Take That Dunkin'

Everyone is vulnerable to something. Achilles had his heel and I have my sweet tooth. To be honest, I have thirty-two of them. My love for all things sweet is not a secret as I am the first one to order dessert, but it is detrimental in my quest to drop a few pounds. Adding insult to this injury, a Dunkin’ Donuts is housed in the lobby of the building that I work in. I have to walk by this den of temptation each time I walk in and out of the lobby. The expertly baked and perfectly crusted muffins that lay on the top shelf taunt me, daring me to purchase them. They remind me of the Sirens in Homer’s Odyssey. Rather than luring me to rocks in the ocean, they lure me to weight gain. Upon occasion, I have been weak and walked out of Dunkin’ with a waxy paper bag filled with either a blueberry muffin (not the fat-free kind, who is kidding who, those things are not any better for you than the full fat version) or a coffee cake muffin. It’s been a little easier to avoid the pastries Dunkin’ Donuts as I have been brining my own coffee with me each morning, but every now and then temptation strikes.

Because I am weak against pastries, I have been looking for a lower fat and lower calories blueberry muffin. I found it in the Eating Well cookbook that I borrowed for far too long from Wixon. These tasty and slightly messy blueberry muffins are topped with a bit of coconut and macadamia nuts. The macadamia nuts and coconuts whisk me back to the beaches of Hawaii where I spent my honeymoon six years ago. This memory and the song “Toes” by Zac Brown Band is making me thirst for another beach vacation. Oh, poor husband will be hearing how I want to go on vacation again.

Coconut and Macadamia Nut Muffins (a.k.a. Pretend You Are in Hawaii Muffins)
(adapted from Eating Well)
Printable Recipe

¼ cup unsweetened coconut
2 tablespoons plus ¾ cup all-purpose flour, divided
2 tablespoons plus ½ cup brown sugar, divided
5 tablespoons chopped macadamia nuts, divided
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 large egg
1 large egg white
3/4 cup nonfat buttermilk
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups frozen (not thawed) blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray.
2. Combine coconut, 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 2 tablespoons brown sugar and 2 tablespoons macadamia nuts in a small bowl. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil; stir to combine. Set aside.
3. Whisk the remaining 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Whisk the remaining 1/2 cup brown sugar, the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, egg, egg white, buttermilk, butter and coconut (or vanilla) extract in a medium bowl until well combined. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients; stir until just combined. Add blueberries and the remaining 3 tablespoons nuts; stir just to combine. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle with the reserved coconut topping and gently press into the batter.
4. Bake the muffins until golden brown and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and let cool on a wire rack at least 5 minutes more before serving.

I will be following up on the blueberry muffins with a lemon raspberry muffin in a few weeks. Stay tuned….

On a side note, I have friend who also has a huge sweet tooth who is giving up sugar for a year. Bless her heart, I could never and would never do that. Follow her adventures in healthy eating at http://52weekssinsucre.onsugar.com/.

It's About Time

Money Magazine ranks Milton, Massachusetts as the fifth best town in the USA to live in. The town is located just outside of Boston, has good schools, ample parks, hiking trails, and is the hometown of the husband. The prices of homes and real estate listings tout this statistic from Money Magazine. However, until recently, Milton was missing something. That something was a good restaurant. Milton has been known as a “dry town”, not allowing restaurateurs a liquor license. However, this changed with the recent addition of Abby Park in East Milton Square.

Abbey Park represents something that the citizens of Milton and nearby communities have desired for quite some time. It is a restaurant with a Boston caliber menu without the hassles of driving into Boston and finding parking. Its location in East Milton Square allows some diners to walk to this establishment from home without having to worry about parking at all.

The husband and I were spontaneous last Saturday night and opted to try the eatery. We were not sure what the situation would be, as we did not have reservations, lucky for us, we were going on the early side of a Saturday night dinner. Despite the fact that Abby Park was packed, we managed to get a table by the front window where the husband could look out on to the streets that he once “ruled” (his words not mine) as a youth.

Immediately, we were impressed with the menu selections. This was not going to be any other dining experience in the suburbs. We started the meal off with the “Park Board”. It was a nice assortment of small flatbreads, olives, blue cheese with fig jam, a white bean rosemary dip, proscuitto, and almonds. The board was good to split between two and could be split with a party of up to four. The husband chose to go with the panko-crusted halibut special. I opted to go with the Kobe Flank Steak with truffle macaroni and cheese and parmesan herb frites. The steak did not disappoint, it was tender and had just the right flavors. The mac’n cheese was ok. It did not pack the flavor punch I was hoping for. The herb frites were delicious with the right amount of salt. I could not stop picking at them.

Of course, we went for dessert. Abby Park has a fantastic dessert menu and offers “small bites” in addition to the full size dessert. The small bites are great, as they do not make you feel guilty for getting something sweet after dinner. The small bites can also be shared with your dinner date. We chose the chocolate pecan pie, chocolate truffles, and banana cream pie. The pairing of chocolate and banana worked nicely together. The chocolate was so rich, that a full size portion would have been far too much.

I highly recommend that diners try Abby Park. The service was great, the menu had a nice variety and they are changing it this week, and you cannot beat the small bites for dessert. If you go, I would absolutely make a reservation. As word of mouth spreads about this jewel in Milton, it will be more difficult to just walk in and get a table.

Christmas in September

The waiter asked me, “Would you like red, green, or Christmas?”  My answer was a definitive “Christmas please.”  You may be reading this and wondering what in the world am I writing about.   What is the deal with red, green or Christmas?  The answer is red or green chili (salsa) or both, a.k.a. Christmas, on my plate.  This is how it is ordered in the “Land of Enchantment

I recently was brought to New Mexico to celebrate my aunt’s marriage in Albuquerque, or as extremely well respected (and very strong) family members nicknamed it, Cousin Fest, Cousinpolooza, or Cousin Stock. 

There are a few rules that one should follow when traveling:

1. Always eat the local cuisine.  Don’t go to your favorite national chain while away on vacation, if you like chain restaurants, you can get the same thing at home.  Also, if a destination is known for producing a great dish (i.e. fish at the beach, or seviche in a Latin American Caribbean location) go for it.  That is where you are going to get the most authentic variation of that particular dish.
2. Try the local beers.  If there is something on the menu that you can’t get at home, go for it.  You can always get Stella at home. 
3. There is no diet on vacation.  What fun is counting calories at home?  It is even worse while away.  Just don’t do it.  Enjoy your vacation.

Fortunately, or unfortunately for my diet, I followed all of these rules while in New Mexico.  However, while on vacation…

The husband and I built a few extra days into our trip to see the sights of Santa Fe.  We consulted the guidebook and recommendation of the hotel concierge and sampled the food at The Shed.  We were quite hungry and exhausted and wanted to eat right away.  We thought that we could walk right into the restaurant and get seated right away.  Much to our disappointment, The Shed takes a break in between the lunch and dinner courses.  We had to walk around the chilly and damp city until dinner.  Finally, 5:30 rolled around and we were greeted to a nice fire in the corner fireplace while we waited for our table. 

Upon sitting at our table we ordered the chips, salsa, guacamole and a pitcher of the Santa Fe Brewing Company’s Pale Ale.  The guac was smooth and creamy and we ate up every morsel.  The beer was great as well.  For dinner, we both ordered the Enchilada and Taco Plate, as per our server’s recommendation.  It did not disappoint, and I ordered mine Christmas style.  I ordered the plate with beef.  One thing that we thought was weird was that the dishes are served with garlic French bread.  I thought was weird for the dishes, but it really worked.  The bread was very soft and the garlic was not overpowering.  While we were waiting for our table, we were chatting with another patron who mentioned that The Shed is known for its Mocha dessert.  This frozen chocolate mousse was excellent.  If you are in Santa Fe, check out The Shed for the recommended dinner and dessert options. 

The following evening, we decided to try some BBQ, as we were likely to have a lot more New Mexican style cuisine in the following days.  We wanted to stay within walking distance (to walk off some of dinner) to our hotel and still get something good.  We opted to try the Cowgirl Café.  The inside was kind of cheesy, all the servers wore cowboy boots and hats and the walls were covered with pictures of rodeos and the like.  I chose to have the Bunkhouse Brisket.  The bonus for me is that it was served with baked beans and potato salad.  It was filling and was exactly what I was in the mood for.  The beef was so tender that a knife was not needed.   Of course, we ordered dessert.  I went for the peach and cherry cobbler.  It was good, but I really wanted biscuit like cobbler. 

Saturday was the day of the aunt’s wedding and the reunion of the cousins.  After the wedding, we took a short walk from the Bottger Mansion to High Noon, where dinner was served.  I opted for the Plaza Platter, which was filling but delicious.  I loved the taquitos.  The husband at the last minute chose the Brown Sugar Coriander-Cured Beef Tenderloin with wild mushroom enchiladas.  It was soooooo good.  The beef had so many flavors. 

Other foods that I loved while away included blue corn pancakes and sopaillas.  I will absolutely try to recreate the pancakes. 

Should you ever find yourself in Santa Fe or Albuquerque, go to the above-mentioned restaurants.  Don’t follow a diet, try the local beers and cuisine and order your dinner Christmas style. 

Even Better Than the Real Thing

The city of Philadelphia is known for a few things, Rocky, the Liberty Bell, the Fresh Prince, and Cheesesteaks (Philly readers, I know that there are more things that your fair city is known for, however for the sake of keeping my list short I only mentioned a few items).  As this is a blog regarding food, guess which one I want to discuss?

I am a huge fan of the cheesteak.  A few years ago, the husband and I had a layover in the Philadelphia airport and I insisted upon getting a cheesesteak from one of the airport fast food restaurants.  While not necessarily authentic, it was still good stuff and not needed after a weekend of drinking high calorie adult beverages and eating fatty foods.  

Cheesesteaks are great sandwiches.  They are steak and ooey, gooey melted cheese with peppers and onions.  That said, that combination is not exactly diet friendly, at least the first two ingredients are not diet friendly.  I was pretty excited when I came across a recipe for a cheesesteak in the Eating Well cookbook that I borrowed from Wixon. 

Hmm, a cheesesteak from Eating Well, what is the catch?  Would it be fake cheese, tofu standing in for the steak?  Nope, the trick was using portobello mushrooms in the place of steak.  Portobello make for a great steak substitute as they taste meaty, and I mean meaty in a good way.

These sandwiches were a snap to make.  The broth and the soy sauce gave them a nice flavor and the melted provolone cheese gave them the right amount of salt. 

Portobello "Philly Cheesesteak" Sandwich
(adapted from Eating Well)
Printable Recipe

4 whole wheat-buns, split in half
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced
5 large portobello mushroom tops, stems and gills removed
1 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon flour
1/4 cup chicken broth (vegetarians use vegetable broth)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
4 deli slices of provolone cheese, cut into bite-size pieces

1. Toast the buns in a toaster oven.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add onion and cook, stirring often, until soft and beginning to brown, 2 to 3 minutes.  Add mushrooms, bell pepper, oregano and pepper and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are wilted and soft, about 7 minutes.  Reduce heat to low; sprinkle the vegetables with flour and stir to coat.  Stir in broth and soy sauce.  Remove from the heat and stir in the pieces of provolone cheese.   Divide the mixture into 4 portions and place on buns.  

Yield: 4 servings

An Elastic Waistband Can Serve You Well

There are but a few occassions in which it is acceptable to overindulge in food.  Generally speaking, these times are holidays and when celebrating some sort of accomplishment (i.e. a graduation, birthday, anniversary, running a marathon, etc...). There is something about celebrating that lends to eating a bit beyond what one should consume in one sitting.  Perhaps it the relaxed atmosphere surrounding the gathering. 

The husband and I recently celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary and did what we normally do while celebrating this milestone, we went big.  Sometimes, going big for the anniversary dinner means splurging on a tasting menu, or going someplace that is supposed to be "romantic".  This year, due to a big vacation, buying a house, and then another vacation, we decided to go lighter on the wallets, but bigger on the food that was to be consumed. 

We recently moved to the 'burbs and were excited to try a restaurant where one parks themselves.  Imagine that, no city restaurant with valet parking!  We opted to try Scarlett Oak Tavern in Hingham, MA.  Normally, we don't go to steakhouses for dinner, but this was a nice establishment with a great menu, also rated a Best of Boston in Boston Magazine in 2008. 

We were not disappointed with our selection.  The mood was lively and not quiet in this huge restaurant located in a 250 year old colonial house.  It was perfect for what we wanted.  Sometimes, it is not fun to be in a super quiet restuarant...BORING. 

Prior to our appetizer, the bread basket arrived at the table.  Lots of people suggest not eating the bread as it fills you up and leaves no room for dinner.  Those people would lose out at this dining establishment.  The basket had a variety of sourdough, cranberry bread, and cornbread.  All were wonderful, but the cornbread really struck out onto its own.  It was perfectly moist and sweet. 

From the menu, we selected to start with the tuna and golden beet carpaccio which was served with a small arugla salad.  Normally, I am not a fan of beets, but these were sliced as thin as paper and the tuna that sat on top was spectacular. 

The husband chose to have the steak tips for his dinner.  With his steak came the choice of two sides.  He is still in love with me as he sacrificed having baked beans so that I could have onion rings.  His other choice was the macaroni and cheese.  His steak tips were wonderful, though they may have been slightly overcooked.  The onion rings had a perfect golden crust and the right amount of salt.  The macaroni and cheese was a little disappointing, they didn't taste as though they had much flavor.  Then again, earlier in the week I made my classic macaroni and cheese and had been eating it all week long. 

I selected to try the sirloin special of the evening.  It was dusted with porcini mushrooms and topped with blue cheese.  After the blue cheese was added on top, the steak was thrown in the broiler until the cheese started to melt.  This was served with horseradish mashed potatoes and grilled asparagus.  It was a wonderful choice.  Our server and the the runner who brought out the food were raving about it and saying that I would not be disappointed.  The steak was also brushed with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.  The cheese and the vinegar created a harmonious balance of flavors that I can only replicate in my dreams. 

One should have stopped eating after the entrees were finished, but we each have a sweet tooth and can rarely turn down dessert.  I am glad that we have this weakness as the desserts were fabulous.  The husband selected the S'mores tart and I chose the carrot cake.  The tart was a graham cracker crust with tiny marshmellows drizzled with chocolate on top.  Um, awesome.  The carrot cake was the size of a cupcake with a generous amount of cream cheese icing.  Perfect!

I highly recommend a visit to Scarlett Oak Tavern.  The prices are great, the atmosphere is lively, and the service was fantastic.  Our server sent us home with a bit more cornbread.  Love her!

Easy Breakfast for Guests

Having company is good.  Having easy guests is better.  Having an easy pre-prepped breakfast to serve them is best. 

I recently had the pleasure of having two friends stay for two nights while in town to see the Deutsche Bank Golf Championship.  As I no longer live within a stone's throw of my standard great breakfast spot, Terry's Place in Southie, I had to come up with a breakfast of my own.  What to do, what to do...Then it hit me, why not do an overnight breakfast casserole?  That way I would not have to scramble (pun intended) around in the kitchen while they are awaiting some sort of breakfast. 

After a brief internet search, I came upon a recipe on the Weight Watchers website for an overnight scrambled egg breakfast.  The recipe is good, though I added some tomatoes to it to give some color and to use the fabulous Jersey tomatoes that one of my guests brought with her.  I liked the recipe, though next time I would add some sort of spice to it to give some extra flavor.  I added some Tabasco sauce (no surprise there) to my serving since I like spicy foods.  The husband added ketchup (no surprise there) to his breakfast.  He also suggested adding some syrup to it to give it some sweetness. I don't think I agree with that suggestion, but feel free to try it and share your comments.

Overnight Scrambled Egg Bake (adapted from WeightWatchers.com)
Printable Recipe
16 oz. fat free egg substitute
12 oz. fat free evaporated milk
6 slices of white bread
6 oz. Canadian Bacon, diced
1 cup low-fat shredded cheddar cheese
2 tomatoes sliced thin

1. Coat a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Beat eggs well and add milk
3. Place bread on the bottom of the baking dish.  Toss ham and cheese over bread.  Pour egg mixture over top. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
4. Bake covered at 350F for 45 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
5. Cut into 8 portions and serve.

Yield: 8 servings

The recipe went over well with the guests.  My guess is that they would rate the breakfast much higher than the sleeping conditions.  The poor ladies had to sleep on the floor since the guest room is filled with boxes and the bed won't be put together until we get to our house.

No Fuss, No Meat

 

When coming home from work, dinner should be ready and on the table.  However, for those of us in a double income family, that is unrealistic.  Dinner can be ready when the slow cooker is employed, or if one makes dinner ahead of time and it just needs to be heated up.  I love the slow cooker for this purpose, but decided I wanted a meal that didn't need to be plugged in all day.  Thus, on Sunday I made two meals, one for consumption that day and the other to be placed in the fridge for dinner later in the week.  

I loved this recipe, it was easy to make and wallet friendly since there was no meat involved.  Best of all, it is a Weight Watchers recipe that only counts for four points.  It was four points of a well balanced deliciousness.  I love that recipe adds in fresh cilantro to the store-bought salsa.  It gave the sauce the freshness that it desired.  

Mexican Bean and Tortilla Pie (adapted from Weight Watchers)

Printable Recipe

1 cup canned tomato sauce

3/4 cup salsa

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

5 flour tortillas

30 ounces canned black beans, drained, rinsed and mashed

1/2 cup low-fat shredded cheese

1. Pre-heat oven to 400F.  Combine tomato sauce, salsa, cilantro, chili powder, and cumin a small bowl.  
2. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add as many tortillas as will fit in one layer.  Cook about 1 minute, turning once, until lightly toasted.  Remove and set aside.  Repeat with remaining tortillas.  
3. Spoon 1/4 cup of tomato sauce mixture over bottom of 9-inch pie plate or other round, shallow baking dish.  Top with a tortilla and 1/4 cup more of sauce.  Spread with 1/2 cup mashed beans; top with 1 tablespoon of shredded cheese.  Repeat with remaining ingredients to form 3 more layers and then top with remaining tortilla, sauce and cheese.  
4. Cover dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Uncover and bake until heated through and sauce bubbles around edges, about 5 minutes more.  Cut into 6 wedges and serve.

Yield: 6 servings

More Fruit for Dinner

Sweet and salty seems like the perfect combination of flavors.  It offers a little something for everyone.  That is what makes chocolate covered pretzels so great.

Using fruit in an entree gives cooks the chance to please all diners at the table.  Blueberries combined with feta cheese has that nice balance of sweet and salt, once the lime juice is thrown in there is a a nice hint of tart.  Delicious!  This pasta salad has all of these flavors and the bonus is that it is relatively healthy.

 

Chicken and Blueberry Pasta Salad (adapted from Eating Well)

Printable Recipe

1 pound boneless, skinless, chicken breast

8 ounces whole-wheat radiatore

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 large shallot, thinly sliced

1/3 cup reduced fat crumbled feta cheese

3 tablespoons lime juice

1 cup blueberries

1 teaspoon freshly grated lime zest

1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Place chicken in a skillet and add enough water to cover; bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently until cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 10-12 minutes.  Transfer the chicken to a cutting board to cool.  Shred into bite-size strips.
2. Bring a large pot of water ot a boil.  Cook pasta until tender, about 9 minutes or according to package directions.  Drain.   Place in a large bowl.
3. Meanwhile, place oil and shallot in a small skillet and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and just beginning to brown, 2-5 minutes.  Add broth, feta and lime juice and cook, stirring occasionally, until the feta begins to melt, 1-2 minutes.
4. Add the chicken to the bowl with the pasta.  Add the dressing, blueberries, lime zest, and salt.  Toss until combined. 
   

Still Watching the Wallet

There are conflicting reports on how long the recession will last.  Are we still in it, are we exiting it, will we be in a recession for another year?  All I know, is that I have to watch my wallet.  Lucky (or unlucky) for me, the husband monitors all of our spending.  It makes it hard to sneak in a pair of shoes unless I pay cash.  However, I am digressing. 

It seems to be a trend in cooking to make meals that won't break the budget.  Cooking Light has been pretty good at offering tips to save at the grocery store.  I also noticed this trend continuing in the pages of the September 2009 issue of Food and Wine.  Though the feature article was not named in a way to suggest that it was saving its readers money, it was about sandwiches.  Sandwiches save money. 

Sandwiches also are great dinner when you want to save time.  This is perfect for me as I no longer have a short 15-20 minute commute home.  I simply can not make time intensive dinners during the week any longer.  Hence a recent uptick in the use of the slow cooker and eating sandwiches.  However, I am not going to make any old sandwich with a few slices of deli meat and cheese.  I like sandwiches with a twist, something that is filling and tastes great. 

The recipe that I found in Food and Wine for a tuna melt serves this purpose.  This isn't your mother's tuna melt that only has mayo in it and is thrown on an English muffin and topped with cheese.  This tuna has little bits of red onion, fresh basil, a bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, served a toasted ciabatta bread.  It is fabulous and a quick meal!


OregonTuna Melt (adapted from Food and Wine September 2009)
Printable Recipe
12 oz. canned albacore tuna packed in water
1/4 cup chopped red onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 loaf ciabatta bread, cut for four sandwiches
dijon mustard and mayonnaise for spreading
4 slices of Swiss cheese

1. In a medium bowl, mix the tuna with the onion, olive oil, vinegar, basil and crushed red pepper.  Season with salt and pepper. 
   
2. Spread mayonnaise and dijon mustard on top of each piece of bread.  Place 1/4 of tuna mixture on four slices of bread, top each with one slice of cheese.
3. Place bread halves in a toaster oven and leave it in until cheese starts to melt.  Place the bread half that only has mustard and mayo on top of the half with bread.

Yield: 4 servings

Grab It and Go

We all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  Eating this meal gets you off to a great start and gives you energy to get you to lunchtime and deal with all of those e-mails and phone calls.  However, there are some of us who try to maximize our sleep time in the morning and do not have time to eat breakfast at home.  The sleep lovers among us eat something at work. 

Sometimes there is no problem and we bring breakfast from home, other times we pick up something when we grab the morning coffee or tea.  That is where the problem is.  We are spending some extra cash on breakfast and likely picking up something that is not very good for us.  One of my favorite temptations is the glazed stick from Dunkin' Donuts, or their blueberry muffin, or their coffee cake muffin, really it is any sort of baked good.  I do love my Dunkin.

When berries are fresh and in season, I love to have a breakfast of strawberries and blueberries topped with Greek vanilla yogurt.  It is so refreshing and filling.  I love having something that is good for me first thing in the morning.  Now that summer is dying down, I won't be eating berries and yogurt each day but I still need something portable for breakfast, forget waking up early to eat.  Enter the savory breakfast muffin.  I came across this recipe when I was looking through the Eating Well website and knew that this would be a great breakfast.  The bonus is that you can make and freeze the muffins for up to one month. 

Savory Breakfast Muffins (from Eating Well)
Printable Recipe
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 cup thinly sliced scallions
3/4 cup diced Canadian bacon
1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup finely diced red pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 400F.   Place muffin cups in pan.  
2. Combine whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, pepper and salt in a large bowl. 
3. Whisk eggs, buttermilk, oil, and butter in a medium bowl.  Fold in scallions, bacon, cheese, and red pepper.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.  Add the wet ingredients and mix with a rubber spatula until just moistened.  Scoop the batter into the muffin pan.  The cups will be very full.
4. Bake the muffins until the tops are golden brown, 20-22 minutes.  Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes.  Loosen the edges and turn the muffins onto a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.  

Yield: 12 servings


For the record, in addition to bringing in my breakfast (and lunch) from home, I am also bringing in my morning iced coffee.  Not only is this saving some cash, but I am thinking it is good for the environment as I am not throwing away a plastic container each day.  Who knew I was so green?