Hello Frittata!

It is no huge secret that I am a big fan of brinner, you know breakfast for dinner. And I usually make waffles, pancakes and omelettes when we brinner it up at casa de Penny. However I recently discovered the Frittata and baby I am sold. I love the egg and being the health nut that I am have done some research into it. It's gotten a bad rap for high cholesterol and while it does contain a heft amount of the evil c word, it's the good kind. So if you keep your cholesterol under control normally, eggs are a great way to get ya some. And the other great thing? The recipe is cheap, easy, and healthy! A fantastical trifecta.

So, now onto the frittata. In case you aren't already curious, it's a one pan recipe. So the dishes load? Lovely and light. A frittata is an egg based skillet dish which hails from Italy, the origin of great wine, pasta, pizza, olives and all things truly delicious. I have cooked it two different ways and both turned out great. The first way is to start everything on the stove and then move into the oven. The second is to start on the stove top, crank down your burner heat and let it finish on there. Either way you go you can't go wrong... you know as long as you don't burn it.

I will post on here a recipe for cooking it all on the stove top, and you can google the other method if you really need to turn your oven on. But with the thermostat rising, who wants to?

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 small red potatoes, diced
• 1 cup torn fresh spinach, or 1/2 cup frozen and cooked
• 1 diced bell pepper, any color will do
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• Some onion, 1/4 to a 1/2 or more, whatever you like.
• salt and pepper to taste
• 6 eggs
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese

How you make it

1. Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add some onions and potatoes and peppers in the skillet, cover, and cook about 10 minutes, until tender but firm. Mix in spinach and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Continue cooking 1 to 2 minutes, until everything looks done.
2. Meanwhile on your counter In a medium bowl, beat together eggs and milk. Pour into the skillet over the vegetables. Sprinkle with Cheddar cheese. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook 5 to 7 minutes, or until eggs are firm.
3. You will get a nice eggy crust on it.
4. While it's cooking may I suggest slicing up some fresh fruit to accompany your frittata.

So there you have it, Fritatta! Fun to eat, funner to say, and the best part of all? No cereal for you the next morning, no sir! Pour a mug of coffee, Nuke yourself some leftovers and start your day off right! And hey, if your kids are skeptical, do what I do. Call it egg pizza and they're sold.

Go, crack you an egg, make a frittata. Change up the ingredients to suit you, add sausage or diced ham, tomatoes, fresh rosemary, green onions, any cheese... the sky is the limit!

Healthier Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie Rescued!

Ever since I was little I have been a huge fan of chicken pot pie, it doesn't end with chicken pot pie soup. My mom used to serve up the frozen banquet kind to us often and then later in high school my Dad figured started making one from scratch that became an instant family favorite. But one sad day I realized that chicken pot pie, both the home made ones and the banquet ones with the fake cubes of chicken "meat" fall into the naughtier side of the comfort food genre. Thus began my search for the healthier chicken pot pie. I feel like that search ended last week with the discovery and birth of this recipe. This recipe has me completely fooled that it is any healthier at all and the only thing clearly missing here is the bottom crust, and I can do without for the calories it saves. So many calories are to be found in the crust. Random Tip: Not eating your pie crust (which is usually pretty dry anyway) can save you around 100 calories because it's the same crust as on the rest of the pie, just folded and crimped over several times.

I followed this recipe pretty true to form and actually made two of them the night I made it so I could take one uncooked to a family who just had a new baby. My big secret is that I cooked the chicken throughout the day in an herb seasoning blend with chicken broth in the crockpot. So when I was ready to assemble it I had delicious seasoned shredded chicken all ready to go. I was even able to cut back on the chicken and did 16 oz of veggies and only about 3 cups of chicken with no complaints from Kel.

So if you love a chicken pot pie but also love the jeans you are currently wearing or don't and are trying to get into an old pair here is the recipe for you.

As for eating just one cup of it? I probably ate a serving and a half each time with a nice spinach salad to round it out.

Ready? Go!

prep time:15 min

start to finish:1 hr 5 min

makes:8 servings (about 1 cup each)

1	bag (12 oz) Green Giant® Valley Fresh Steamers™ frozen mixed vegetables
3	tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2	teaspoon salt
1/4	teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/4	teaspoon pepper
1 1/4	cups fat-free (skim) milk
1/2	cup finely chopped onion
1	can (10 3/4 oz) condensed 98% fat-free cream of chicken soup
1/4	cup fat-free sour cream
4	boneless skinless chicken breasts (1 1/4 lb), cooked, cut into bite-size pieces (about 4 cups)
1	box Pillsbury® refrigerated pie crusts, softened as directed on box

1.	Cook and drain vegetables as directed on bag.
2.	Heat oven to 375°F. In 2-quart saucepan, mix flour, salt, poultry seasoning, pepper and milk with wire whisk until blended. Stir in onion. Cook over medium heat 4 to 6 minutes, stirring constantly, until thickened.
3.	Stir in soup and sour cream. Add chicken and cooked vegetables; mix well. Cook, stirring frequently, until thoroughly heated. Pour into ungreased 2-quart round casserole. Unroll pie crust; place over hot filling. Seal edge and flute as desired. Cut slits in several places in crust.
4.	Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown and mixture is bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Nutritional Information

1 Serving: Calories 260 (Calories from Fat 80); Total Fat 9g (Saturated Fat 3 1/2g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol40mg; Sodium 500mg; Total Carbohydrate 27g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 4g); Protein 18g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 40%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 8%; Iron 6%

Scones brought me back to baking.

So I opened a coffee shop. By which I mean I bought an espresso maker and I borrowed some frappe blenders. So to honor the new cafe I learned to make scones. Scone-ing isn't terribly difficult and it's the most easily versatile baked good I have ever had the pleasure of crafting.

I still don't consider myself a baker and I dare not venture into cookie land or cake ville. But, I am comfortable in muffin and scone town for the time being. That being said here is the recipe that I have been using as well as the accompanying "devonshire cream" recipe that lends itself so yummily as a spread for these tasty triangles.

Both can be played with to suit the flavor combination that you are craving. So far I have made blueberry lemon, strawberry, and cherry chocolate chip.

Happy Sconery

Simple Starter Scone Recipe

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, frozen (YES FROZEN REALLY MATTERS)
• 1/2 cup raisins (or dried currants)
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 large egg

Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, mix flour, 1/3 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Grate butter into flour mixture on the large holes of a box grater; use your fingers to work in butter (mixture should resemble coarse meal), then stir in raisins. (I use a food processor for this part, using the grating attachment to grate the butter into the dry flour mix)
3. In a small bowl, whisk sour cream and egg until smooth.
4. Using a fork, stir sour cream mixture into flour mixture until large dough clumps form. Use your hands to press the dough against the bowl into a ball. (The dough will be sticky in places, and there may not seem to be enough liquid at first, but as you press, the dough will come together.)
5. Place on a lightly floured surface and pat into a 7- to 8-inch circle about 3/4-inch thick. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tsp. of sugar. Use a sharp knife to cut into 8 triangles; place on a cookie sheet (preferably lined with parchment paper), about 1 inch apart. Bake until golden, about 15 to 17 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and serve warm or at room temperature.

Devonshire or Faux clotted cream recipe

I use a food processor to make this but I don't have a mixmaster. Yet. Santa still has yet to come this year and I think he wants to buy me one ;-)

• 1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 cup heavy cream

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, cream together cream cheese, sugar and salt. Beat in cream until stiff peaks form. Chill until serving.

Last night I made this and added a bit of cocoa powder and stirred in some mini choc chips to accompany the cherry chocolate chip scones I made. Good call if I do say so myself.