Maple Sausage And Waffle Breakfast Casserole

Breakfast Casseroles. They're common to make around Thanksgiving and Christmas. Another time you'll see them is for brunch buffets. What is it? Most recipes usually call for bread, an egg mixture and sometimes breakfast meats like sausage or bacon mixed in and topped with cheese. These casseroles are popular because it's easily assembled making for a stressfree dish. I'm not particularly a fan of them... well until now. I came across this recipe for a Maple Sausage And Waffle Breakfast Casserole and it certainly turned me on to breakfast casseroles. It's like a hybrid of waffles, french toast and casserole all into one with both sweet and savory flavors throughout. So if there's any breakfast casserole you should try for your next brunch event or even for 'brinner' (breakfast dinner), it's definitely this one!...

A Weekly Serving - 2/26/2011

The end of February already?! This past week took some adjusting but we're getting there! Here are my weekly personal musings on family, food and fun...

Family -  Joel certainly was having a period of adjustment this week. Since our recent move, he's been struggling with feeling comfortable with his new bedroom. He's not exactly a fan of sleeping in his room or crib and instead, he's been snuggling up with us in our room. I'm hoping this doesn't last long but we're constantly trying to get him to embrace his new surroundings.

Aside from that, he's also adjusting with teething! Joel got his first teeth that broke out a few days ago. Surprisingly he didn't get sick with a fever, cold, diarrhea, or any difficult symptoms. If anything, his drooling was more frequent and he's been a bit more clingy.
 

Now that we're pretty much settled in, we've also given Joel some new toys. One is a fenced in play area that we keep his toys. He loves playing in it everyday and it's full of lots of sights, sounds and textures for him to explore. My parents also thought Joel could benefit from a walker. I wasn't a fan initially but after seeing Joel take to it really well (maybe even too well), I've learned to embrace it and find it really helpful!

Food/Restaurant News - This past week has been a bit slow as we're still waiting on things to clear with permits, insurance and contractors. In the meantime, I've been working with third parties to help market our restaurant and get some exposure to build up for our grand opening. I also attended a vendor event to learn of some new products and services provided by one of our food distributors.


Fun - My parents have been a source of fun this past week. They have visited almost every other day because they can't get enough of their little grandson. We've been spending lots of quality time together shopping, cooking and baking. Speaking of which...

Here's what I cooked up in the kitchen this past week...

Chicken Nachos

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Hot Pizza Dip

Berry Topped Pudding Tarts

Here are the recipe collections I've posted this past week...

10 Dishes for The Oscar's Best Picture Nominees

Hope you all enjoy your weekend and have a great week ahead!

Berry Topped Pudding Tarts

Elegant desserts doesn't always mean time consuming and difficult. In fact, these Berry Topped Pudding Tarts are a perfect example! Delicate puff pastry shells are baked and filled with a velvety smooth vanilla bean pudding, then topped with mixed berries. These would make a great addition to a brunch, tea party or just a snack to enjoy just because...

Hot Pizza Dip

I think I've mentioned how much I love to snack on food versus having an actual meal. It's probably even more so now as a mom because my day is broken up in smaller increments of time to care for my son. So when I'm craving for pizza but don't want to go through the hassle of making a pizza dough or even popping in a frozen one in the oven, the next best thing (maybe even better) is a Hot Pizza Dip. With this, you get all the goodness of a pizza without all the hassle. You could warm it in the microwave if you wanted to to save time! This dip layers Italian seasoned cream cheese, mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce and all your favorite pizza toppings. To serve, cut up some garlic bread and dip away!

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Now that we're settled into our new place, I got the chance to look through the latest issue of Cook's Illustrated. One of the recipes that caught my eye was this one for Broccoli Cheese Soup. We've been experiencing some rainy days lately so a bowl of this soup was perfect for lunch. It was creamy, a vibrant green and flavorful with a faint hint of heat. One thing you won't find in this particular recipe is a lot of heavy cream like traditional recipes. Instead, this version has everything you love about broccoli cheese soup, only healthier!

10 Dishes for The Oscar's Best Picture Nominees

This coming Sunday is a big night for those in the film industry. The 83rd Annual Academy Awards will have people tuned in to see who gets a coveted Oscar... will you be watching? If you are, get in on the fun by preparing some dishes to enjoy on the special night! Here are 10 Dishes for The Oscar's Best Picture Nominees...

Chicken Nachoes

So we're back! We've been busy moving from the suburbs back to the city of Chicago the past few days. It's so great to finally be in the city once again, this time for good. It was hard commuting back and forth (45 mins - 1 hour one way) on the days I'm working at the restaurant. And with my husband's new job that's also in the city, we had no choice but to move back to where we truly belong. Our little one is adjusting well and he's loving all the family time we have together (versus one of us dealing with a commute.) Now that we're all unpacked and settled in, I've been too exhausted to make an elaborate meal. At times like this, I end up making snack food and playing them up to make it heartier and more filling. One of my favorite snack foods is nachos and the Chicken Nachos I made recently really hit the spot without putting much effort. If anything, it's just assembling the ingredients and serving it up. Yes, it's that easy and so good too!

A Weekly Serving - 2/19/2011

What a busy week it's been but overall, well worth it! Before I type away with some personal musings...

Here's what I cooked up in the kitchen this past week...

Stuffed Scallops

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers

Apple Lattice Pie

Maple Gingersnap Ice Cream

Here are the recipe collections I've posted this past week...

20 Recipes for a Big Italian Supper

My weekly musings on Family, Food and Fun...

Family -  Some big news - we moved back to the city! After a few months of commuting to and from  the burbs into the city, we finally had enough and decided to move back. It was our plan for awhile but we took our time looking for a place to call home, especially with our little one in tow. We were fortunate enough to find a place near the restaurant and it's a very family friendly neighborhood. Our original plan was to move at the end of the month but since my husband got a new job that started sooner than later, all our moving plans had to get bumped up so it wouldn't coincide with his work schedule.

Overall it was a very smooth move, thanks to my parents who watched Joel while we worked on moving and settling in. We got everything done in a few days and for the most part, we've settled. We still have a few things back in the suburbs that we have yet to pick up but all our important personal belongings are now home with us. I will say that I'm tired of moving and hopefully we won't move for a few more years. At least we've agreed that the suburban life (at least that far north of Chicago) isn't for us and we thrive when we're closer to the city.

Aside from our move, Joel is doing wonderfully. He had his 9 month appointment this past week and is right on target! Since he was born a month in advance, our pediatrician is gauging his growth and development one month behind to cut him some slack. So despite being 9 months, he's exactly where he needs to be (if not more advanced) as an 8 month old. Here's his latest pic...

Food/Restaurant News - This past week, we played in the kitchen with some Filipino Tacos. They're simply Filipino inspired meat fillings served up in corn tortillas and complimenting sauces/salsas. I thought they came out great and I hope we can add them to our menu at some point. It's a great way to take a well known concept and put a Filipino twist on it!

Yesterday we had a Filipino Cuisine Tasting event at Whole Foods. It was a great turnout with a full house and it was wonderful seeing familiar and new faces. I set up the event to help promote the restaurant and grocery store while the kitchen is being renovated. I must admit that it's been a few months since I hosted an event because most of my time has been focused on the restaurant. However since we're waiting on the renovations to be finished, I've gotten quite a few requests to do more of my events. I had a great time doing it and most likely will teach some culinary classes, host a few neighborhood food tours and just have fun doing events again. Being back in the city will certainly make it easier! In fact, I got booked to do a few culinary events for some private groups and even got some catering orders for the next few weeks.


Fun - We started out the week with Valentine's Day, which really is just a 'Hallmark Holiday' for us. We did celebrate with a nice dinner out and the day after, we went to a special food and wine tasting at Bin36, a great restaurant and wine bar downtown. It was great to have a night to ourselves... we need more date nights every now and then!

Hope you all enjoy your weekend and have a great week ahead!

Maple Gingersnap Ice Cream

Peanut butter & jelly. Ham & cheese. Milk & cookies. There are just some foods that go well together, it's just natural. Another one to add to the list is pie & ice cream. For me, pie just isn't right unless it's accompanied with a scoop of ice cream. Since I recently made an Apple Lattice Pie, I wanted a great ice cream to compliment the flavors and with that, I made a Maple Gingersnap Ice Cream. It was a heavenly pair and a flavor I'm going to add to my list of favorites! Maple ice cream is studded with chunks of gingersnap cookies, making this a good ice cream on it's own or with a slice a of pie ( I vote pie!)...

Apple Lattice Pie

Most people would associate apple pie with the fall months or maybe even during Independence Day... but for me, it's great any time of year! I've been playing with pie recipes lately since it's a dessert I think needs some recognition. Since apples are available all year round, I decided to make this Apple Lattice Pie. This was a delicious pie that had a nice flaky crust and perfectly seasoned apples. If you're craving a densely filled apple pie that's far from runny and packed with flavor, this is a recipe for you...

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers

I'm sure I've mentioned my love of appetizers before. They're just more fun to eat and so many to choose from. Just as Thanksgiving is to side dishes and desserts, the Superbowl is to appetizers and finger foods. So even though our beloved Chicago Bears didn't make it to the final game, I was quite content with the spread of appetizers I served up. One appetizer that got my family talking were these Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers. We've all heard how bacon supposedly makes everything better... but these poppers are solid proof. Jalapeno peppers are sliced in half, filled with cream cheese and cheddar cheese and wrapped in bacon before getting baked. If you thought those frozen boxes of the prepared stuff at the store were good, these will change your mind...

20 Recipes for a Big Italian Supper

One thing I truly enjoy are big family dinners where the table is filled with an abundance of dishes. One of our favorite dinners is an Italian themed one. With so many kinds of appetizers, soups, breads, pastas and desserts, mixing and matching dishes is easy. If you're due for an Italian inspired dinner soon, here are 20 Recipes for a Big Italian Supper... mangia!

Stuffed Scallops

Ah... Valentine's Day. In our house, it's just another "Hallmark Holiday" but I do treat my favorite guy with something special. This year, I chose to make a seafood dish since he loves seafood. Aside from shrimp, he has quite a fondness of scallops... big scallops. I know I could have made the usual broiled scallop dish but instead, I opted to make these Stuffed Scallops. Beautiful scallop shells are filled with a mixture of bay scallops, onions, fresh herbs and breadcrumbs and baked to a golden brown. The presentation is pretty, the filling is delicious and it's a nice way to enjoy scallops if you don't eat it very often...

A Weekly Serving - 2/12/2011

It's been a great week and I'm glad it's the weekend! It's Valentine's Day weekend and while many lovebirds are celebrating, we are too in a different way. But let's get to the food posts first....

Here's what I cooked up in the kitchen this past week...

Orange Cinnamon Rolls

Triple Berry Pie

Here are the recipe collections I've posted this past week...

10 Chocolicious Recipes

10 Valentine's Day Dinner Ideas

10 Breakfast in Bed Meal Ideas

My weekly musings on Family, Food and Fun...

 

Family -  This was a fun week with family. My sister in law, Joan, flew in from Florida to spend Valentine's Day weekend with us. She's had plenty of cuddle time with Joel and he loved every minute of it. We like to think that she brought some of Florida's warm weather with her since when she came in, it was one of the coldest days of the year. After a few days, we were basking in sun and 50 degree weather! (Thanks Joan!)

Aside from spending time with Joan, we also started moving into our new place in the city. It took us awhile to find a place but we finally did. It's close to the restaurant and in a residential area near parks and many conveniences. This is probably where we'll probably stay for a few years and will most likely move again before Joel is ready for kindergarten. So our Valentine's gift to each other this year is a new place and making it a home... something we're looking forward to!


Food/Restaurant News - Speaking of the restaurant, things are still being renovated. It's definitely taking longer than expected to get things up and running again, but the best things are worth waiting for. We're looking at another month at the earliest before we open up but perhaps two months would be more realistic. Given that, we've learned a lot and are taking this time to really get our details down. We're planning on taking the upcoming week to test and retest some recipes, perfecting things before our grand opening. Aside from that, we've got events in the works to provide a preview to the public with one happening this coming Friday at a local Whole Foods store. So bear with us... we're anxious for the kitchen to be up & running more than anyone else! Lastly, this weekend's Joely Cakes have been delivered to Three R Grocery and the flavor this week is jackfruit (langka).


Fun - This week's fun was all about gearing up for our move and thankfully we're doing it slowly. We spent a good part of the day cleaning and organizing some of our stuff while Joel got used to his new room. We plan on doing some painting later when the weather is warmer and have settled in a bit. The best part of it all was a new kitchen to play in. The kitchen was lacking some decent counter space so I bought a stainless steel work table which fits perfectly in the kitchen. I'm looking forward to lots of cooking and baking!

Lastly, perhaps you've noticed a new little logo for Top Mommy Blogs in my right sidebar. I recently joined the ranks of fellow moms who write blogs about family, homelife, food, etc. If you're a mother or just are looking for other great blogs to read from a mother's point of view, please click on the logo above or in my right sidebar. In fact, every click from my blog will also count as a "vote" increasing my rank in the Top Mommy Blogosphere. Thanks in advance & I hope you all enjoy your weekend and have a great week ahead!

10 Breakfast in Bed Meal Ideas...

Valentine's Day is just around the corner. If you're not big into gifts or just want to do something special for your significant other, don't wait until the evening for a fancy schmancy dinner. Start off the love filled day in bed with breakfast! Not sure what to make? Here are 10 Breakfast in Bed Meal Ideas to start off the day with someone you love...

Triple Berry Pie

One of the things I'd like to work on more is pie. It's hard to find a really good pie in restaurants or bakeries, much less make one so I've been trying out recipes when I can. A recent one I made was this Triple Berry Pie. Perhaps better made in the height of berry season, you can still get a decent pie using frozen berries like I did. I loved the fruity mix of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries... and the only way to make this pie better was having it a la mode!...

10 Valentine's Day Dinner Ideas

Some may say Valentine's Day is nothing but a 'Hallmark Holiday,' which is just an excuse to send a card, buy into materialist gift giving and/or a day to do something nice for your significant other. Although my husband and I don't necessarily celebrate Valentine's Day with lavish gifts, I do make an effort to prepare something delicious and extra special for dinner. Whether it's one of his favorite dishes or just a recipe using ingredients I go out of my way to use, I'm thankful he appreciates whatever I serve up... on Valentine's day or any of the 364 days of the year. If you need some ideas or inspiration on what to prepare for your loved ones, here are 10 Valentine's Day Dinner Ideas to check out...

Orange Cinnamon Rolls

I love lazy mornings and to make them better is to bake up something sweet to enjoy with my morning coffee. With the Blizzard of 2011 coming through Chicago, we were snowed in and that was the best excuse to get baking in the kitchen! One of my favorite morning treats are homemade cinnamon rolls and I enjoy trying various flavors aside from the plain old cinnamon. This time around, I made these Orange Cinnamon Rolls with some fresh oranges. Using the zest and juice in the dough and frosting, you can't help but love the burst of citrusy goodness these have in every bite!...

10 Chocolicious Recipes

It's February and also the best time of the year to highlight chocolate! With Valentine's Day around the corner, you'll find chocolate everywhere - at the store, online or if you're lucky, in your own kitchen. Take advantage of all the chocolate sales you may come across at the store and give any of these 10 Chocolicious Recipes a try...

A Weekly Serving - 2/5/2011

It's been an eventful week of both good and bad, but that's life right? I got quite a bit of time in the kitchen this week, thanks to a little snow but here's a recap of what I've posted this past week...

Here's what I cooked up in the kitchen this past week...

Chocolate Toffee Crunch Cookies

Chocolate Toffee Crunch Cookies combine the winning combination 

of chocolate, toffee, oatmeal and coconut

Shrimp Alfredo with Spinach & Roasted Red Pepper

Satisfy your cravings for shrimp and pasta, 

brought together with a silky rich alfredo sauce, spinach and roasted red pepper…

Coconut Hot Chocolate

I’ve never had any hot chocolate more luscious and creamier than this!

Here are the recipe collections I've posted this past week...

12 Recipes to Celebrate the Chinese New Year 2011

Whether you’re Chinese or not, have aChinese New Year celebration 

by preparing something Chinese inspired…

Superbowl Recipe Shuffle

If you still need recipes for the big game, look no further!

My weekly musings on Family, Food and Fun...

Family -  We are up in the suburbs this whole week, although not exactly planned. What turned out to be a short weekend visit ended up being over a week long visit. On Monday, we were in the city for some errands when my parents asked that we meet them downtown. They were on the way from the IL/WI border to go to an appointment downtown. The appointment was originally on Tuesday, but with the impending snow storm coming, they bumped up their date to Monday. Well on the way to meeting up downtown, they got in a bad car accident... really bad. So bad that we think the car is totalled. In short, my parents were stopped at a light that turned green. As they started moving forward, they were hit by another car that ran the red light. The point of impact was the front right quarter panel, bumper, and wheel well. The speed in which the other car complete caved in the wheel making it impossible to drive and the front passenger side door to close. Thank goodness the car didn't hit the passenger side door head on. If that were the case, surely everyone in the car would have been far more seriously injured, if not worse. As for the other car, it was going so fast that the front was crashed in, deploying the airbags and spun the car a full 180 degrees on the one way street it was driving on, now facing the direction of traffic.

So with my parents without a car for the night, we all cram in our car and head back to the burbs. Then Snomaggedon hits. The imfamous Blizzard of 2011 hit us pretty hard, leaving us snowed in for 3 days. We had 3+ feet high snow drifts all around the house, blocking the garage, front door, back door, and patio. Here are some pics of how much snow we got...

So since we've been snowed in (literally), we had quite a bit of time indoors just hanging out. I must say that Joel really has grown and developed a lot this past week! While in the city, our place is much smaller with hardwood floors... leaving little room for Joel to really roam about freely. But here in the burbs, he's got the whole house that's mainly carpeted, free of bulky and/or delicate furniture with potentially dangerous corners. As a result, Joel loved his new found freedom... although, his freedom has left me exhausted and nervous, mixed in with being very proud.

Food/Restaurant News - Due to the Snopocolypse this week, our Filipino Cuisine Tasting event scheduled at Whole Foods was cancelled. We didn't want folks to risk coming out in the severe weather and instead, we rescheduled the event in a couple of weeks. The same thing went for the Pin@ypalooza event that was scheduled the following day, which we also canceled. Blah. Hopefully things will continue to pick up now that it seems the worst of the weather has passed.

In the meantime, my partners and I are anxiously awaiting the reveal of our restaurant and grocery. A lot of things will be changed... so a huge, grand opening will be soon to come. I can't wait! The down side is that we're looking at sometime in early March for it to happen. It sucks that a lot of the time is eaten up by waiting on city permits, contractors and insurance. But slowly, yet surely, we will re-open! At least we've got some catering jobs and a few public appearances to do some demos and presentations.

Another food update - my Joely Cakes will be back on the store shelves this coming weekend. The snow storm made it difficult to bake and deliver... but next week I'll be featuring a few more flavors!


Fun - The Superbowl is tomorrow and I've got a few gameday eats planned. We're not particularly interested in the teams playing (sadly, our Chicago Bears didn't make it through) so we look forward to the commercials and half time show. I certainly had fun this past week despite my parents' car accident. Thank goodness everyone was able to come home and we could all bond together with this cute, adorable face.

Hope you all enjoy your weekend and have a great week ahead!

Coconut Hot Chocolate

The Blizzard of 2011 has definitely been an adventurous one. Being stuck at home as a result of 3 foot snow drifts outside allowed me some much needed time in the kitchen to play. For the cold, nothing seemed more fitting than a warm cup of hot chocolate. But rather than plain old hot chocolate, I wanted something more interesting and flavorful. The key is the type of milk used... and with that in mind, I used coconut milk to create this Coconut Hot Chocolate. I've never had any hot chocolate more luscious and creamier than this!...