe recipe at AllRecipes.com.  By the time I made it downstairs he had already fired off most of the crepes and was pulling out ingredients for the filling. 

I had some left over mascarpone cheese from the dish I made last night, The Pampered Chef® Creamy Broccoli & Sun-Dried Tomato Orzotto. We wanted to make the mascarpone sweeter so we added a tablespoon of red raspberry preserves to 2 ounces of the cheese. We then added a 1/2 a teaspoon of confectioner’s sugar and whipped it until it was smooth. As an additional filling we took a handful of blueberries, sprinkled a little caster sugar over them and another dollop of the red raspberry preserves and heated them in the microwave for 15 seconds. When they were warm, we smashed them slightly with the back of the fork. We filled a crepe with the mascarpone cream and the smashed blueberries, folded it up and then sifted confectioner’s sugar over the top. Delicious.

I am so blessed to have a husband that loves to cook as much as I do and who always tries to make me special treats as a surprise. Together we are willing to taste just about anything and I think that is what makes our food adventures so fun. The kitchen and dining table are our favorite places to be with each other. Holding hands, licking our lips and saying "Mmmm, that is fantastic". I thank God for him every day.

We visited Disney this summer and during our trip we were able to enjoy a meal at the Crystal Palace. Adam and I worked our way through the beautiful buffet enjoying items such as Moroccan couscous salad, black bean & mango salad, Roasted garlic mashed potatoes, BBQ Pork Tenderloin, Curry Stir Fry Noodles, Citrus Marinated Flank Steak, Wild mushroom & chicken pasta, Cinnamon & lemon basmati rice, Thai curry mussels, Fruit & vegetable tofu curry, Atlantic salmon, Rotisserie chicken, and New England clam chowder. Some of our favorites were the Atlantic Salmon with Cinnamon & Lemon Basmati Rice. While we ate, Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet and Eeyore came around to visit the little ones.

When we returned home, I wanted to commemorate a wonderful vacation by recreating the dish. I made the side dish by rinsing one cup of basmati rice a few times until the water was no longer merky. Add the rice to a steel-bottomed pot with two cups of water with a tablespoon of margarine and a pinch of salt, cover and cook over medium-high heat. When the water comes to a boil, reduce the water to low and add 1 teaspoon of lemon zest and a stick of cinnamon and cover again. Cook the rice for approximately 18 minutes.

Meanwhile, to prepare the salmon, preheat your oven to 325 degrees and lay out two pieces of parchment paper or aluminum foil crisscrossed on your work station. Lay one salmon steak inside with skin side down. Season with salt, fresh ground pepper, a tablespoon of butter and a squeeze of lemon juice. Pulling up corner to corner, match up the corners and wrap up the aluminum foil making a pouch. Continue this until all the salmon steaks are seasoned and wrapped up in their little purses. Place the little handbags on a baking sheet and cook in the oven for 25 minutes.

While the salmon and rice are cooking, you can make the pesto. Combine 2/3 cup firmly packed basil leaves, a pinch of salt, 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, 2 garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest.

Layer the cooked rice on the bottom and add the salmon once it is firm to the touch. I removed the skin from mine before I served it. Top the salmon with pesto and add a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and a little lemon zest for garnish.

My dish may not have been Disney specific but I am sure that Mickey and Minnie wouldn’t mind nibbling off my plate.

It seems to go in spurts, me typing on this blog. I am forever cooking and making recipes but between work, my munchkin, summer fun entertaining, and all around exhaustion, I forget to write up my reviews, recipes and ideas. The hard part is going up stairs and sitting down at the PC to get the job done. But now we have the iPad and this new Word Press application ROCKS! I can write from here anytime I want. Like right now for instance. Aren’t these words beautiful?

Now food. Let’s see. This morning I didn’t feel like cooking so I nuked some egg, sausage & cheese flautas by Don Miguel. I made toaster strudels and then cut up some bananas mixed with fresh blueberries. Five minutes later we were munching on some “bad for you” food.

Saturday we grilled out and spent the day swimming it was nice and sunny and the menu was no hassle. I marinated skinless, boneless chicken thighs in Kraft’s honey BBQ sauce and my brother-in-law Alex applied fire. We ate them on a bun with tomato and lettuce. I added a little basil leaves to mine and it was great. I made some bean dip and chip dip and bought the other side dishes from Publix. My friend, Beth, brought a fantastic potato salad. I am not a big fan of potato salad but she said she added ranch dressing and then a little brown sugar to tone it down. I will have to get her recipe and post it so you can try it yourself. All-in-all it was a low-key day with simple food. I was pleased most by the fact that we planned the correct amounts. I hate when you plan a get-together and then afterwards you have so many leftovers that you eat the same thing for a week. We did well with this family function because at the end of the day we had very little leftover. We even ordered the right size cake because there were only three pieces left.

So, that’s what we’ve been up to. I promise to post more interesting articles about the food, restaurants and adventures that the Pate’s experience. Cheers!

This evening I made an awesome bagel sandwich for dinner. I toasted whole wheat bagels to start. Next, I mixed a tablespoon of mayonaise with a tablespoon of Limin’ Lady Gourmet Mustard that I bought at the Pepper Place farmers marker. I spread both sides of the bagel with this mixture and then layered turkey lunch meat, muenster cheese and two bacon slices. I followed that with fresh veggies from Pepper Place: mixed greens, cucumber slices, tomato slices, radish slices, and alfalfa sprouts. The top half of the bagel was balanced neatly on top of this mound of garden fresh vegetables. I am telling you it was so yummy. It tasted like I had just pulled everything from the garden myself. I ate it with a roasted sweet potato from the market and some steamed broccoli and carrots. I think I may have to go Pepper Place every weekend to get more of their beautiful produce.

I entered this recipe into the Pillsbury Bake-Off competition this year but unfortunately it didn’t make it to the top 100.  I do love the recipe even though there are a lot of steps.  You should try it and tell me what you think.  Does it make it into your top 100? Notice the awesome BACON BOW on top!

• 1 can Pillsbury® Crescent Recipe Creations™ Refrigerated Flaky Dough Sheet 8-oz
• 4 slices of bacon
• 2 maple syrup and brown sugar sausage patties
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup frozen shredded hash browns 
• 4 Eggland’s Best Large Brown Eggs
• ¼ cup of milk
• Dash salt
• Dash pepper
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning 
• 2 Ham Slices
• ½ shredded Mexican blend cheese 
• 4 tablespoons parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a loaf pan with aluminum foil with extra foil exceeding the top of the loaf pan to help with removal later.  Unroll Pillsbury® Crescent Recipe Creations™ Refrigerated Flaky Dough Sheet 8-oz on a cutting board.  Cut a piece of crescent recipe creation large enough to fit in the bottom of a loaf pan.  Place the loaf pan in the oven and cook for 8 minutes.  Once the crescent rolls are slightly browned, remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, place 4 slices of bacon on baking sheet and place in the oven and cook for 10 minutes.  After ten minutes, add the two maple syrup and brown sugar sausage patties to the baking sheet and turn the bacon.  Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake an additional 7 minutes.  Once bacon and sausage is finished cooking, set bacon on paper towels to drain and dice sausage patties.

While meat is cooking, place 1/4 cup of vegetable oil in a medium sized frying pan on medium high heat.  Once the oil is to temperature, add the frozen hash browns and cover pan with lid.  Cook the hash browns for 7 minutes on one side and flip.  Cook an additional 7 minutes or until they are brown and crispy.  Once the hash browns are done, season with salt and set aside.

Beat 4 eggs with ¼ cup milk and season with salt, pepper and ½ tablespoon Italian seasoning.  Spray a frying pan with non-stick cooking spray and heat to medium.  Add the beaten eggs and cook slowly on medium heat stirring occasionally.  Remove the eggs and set aside.  Brown the ham slices in the same frying pan until slightly browned. 

Once all items are cooked, begin layering into loaf pan.  Place 4 slices of bacon on top of cooking crescent roll bottom.  Add 1/3 of the scrambled eggs and cover with ¼ cup shredded Mexican cheese blend.  Add ½ of the crispy, shredded hash browns and then cover with the 2 slices of ham.  Add another 1/3 of the scrambled eggs and another ¼ cup of shredded Mexican cheese blend.  Follow with diced sausage, the remaining ½ of the shredded hash browns, the remaining eggs, and then the remaining cheese.  Top finally with 2 tablespoon of parmesan cheese.   Sprinkle the remaining ½ teaspoon of Italian seasoning on the uncooked crescent rolls along with 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese.

Cut the uncooked crescent rolls into 4 strips.   Twist the strips in to a spiral.  Add the strips to the loaf pan around the outer edge.  Bake the breakfast meatloaf for 15 minutes or until the top crescent are lightly browned.  Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes.

After the Breakfast Meatloaf has cooled slightly, use the aluminum foil to remove the loaf from the pan and place on serving platter.

This morning I wanted something special to share with my husband, Adam, and one-year old daughter, Zoey.  I took ideas from a recipe off of the Pillsbury website that I thought looked interesting, Bacon and Eggs Breakfast Pizzas.  Of course, I made a few minor variations to the recipe because 1) I didn’t have all the ingredients and 2) I was catering to a one-year old.

I liked the fact that biscuits were used for the “crust” of the pizza.  I didn’t have any spaghetti or pizza sauce on hand so instead i purred a 1/2 can of Italian recipe tomatoes to use as the sauce.  For the meat, I used lean maple bacon and some turkey breakfast sausages.  I also cooked up some diced hash browns to golden brown.  Finally, I mixed four eggs with 2 tablespoons of milk and added some diced green onions, minced fresh basil, salt and pepper and scrambled those in a small frying pan.

To assemble, I pressed the center of the biscuits leaving the edges thicker just as the Pillsbury recipe instructed.  I then added a spoonful of the pureed tomatoes and topped it with a tablespoon of the crumbled bacon. I layered a few hash browns on top of that and a large spoonful of the scrambled eggs. I sliced the cooked sausage and added that to my pizzas like pepperoni. A sprinkling of my Italian Seasoning and then I popped them in a 375 degree oven for 15 minutes. 

After 15 minutes, the biscuits were brown and the flavors of the toppings had melded together.  I didn’t have any mozzarella so I shredded a little Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese blend and topped each pizza.  I added a slice of Roma tomato to each pizza and a little more cheese and put the pizza under the broiler for 4 minutes.  To finish, I topped the pizzas with fresh minced basil and the diced green onions.  A few fresh strawberries and grapes on the side and we were in business.  Zoey, Daddy and I ate every last bite.  I had made six portions (and just baked the last two Pillsbury biscuits), so I called Mike and Carol to join us.  Carol drove across the neighborhood and picked up her and Michael’s portions so they could eat at their house.  Adam even made her a café au lait for Carol’s morning coffee fix. A short while later I received a text message and a phone call from the Long’s that they loved it. Even their one-year old Ben said that Brandy’s Breakfast Pizzas were “Mmm”.

I love breakfast and I love Eggs Benedict of any variety.  September 25, 2007, also my father’s birthday was a the day I created the Benedict Twins.  I scrounged through the refrigerator and collected a hodge-podge of items that would ultimately be our breakfast.  English Muffins in hand, I made two very different Eggs Benedict.  The first was Adam’s favorite.  A toasted English muffin topped with crispy bacon, a fluffy poached egg, a delicate hollandaise sauce, capers, green onions, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

The second was made just for me, with Smoked Salmon as the protein of choice. I used the same materials as before omitting the bacon and green onions and replacing them with the smoked salmon and a dollop of basil pesto that I had left over from yesterday’s diner.   I was able to finish off some “lasts” in our refrigerator while creating a delectable treat for Adam and I to share.  I clink of the glasses to toast Dad’s B-day and we ate like kings.

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To celebrate my 31st Birthday, Adam and I made Banana Nut Waffles for breakfast. Believe me, they were as delicious as they are beautiful!

This recipe is a combination of Pillsbury refrigerated biscuits and the delicious dessert baklava.  I think I used a portion of recipe from one of the books, but I’m not sure.  I pulled each of the biscuit layers apart and layered them in a muffin pan with syrup and a pistachio mixture. They were delicious.