Breakfast with Mignardise

Let's talk breakfast. We've all heard a million times that it's the most important meal of the day.
I have to agree. Without breakfast I have a hard time functioning.
I love breakfast-type food. In fact, I would eat it for lunch too. If only more lunch places would offer those egg sandwiches.  (I'm looking at you, Clayton's.)

It's fun to go out for breakfast. My husband probably eats breakfast out most days, catching up with friends, discussing football and networking. He and I have actually dreamed about opening our own breakfast spot here in town. (It almost happened last week. But that's another story for another time.)

 I eat at home most days and for the past 20 years, I've been eating the same thing most mornings.

Kashi Go Lean cereal with skim milk. With berries when in season.
For excitement, I might mix it up with a little Total Raisin Bran.
And coffee, always coffee.
Woohoo.

Not exciting at all, but it's always worked for me.

Until this past summer. Maybe I felt like I wasn't getting enough protein or calcium. Or could it be, perhaps, I felt....bored?

So here's my favorite new breakfast:

It starts with Wallaby plain Greek yogurt. This is my favorite brand. For some reason those other, more popular Greek yogurt brands, don't do it for me. Too thick maybe.
Add about a tablespoon of pure maple syrup to sweeten it a bit. Then a heaping tablespoon of chia seeds.
Have you heard about chia seeds?
They're full of omega-3 fatty acids, even more so than flax seeds. They also provide fiber, calcium, iron and loads of other healthful minerals. They don't have much taste, but they do add a little crunch.
Pile on some berries. Since summer has ended I am now using frozen wild blueberries. They're not nearly as good as the fresh, but not bad either.

And then, for the much needed texture, granola. You can buy whatever kind of granola you like, but it's ridiculously easy to make. Here's my favorite way to make granola:

Mignardise Granola

2 cups rolled oats

1 1/4 cups sliced almonds

3/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

1/4 tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

Set oven to 300 degrees. Spread rolled oats in a large baking pan and toast on oven about 15 minutes, stirring once.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix almonds, salt and coconut. Whisk together oil and maple syrup in a small bowl. When the oats come out of the oven, add the nut mixture, then the maple syrup mixture, Stir very well, combining all ingredients thoroughly. Put pan back in oven and bake 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove when granola is lightly browned and smells toasty. Let cool.
At this point, you can add in any dried fruit you like (cranberries, raisins, apricots) before storing in an airtight container.

I usually double this recipe so I'll have lots. It keeps a long time in the refrigerator.

What do you eat for breakfast at home? When you go out for breakfast, what do you like to see on the menu?
Please share!

Breakfast of Champions

They (whoever they are) say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

It's also the best. I said that. "They" didn't.

So when I heard about The Incredible Breakfast Cook-Off being held in conjunction with Maine Restaurant Week, I knew I had to go. Called up my friend Becky, who's always up for a good foodie event and we hustled down to SoPo (that's South Portland to you) first thing Friday morning.

We were greeted by this guy.

You just can't go anywhere in Maine without lobster showing up.

We found more lobster in Sea Dog Brewing Co.'s Lobster Benedict on a croissant.

Crab, in the form of Eggs Benedict on a Crabcake with Avocado Mousse, from Sea Glass at Inn by the Sea.

And more Eggs Benedict from The Porthole, with spinach and a creamy smoky bacon sauce.

This was my favorite of all the egg dishes, proving once again that everything is better with bacon.

In search of carbs, we sniffed out the offering from The Good Table - Creme Brulee French Toast.

Ok, like most really delicious things, it doesn't look like much in the photo. But trust me, this was the clear winner. A hearty French bread, soaked over night with eggs, heavy cream, brown sugar, Grand Marnier and other diet-busting ingredients, then baked to form that signature brulee crust. With fruit on top, just to make you feel like you might be eating something healthy. Amaaaaazing. Even though The Good Table is at the opposite end of the earth from me - well, on the other side of the Casco Bay Bridge and that's far enough - I plan to eat brunch there asap. I hear they have a lovely terrace in the summer. Not sure I can wait that long.

After helping ourselves to the Bloody Mary bar (hello, it's Friday!),

we were ready for some breakfast dessert. You know how I love breakfast dessert.

No, I DID NOT eat the whole thing. A little bite of each one was enough. And a bit of this too.

Tomorrow morning, it's back to my Kashi Go Lean cereal with skim milk.
I think I might be hungry again by then.


PS - Here's a link to a recipe for the Creme Brulee French Toast that sounds similar to the one from The Good Table. I haven't tried it. Let me know if you do.

PSS - One of the highlights of my morning was meeting the Morning Team from WBLM radio, The Captain and Celeste. I listen to them every day and they never fail to make me smile.

Live From Arizona...it's Mignardise!

 

I am a very lucky girl this week. Instead of freezing in Maine, I am enjoying the sunshine in Arizona. Not a moment too soon either.One more day of staring at that snowy landscape would have pushed me right over the edge, into an icy crevasse, no doubt.
But having lived in Maine for a few years now, I know that I have to plan a getaway for February school vacation. It gives me something to live for in the dark days of January.

This year we have returned to the Tanque Verde Ranch in Tucson. It's our third visit here, so that should tell you something. It's a dude ranch, for us dudes who like to play at being cowgirls and cowboys.There's trail riding, mountain biking*, hiking in Saguaro National Park, swimming, tennis and...food. Lots of food.

This morning, I swung up into the saddle on a horse called Jaeger.We took a ride up to the Homestead where a hearty breakfast was being cooked up on a fire-fueled grill by Bob Cote, owner of the Ranch. There was enormous blueberry pancakes, smoky bacon, ranch eggs with chiles and cheese cooked in a huge cast-iron skillet, hash browns, biscuits and coffee. Doesn't breakfast always taste better outside?

Afterward, we walked the horses back to the corral, fat and happy (us, not the horses - they're discouraged from eating on the trail). And guess what? Only 2 hours until lunch!

* True story: Two years ago when we were here, I thought a little mountain biking amongst the cactus would be fun and good exercise. Five minutes into the adventure, I skidded on a sharp left turn and fell smack into a prickly pear cactus. Cut to Bob pulling cactus points out of my derriere (that's French, just like mignardise) for over an hour. Then it took another hour for me to remove the thorns from more delicate areas. I will not be biking amongst the cactus EVER again.