I adore mornings. I love the sensation of getting bundles of chores and responsibilities accomplished before noon. At the same time, I’m not a morning person. I’m a natural night owl who comes alive once the world turns dark.
I want to discover the secrets of morning people! I wish I jumped out of bed at 5 AM to spend alone time with my journal and Bible, followed by a good exercise/yoga session. In my morning-person fantasy, I’d then whip up a healthy from-scratch breakfast so the kids rise to the delicious smell of food waiting for them. We sit down to eat together before I casually get myself out of loungewear and into real clothes. I put effort into my hair, do some chores, and then we all settle at the school table with chipper little grins on our faces ready to learn!
That isn’t happening. In all reality, I hit the snooze button for as long as possible. I give myself just enough time to roll out of bed, throw on some clothes, rally the kids to get dressed, pour bowls of cereal, and get us started on our first assignment as we eat. All of this happening while I’m still trying to wake up.
I have the ultimate love/hate relationship with mornings. I just don’t have that early bird drive in me. I’ve found, however, I can make the situation easier if I give myself a little something to look forward to. Admittedly, that is often in the form of food. Or in this case…a drink.
Knowing I had cold brew coffee steeping in the fridge gave me an extra push to get out of bed this morning. Coffee is the best part of mornings, and today I treated myself well!
I’m a hint of bougie in that I typically use freshly ground coffee (Counter Culture is my go-to!), and following an infusion, the recipe makes the taste even bolder and better. In this recipe, I used roughly two tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk for a rich flavor, and while the color lightened quite drastically I felt the sweetness didn’t overpower the dark and bitter taste. If you prefer no sweetness at all, it is perfectly okay to omit the sweetened condensed milk altogether. I too have days like that.
Infused Cold Brew Coffee
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Freshly ground coffee
- Water
- Sweetened condensed milk (to taste)
Instructions
- Fill a 32 oz mason jar with water and coffee. Seal tightly and shake until well mixed.
- Refrigerate over-night (at least 14 hours). After the coffee has steeped, pour the contents into a French press and push grounds to the bottom of the pot. Alternatively, use a couple layers of cheese cloth or coffee filters to strain the coffee.
- Drizzle sweetened condensed milk into the coffee, to taste.
Originally posted February 2021
]]>September is here!
Is it technically fall yet? No.
Am I done with summer? Yes.
I’m not one of those fall fanatics that try redefining August as something other than summer. However, September 1st is practically a holiday in my world and no calendar technicality can convince me otherwise. By my definition..we’re in a new season!
It’s been a week and I’ve already pulled out the decorations, lit the scented candles, bought a pair of corduroy pants, ordered supplies for seasonal crafts, and my kitchen is starting to produce some classic fall flavors (last night was butternut squash soup!). My house is deliciously autumn at the moment and it will only get better as the season continues.
This morning I did the ultimate fall breakfast: Pumpkin pancakes with a spiced maple drizzle!
It was a fantastic way to begin the morning! Normally on school days, my kids stick with the boring non-sugary stuff like grainy cereals, cream of wheat, or hard-boiled eggs with toast, so they welcomed this sweet surprise with open smiling mouths.
I especially enjoyed making these with my son, who had the chance to help me from beginning to end without interruption while his sister slept in (one child is the early riser while the other is not…). It’s been a minute since we’ve had the kitchen to ourselves now that little sister enjoys cooking and baking. He’s come a long way from the simple pour and stir instructions. When did he get so big and responsible?
Normally little sister would throw a fit upon discovering someone cooked in the kitchen without her help, but the joy of waking up to pancakes successfully distracted her from feelings of FOMO.
The pancakes themselves tasted delicious, but the maple drizzle is really what brings the taste together. For a sweeter taste, more syrup can be added to the mix, but I was honestly surprised that the kids didn’t ask for extra.
They certainly got their fill at breakfast, and we’re looking forward to eating the leftovers tomorrow.
Happy fall! Here’s to a new season!
Pumpkin Pancakes with Spiced Maple Drizzle
Ingredients
Pumpkin Pancakes
- 2 Cups All-purpose flour
- 1/3 Cup Brown sugar
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp Nutmeg
- 2 tsp Baking powder
- 1 tsp Baking soda
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 cup Low fat Greek yogurt
- 1/2 Cup Canned pumpkin
- 1 Egg
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 1/2 Cups Milk
- Oil or butter for cooking
Spiced Maple Drizzle
- 1/2 Cup Low fat Greek yogurt
- Maple syrup (to taste)
- 1/4 tsp Cinnamon
Instructions
- In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, mix wet ingredients. Add to the dry mixture, and whisk until smooth.
- Prepare a skillet with oil or butter and heat on ve.
- When the pan is hot, pour 1/2 cup of the batter into the middle of the pan. When the surface becomes bubbly, flip and cook for a few more seconds.
- When pancakes are finished, stir together ingredients for the spiced maple drizzle in a small bowl. Drizzle on top of pancakes and enjoy!
Originally posted September 2020
]]>