Breakfast – Page 29 – The Pajama Chef

Maple Pecan Pear Scones

August 14, 2010June 4, 2015 Sarah

Whoa… that’s a mouthful.

Both the name… and…

I love scones because they are a dessert, a breakfast, and a healthy, filling snack all rolled into one! These scones are light and fluffy, not tough like some scones can be, and they’re even made with whole wheat flour, oats, and nuts, which is an extra bonus. I’ve made some rock-hard scones [or other baked goods] in my day with whole wheat flour, so it’s always great when a recipe with whole wheat flour turns out well. I enjoy all the flavors in this scone… they really marry well when made the night before, so they are perfect for breakfast or brunch. But just watch out… these will not last very long!

Maple Pecan Pear Scones

Servings: 12
Time: 30 minutes
Print

from Eating Well

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats [not instant]
1/4 cup plus 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar, divided
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons [2 ounces, or 1/4 of a normal package] chilled reduced-fat cream cheese (Neufchâtel), cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup canola oil
1 cup Bartlett pear, diced and peeled
1/2 cup chopped pecans, divided
3/4 cup buttermilk, or substitute 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar plus enough milk to make 1 cup, then let sit for 5 minutes and use what you need
1 teaspoon maple extract
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a large baking sheet with cooking spray, and set aside. In one bowl, whisk together dry ingredients: flours, oats, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Using a pastry blender [or 2 table knives], cut in the butter and cream cheese. Swirl in oil [i.e. don’t just dump it all in] and toss with a fork to mix in. Swirl in pear and 1/4 cup nuts and toss again to coat. In a small bowl, mix buttermilk and maple extract and then swirl into dough, always stirring, until coated. Scone dough will be sticky… it always is, and that is good!

Turn dough out onto a floured counter-top or large cutting board and knead slightly, then form into a ball and press down into a large circle. Using a table knife [grease and flour it, if it sticks], cut dough in half and then cut each side into 6 wedges, for a total of 12 scones. Place scones on baking sheet, then make the egg glaze.

In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg and add water. In a second small bowl, combine 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar and 1/4 cup nuts. Then, using a pastry brush, glaze top of each scone with a generous amount of egg mixture, and top with nut mixture, pressing in gently to set. Bake the scones until golden, about 15-20 minutes.

Breakfast, Meat, One Tablespoon Testosterone, Recipes

OTT: Brown Sugar Bacon Twists

August 9, 2010June 4, 2015 Sarah

This is a guest post from my husband, Ben. Periodically, he has agreed to share some of his favorite recipes with you–and this is his first. He has entitled his guest post column, One Tablespoon Testosterone, or OTT for short. Enjoy!

———-

Hello all. I’m here to add a slightly more masculine variation to this blog. While I don’t claim to have the cooking experience my wife does, I’m not an incompetent bumbling oaf in the kitchen either. But I do like man food. Like bacon. Mmmm…nothing makes me happier food-wise than bacon. So today I’ll share a recipe I made with bacon as the main ingredient… too bad they didn’t use my recipe last night when bacon was the featured ingredient on The Next Food Network Star.

Brown Sugar Bacon Twists

Servings: 8+
Time: 40 minutes
Print

from the Peace Meals cookbook by the Junior League of Houston

Ingredients:

1 pound bacon (16 slices [the amount, of course, can be adjusted to fit the number of people you’re serving…this amount serves 1 bacon fanatic such as myself…actually my wife would have a heart attack if she found out I ate a whole pound of bacon, then I would have a heart attack because I ate a whole pound of bacon])
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper
1 cup awesome

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil; place a wire rack on top of the sheet. I don’t have a wire baking rack (or at least one that my wife would let me place in the oven), so I just use one of the oven racks, and place the rimmed baking sheet on the bottom oven rack to catch the grease. Sprinkle the bacon evenly with the sugar and pepper. The amounts for this are really subjective to your personal tastes. More brown sugar and less pepper make it sweeter, more pepper gives it a little more kick (which I like). You can also add cinnamon. Tightly twist each slice to form a spiral. Bake until the bacon is crisp and browned, about 30-35 minutes.

How long you cook them is also subjective to your tastes. The first time I made these I cooked them almost 35 minutes and they were crispier than I would have liked. This time, it wasn’t even 25 minutes and they were still soft, but perfectly cooked as far as bacon goes (in my opinion). So you just have to decide how crispy you want them.

Okay, I think this about wraps up my first guest post. I don’t have much else to say about this recipe…or anything else for that matter. I’ll be back (if my wife lets me) in the future with more man-approved recipes (mancipes?) or just random other things I find amusing for which I’ll use my wife’s blog as an outlet. In conclusion, bacon makes everything better. Everything.