Castle Hill Brunch

A beautiful brunch was what I enjoyed last Sunday morning at Castle Hill Inn in Newport, Rhode Island.  I wish I had some beautiful pictures to show you of the cliffs this Inn is on and the views of the ocean, but the fog took over and interrupted my plan. :(

The amazing food we had though, made up for the lack of view.

Here's the Inn.

A brunch cocktail. Perfectly spicy and sweet.

A brown sugar mini-muffin. Ryan's cutting his in the background, psh.

We ordered the "artisan cheese plate" to begin with. "Here are descriptions of the cheese you are about to enjoy," said the waiter as he gave us a folded paper. Thank you sir

My favorite was the Weybridge (a bleu cheese) spread on toast with a bit of the honey. Yum

Chowder.

 

 

Ryan's lobster hash with poached eggs and creme fraiche.

 

My omelet that had tons of fancy mushrooms, leeks, and local cheeses.

 

The home fries were perfect.

And so was this personal size ketchup bottle. Best part of the meal!

Everyday Breakfast

My Breakfast. For the past 4 years.

I know, I know... eating the same thing for the past 4 years? Sounds crazy, BUT somehow I have yet to become bored of it. I think because the main ingredients are so versatile, they allow me to throw in whatever I feel at the time to spice it up a bit. 

Here are the basics. I do sometimes just stick to the basics too... those satisfy me just as much.

Every morning always includes:

A BOLD Keurig coffee pod.  I found this organic bold coffee on Amazon for a great deal. Tastes just like a Starbucks bold.

I like the froth on the top.

Next, is of course, an apple.

My favorite apples include: Braeburn, Pink Lady, and Fuji.

This one's a Cortland.

Usually when I'm at school I eat it whole. The seeds and all! The kids always intensely watch me eat an apple.  They love knowing their teacher eats like them too. Such curious little monsters.

When I have time, I slice it up with some cinnamon.

Or at night for dessert... I like taking a small apple cut up into bites, popped in the microwave with cinnamon and a drizzle of honey.

Next on my everyday breakfast list is my protein.

Eggs!

I like the scrambled whites. I skip the yolks because of the cholesterol content.  They taste the same to me whether they're white or yellow... so why not just skip it.

Don't forget to add the Ketchup!!

Last on my breakfast list, my favorite. OATMEAL!
I've been really into the Country Choice Organic Multigrain.  It cooks up SO fluffy with many different textures!  With that, I also add some oat bran.  This thickens the oats quite a bit and creates a creamy texture without adding any dairy.

And all together!
My breakfast that keeps me going until lunchtime!

Sorry for the lack of beautiful picture...my camera was running low on battery- had to snap it quickly!

Someday I would love to make a "tribute page" to oatmeal just like this blog does. She has over 100 creative ideas to make her oatmeal interesting. This is by far my favorite food blog. She cooks and eats the way I do. :)

Happy breakfast!!!!

Green Morning

"Ooo BABY," was my reaction to trying this Green Smoothie for the first time.  It's a breakfast (or in my case, my lunch) that will surprise you! I've been seeing a lot of these in the "Blog World" and wondered if I'd like them. I obviously did.

What is so wonderful about these is that you can use that imagination of yours and throw whatever comes to mind in your blender and wizz away. 

Always start with a green. Spinach, kale, mustard greens, etc.

Wash your greens well.

Today's ingredients included:
-LARGE handful of washed spinach
-1 container of Oikos plain 0% fat yogurt
-1/2 cup red grapes
-1/2 ripe banana
-1/3 cucumber
-water for thinning

Oh, and it was sweetened with about a tablespoon of this guy:

Pack it all into the blender, add your water, and blend. Start with a small amount of water and increase as you go.

Take a look inside.

Blend it well. Pour it.

I had my roommate Jesse and his girlfriend Alex try some. Only a little.

They liked it!

Cheers!

It was thick, sweet, and a pretty color green. The honey I used was a bit older, so I heated in the microwave to loosen it. We all agreed we could taste little crystallized chunks of honey. Not a bad thing though.  Newer honey or even agave syrup would work better i think.

Here's a list of other things to incorporate to make an amazing Green Smoothie:

Fruit
Apple
Pear
Kiwi
Mango
Plums
Pineapple
Any kind of berry (blue, black, straw, etc.)

Dairy
Milk (Cow's, soy, almond, hemp, etc.)
Yogurt

Greens
Spinach
Kale
Mustard greens
Collard greens
Cabbage
Swiss chard

Nuts/Nut butters
Peanut butter
Almond butter
Cashew butter
Chai seeds

Sweetener (optional)
Honey
Agave syrup

Random
Avocado (VERY CREAMY!)
Protein powder
Vanilla/Almond extract

Don't be nervous. Just try it.

Banana Bread

Banana Bread- staple or pleasure?

Quick breads have always been a staple in my family's household. The two most popular being the pumpkin bread and the banana bread.  The final product of this simple recipe...something warm, moist, aromatic, and delicious.
Home-made banana bread.

Banana Bread

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup butter, melted then cooled
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (about 3 small bananas)
• 1/3 cup plain fat-free yogurt (use European style, it's creamier)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Spray an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Pour batter into pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 60-70 minutes or until checked with a toothpick and done. Cool for 10 minutes, remove from pan, and enjoy.

I usually freeze the really dark brown bananas, but tonight I only had the spotted ones. I would definitely still eat these. The sweeter the better.  I still knew they'd make a great bread though.

Here's the star of the bread and its pals in the background.

Add all the dry ingredients together. Flour, soda, salt, and sugar.

Stirring with a whisk is easier than using one of those unnecessary sifters. Stir up the lumps!

Mix the wet in a separate bowl.
This includes the mashed bananas, cooled melted butter, yogurt, vanilla, and beaten eggs.
Mix this really well because when you add the wet to the dry you want to only mix it until it's incorporated.
Otherwise, you will have yourself a very dense bread with very little rise.

See! Do not overdo the mixing! You can still see flour in here and that is FINE. 
I'd say a good estimate to knowing you're done mixing is when you've done 20 stirs around the bowl.

Pour into greased loaf pan. I added some fancy banana slices on top just because I like the way they sort of part the bread when it's baked. You'll see.

Golden and crispy edges with a warm and moist middle.

Adding chopped walnuts, chocolate chips, a dash of cinnamon, or even peanut butter can spruce up a banana bread. I like the traditional slice of banana bread because then I can change up each piece when I eat it with a variety of toppings.

My favorite slice of banana bread includes:
Warmed up in the microwave
drizzle of honey on top
sprinkled with peanuts