Setting the scene for an easy Christmas Morning

So, all is done in our home...It is just my husband and I tonight...I am making us a nice steak dinner...no drinking though, Paul wants to go to midnight mass completely sober for once! haha but seriously...

I actually cooked our steaks in my Breville panini press, THANKS VIVI!!







For tomorrow morning, I made Martha's Canadian Bacon Strata:


I added some frozen country style hasbrowns and some chives to the recipe...just to change it up a bit.




I just popped it in the oven this morning for breakfast...we also had mimosas.




This breakfast is very light! So yummy! We have lots of left overs, and it keeps nicely like a quiche...great at room temperature.

I am going to start to make a berry tart for dessert tonight...we are going to our good friends home tonight...Joan and Wayne. It is always a blast over there. She is really one of the main reasons I love to entertain. She always puts out a spread, and makes me feel so special and loved...I LOVE HER!!! I will try to post more pics later.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!

Caramel Lattes

Paul took me to Spain last year, and we were crazy about the coffee. Pretty much a shot of espresso and warm milk. It is delicious. When we came back home, regular coffee wasn't cutting it, so we decided to go the Spanish way.

Here are the instructions for my weekend Caramel Lattes...not necessarily what we had in Spain, but I love the Cinnamon Dolce Latte from Starbucks, and this is the next best thing.

Here is my coffeemaker:



First, I prepare my cups, I use about 1/3 tsp. of Cinnamon Brown Sugar Syrup. I find this at World Market:



Don't use too much, this is pretty strong, and sweet.

Then, I add my sugar, and I really like turbinado sugar, or Sugar in the Raw, and I only use 1 tsp...but you can adjust this.


Now I am ready to make the espresso:



I always make a double shot. Because I add so much milk, this makes sure the coffee flavor comes thru.



Then I tamp down the coffee, but not too much!

Time to make the espresso:





As you can see in the pic above, my coffee maker actually has a warming plate on the top, when you are done brewing, you set your up above to stay warm while you make another and also to stay warm while you froth the milk:


We only drink soymilk, so that is what I use. It froths really well too:





If I want a little more foam, I use this little immersion blender and it whips up the milk great.

If you don't have a coffee machine that makes espresso and has the wand to froth the milk, pick up one of these. Make a strong cup of coffee, then warm up some milk on the stove or microwave (be careful because this will boil over the glass and make a mess in your microwave if you don't watch it!) and whip up your foam with this...it is a great tool!

That is it, now I just stick the tip of the whip cream dispenser right under the edge of the foam and put a little in there to give it a bit of richness.


Lastly, I top it with a drizzle of caramel sauce and a shake of cinnamon...it is so good!

I only make these on the weekends, so they take a little time, but well worth it!

Buttermilk Pancakes

My brother Louis has been making waffles and blogging about it for the last few days, so he put me in the mood for waffles...and being that this is the last day of my birthday weekend...so I am going out with a bang...here is the Gourmet Cookbook recipe for Buttermilk Waffles. You will need a waffle Iron...so if you have one living in the back of your cabinets, pull it out and dust it off...these are that good!


This recipe makes about 6 waffles, so I cut the recipe in half for Paul and I today. It is actually easy to make for brunch or for a group of people.

Ingredients:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 1/4 cups shaken buttermilk
1 1/2 sticks butter (12 tbsp) melted and cooled
3 eggs lightly beaten
Cooking spray for the waffle iron

Set a baking sheet in the oven and set it iat 200 degrees, as you finish the waffles, just pop them in the oven to keep them warm.

Mix the dry ingridients, then add the wet. Batter will be thick.

Spray the waffle iron and add the batter. Don't overfill because they puff up a bit. Transfer to baking sheet to keep warm. Serve immediately.



I served these with sliced strawberries, black berries and toasted walnuts, with maple syrup...yummy!