Cheese Grits

Adapted from Today Show recipe

Ingredients
4 cups boiling water
1 cup quick-cooking grits
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons butter or margarine
1.5 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce
1.25 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon vegetarian broth
1 egg, beaten



Preparation

Combine the boiling water, grits and salt in a saucepan; mix well.

Cook, covered, over low heat for 5 minutes or until most of the water is absorbed. Stir in the butter, worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, 1 cup of the cheese and broth. Fold in the egg until mixed.

Spoon into a greased 2 1/2 - quart baking dish; sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour or until bubbly.

Note: This may be prepared 1 day in advance and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature and bake just before serving.

Breakfast Egg Veggie Casserole

Ingredients:

1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, all excess liquid squeezed out
3/4 cup chopped artichokes (from canned), drained and patted dry
1 diced red or green pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
8 large eggs
4 large egg whites
1/4 cup fat free milk
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 diced yellow onion
2/3 cup diced button mushrooms


Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with oil.

Spray a casserole dish with nonstick pray. In a small bowl combine spinach, onion, artichoke, mushrooms, peppers, and garlic. Pour into the casserole dish spreading evenly.

In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg whites, milk, parmesan, salt and pepper. Mix in feta cheese and pour over vegetables.

Bake until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean, 32 to 35 minutes. Let stand 8 to 10 minutes before cutting into 8 pieces.

Breakfast Protein Pot Pie

Breakfast Pot Pie

Need:
Butter
1 c. onion
1 c. green pepper
10 slices cooked veggie bacon
Salt and pepper
6 eggs, or 6 egg beaters equivalent
Milk (Skim or 1%)
1 potato, shredded or hash browns
low fat Cheddar cheese, shredded
Biscuit dough, you can do whole wheat biscuit dough, frozen food section or from scratch
Maple syrup, sugar free

DIRECTIONS:

1 TBSP butter melted in pan
Add:
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup diced green pepper
Salt on top in pan & sauté
Add:
6 eggs to a bowl and a splash of milk & mix
Add:
onion & pepper mixture and salt and pepper
Coat baking dish with butter and layer bottom with 1 shredded potato, add salt & pepper on top. Place egg/onion/pepper mixture on top of layer of potatoes. Place 10 strips of COOKED bacon in a row across the casserole dish. Cover bacon with 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Cover top of cheese with spoonful/dollops of biscuit dough using spoon across entire top.
Bake 425 for 25 mins
Drizzle with maple syrup (sugar free)

Pineapple Upside Down Granola Bars

Upside-Down Pineapple Granola Bars
Upside-Down Pineapple Granola Bars Recipe from the Tasting Table Test Kitchen
Yield: 12 granola bars
Prep Time: 10 minutes, plus cooling time
Cook Time: 1 hour and 10 minutes Total Time: 1 hour and 20 minutes, plus cooling time
Ingredients
2¼ cups old-fashioned oats 1 cup chopped mixed raw nuts and seeds (such as almonds and sunflower seeds)
½ cup palm sugar 2 egg whites (¼ cup egg whites)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1¼ teaspoons kosher salt
¾ cup dried raisins, cranberries or cherries (I prefer cranberries)
⅓ cup cacao nibs
7 to 9 dried pineapple rings (it's OK if they aren't whole)
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 325°.
Line an 8-by-8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, letting the paper slightly hang over opposite edges, and spray with cooking oil.
2. In a large bowl, combine the oats and nut mixture. Pour onto an unlined baking sheet tray and roast until lightly toasted, 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes.
3. While the oat mixture is cooling, in a large bowl, whisk together the palm sugar, egg whites, vanilla and salt. Add the cooled oat mixture to the sugar mixture, along with the dried cherries and cacao nibs, and stir well to combine. Line the prepared baking pan with the pineapple rings and pack the oat-cherry mixture on top.
4. Bake the granola mixture in the preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, then lower the oven temperature to 275° and bake until the edges are golden, another 30 to 40 minutes. Cool the bars completely and invert onto a cutting board. For best results, let the baked granola rest for a few hours or overnight, uncovered. Cut into bars or break apart into chunks, and individually wrap in plastic or store in a Ziploc bag for up to 2 weeks.

*****The beauty of this recipe is that you can swap out the fruit-and-nut combination as you like, using dried cranberries or raisins for cherries, cashews for almonds and flax seeds or buckwheat groats for sunflower seeds. Get creative, but don't, however, skip the pineapple rings: Their tropical flavor and stunning look set these bars apart from the rest. Palm sugar, a natural and unrefined sweetener, is perfect for its subtle flavor, as well as its honey-meets-sugar texture to help bind the ingredients together.
But if you can't get your hands on it, you can substitute it with a quarter cup of honey and a quarter cup of granulated sugar. No cacao nibs? Use chopped dark chocolate instead. For the pineapple rings, look for the thin, unsweetened kind sold in bulk at health food stores and Trader Joe's; stay away from the syrup-soaked and candied ones.
Right before baking, pack your oatmeal mixture well so the bars hold together. For prime packing, lay a sheet of parchment paper over the top and press down hard with flattened hands. (Don't forget to remove the sheet before the tray hits the oven.)

Eggs and Vegetarian Bacon

I saw this recipe and tried it with morning star farms bacon. I cut the bacon pieces in half, layered the bottom and sides of a sprayed muffin tin and broke an egg in the middle of each one. Bake on 350 degrees for 6-10 mins. Watch, depends on the oven. The kids loved them and they were easy to take in the car on a papertowel on the way out the door!

Breakfast Burritos!

Flour tortillas
Egg beaters
salsa
lettuce
reduced fat cheese (Monterrey or cheddar)
grilled onions and green peppers
Morning Star Farms Crumblers


Cook the egg beaters on the stove, melt cheese on tortillas in microwave, heat up crumblers in microwave, throw on grilled onions and peppers, mushrooms add lettuce salsa and wrap it up for a delicious breakfast!

Sweet Potato Hash

1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 red onion, sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced

1/2 green pepper, diced
1 (12-ounce) can black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 small clove garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons diced jalapeno pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 eggs

Directions
In a large pot, place peeled and diced sweet potatoes and fill with enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook the potatoes until soft, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain and cool potatoes. In a large bowl, combine the cooled potatoes, onion, red pepper, peas, garlic, jalapeno, cilantro, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and serve with an egg over easy placed in the middle of the pile.

Serves 3