Strawberry Cheese Blintzes

By Dorothea Malloy

Makes 6 servings

Crepes:

1 cup flour

1 1/2 cups skim milk

1 egg

1/4 tsp salt

Filling:

1 cup cottage cheese

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt

1 cup sliced strawberries

1/4 tsp grated lemon peel

Topping:

vanilla yogurt

cherries or strawberries

1.  Mix crepe ingredients.  Heat a small skillet to medium heat and spray lightly with cooking spray.

2.  Remove pan from heat and pour 2 TB batter in center, turning to spread.  Return to heat and cook until brown on one side only.

3.  Remove crepe to plate and continue until all crepes are done, spraying more cooking spray as needed.

4.  Process cottage cheese in food processor or blender until smooth.  Add yogurt and lemon peel and mix well.  Add strawberries and process just a little more, so most are still in pieces.

5.  Divide filling among crepes, spreading along center of each, and roll up.

6.  Place blintzes in a single layer on a plate, cover with waxed paper, and microwave to warm, or place in a pan and warm in the oven.  

7.  For each serving, place three blintzes on a plate and top with vanilla yogurt and a cherry or strawberry.

Egg and Sausage Bake

By Lucy Malloy

Serves 8-10

1 lb sausage

6 eggs

6 slices bread, cubed

1 tsp dry mustard

2 cups milk

1 tsp salt

1 cup grated cheese

1.  Brown sausage and drain.  

2.  Mix eggs, milk, salt and mustard.  Add bread, cheese, and sausage.  Pour into lightly greased 8 x 11-inch glass pan and refrigerate overnight.

3.  Bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees.  Let stand a few minutes.

Sunday Morning Brunch

By Lucy Malloy

8 slices bread, diced
1 lb sausage, cooked and drained
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 dozen eggs, beaten
1 tsp salt
1 cup milk
1 tsp mustard
1 can cream of mushroom soup

1.  Layer bread, sausage and cheese in lightly greased 9 x 13-inch pan.
2.  Mix eggs with salt, milk, mustard and soup.  Pour on top of bread, sausage and cheese layer.  Refrigerate overnight.
3.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Breakfast Burritos

By Cyndi Malloy

This is my own version of breakfast burritos. They are great for Sunday brunch served with fresh fruit on the side. I started out making them very simply when the kids were young, using just the basic ingredients. As they got older, and liked a greater variety of foods, I began adding more ingredients. I line up all the ingredients in an assembly line, and ask each person what they want in their burrito, making one at a time. I really stuff them and make them BIG! I wrap each burrito in foil, and place it in the waiting warm oven. When all of them are made, out come the warm burritos and we all eat together. Because they are wrapped in foil, they are also great for taking with you on the go. Use your imagination with the ingredients and cater to your own preferences. Most in my family like "The Works!"

This recipe will make approximately 4 large burritos. I would double it for my family when the kids were all home. I generally use about 2 1/2 eggs per burrito.

10 large eggs, scrambled
8-10 pieces bacon, cooked (or substitute sausage)
shredded cheese blend (cheddar/jack or Mexican blend), as much as you want
28 oz bag frozen O'Brien potatoes, cooked per directions on bag
2 ripe avocados, sliced
giant flour tortillas, at least 12 inch diameter

1. Warm tortilla in microwave or on stove top until it is soft and easily bendable without cracking.
2. Lay tortilla on 18" long piece of foil. I start with eggs first, then move down the line of ingredients, layering them. Add avocado last, so it isn't cooked by the hot ingredients.
3. Fold and roll the tortilla burrito style and wrap it in the foil.
4. Place in a slightly warm oven if you are making more than a few burritos. Repeat for each burrito.
Remember, you can customize them. If you plan to leave the burritos in the oven for more than 5-10 minutes, don't add the avocado until after they come out of the oven. Serve with salsa or other hot sauce. Tom and the boys like Cholula sauce on them.

Biscuits and Gravy

By Ciara Cox

For the Biscuits:
2 ¼ cups flour
¾ tsp salt   
1 tsp sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup butter, very cold
1 cup milk, very cold

For the Gravy:
1 pound ground sausage
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2-3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2-3 cups milk

1.  Preheat oven to 450° with a pizza stone in the oven (can also use a baking sheet with parchment paper).  Place flour, salt, sugar and baking powder in bowl and mix together.
2.  Cut butter into small pieces and add to flour mixture. Mix together and use a pastry cutter to make the pieces about the size of a pea. (Can also use a food processor for this step.)
Add the cold milk to the flour and butter. Toss together gently until barely combined.
3.  As soon as the dough holds together, turn it out on a lightly floured counter. Gently "knead" the dough a few strokes until it forms a ball. (Make sure you do not knead it for too long or the butter will get soft. You need cold butter to make the biscuits flaky!)
4.  Roll the dough into a rectangle 1/2-3/4 inch thick, depending on how tall you like your biscuits. Cut into 2 inch circles (I use a glass cup and it works great). Place on pre-heated pizza stone.
5.  Bake at 450° for 8-10 minutes.
6.  For the gravy:  preheat a large pan to medium heat. Add the sausage and break it up into crumbles. While it is cooking, season with salt and pepper. Once the sausage is finished cooking, add the flour and mix to combine.
7.  Slowly add 2 cups of milk while stirring. Bring to a low boil and stir occasionally. If the gravy is too thick, add more milk. (If too thin, add more flour.) Serve over your fresh biscuits and enjoy!

Overnight Whole Wheat Pancakes

Mike Malloy

Yeast-raised pancakes are more tender and flavorful than ordinary pancakes, and if you use the overnight method, it’s not time-consuming at all.  It just takes a few minutes to mix up the night before, and then in the morning, all you do is heat up a pan or griddle and cook them. 

Makes 12-15 medium-sized pancakes.  

Ingredients:

1 tsp (half a package) active dry yeast

2 TB water

2 cups whole wheat flour (we use organic sprouted flour)

1 ½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

2 cups buttermilk

3 eggs, lightly beaten

2 TB melted butter

1 TB honey

2 cups blueberries (optional)

The night before:

In a small bowl, pour yeast into water and let stand a few minutes.

Measure dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir to blend.  (Make sure the bowl is large enough for the batter to rise overnight.  We used a 2 ½ qt Pyrex bowl.)

Add yeast mixture, buttermilk, eggs, butter and honey to dry ingredients and whisk to combine. 

Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning:

For fluffier pancakes, you can take the pancake batter out of the refrigerator and let stand for half an hour or so.  This lets the yeast warm up and become more active. 

Add butter to pan or griddle and heat. 

Rinse berries, if using, and pat dry with paper towels, then stir into batter.

When pan is hot, pour in 1/4-1/3 cup batter per pancake and cook until bubbles form on the top and burst.  Flip each pancake and continue to cook until brown on both sides.

Serve with butter and maple syrup.

Easy to Make Homemade Oatmeal

by Rob Malloy

If you’ve ever bought Quaker Oats Instant Oatmeal (you know, with the individual serving packets) you probably felt you were paying too much for what you got. I know I did, so I developed this little recipe.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup quick oats
1 tsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 to 1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 TB raisins
1/3 cup hot water, or more, for thinner cereal

Directions:
All you need to do is put the dry ingredients in a bowl, add hot water and stir. If you want to make a lot of servings and store them, just put the dry ingredients in zip-lock sandwich bags, seal, and store–it will keep forever. No more overpriced oatmeal!

Homemade Granola

by Febrina Malloy

Ingredients:
2 cups oatmeal
1/3 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup oat bran or flaked coconut
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup honey or corn syrup
2 TB vegetable oil or peanut oil
1 TB imitation vanilla, not extract
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts or peanuts
1/4 cup sunflower seeds or sliced almonds, optional

Directions:
1. Measure the first five items into large bowl and stir well.
2. Measure honey, oil and vanilla into glass measuring cup. Heat in microwave (or in pan of hot water) just until honey is very warm and no longer thick. Do not let mixture boil.
3. Pour over the dry mixture and stir thoroughly until all of it is moistened and no large lumps remain.
4. Spread out on a 10 x 15 pan and bake at 250° F for about 20 minutes, turning over and stirring with a spatula after the first 10 minutes.
5. Add raisins, nuts and any seeds just before 20 minutes are up. Turn off oven and allow to remain until nuts are heated through, perhaps 30 minutes.
6. Remove from oven, stir well and allow to cool. Store in air tight jar.

Creamed Eggs and Potatoes

by Kathy Valenzuela

This recipe is perfect for a brunch buffet. Make it the night before and microwave it in the morning. Or, if you’re a morning person, just cook the eggs and potatoes ahead of time and you’ll still have less work in the morning.

Ingredients:
8 hard-cooked eggs
2 large or 3 medium potatoes
8-10 slices chipped ham or cooked bacon

Sauce:
3-4 TB butter
5 TB flour
1 tsp mustard
Dash salt
Dash white or black pepper
2 ½ cups milk

Directions:
1. Chop ham into small squares, or crumble cooked bacon.
2. Boil potatoes, or microwave on high, 8-10 minutes, until tender but not falling apart.
3. Peel potatoes, if desired, and cut into cubes.
4. Melt butter in a medium-sized saucepan. Add flour and seasonings, then slowly stir in milk, cooking over medium heat and stirring constantly.
5. Bring to a boil, still stirring, until thickened. Stir in ham or bacon; remove from heat.
6. Peel and dice eggs; fold into sauce. Gently fold in potatoes until thoroughly mixed.
7. For a buffet, spread into 8" square Pyrex or Corningwear dish and serve warm or room temperature. For the family, spoon over toast or English muffins.

Old Time Egg Pancake

by Michael Malloy

This recipe, which is adapted from one given to us by a family friend, makes a breakfast treat that’s halfway between a pancake and an omelette. It puffs into fantastic shapes as it cooks, and then subsides as it cools.

serves 4

Ingredients:
6 eggs
2/3 cup milk
2/3 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 TB margarine or butter

Directions:
1. Lightly coat bottom and sides of oven-proof skillet, or 8x8 square pan with non-stick cooking spray, then add margarine or butter. Place skillet or pan in oven and preheat to 400°.
2. Beat eggs slightly and add milk, flour and salt and combine with a rotary beater until smooth. Pour into hot skillet or pan and bake, uncovered, for 17-20 minutes, until center is set and edges golden brown. Serve hot with honey or jam, or sprinkle with lemon juice and powdered sugar.

Eggs with Tortillas (Migas)

by Kathy Valenzuela

Ingredients:
3-4 corn tortilla
oil
salt
4-6 large eggs, beaten
milk

Directions:
1. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat.
2. Tear up tortillas and add to the pan.  Fry until just a little crispy.
2. Beat eggs with a little milk and salt and pepper to taste. Add to pan, lower heat a little, and cook until no longer runny.

Dorothea's additions:  mix in cumin, cilantro, chopped onions, and garlic with the eggs.  Serve with guacamole or salsa.