Neskowin by the Sea

I have come down to the shores of the sea,
Where things eternal are waiting for me.
Where the tide comes in with its broken shells,
And its thunderous breakers and rollins swells.
The fog rolls in with its misty veil,
Like a phantom ship with a phantom sail.
And the evening star in the far, far west
Is a diamond pin on the oceans breast.
I have come down to the ponderous sea,
And caught a glimpse of eternity.

Unknown

This poem was penned on a little scroll of paper, rolled up in a bowl of sea shells in the room that we stayed in at the Proposal Rock Inn in Neskowin, Oregon.

Spinach, Sausage, and Feta Frittata

This is Kyle's absolute favorite breakfast.  This past summer, he requested it for his birthday breakfast.  Well, we were camping.  So we managed to pull it off in a dutch oven.  Tasted even better on a chilly mountain morning.

1 T oil
1 medium onion, chopped
10 oz baby spinach
1/4 cup sun-died tomatoes in oil, drained and chopped
4 links fully-cooked chicken sausage, sliced (Alfresco and Aidells both have some really yummy flavors)
8 eggs
4 oz fat free crumbled feta (Trader Joes) (or regular feta)

Preheat oven to 350.  Using a large, flat pan that can go in the oven, saute the onion for 5 minutes on medium to medium-high heat.  Add sliced sausage, saute 3 minutes.  Add spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, saute 2 minutes.  Whisk eggs.  Pour over sausage mixture, stir.  Top with feta.  Cover.  Cook in oven for 5-8 minutes or until set in middle.  Enjoy!

Chipotle Joes

We love sloppy joes at our house!  This is our favorite take on the classic recipe.  We've made it healthier by using ground turkey breast and whole wheat buns.

20 oz ground turkey breast
1 small onion chopped
1 bell pepper chopped
3/4 cup ketchup
1 cup frozen corn kernels
15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup tomato sauce
1 T canned chipotle peppers in adobo, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 cup cilantro

Cook ground turkey, onion, and bell pepper until cooked through.  Add the rest of the ingredients except the cilantro.  Heat through.  Stir in cilantro.  Serve on whole wheat buns.  Optional: top with a little grated cheddar cheese and diced onions.  Serves 4-6.  Enjoy!

Basic Muffin Recipe

This is a simple recipe that you can customize however you like.  We've enjoyed it with berries, cinnamon swirl, bananas...

Preheat oven to 350.
Prepare muffin pans by using cooking spray or paper liners.  Makes about 16 muffins.

Combine dry ingredients
     1 3/4 cup flour
     2 tsp baking powder
     1/4 tsp baking soda
     1/4 tsp salt

Combine wet ingredients
     1/2 cup sugar or brown sugar
     1/4 cup oil
     1/2 cup fat free vanilla yogurt
     1/4 cup skim milk
     1 egg
     1/2 tsp vanilla or extract of your choice

Add dry ingredients gradually to wet ingredients. 

Add your choice of mix-ins
    3/4 cup fruit, berries, nuts, chocolate chips, etc, or a combination of things.
    0r 1/3 cup brown sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon which will then be lightly swirled into batter

Divide evenly into muffin cups.  Bake for about 15 minutes.  Muffins are done when a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Enjoy!

Poppy Seed Bread

This is the ever-famous, often-coveted, poppy seed bread recipe that everyone asks me for.  It is absolutely wonderful and completely sinful at the same time.  I usually do not give out this recipe because I like to have it all to myself and be the only one who know how to make it!  ; )  If you make this recipe, you have to promise me that you will only use the best ingredients and do not make any substitutions.  I know that I usually try to make recipes healthier, but you cannot do that with this recipe.  I have tried and failed.  It is what it is and must remain completely rich and decadent.  Are you ready?  Here we go...  Just as a note, I do not use a mixer for this recipe.  I mix it all by hand.

Preheat oven to 350.
Spray 10 small (3x5) loaf pans with cooking spray and place on large baking sheet.  You can use larger loaf pans but will have to adjust the cooking time.

Combine
     6 eggs
     2 1/2 cups oil
     4 1/2 cups sugar

Beat well then add
     3 cups milk
     1 T almond extract
     1 T butter extract
     1 T vanilla extract

Combine dry ingredients
     6 cups (1 1/2 lbs) flour
     1 T salt
     1 T baking powder
     1 T poppy seeds

Add gradually to the liquid mixture.  Blend well.
Divide evenly into the prepared pans.  Bake for approximately 50-60 minutes.  Make sure you rotate your pans at about 20 minutes, then again at 40 minutes so that they cook evenly.

While the bread is baking, make the glaze.  Stir the glaze occasionally to help dissolve the sugar.  Do not heat this mixture, it is supposed to be gritty.

     1/2 cup orange juice
     1 1/2 cup sugar
     1 T almond extract
     1 T butter extract
     1 T vanilla extract

Remove the bread from the oven.  Allow to cool 10 minutes.  Remove from pans and place on cooling rack.  You may want to put wax paper under your cooling rack for ease of clean up.  Brush the glaze over the bread every 15 minutes or so until all of the glaze is gone.  Let the bread sit out for several hours or overnight to dry.  (Just beware of little ones who get up in the middle of the night to sample the bread - Elliott and Kyle when they were 4 & 2).  This bread freezes well.  Enjoy!