Course: Breakfast

Spinach Bacon Soufflés

Posted on by Mari Vasseur

If you’ve ever gotten up early enough to grab one of those delicious breakfast soufflés at that popular bakery cafe, then you might just love this recipe. There are plenty of copycat versions online, mostly using refrigerated crescent rolls. I love crescent rolls and you can make a pretty close copy of the originals with them, but why not take them up a notch? In my humble opinion, using puff pastry makes them so much better! These pretty little soufflés will puff up and get golden brown and crispy. You can also personalize each one. Try swapping out the spinach and bacon for your favorite omelet ingredients, such as chopped ham, chives, jalapeños or whatever you like.

 

Spinach Bacon Soufflés

by Mari Vasseur
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings 4 soufflés

Ingredients
  

  • 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed but still cold
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 tablespoon minced onions
  • 1 tablespoon minced red peppers
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • ½ cup (118ml) whole milk
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 4 large eggs
  • ½ cup (57g) shredded Colby Jack cheese
  • ¼ cup (28g) shredded parmesan cheese, divided
  • ⅓ cup (14g) diced fresh spinach
  • 2 slices cooked bacon, chopped

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 425ºF (220ºC). Grease four 8-ounce (227g) mini pie dishes* or ramekins.
  • On a lightly floured surface, roll the puff pastry sheet to a 10-inch (24.4cm) square. Cut into four 5-inch (12.7cm) squares. Place one square in each prepared dish. Dock the bottom of each one by poking holes with a fork.
  • In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add the onions and red peppers and cook until softened, about 1 minute. Sprinkle with the flour and cook 1-2 minutes more.
  • Slowly stir in the milk. Use a whisk if the sauce seems lumpy. Cook until the edges start to bubble and the sauce thickens. Stir in the salt. Remove from heat.
  • In a medium-size bowl, beat the eggs. Set aside 1 tablespoon (15ml) of beaten eggs in a small bowl for the tops of the soufflés. Add about a third of the sauce mixture into the medium bowl of eggs and whisk until combined. Add the egg mixture back into the saucepan and whisk until smooth. Stir in the Colby-Jack cheese, half of the parmesan cheese and spinach.
  • Ladle the egg mixture evenly into the prepared dishes. Top with the bacon and the remaining parmesan cheese. Fold the pointed ends toward the center. Brush the folded pastry edges gently with the reserved beaten egg. Bake until golden brown and puffy, about 25-30 minutes.
  • You can serve the soufflés warm in the pie dishes or remove them from the dishes and transfer to a cooling rack.

Notes

To find the mini pie dishes I used click here.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Mini Muffins

Posted on by Mari Vasseur
Pumpkin Cinnamon Mini Muffins

My mom had a cupboard in the kitchen containing a few old cookbooks that she rarely used. As a child, I used to enjoy perusing them and looking at the baked treats. Some of the cookbooks were so old, they had black and white photos or even just drawings of the food. The ones with drawings interested me because they often depicted smiling children enjoying the treats.

When I started learning to bake, I found a recipe for French Breakfast Puffs in one of those old books. The title sounded so fancy, but they were really just simple muffins dunked in butter and rolled in cinnamon sugar. I have no idea what the name of the cookbook was or what happened to it, but the delicious muffin recipe stuck around for a while. I’ve tweaked the recipe so many times over the years, and most recently, I added pumpkin to it. These Pumpkin Cinnamon Mini Muffins are one of the best versions I’ve created. The inside texture of the muffins is soft and moist and it contrasts nicely with the slight crunch you get from the cinnamon sugar on the outside. They look so cute too, like little pumpkins, and they definitely make children smile!

To watch the Instagram video of these mini muffins being made, click here.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Mini Muffins

Soft, tender pumpkin mini muffins rolled in cinnamon sugar
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert
Servings 22 mini muffins

Ingredients
  

Muffins

  • 1 ½ cups (190g) all purpose flour, sifted
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, preferably freshly ground
  • ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • ⅓ cup (80ml) vegetable oil or neutral oil of your choice
  • 1 large egg
  • ½ cup (113g) canned pure pumpkin purée Not pie filling

Topping

  • ⅔ cup (132g) granulated sugar
  • 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 6 tablespoons (85g) melted butter

Instructions
 

Muffins

  • Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Grease and flour a 24-serving mini muffin pan.* Do not use muffin liners. (The muffins need to form an outer crust. This prevents them from absorbing too much melted butter later in the recipe.)
  • In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg until well combined.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, egg and pumpkin purée until smooth and well combined. Stir in the flour mixture just until combined. The batter will be thick.
  • Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, filling the muffin cups about 2/3 full. (I ended up with 22 muffins.)
  • Bake until toothpick inserted into the muffins comes out clean, about 10-13 minutes. Do not over bake! Be diligent, since over baking can happen very quickly with mini muffins. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Turn the muffins out and place on a cooling rack.

Topping

  • Whisk the sugar and cinnamon together in a shallow bowl until well combined.
  • Briefly dunk the warm muffins in melted butter, then roll in cinnamon sugar.

Notes

To find the mini muffin pan I used, click here.
Keyword muffins, pumpkin, pumpkin spice

Peaches and Cream Loaf Cake

Posted on by Mari Vasseur

Every peach season, I get excited by the abundance of peaches at my local farmers market and I end up buying way too many. So if you’re like me and you have ripe peaches sitting on your counter, turn them into peach purée. I love adding peach purée to my iced tea or adding it to desserts like this moist, tender cake. This is one of my most popular cake recipes on social media, and for good reason. It does not disappoint! To watch the TikTok video, click here.

Peaches and Cream Loaf Cake

Moist, tender peach cake with peach cream cheese icing
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert
Servings 1 loaf

Ingredients
  

Cake

  • 1 ¼ cups (5 1/2 ounces) all purpose flour, sifted
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg, preferably freshly ground
  • 1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
  • ⅔ cup vegetable oil or neutral oil of your choice
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup peach purée, divided (About 1 1/3 cups peeled, sliced peaches puréed in a food processor or blender)
  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ⅛ teaspoon pure almond extract

Icing

  • 2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup (4 ounces) powdered sugar, sifted
  • ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • pinch fine sea salt
  • 1-2 tablespoons reserved peach puree
  • 2 tablespoons diced peaches

Instructions
 

Cake

  • Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line the bottom of an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Grease and flour the sides.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
  • Set aside 2 tablespoons peach purée for icing.
  • In a large bowl, beat sugar, oil, eggs, remaining peach purée and extracts until smooth.
  • Add flour mixture and beat just until combined.
  • Transfer batter to prepared baking pan. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 38-45 minutes.
  • Let cake cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely. Spread icing on cooled cake.

Icing

  • In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth.
  • Add powdered sugar, salt, vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of peach purée. Beat until smooth. Add additional peach purée, if needed, until desired consistency is reached. Fold in diced peaches.
Keyword cake, peach

Lemon Scones

Posted on by Mari Vasseur
Lemon Scones

Yellow is the color of happiness and sunshine. These adorable Lemon Scones will bring you a burst of lemony brightness even on the grayest day. The pretty, vibrant yellow sparkling sugar adds a pleasant crunch to the tops. It’s a nice contrast to the soft, tender interior of the scones. These little gems would shine on any breakfast or brunch table. I served them with blueberry jam and green tea, which was so delightful, I’m still smiling.

 

Lemon Scones

by Mari Vasseur
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings 12 scones

Ingredients
  

Lemon Scones

  • 1 ¾ cups (223g) all purpose flour, sifted
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ¼ cup (50g) sugar
  • 7 tablespoons (99g) cold, unsalted butter, cubed
  • Zest of 2 medium lemons
  • ⅔ cup (156ml) cold heavy cream plus more for tops
  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) lemon juice
  • Yellow sparkling sugar*

Icing

  • ⅓ cup (40g) powdered sugar, sifted
  • 1 teaspoon heavy cream
  • 1-2 teaspoons lemon juice

Instructions
 

Lemon Scones

  • Preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar until well blended
  • Work the butter and lemon zest into the flour mixture with your fingertips or with a pastry blender until pea size chunks form.
  • Stir in the heavy cream and lemon juice until a shaggy dough is formed. If your dough seems too dry, you can add 1-2 more teaspoons of heavy cream.
  • Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Fold the dough over onto itself a couple of times. Do not overwork the dough.
  • Pat or roll the dough into an 8-inch round, about 3/4-inch thick. Cut out rounds using a 2" or 2 1/4" inch round cutter.**
  • Place the scones about 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheet. Brush the scones with heavy cream. Sprinkle generously with sparkling sugar.
  • Bake until the edges are golden brown, about 16-19 minutes.
  • Cool completely on a wire rack. Decorate with icing.

Icing

  • In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, heavy cream and enough lemon juice to form a stiff icing.
  • Transfer the icing to a piping bag or a plastic zip bag. Snip off the tip of the bag. Pipe lines in a spoke pattern onto the scones.

Notes

*To find the sparkling sugar I used, click here.
**To find the cutter I used, click here.
Keyword lemon, scones

French Toast Cubes

Posted on by Mari Vasseur

French toast in all forms is welcome here! Everything from classic French toast to stuffed, sticks, bricks, casseroles and even cubes. I came up with this recipe for French Toast Cubes after I had a French toast brick at a restaurant. I like the idea of tall, thick pieces of French toast, but the cubes are a bit more manageable. This is a fun to make, well-loved recipe. I love to serve the cubes with warm maple syrup and fresh whipped cream.

French Toast Cubes

Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings 8 cubes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 loaf unsliced bread such as French bread or Japanese milk bread
  • 4 large eggs
  • ¾ cup whole milk or half and half
  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 325ºF. With a serrated knife, cut the bread into eight 2-inch cubes.
  • In an 11 x 7-inch baking dish, whisk tougher the eggs, milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon and salt.
  • Coat all sides of the the bread cubes with the egg mixture. Let the cubes soak up all of the liquid.
  • Fry the cubes on a hot buttered griddle until all sides are golden brown.
  • Transfer the cubes to a baking sheet with a wire rack. Bake until the cubes are puffy, about 20 minutes.

Strawberry Rose Pancakes

Posted on by Mari Vasseur

Strawberry Rose Pancakes

Pink pancakes made with strawberry purée and rose petals, topped with strawberry syrup and pink whipped cream
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch

Ingredients
  

Strawberry Syrup

  • ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • 1 cup (170g) hulled and sliced strawberries

Pink Whipped Cream

  • ¾ cup (177ml) heavy whipping cream
  • 3 tablespoons (45g) powdered sugar, sifted
  • ½ teaspoon pure strawberry extract
  • 1 drop pink gel food coloring

Strawberry Rose Pancakes

  • 1 cup (128g) all purpose flour, sifted
  • 2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 cup (170g) hulled and sliced strawberries
  • 1 large egg
  • ½ cup (118ml) whole milk
  • 2 tablespoons (30g) melted butter or vegetable oil
  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 drop pink gel food coloring optional
  • 2-3 teaspoons crushed dried rose petals

Instructions
 

Strawberry Syrup

  • Purée the strawberries in a blender or small food processor. Pass the purée through a mesh sieve into a small saucepan. Stir in the sugar and 1/2 cup (118ml) of water. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Turn the heat down to low and simmer until the sugar has dissolved and the syrup thickens, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Pink Whipped Cream

  • In a large bowl, beat the whipped cream to soft peaks with an electric mixer at high speed. Add the powdered sugar, strawberry extract and food coloring in 3 separate additions. Continue beating just until stiff peaks are formed. Set aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Strawberry Rose Pancakes

  • In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together until well combined. Set aside.
  • Purée the strawberries in a blender or small food processor. Pass the purée through a mesh sieve into a medium bowl. Add the egg, milk, melted butter, vanilla extract and food coloring (if using) and whisk until well combined. Stir this mixture into the flour mixture just until combined. A few lumps are okay. Stir in the rose petals.
  • For each pancake, scoop 3-4 tablespoons of batter onto a hot oiled griddle. Flip the pancakes when bubbles form on the surface. Continue cooking until the pancakes puff and are lightly browned.

Notes

*To find the gel food coloring I used, click here.
**To find culinary dried rose petals, click here.
 
Keyword pancakes, strawberry

Blueberry Donut Holes with Homemade Blueberry Sugar

Posted on by Mari Vasseur
Blueberry Donut Holes with Homemade Blueberry Sugar

If you landed here from one of my social media accounts, welcome! I’m really glad you’re here. I love to create fun, pretty and sweet treats like these delicious blueberry donut holes! The thing that really makes these special is the homemade blueberry sugar, which adds a burst of blueberry flavor. Freeze dried blueberries are combined with sugar to create a beautiful, flavorful sugar that you can use for many other things. It can also be used in tea, lattes, lemonade, cocktails or sprinkled on cookies or scones. Keep in mind that freeze dried blueberries are not the same as dried blueberries. Dried blueberries still contain some moisture, so they won’t work for this purpose.

The donut hole batter comes together quickly and easily. The most challenging part for me is frying them. I found that using a thermometer and testing one donut hole first, helps you determine the perfect oil temperature. Using a small portion scoop helps you get uniform donut holes. Make sure the outside of the scoop is clean between each donut to help them keep the round shape and avoid pointy tails.

Blueberry Donut Holes with Homemade Blueberry Sugar

Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Servings 24 donut holes

Ingredients
  

Blueberry Sugar

  • ¾ cup (3/4 oz or 21g)) freeze-dried blueberries*
  • ½ cup (3 1/2 oz or 100g) granulated sugar

Blueberry Donut Holes

  • 2 cups (9 oz or 255g) all purpose flour, sifted
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ cup (3 1/2 oz or 100g) granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons (1 oz or 28g)) unsalted butter, melted
  • ½ cup (4 oz or 118ml) whole milk
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 ¼ cups chopped fresh blueberries
  • oil for frying
  • ½ cup (3 1/2 oz or 100g) blueberry sugar

Instructions
 

Blueberry Sugar

  • Process freeze dried blueberries and sugar in a food processor or a clean spice grinder until finely ground. Be careful not to over process or you may end up with powdered sugar.

Blueberry Donut Holes

  • In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, nutmeg and salt. Set aside.
  • In a large bowl, beat sugar, eggs, melted butter, milk and vanilla extract until well combined.
  • Add flour mixture and mix just until combined. Do not over mix. A few lumps are okay.
  • Fold in chopped blueberries.
  • In a heavy saucepan, heat 1 1/2 inches of oil to 340ºF.
  • Drop tablespoon size portions of batter into hot oil. I used a #60 portion scoop.** Don't overcrowd the pan.
  • Cook donut holes until golden brown on all sides, about 2-4 minutes, flipping halfway through. If donut holes cook too quickly on the outside, turn heat down.
  • Briefly drain donut holes on paper towels, then toss warm donut holes in blueberry sugar. Serve immediately.

Notes

Success tips: Use a small ice cream scoop sprayed with nonstick spray to drop donut holes into oil. Make sure the outside of scoop is clean between each donut hole to keep the round shape and avoid tails on your donut holes.
*To find freeze dried blueberries, click here.
**To find the portion scoop I used, click here.

Favorite Banana Bread

Posted on by Mari Vasseur

This moist, flavorful banana bread is my favorite banana bread recipe to date. It has the perfect texture. Not mushy or gummy like so many banana bread recipes out there. I like to add chocolate chips and/or toasted pecans to make it extra delicious.

 

Favorite Banana Bread

by Mari Vasseur
Moist, flavorful banana bread with chocolate chips and optional pecans
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 1 loaf

Ingredients
  

  • 1 ½ cups (191g) all purpose flour, sifted, plus 1 teaspoon for the chocolate chips
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, preferably freshly ground
  • 1 cup (200g) packed brown sugar
  • ⅓ cup (70ml) avocado oil or neutral oil of your choice
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • ½ cup (113g) sour cream or full fat Greek yogurt, room temperature
  • 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup (170g) mashed bananas (about 2 medium bananas)
  • ½ cup (60g) coarsely chopped toasted pecans optional
  • 2 tablespoons (15g) chopped pecans optional
  • 1 ¼ cups (213g) semisweet chocolate chips, divided

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 350ºF (165ºC). Line the bottom an 8 x 4-inch or a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. Grease and flour the insides.
  • In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg until well blended.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, oil, eggs, sour cream and vanilla until creamy and well blended. Stir in the bananas until incorporated. Mix in the flour mixture just until combined. Do not over mix. Stir in the 1/2 cup of pecans if using. If using chocolate chips, set aside 1/4 cup (43g) for the top and toss the remaining 1 cup (170g) of chocolate chips with 1 teaspoon of flour, then mix them into the batter.
  • Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the loaf with the chopped pecans or 1/4 cup (43g) of chocolate chips. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 40-50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove the loaf from the pan and transfer it to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Keyword banana, loaf

 

Raspberry White Chocolate Scones

Posted on by Mari Vasseur
Raspberry White Chocolate Scones

A good scone has a way of making you feel elegant, especially if you pronounce it ‘skon’ instead of ‘skōne’. I went to a lovely tea recently where scones were served, along with an array of dainty tea sandwiches and desserts. The scones were round with pink sugar sprinkled on top. Pretty pink food is always so promising. Unfortunately, the scones were hard, dry and bland. No amount of clotted cream slathered on them could help. There’s nothing elegant about a dry, hard bite of a scone that you have to struggle to choke down. Scones should be dense and slightly dry and crumbly, but there’s no reason we can’t make them more delicious. It’s fun to add fruit, chocolate, herbs, nuts or whatever you like to make them more delightful. These Raspberry White Chocolate Scones are tender and buttery with bursts of flavor from the fresh raspberries and white chocolate. I added pink sparkling sugar for texture and, of course, to make them look pretty!

 

Raspberry White Chocolate Scones

by Mari Vasseur
Tender scones with fresh raspberries and white chocolate, topped with crunchy sparkling sugar.
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings 8 scones

Ingredients
  

  • 1 ¾ cups (226g) all purpose flour, sifted
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 7 tablespoons (100g) cold, unsalted butter, cubed
  • ½ cup (118 ml) cold heavy cream plus extra for the tops of the scones
  • ¼ cup (57g) cold sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup (128g) white chocolate chips or chunks Not chopped white chocolate
  • ¾ cup (113g) fresh or frozen raspberries
  • Pink or white coarse sparkling sugar

Instructions
 

  • Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together until well combined. Work the butter into the flour mixture with your fingertips or with a pastry blender until pea size pieces form.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, sour cream and vanilla until well blended. Stir the cream mixture into the flour mixture until a shaggy dough forms. Gently fold in the white chocolate chips and raspberries.
  • Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Form the dough into a 1-inch thick round, about 6 1/2 inches in diameter. Cut the dough into 8 wedges.
  • Place scones 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Chill the scones in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Brush the tops of the scones with heavy cream. Sprinkle with coarse sugar.
  • Bake until the edges look golden brown, about 20-24 minutes. Transfer the scones to a cooling rack.

Notes

*To find pink sparkling sugar, click here.  
This recipe was updated on 3/23/2023.
Keyword raspberry white chocolate, scones

Cheddar Ham Biscuits

Posted on by Mari Vasseur

Have you ever had one of those mornings where you wake up starving? It typically happens to me when I skip dinner the night before. So one morning that happened. My family and I were really hungry, there was a bit of leftover holiday ham in the fridge and these fluffy, satisfying biscuits were born. I think these biscuits need to be included in all lumberjack breakfasts from now on.

If you love ham and cheese anything, you’ll love these biscuits. You can also add fresh chives or swap out the ham for bacon if you like. I love baking them in a cast iron skillet because of the rustic, crispy sides and bottoms you get from the high heat conductivity of cast iron. To find the cast iron pan I used, click here. You can also bake them in a 9-inch cake pan or pie plate.

Cheddar Ham Biscuits

Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings 8 biscuits

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups (9 ounces) all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ cup (4 ounces) cold, unsalted butter, cubed
  • ¾ cup (3 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese, preferably sharp cheddar
  • ½ cup (2 3/4 ounces) diced cooked ham (1/4-inch pieces) Pat dry with paper towel.
  • ⅔ cup cold buttermilk
  • 1 tablespoon melted butter

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 425ºF. Butter a 9-inch cast iron skillet*
  • In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
  • Work butter into flour mixture with your fingertips, until flat dime size pieces are formed.
  • Gently stir in cheese and ham.
  • Stir in buttermilk a little at a time until a shaggy dough is formed.
  • Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
  • Fold dough over onto itself a few times. Form dough into a 7-inch diameter 3/4-inch thick round.
  • Using a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter, cut dough into seven biscuits. Press the scraps together and cut one more biscuit. If dough becomes warm at any point, chill in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes, then proceed with recipe.
  • Transfer biscuits to prepared pan. Brush with melted butter.
  • Bake until biscuits are puffy and tops are golden brown, about 22-25 minutes.
  • Serve immediately.

Notes

To find the skillet I used, click here.

Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Caramel Filling

Posted on by Mari Vasseur
pumpkin spices mini loaves with caramel filling

In early September, I saw someone announce the fall season on social media. In addition to people pointing out that it was too early for the announcement, the word police corrected the person with the word autumn. Since both terms are correct, we can call the season whatever we prefer. I think autumn is a pleasant sounding word, so I’ll use it for the rest of this post. Whatever you call it, these Pumpkin Spice Muffins are a perfect little celebration of the season. They have just the right amount of warm spices, making them so fragrant that your kitchen will smell like cozy autumn heaven.

pumpkin spices mini loaves with caramel filling

I originally made them in mini loaf pans, but I thought they would be cute as muffins too. They’re so cute and delicious that I often give them as holiday gifts. This year I decided to try them in ramekins and I loved the results! I used 6-ounce ramekins, but you can use 8-ounce ramekins, any size mini loaf pans, a muffin pan or even an 8 or 9-inch loaf pan. Keep in mind that baking times will differ. To find the ramekins I used, click here.

Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Caramel Filling

by Mari Vasseur
Tender pumpkin spice muffins with caramel filling and luscious cream cheese frosting
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert
Servings 7 muffins

Ingredients
  

Pumpkin Spice Mini Loaves

  • 1 ½ cups (191g) all purpose flour, sifted
  • 1 ¼ teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg preferably freshly ground
  • 1 pinch ground cloves
  • ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup (200g) brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup (225g) pure pumpkin purée
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ⅓ cup (100g) caramel sauce, purchased or homemade
  • ¼ cup (28g) roasted, salted shelled pumpkin seeds

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 3 ounces (85g) cream cheese, softened
  • 6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 pinch fine sea salt
  • 2 cups (240g) powdered sugar, sifted
  • 1-2 teaspoons heavy cream, room temperature

Instructions
 

Pumpkin Spice Mini Loaves

  • Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Grease and flour seven 6-ounce ramekins or six 8-ounce ramekins or any mini loaf pans of your choice.
  • In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, nutmeg and cloves until well blended.
  • In a separate large bowl, beat the butter and brown sugar together, with an electric mixer at medium speed, until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until incorporated. Beat in the pumpkin purée and vanilla extract until well blended. Stir in the flour mixture just until combined.
  • Divide the batter evenly into the prepared ramekins. Bake for 15-25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Do not overbake.
  • Cool completely if serving in ramekins or remove from pans after cooling for 10 minutes. Continue to cool on wire rack.
  • Make 3/4-inch wells in the center of each muffin. Fill with caramel sauce. (For loaves, poke multiple holes with a skewer. Fill with caramel sauce.) Top with cream cheese frosting and pumpkin seeds

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together, with an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth and well blended. Do not over beat.
  • Add the vanilla extract and salt and beat until combined. On low speed, gradually beat in the powdered sugar incorporated. Add the heavy cream and continue beating at low speed smooth. Remove any bubbles by gently stirring with a spatula.
Keyword muffins, pumpkin, pumpkin spice

Peaches & Cream Scones with Caramel Icing

Posted on by Mari Vasseur

Peaches & Cream Scones with Caramel Icing

Tender scones with fresh peaches, topped with a quick caramel icing
Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Brunch
Servings 8

Ingredients
  

Scones

  • 1 ¾ cups (7 7/8 oz or 223g) all purpose flour, sifted
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 7 tablespoons (3 1/2 oz or 100g) cold, unsalted butter, cubed
  • ½ cup (4 oz or (118 ml) cold sour cream
  • ¼ cup (2 oz or 59ml) cold heavy cream Plus more for tops
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup (about 7 oz or 200g) chopped fresh peaches, patted dry Peaches should be ripe but still firm, not over ripe.
  • egg wash (optional) 1 egg whisked with 1 tablespoon of water

Icing

  • ¼ cup (2 oz or 57g) salted butter
  • ½ cup (3 1/2 oz or 100g) packed brown sugar
  • ⅓ cup (2 5/8 oz or 78 ml) heavy cream

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
  • Work the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or with your fingertips until pea size pieces form.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the sour cream, heavy cream and vanilla.
  • Mix the sour cream mixture into the flour mixture until a shaggy dough forms. Fold in the peaches.
  • Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Press the dough together and fold it over onto itself a couple of times.
  • Pat or roll dough into a 7-inch round. Cut dough into 8 wedges. Transfer to the prepared baking pan. Brush the scones lightly with egg wash or heavy cream.
  • Bake until golden brown, about 18-22 minutes. Transfer the scones to a cooling rack.

Caramel Icing

  • Melt the butter a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the brown sugar until smooth, about 2 minutes.
  • Whisk in the heavy cream and heat until bubbly. Remove from heat. Set aside to cool slightly. Drizzle or spoon the icing over the cooled scones.
Keyword peach, scones