Campfire Scones

I do not have any musical gifts, but I’ve been wanting to participate in the worship ministry at our church that Rich loves so much.  One of the things I do do well is baking, so the last couple of times Rich has played I’ve made pastries for him to take to feed the team on Sunday morning.  When I saw this recipe in the paper the other day I knew it would be perfect.  YUM-MY!  The whole wheat flour and cinnamon give a graham flavor that make this a great interpretation of s’mores.

One note:  you really, really want to line your baking sheet with parchment paper or the melted marshmallows will make an impossible mess on your pan.

Time: 1 hour, plus overnight freezing time for the dough. Makes 10 to 12 scones

• 3 1/3 cups (14.1 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup (1.4 ounces) whole wheat flour
• 4 teaspoons (.7 ounces) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ cup (1.75 ounces) sugar
• Pinch of salt
• ½ cup (1 stick) cold butter, cut into cubes
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1½ cups whole milk, plus ¼ cup for brushing, divided 
• 1 cup mini chocolate chips
• 1 cup mini marshmallows, plus extra for dotting the tops of the scones, if desired
• Cinnamon sugar, for sprinkling

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or in a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat together the all-purpose and wheat flours, cinnamon, sugar and salt. Add the cold butter and mix at the lowest speed until the butter is reduced to the size of peas.

**I am leery of cutting in butter with a mixer so I did this by hand with a pastry cutter and then blended in the rest by hand with a fat, curved silicone spatula.  I’m leaving the original instructions in case you are braver than I.

Combine the honey and 1½ cups heavy cream and, with the mixer on low speed, slowly pour into the flour and butter mixture. Mix until just blended. The dough will look lumpy, and there should still be bits of butter visible in the dough. Combine the chocolate chips and marshmallows, add to the dough, and mix on low speed just until incorporated.

Place the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead it into a ball.   Using your hand or a rolling pin, pat the dough into a rectangle, 3/4 thick. You should see small bits of butter in the dough. Cut the rectangle into 12 squares.

Place the scones on a baking pan lined with parchment paper.  Freeze the dough overnight after they’re cut; the scones can be prepared up to this point and frozen for up to 2 weeks before baking (wrap the scones well if freezing for an extended period of time to prevent freezer burn).

Heat the oven to 375 F. Brush the frozen scones with the remaining milk and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake until puffed and set and the tops are a rich golden brown, 25 to 35 minutes. If adding extra marshmallows to the top, sprinkle them over the scones halfway to two-thirds of the way as they bake so the marshmallows brown slightly (the extra marshmallows may deflate a bit once they come out of the oven).

Cool the scones on a rack before serving.

Peanut Butter and Banana Baked French Toast

Mmmmmm… .I love breakfast.  Any time of day, I’m happy to be eating pancakes, eggs and bacon.  As a result we often have “brinner” or breakfast for dinner and I love gatherings that revolve around brunch.  This dish which is an adaptation of my Baked Apple French Toast is perfect for either.  You can assemble it ahead of time and pop it in the oven an hour before serving or whip it together when you need it.

Whole wheat bread, skim milk and natural peanut butter are great choices to make this a healthier meal.

Serves eight

• 12 slices bread
• 3 ripe bananas, peeled and diced
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup sugar, divided
• 8 eggs
• 3 cups milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

1)  Preheat oven to 400.  Spray a 9x13 baking pan with baking spray.

2)  Lay 6 slices of bread on the bottom of the pan.  Sprinkle diced bananas evenly over bread and then sprinkle chocolate chips over the bananas.

3)  Spread peanut butter on one side of remaining 6 slices of bread and place peanut butter side down on top of chocolate chips.

4)  In a large bowl, mix together milk, eggs, vanilla and 1/4 cup sugar.  Slowly pour over bread, making sure to wet all exposed areas.

5)  Sprinkle top with remaining 1/4 cup sugar, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

6)  Uncover and bake for another 20-30 minutes or until puffed and golden brown.

Serve warm with maple syrup.

Nutrition Facts provided by Calorie Count based on 8 servings without syrup.

Coffee Punch

If you want to make people happy, make this punch. Seriously - it’s that simple.  It’s also great as a make ahead item.  You can make the coffee cubes any old time and keep them in the freezer and brew the rest of the coffee a couple of days ahead.  The day of the party, just dump it all in a bowl, stir and … voila!  Happiness!  Just be sure to use really good ice cream (I like Breyer’s vanilla bean).  The store brand stuff will separate and look gross in the bowl.

Excuse my photo quality. These were taken with a cell phone in a school cafeteria under fluorescent lights. I swear this tastes better than it looks here.

• Ice cube trays - preferably six of them, otherwise you have to make cubes in shifts.
• 2-3 pots of brewed coffee, chilled.  Enough to fill the ice cube trays with 9 cups leftover.
• 4 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 4 1/2 cups milk. Use skim to make your hips happy or whole to make your heart and soul happy.
• 1 cup sugar
• 1.5 quarts good quality vanilla ice cream

1) Fill the ice cube trays with cooled coffee and freeze until solid.  If not using in the next day or two, pop the cubes out of the trays and store them in a freezer bag.

2) About 15 minutes before serving, in a punch bowl, mix together the rest of the coffee, vanilla extract, milk and sugar.  Stir well.  Add the ice cubes and scoops of vanilla ice cream. 

3) Ladle into glasses, making sure to get an ice cube or two in each cup.

Serves 25-30.

Baked Berry Banana Oatmeal

I found this recipe for baked oatmeal and it was good but needed some tweaking to suit my family.  Plus, as much as I like chocolate, I don’t really like it in my breakfast food.  So here is my revision.  Serves 6-8

• 3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
• 1/3 cup l+ 3 Tbsp ight brown sugar (divided)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest (optional)
• 2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup walnut pieces, chopped (optional)
• 2 cups sliced strawberries or whole blueberries (divided)
• 3 cups milk
• 2 large eggs
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1-2 ripe bananas, peeled, 1/2-inch slices

1) Preheat oven to 375 and spray a 9x9 square baking pan with cooking spray.

2) In a large bowl, mix together the oats, 1/3 cup sugar, baking powder, orange zest, cinnamon, salt, walnuts, and 1 cup berries. 

3)  In another large bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, butter and vanilla extract.

4)  Add the oat mixture to prepared baking dish. Arrange the remaining berries on top. Add the banana slices to the top then pour the milk mixture over everything.

5)  Bake 35 to 45 minutes or until the top is nicely golden brown and the milk mixture has set.  Sprinkle the remaining 3 Tablespoons of sugar on top during the last 5 minutes.

6)  Remove from oven and let stand about 5 minutes to firm up a bit.  Cut into squares and serve with maple syrup.

Baked Apple French Toast

The original version of this recipe called for French bread and that’s tasty too, but I like the heartiness and added nutrition of the whole wheat.  This is a great dish to make the night before.  You can get up the next day and just pop it in the oven.  While it bakes, fry up some bacon and slice some fruit for a delicious brunch or breakfast.

• 12 slices 100% whole wheat bread
• 8 eggs
• 3 cups milk (I use skim with no problems)
• 3/4 cup sugar (divided)
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
• 4-5 apples (Granny Smith, Golden Delicious and Jonathan are good choices)
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 Tablespoons butter

1.  Spray 9x13 inch baking pan with baking spray. 

2.  Peel, core and thinly slice the apples.  I used a peeler/corer/slicer from Pampered Chef for this because it makes pretty rings.

But if all you have is a knife?  No problem. Yours will taste just fine. Just be sure to make the slices of apple good and thin.

3.  Whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla and 1/4 cup sugar until well blended.  Make sure that when you crack the eggs that you take them evenly from both sides of the carton or the whole world will crumble.

Then think about other people you know who are weirder than you are until you feel better about yourself.

4.  Arrange six slices of bread on the bottom of the pan.  Arrange half of the apple slices over the bread and pour half of the milk/egg mixture over.  Sprinkle with 1/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.

Confession:  I did not measure the cinnamon.  I just sprinkled until it looked good.

 5.  Repeat layers and dot the top with 2 Tablespoons butter cut into small pieces.

6.  Cover pan with foil and let stand (refrigerated) at least one hour and up to overnight.

7.  Preheat oven to 400.  Put pan, still with foil on top into oven and bake for 20 minutes.  Remove foil and bake another 25 minutes or until eggs are set and top is golden.

8.  Let stand 5-10 minutes, then cut into squares and serve with maple syrup.

Truth be told, we eat this for dinner more often than breakfast.  We’re big “breakfast for dinner” fans at Our Front Door and this is a great dish to make early in the day or even the night before to have ready to go on a busy night.