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The best part of waking up is……….breakfast!

This month I am posting some of my favorite breakfast recipes. My husband, like many others, thinks breakfast should only be eaten in the morning, when he wakes up, but I believe in all-day breakfast. Any of the recipes I’ve shared this month can be prepared for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I normally don’t eat breakfast, starting my day with a cup of coffee, but on a Sunday when I have a little extra time to spoil my family, these are my go-to dishes.

We recently had some out-of-town friends stay with us, and the next morning I made both the Hash Brown Quiche and the Strawberry & Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast. They raved about both of them! My husband and I have taken the Lemon Blueberry Loaf to our places of work during the week, and it has proven to be both fast and delicious. The loaf has a sweet and tangy glaze that really takes it to the next level.

I hope you get a chance to try out these recipes for yourself!

-Terri Ommen

Hash Brown Quiche

• 3 cups, shredded frozen hash browns, thawed and drained
• 4 Tbsp. (1/2 stick) butter, melted
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 1 cup half/half
• 3/4 cup diced cooked ham
• 1/3-1/2  cup chopped green onions
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• Salt and pepper

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
2. Gently press the drained hash browns between two paper towels to dry them as much as possible.
3. In a 9-inch pie plate, toss the hash browns with the melted butter. Press them into the bottom and up the sides to form a crust.
4. Bake 20-25 minutes until golden brown and starting to crisp up.
5. Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, combine the remaining ingredients.
6. When the hash brown crust in ready, pour the egg mixture over it and return it to the oven.
7. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake for about 30 minutes until quiche is light golden brown and eggs are set.

Terri's Tips: If you don’t like ham use bacon or sausage, and if you'd like to mix it up, try something besides cheddar, like Monterrey Jack or Gruyere Cheese.

Strawberry & Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast

• 1 loaf French bread, cut into 1 inch slices
• 3 large eggs
• 1 & 1/2 cups milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• Two 8-oz strawberries & cream flavored cream cheese packages
• Blueberry syrup or maple syrup
• Butter or Butter Spray for cooking

Steps:

1. In a medium mixing bowl, mix together eggs, milk, vanilla and cinnamon. Make sure cinnamon is fully mixed in and not clumpy.
2. Cut a slit in the middle of a slice of French bread (horizontally), but do not go all the way through. Stuff 1-2 tablespoons of strawberry cream cheese into the slice.
3. Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat.
4. Dip French toast in egg and milk mixture, coating both the top and bottom.
5. Drop French toast in skillet and cook until each side is golden brown, about 2-4 minutes per side.
6. Serve immediately with powdered sugar and syrup.

Terri's Tips: To add an easy strawberry topping, slice strawberries and mix in some sugar to macerate them.

Lemon Blueberry Loaf

• 5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• 1 1/2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced (about 3 Tbsp. of each)
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• Kosher salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup sour cream

Glaze:

• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1/4 confectioner's sugar

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 4 x 8 x 2-inch loaf pan.
2. Toss the blueberries in 2 Tbsp. of the flour in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Beat together the butter, granulated sugar, eggs, lemon zest and lemon juice in the bowl of an electric mixer.
4. Sift together the baking powder, 1 tsp. salt and remaining 1 1/2 cups flour in a medium bowl.
5. Add the flour mixture and milk to the butter mixture in alternating batches, beginning and ending with the flour.
6. Fold in the pecans and blueberries.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes.
8. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack.
9. For the glaze: Stir together 2 Tbsp. lemon juice with the confectioner's sugar in a small bowl until completely smooth. Drizzle the glaze over the top of the loaf while it is still warm, allowing it to drip down the sides. Serve the loaf warm or at room temperature.

Like always, feedback on how yours turned out is appreciated!