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Mango Spinach Smoothie

May 16, 2013 By Leave a Comment

I honestly have no idea how I came to love spinach smoothies. For the most part I’m completely anti-green when it comes to drinks. I prefer red. Ultimately though, I guess it’s the fact that no matter what you just can’t taste the spinach in a spinach smoothie. That’s why I love this Mango Spinach Smoothie.

mango spinach smoothie

And just in case you doubt the power of spinach you can find eleven reasons why it rocks right here.

Mango Spinach Smoothie

3 cups of baby spinach
1 1/2 cups of Vanilla Almond Milk
1 cup of frozen mango
1 frozen banana, in chunks
1 tbsp of Chia & Flax Seed Powder (optional)

mango spinach smoothie

Place all ingredients in the blender and you know, blend. Serves 2.

mango spinach smoothie

Still want more green? Try this Pineapple Spinach Smoothie or this Spinach Smoothie with Peanut Butter.

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Filed Under: Breakfast, Healthy Drinks, Slider, Smoothies, Suzy Homemaker, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , ,

Chocolate Stuffed French Toast

May 15, 2013 By 3 Comments

Yesterday morning I made Chocolate Stuffed French Toast for my children……on a school day. I mean seriously, how impressive am I? I am owning the mother of the year title this year through that one simple act alone. Just think about it? Chocolate cream cheese slathered between two pieces of french bread then dipped in egg and fried golden brown. You can almost hear the choir of angels singing, can’t you?

How did I pull off this extraordinary feat on a Tuesday morning? First, I made Strawberry Raspberry Sauce the night before. Then I played Candy Crush for two hours and went to bed. The following morning I followed this easy recipe.

chocolate stuffed french toast

Chocolate Stuffed French Toast

12 slices of day old Italian bread
3 large eggs
1 cup of whipping cream, half and half or whole milk
6 tbsps of Philadelphia Chocolate Cream Cheese
3 tbsps of butter

Chocolate stuffed french toast 1

Spread 1 tbsp of Chocolate Cream Cheese over 6 slices of bread and top with remaining 6 slices. Whisk eggs and cream together in shallow dish. Melt 1 tbsp of butter in heavy skillet. Dip two sandwiches on both sides in egg mixture and cook in pan until golden on both sides. Repeat two more times. Makes six sandwiches.

Serve with Strawberry Raspberry Sauce drizzled over top.

chocolate stuffed french toast 2

Receive accolades and undying devotion from your children.

Pleasantville Note: This makes a sandwich, so this Chocolate Stuffed French Toast could also be sent to school for lunch. Mother-of-the-year. Just sayin’.

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Filed Under: Breakfast, Desserts, Lunch, Slider, Suzy Homemaker, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Banana Crunch Muffins

April 29, 2013 By Leave a Comment

These Banana Crunch Muffins are a favourite of mine because I like a little crunch in my muffins. Plus they have just a hint of cinnamon in them. These are delicious warm, but also freeze beautifully. Wrap these Banana Crunch Muffins individually for snacks or school lunches.

banana crunch muffins

Banana Crunch Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsps baking powder

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

3 medium very ripe bananas, mashed

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup low-fat granola

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 12 standard muffin tray with paper liners.

In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients; set aside. In a medium-size bowl, combine the eggs, light-brown sugar and melted butter. Whisk until smooth. Add mashed banana and vanilla. Pour banana mixture into well in dry ingredients; stir until just moist.

Divide batter evenly in muffin tray. Sprinkle granola over muffins and gently press into batter. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool in tray 5 minutes then remove to cooling rack.

 

 

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Filed Under: Breakfast, Recipes, Slider, Snacks, Suzy Homemaker, Uncategorized

Rice Krispie French Toast

March 29, 2013 By 6 Comments

I posted this recipe for Rice Krispie French Toast when I first started Life in Pleasantville. I didn’t like the original picture and the title was less than search friendly. Also, I got this recipe from a friend and couldn’t remember where she got it from originally, so I wasn’t able to hand along proper credit.  Since then, I have found the source and it’s from Bite Me More. Go check out this website for incredible, mouth-watering, make you hungry recipes. It’s incredible.

This is by far one of the most decadent, delicious breakfasts you’ll ever have, or as I like to call it, padding for your ass. Not even going to try and fudge this.  If you want healthy, mosey along, it’s not in this post. This is a sugary carb overload of crazy goodness. I feel I must add this warning: PLEASE DO NOT MAKE MORE THAN THREE TIMES A YEAR. I will not be held liable for your weight gain if you do. It’s nice to space it out for Christmas, Easter and Thanksgiving because you’re overdoing it anyway. Who are you kidding?

Rice Krispie French Toast

 

Rice Krispie French Toast

Candied Rice Krispies

1/2       cup sugar

2           tbsp water

4           cups Rice Krispies ( I use the Holiday Rice Krispies in the winter)

 

French Toast

2           egg breads (challah), crust left on and cubed (approx. 14 cups)

1           250g package of cream cheese, softened (THIS IS IMPORTANT, MAKE SURE YOU LET COME TO ROOM TEMPERATURE)

6           large eggs

1 1/2    cups milk

1/2       cup half and half

1/2       cup maple syrup

1            tsp vanilla extract

 

Caramel Topping

1 1/2     cups packed brown sugar

1/2        cup butter

3           tbsp corn syrup

Rice Krispie French Toast

 

For the candied Rice Krispies, in a large pot (deep with a wide bottom), bring the sugar and water to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 1 minute without stirring. Gently stir in Rice Krispies and continue to cook over medium heat, just until they are golden, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and immediately pour Rice Krispies onto a baking sheet to cool. Once cooled they can be stored in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

For the French toast, coat a 13×9 baking dish with non-cook cooking spray. Place cubed bread evenly throughout the dish.

Place the cream cheese in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese at medium speed until smooth. Add one egg at a time, mixing well after each addition and making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Whisk in milk, half-and-half, maple syrup, and vanilla until incorporated and smooth. Pour over bread cubes to moisten evenly, pressing lightly to submerge the bread. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours.

Once ready to bake, remove baking dish from refrigerator and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

For the caramel topping, in a small saucepan, combine brown sugar, butter and corn syrup. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until well combined, about 2 minutes. Immediately pour over French toast and cover with candied Rice Krispies. Place baking dish on rimmed baking sheet and bake until puffed and golden, about 40-45 minutes. NOTE: My oven always tends to brown my Rice Krispies fast to the point of burning them if I’m not careful. I gently cover my dish with tin foil to prevent that from happening.

rice krispie french toast

Serve with homemade hot chocolate and top with your own marshmallows.

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Dreamy Creamsicle Smoothie

January 16, 2013 By 1 Comment

By Candace Derickx

Creamsicles are one of my favourite frozen treats. Vanilla ice cream wrapped in an orange popsicle layer. Delicious. And so, so bad for my backend. Because of this unfortunate consequence I gave them up years ago. I have not, however given up on this amazing Creamsicle smoothie. It tastes just like the frozen treat but way better for you.

creamsicle

 

Dreamy Creamsicle Smoothie

2 navel oranges, peeled and separated into quarters

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt

1/4 cup frozen concentrated orange juice

6-8 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy.

 

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Filed Under: Breakfast, Recipes, Slider, Smoothies, Suzy Homemaker, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Skillet French Toast

September 28, 2012 By 2 Comments

I love my cast iron skillet. It is, bar none, my most favourite thing in my kitchen. This French Toast is soaked overnight in the fridge then fried up golden and crisp in the skillet.

Overnight Skillet French Toast

1 french baquette, cut into 1″ thick slices
1 1/2 cups half and half
4 eggs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Pinch of kosher salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 tbsps butter
2 tbsps canola oil

Place bread slice in 9 x 13 inch pan. Whisk next six ingredients together in medium bowl. Pour over the bread, turning to coat well. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator overnight. Preheat oven to 300F. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon of canola oil in skillet until hot and bubbling. Add bread to fill pan and cook for 2 minutes or until golden. Turn and repeat on other side. Transfer finished toast to sheet pan in oven. Repeat process with the rest of bread. Serve with nectar of the gods, aka maple syrup.

Pleasantville Note: If you’re in a rush, you can soak for an hour.

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Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins

September 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I love baking all the treats for my family’s lunches. The best way to ensure that I’m not standing at the oven daily though is to bake in large quantities and freeze in portions for quick lunch-packing in the morning. This recipe makes 24 muffins and one loaf. I love nuts in zucchini bread but most schools have a no nut policy. If you don’t intend to send these to school, cut back on the chocolate chips by half and add in 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts.

Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins

6 eggs
4 cups sugar
2 cups oil
5 cups zucchini, shredded
6 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon vanilla
12 ounces chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat together eggs, sugar and oil. Add zucchini and remaining ingredients, mixing well. Divide amongst two muffin tins and one loaf pan. Cook muffins for 20 to 25 minutes until lightly browned and toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove muffins and let cool. Place loaf pan in oven for 45 to 55 minutes of until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Wrap muffins individually and freeze. Freeze loaf whole for when you have company or slice and wrap individually. Great for school lunches or fast breakfasts served with a smoothie.

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Filed Under: Breads, Breakfast, Freezer Friendly, Recipes, Slider, Snacks, Suzy Homemaker Tagged With: , , , , ,

Breakfast Casserole

September 5, 2012 By 4 Comments

My kids can not escape the house without breakfast. Ever. I don’t even mind making it everyday for my children, but sometimes I like to have things made in advance just to make the mornings a little easier. Like the first day of school for example. The first day is always crazy trying to adjust to the first early morning in two months and make sure everyone has what they need. This year I decided to remove the making of breakfast from the equation for the first day and put a breakfast casserole in the slow cooker.

There are a ton of recipes floating about on the internet for this and you should take the time to play with the recipe to make sure it has what you want in it. Mine is fairly straight forward, but you can add red or green peppers, or Canadian Bacon, or ham. I think Feta cheese would be lovely mixed into the layers as well, or goat cheese! I used sharp cheddar, but try gouda or parmesan if you like. It’s really yours, so make it what you want.

Breakfast Casserole

1 bag of frozen hash brown potatoes
1 lb of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 large onion, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped fine
1 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups shredded Sharp or Extra Old Cheddar
12 eggs
1 cup 2% milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Spray inside of slow cooker with PAM. Cook onion and jalapeno in olive oil until tender and slightly browned. Also cook bacon until crisp, let cool on paper towels to soak up grease and crumble. When onion mixture and bacon have cooled, place one third of frozen hash browns in slow cooker. Add third of bacon, onion, jalapeno and cheese. Repeat layers ending with cheese on top.

Whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper in a large bowl and pour over ingredients in the slow cooker. Cover and turn to low. This should take no longer than six hours. Internal temperature should be 160 to 165F. It will overcook and get dry if left too long, so don’t make this on a day you’re looking to sleep in. This makes excellent leftovers for the next day and can be rolled in a tortilla for breakfast burritos. It’s a fiesta at breakfast! Ole.

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Sour Cream Coffee Cake

July 23, 2012 By 4 Comments

I hate coffee. I love coffee cake. I’m a total conundrum.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
3 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for pan
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream (can use light)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Cinnamon-Walnut Topping

In a small bowl, stir together 3/4 cup chopped walnuts, 3/4 cup sugar, and 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon.

Preheat oven to 350º. Butter and flour a 9-inch nonstick tube pan. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together sour cream and baking soda.

With an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture in three additions alternately with sour-cream mixture in two, beginning and ending with flour. Mix just until moistened.

Spread a third of the batter in pan; sprinkle with a third of topping. Repeat twice, ending with topping. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs, 60 to 70 minutes.

Cool in pan 30 minutes. Turn out of pan; cool, top side up, on a rack.

Pleasantville Note: This coffee cake freezes beautifully. Freeze in portions that work for you; half, quarters or slices.

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Skillet Bacon and Cheese Strata

July 22, 2012 By 4 Comments

My good friend Heather, from Globetrotting Mama, was in town for the Social Capital Conference this weekend. I asked her to join us for breakfast today before she went home. She said she would, but only under one condition. That I go to absolutely no trouble at all for her. Fine. I told her she could pour her own cereal. She said that I was now taking it to extremes.

Funny girl, that Heather.

I remembered seeing this strata recipe in my special recipe edition of Canadian Living magazine. Since I’d already had great success with another recipe from it, I decided to give it a go, while keeping my promise to not go to any trouble.

The result was a delicious strata that was ridiculously easy to make and a promise kept. I served Pineapple Spinach Smoothies and fresh fruit. Okay, okay, I didn’t serve the fresh fruit. I forgot that in the house, so we ate it after Heather left. See. No trouble at all.

Skillet Bacon and Cheese Strata

6 eggs
1-1/2 cups (375 mL) milk
1-1/2 cups (375 mL) shredded Gruyère cheese, (about 4 oz/115 g)
1/4 cup (60 mL) chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp (1 mL) pepper
7 slices sodium-reduced bacon, (210 g), chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
5 slices whole wheat sandwich bread, cut in 1-inch cubes (5 cups)

In large bowl, beat together eggs, milk, 1 cup of the cheese, parsley and pepper; set aside.

In 10-inch (25 cm) nonstick ovenproof skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat until slightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add onion; cook, stirring, until softened and golden, 2 to 3 minutes.

Using rubber spatula, gently fold in bread to coat with bacon mixture. Cook over medium heat, turning often, until lightly toasted, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove from heat.

Stir egg mixture and pour over bread, folding to coat evenly. Bake in 425°F (220°C) oven until puffed and edge is released from pan, 12 to 15 minutes.Sprinkle with remaining cheese; bake until melted, 1 to 2 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Pleasantville Note:I’m a big fan of cheese. It should be its own special food group. I may have added way more Gruyere than was called for. It was delicious. :)

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