Tag: breakfast

Categories
Belgian bread Breakfast Brunch dessert

Real Belgian waffles

I love a good breakfast. When my family goes on vacation, I always look for hotels which have a breakfast buffet. You start your day right when you feed your soul and tummy with good food at the beginning of the day.I love a good breakfast. When my family goes on vacation, I always look for hotels which have a breakfast buffet. You start your day right when you feed your soul and tummy with good food at the beginning of the day.

I love this quote from Winnie the Pooh;

“When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,” said Piglet at last, “what’s the first thing you say to yourself?”

“What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?”

“I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?” said Piglet.

Pooh nodded thoughtfully. “It’s the same thing,” he said.” 

See doesn’t it make complete sense?

I love Indian breakfast foods, like Pohe, Parantha, and Appe. And eggs are always classic breakfast candidates, I love them even for dinner. In fact, I do ‘breakfast for dinner’ more often than I probably should. Eggs Benedict are perfect when you are in a mood to indulge, and ‘Huevos rancheros’ when you want something spicy. I love good scrambled eggs, made the French way. A video on those will be coming soon!

When I am in a mood to make something special, waffles are always on the breakfast or brunch table. I love making different types of waffles: savory, plain or something so decadent that you can have it for dessert. Today’s recipe was introduced to me by my son, Mihir. He is not only a foodie, but my best critic and a great cook as well. He makes some mean pork and fish.

He ate these waffles at Blue Bottle Coffee in San Francisco and loved them. So obviously, as soon as he was back home, we started chatting about it and next thing we knew, we were planning brunch for the weekend.

What we might picture as Belgian waffles are very popular in the United States; typically, a waffle that is much thicker than the standard American waffle but made with the regular pancake batter. In the process of making these waffles, I learned that the true Belgian waffles are in fact more like a brioche dough, enriched and risen with yeast.

Look how gorgeous the dough looks with all that amazing yeast at work.

The yeasty dough and the pearl sugar is what make this recipe special.

So what is Pearl Sugar.

I did not about this until came across this recipe. I even found an article that shed a little more light on this. When I wanted to make this recipe, I searched on Amazon and found this. Sometimes its also called Nib Sugar.

If you don’t find pearl sugar, you can take the sugar cubes we get for coffee/tea, and crush them a rolling pin.

When the sugary goodness melts and caramelizes, its just divine. I love serving it with just freshly whipped cream and sometime some fresh fruit compote.

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I know its a dish that you need to plan ahead, but trust me its really worth all that planning and effort.

So give it a try and let me know how you liked it

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I got this recipe from Smitten Kitchen who had heavily tweaked from the excellent Gaufre de Liège Recette Blog and the copious notes of Not Martha.

Categories
Breakfast Snack Vegan Vegetarian

Cardamom Maple Granola

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I had no clue what granola was until a few years ago. In fact, any time I saw granola in a coffee shop or a bakery, I would think that it must be a oatmeal resin cookie experiment gone bad, or maybe some got the wrong type of oats. But then a few years ago we visited Mendocino.

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Mendocino is a quaint little town north of San Francisco along the pacific; it has a picturesque shoreline, a cute little downtown with art galleries, and chocolate shops galore. This is one of my favorite places to visit. We usually end up renting a big place with friends and cooking and spending time in the jacuzzi- it’s a lot of fun. Anyway, back to my granola, I had a chance to taste some amazing granola on one of my trips to Mendocino, and I loved it. I could see how easily you can customize it to your taste or preference. I started making granola and played around with different ingredients, tried various recipes as well. But the one I liked the most was from Genius recipes. I use that as a base and make changes as needed.

I love making it at home as I can control the kind of ingredients used, I use all organic ingredients which is perfect for my family and friends.

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I packed this Granola for my kids, and they both came home asking for three times the quantity. It seems like their friends also loved it. I like it because it stores well, you can eat it as a snack, or for breakfast with milk, or add to your parfait, the possibilities are endless. The process is super simple- it’s literally just mixing ingredients and sticking it in the oven, you don’t even have to babysit. I normally make it in the evening and let it cool overnight.

Today I served this with fresh apricots I picked up in the farmer’s market. Some chopped apricots, blueberries, yogurt with a touch of salt and topped with crunchy granola. Everyone loved it. You can serve the parfait in a clear glass bowl, and it looks so pretty.

The recipe which inspired me to make this version is from Genius Kitchen. I love the nutty flavor of Olive Oil that compliments the earthy maple. I make many variations of this but our favorites are this one with cardamom and another with star anise, I add some fennel seeds in that along with popper sorghum.

You can use anything you like, its like a blank canvas.

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Cardamom Maple Granola

Ingredients

  • 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 3/4 cup  raw pumpkin seeds
  • 1 cup raw sunflower seeds
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut chips
  • 1 cup  raw pecans,  coarsely chopped
  • 1/2 cup Chopped cashews
  • 3/4 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1/2cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/2cup packed light-brown sugar
  • 1pinch coarse salt, to taste
  • 1 tsp Cardamom powder

Instructions

  1. Heat the oven to 300F
  2. Mix oil, brown sugar, maple syrup in a steel bowl
  3. Mix all the nuts, coconut and oats in a separate container
  4. Add the nut mixture to the oil and sugar mixture.
  5. Mix well
  6. Add salt and stir once
  7. Take a cookie sheet and line with a parchment paper
  8. Spread the mixture evenly on the sheet
    9. Bake
  9. Bake for 45 mins
  10. Stir every 10-15 mins
  11. After 45 mins take it out of the oven and stir in the cardamom powder
  12. Let it cool on the sheet for an hour
  13. Store it in a airtight container
    14. Serve
  14. You can serve this with milk for breakfast
  15. You can make parfait with yogurt, some fresh fruit and this granola
  16. You can eat it as a snack
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Categories
Breakfast

Swiss Muesli- easy and healthy breakfast

Simple, healthy, easy to make, tastes yummy and you can make so many variations, how many times can you say that about a recipe? This recipe definitely one such recipe.

When we say Muesli, I used to think of the boxed cereal you get in the supermarket. When I went to London for work I stayed at a hotel where there was a tiny spread of food for breakfast, and in that tiny spread there was a large white bowl filled with  what seems like a tasteless gooey pudding. It did not look appetizing at all. My motto is  try different foods, if you dont like it don’t eat it again, so I decided to try this pudding as well.

I must tell you that I have not been fooled by the looks of a dish ever as I did that day. I fell in love with this dish. It was fresh, healthy and so tasty.

I started reading about it and found out that this is also a type of Muesli, called ‘Bircher/Scandinavian/Swiss Muesli. Unlike its american cousin which is eaten out of the box with milk, this European baby is made with fresh fruit and yogurt.

I love the fact that it can be made ahead, in fact it tastes better when left overnight, which means you have a yummy breakfast that can be made the night before. Can you imagine not having to worry about breakfast as you are rushing to get out the door in the morning?

I also like that it is made with very healthy ingredients like oats, fresh fruits, nuts, milk & yogurt, it is a perfect combination of Carbs with a lot of fibre, protein from the dairy, vitamins from the fruit & healthy fats from the nuts.

It is amazing how many combinations you can make, which also allows me to incorporate all the seasonal, local produce.

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Ingredients: 

 1 1/2 cup rolled oats 

 1 cup low-fat Yogurt

1 cup milk ( take any kind you like) 

 2 apples grated 

 1/4 cup sliced almonds 

1/4 cup golden resins

 1/4 cup dried cranberries

 1/2 cup orange juice

 1/4 cup sliced almonds

 

Method:

Combine all the ingredients in a large glass or plastic container

Mix well. 

Serve ideally the next morning, I feel that the flavors blend really well. 

If it is too thick, add milk to get the desired consistency. 

Categories
Breakfast Indian Maharashtrian

Sabudana Khichadi- a typical Indian Breakfast

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Sabudana ( Tapioca) looks  like tiny white pearls, made from roots of the cassava plant, it is very common in Indian cooking. It is a younger cousin of the Boba tea/Tapioca tea. Typically it is eaten during fasting, but also eaten as a common breakfast food. It is can be made as a savory or a sweet dish. It can be eaten like a tapioca pudding but my favorite recipe is a savory one.

My husband and kids are big fans of this and happily eat it any time. In fact whenever my son comes home, the first thing he wants to eat is this ‘Sabudana Khichadi’

 

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Sabudana Khichadi

A popular dish from Maharashtra India, made with Tapioca Pearls, seasoned with green chili cumin and peanuts, its often enjoyed during 'Vrat' or Fasting

Course Breakfast, Snack
Cuisine Indian, Maharashtrian
Keyword fasting, vrat

Ingredients

  • 3 cups Soaked sabudana sago/Tapioca
  • Sugar
  • Salt
  • 1/4 cup milk at room temp
  • 1/2 cup roasted peanut Powder

Spice paste

  • 1 1/2 tbsp Cumin seeds divided use
  • 4-5 green chilies

Tadka

  • 3 tbsp ghee
  • 1 1/2 Tsp Cumin Seeds
  • 1-2 Green Chilies Adjust based on spice preference
  • 1-2 Potatoes peeled and sliced

Garnish

  • Chopped cilantro
  • Fresh grated coconut

Instructions

  1. Take the sabudana in a large pot. Wash it with cold water. When you start washing it will looks cloudy
  2. Wash until the water runs clear. This helps get rid of excess starch which makes the khichadi clumpy when cooked.
  3. Add water just to cover the sabudana and a little over.
  4. Now let it soak for at least 7-8 hours. I end up soaking it overnight since I make this mostly for breakfast.
  5. About an hour before you plan to make the khichadi, take the milk and sprinkle it over the soaked sabudana. Using fork separate the grains and leave aside.
  6. Make powder with roasted peanuts
  7. Make paste with the green chilies & 1 tbsp of cumins seeds in a mortal & pestle, you can also use a blender.
  8. Add peanut powder, chili mixture, salt & Sugar to the soaked sabudana and mix well.
  9. In a pan heat oil, add cumin seeds. Add some green chili pieces and saute till the cumin seeds are brown.
  10. Add sliced potatoes, add salt to the potatoes and cover.
  11. Cook until the potatoes are done.
  12. Add the sabudana mixture and cook. Cover for only a couple of mins and stir constantly, this will prevent clumps from forming. The easiest way to know when it is done is to check if the pearls are translucent.
  13. Add the ghee and mix well. Traditionally it is cooked in ghee, but if you are trying to avoid it then adding just a couple of tbsp at the end is a good solution. This gives the flavor of ghee but you dont have to cook solely with it.
  14. Garnish with chopped cilantro, fresh grated coconut and yogurt or a lime wedge.
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