Trail Mix Scones

I started making these scones a few years ago, I had them at a bakery in the Bitterroot and had to find a recipe to make them. This recipe is a adaptation of several recipes that made the closet version to the ones I had from the bakery.

Trail Mix Scones
2 C Flour
1/3 C Sugar
1 1/2 t Baking Powder
1/2 t Soda
1/4 t Salt
6 T Butter
1/2 C Buttermilk
1 Beaten egg
1 1/2 t Vanilla
1/2 C Dried Fruit bits (I like berries and dates)
1/2 C Chopped nuts (I like pecans the best)
Cut COLD butter into flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Add fruit bits and nuts. Stir soda into buttermilk; beat egg; add vanilla, and stir into buttermilk mix. Mix into flour and fruit mixture until you have a slightly stiff dough. Knead smooth, but don't over work.  Roll out on lightly floured surface. Cut out to rounds or wedges. Bake at 375^ for about 15 minutes.  Brush scones with sugar water or milk. Bake for about 5 minutes more until golden brown.

Just got this video email, it is a cooking tip I thought we should share here. Since Karen shared her Potato recipe, I thought this was timely.


http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7375897927147969009#

Breakfast Pizza

Deb asked me if I had any Breakfast Pizza recipes. I have had this one for a long time, I think I got it originally from a Better Homes and Gardens magazine.  I will also post one that I made up from an idea  germinated from a recipe given to me by Mary Tolf's mother a some years ago.

Breakfast Pizza  12" Pizza

1 C cheddar cheese
6 eggs
1/4 C milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp Parmesan or Romano Cheese

Brown sausage until crumbled. Drain off fat, and pat with paper towel to remove any remaining fat. Prepare crust if using recipe, or separate crescent rolls onto pizza pan with points toward the center. Press over bottom so there are no gaps. Brush crust with olive oil.  Sprinkle thawed hash browns over crust; top with sausage and cheese. Mix eggs, milk, and seasonings with wire whip, and pour over the top of sausage layer. Sprinkle with the Parmesan or Romano cheese and bake at 375^ for 25 minutes.

Breakfast Pizza Two

1 pkg Cresent rolls
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1 C sour cream
1 tsp hot sauce
1 tsp seasoning salt (your favorite I use Johnnys)
1/2 C sliced mushrooms
1/2 C thin sliced fresh broccoli
1/2 C think sliced sweet onion
1/2 /c thin sliced zucchini
2 tsp olive oil
6 eggs
1/4 C milk
1/2 C your favorite shredded cheese blend

Sperate the Cresent rolls and press into pan points first until the pizza can is covered. Press together any seams to make sure its one solid crust.  Bake at 350^ for about 10 minutes. Until cooked through and slightly browned. Keep oven hot.
When crust has slightly cooled, beat cream cheese, seasonings, and sour cream together and spread over crust.
Slice all the veggies in one microwave pan and toss with the olive oil.  Microwave on high covered so that veggies are still crisp, but slightly cooked; about 1 minute.  Spread veggies over the crust and topping.
Beat the eggs and milk with wire whisk until frothy. Pour into a hot skillet and cook like scrambled eggs with a pinch of salt until they are not quite cooked through. Make sure to keep them loose textured. Pour the egg mix over the veggies on crust. Spread them out until they are evenly distributed. Top with cheese and put back in oven for 5-10 minutes; just until the eggs are set and the cheese is melted.  This is like a wonderful veggie omelet  in pizza form.

Twice-Baked Potato Casserole Recipe | Taste of Home

Easy and tasty way to use left over baked potatoes.. Twice-Baked Potato Casserole Recipe Taste of Home

I was reflecting on the name of our blog, and the laughter part. Through the years the laughter of family has been shared on many occasions family picnics, birthdays, holidays, reunions, weddings, and even funerals. Good food is a intricate part of life. It is icing on the cake if its good, you don't notice it as much, but if its bad, it can ruin an otherwise wonderful gathering. One of the foods I associate most with our family is pizza. I have vacillated from thick to thin crust over the years, but pizza has become a central food for some great family gatherings. Here is my basic thick and thin crust recipe for pizza.

Thick Crust Recipe

11/3 C warm water
3 T olive oil
3 C unbleached white flour
1/2 t salt
1 T sugar
1 T yeast
I mix this in the order given in a bread machine on dough setting. Allow the mix to blend until kind of stiff smooth dough forms. You can add flour in 1/8 cup measure until the dough is solid and not sticky.  Put in a room temperature bowl sprayed with olive oil non-stick spray and let raise slightly. The nice thing about this dough is that it does not require much time to raise before you can roll out. This makes a thick crust 16" crust.

Thin Crust Recipe

1 C warm water

2 T olive oil

21/2 C unbleached white flour

1 T sugar

1 T yeast

1/2 t salt

This crust is also mixed in the bread machine in the order given. Again it should be firm and smooth. It also does not need much time to raise, and can be used in 5 minutes after letting rest. This makes a 16" thin crust pizza.  

Roll out the dough in a circular shape working from center. When it is the size to fit the pan, lay on pan prepared with non stick olive oil spray,  Brush top of crust with olive oil before adding sauce and toppings. The oil creates a barrier so that the crust does not become soggy. 

I just found a new way to fix my oatmeal. One of my preschool students said she puts peanut butter in her oatmeal. This morning I tried raisins,peanut butter, and sugar free syrup added to my bowl of oatmeal. I like to cook apples in my oatmeal and that would have been good but I didn't have any on hand. I liked the peanut butter, but next time I will use apples also. Someone else suggested adding the peanut butter to chocolate chip oatmeal. Have fun and experiment.

If we are starting with breakfast this is one of my favorites:

Berry Good French Toast Bake
1/2 C flour
1 1/2C milk
1 Tbs sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
6 eggs
10 slices french bread cut into 1 inch squares
1 pkg cream cheese cut into 1/2 squares
1 cup blueberries
1/2 C nuts

Generously spray a 9x13 baking dish. Beat flour, milk, sugar, vanilla, salt, and eggs in a large bowl until smooth. Stir in bread. Pour mixture into pan. Top evenly with cream cheese, blueberries, and nuts. Cover and refrigerate over night. Heat oven to 400 and bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Serve with syrup or powdered sugar. Enjoy! I leave out the sugar and and serve with sugar free syrup.

Mexican Eggs

This is a breakfast that my family and friends all love. It was given to me by a friend who is Mexican American.  It can be embellished or simple. Hearty or light.

Two thin corn Tortillas for every person you are serving.
2 Eggs per person
1/3 to 1/2 C shredded cheese

Heat appropriate size fry pan over medium temp.  Melt 2-3 Tbs butter and equal amount of olive oil in pan.  When the oil is hot and well melted shred the corn tortillas to bite size pieces in the oil.  Heat through until the tortillas are soft.  If you like crunch, heat until tortilla pieces begin to turn brown.  Scramble the eggs with a whisk in a bowl. They should be well beaten and frothy.  Pour over the tortilla mix, and stir to cook until the texture of scrambled eggs.  Reduce heat and spread cheese over the top lightly mixing into the eggs. Turn off heat and let sit a minute.  Serve with salsa, hot sauce or guacamole. You can saute meat such as bacon in with the tortillas if desired.  Add mushrooms or onions if you like. This recipe is so flexible and sure to please and impress your family and friends.