breakfast obsessions

while i love breakfast foods, i'm not much of a sit-down-for-a-full-breakfast everyday type of person - mainly, because i work. =p

anyway, i love making sunday morning breakfast for e and i and recently have been stuck on 2 things - an oldish and a brand new.

the oldish is a salmon & cream cheese omelette that one of my mom's old coworkers suggested to her. it's a regular omelette, with chopped-up smoked salmon and cream cheese. instead of using cream cheese, lately i've been using a swiss cheese triangle from the laughing cow. it's so good!

anyway, the other breakfast food i am in love with is french toast... but not regular french toast... brazilian french toast! or as it's better known, "rabanada". it's whatever bread of your choice (i use italian bread), soaked in a custard overnight in the fridge, then fried the next morning, and topped with either a cinnamon-sugar mix or plain powdered sugar. yum! here's the recipe i use:

rabanada (brazilian french toast)

ingredients:
1 medium baguette or half a loaf of italian bread

3 large eggs
3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
6 tablespoons whole milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil (for frying, estimated)

directions:

1. slice bread (baguette should make about 16 slices; italian cut about 6 slices)

2. whisk together the eggs, condensed milk, whole milk, vanilla extract, and salt until well mixed.

3. Coat bread slices on both sides in the egg mixture, and place coated bread in a shallow pan or pie plate, add any remaining egg mixture to it. Cover with press and seal wrap or foil and place in the refrigerator to soften overnight.

4. Heat oil in a skillet to about 1-inch

5. Lift the bread from the egg mixture until it stops dripping, and pan fry the pieces in the skillet on both sides until golden and crispy. Keep the oil hot while frying (check temp), raising the heat if needed.

6. As the pieces are removed from the skillet, drain on paper towels then dredge in cinnamon/sugar mixture or dust with powdered sugar.

and that's it! super easy! it tastes almost like bread pudding on the inside, but sweet and crunchy on the outside!

have a good (strong) cup of coffee nearby, because this is definitely a sweet breakfast treat!

sweet things

Sweet Things - Cupcakes & Cookies is a bakery business run by my aunty h in cape town, south africa. take a look at her website: http://www.sweetthings.co.za/index.php
all i have to say is that her baked goods (and food too!) are to die for. my family's favourite are the millionaire shortbreads, but i'll eat everything else she offers too.
she made my wedding favours for me also - they were butter biscuits ("cookies") of 3 different sizes, arranged to look like a tiered wedding cake. the biscuit tops were iced with royal icing and we added a hershey hug as the "cake topper". they were a hit! the little ones couldn't wait to get their little "cake".
once I get my professional wedding photo negatives, i'll add the photo we have of our sweetheart table that includes this cookie favour as well as the CD favours we handed out.
but back to the sweet things website... aunty H has also included a few select recipes on the left hand side margin. take a look and try them out!

>> South African family recipes to come!

just a start

ok, since i read others' blogs almost daily - and now even have a "favorite blog" folder on my computer - mind you, my work computer - i thought i'd join the crowd and start my own. since i am a newlywed, with a family full of great cooks, i think i'll focus mainly on my new adventures in the kitchen...and who knows what other random thoughts will end up being spilled out into cyberspace.

For now, all you need to know is that I love food and I love having a good time - whether that's in my new house, or out and about.