Poached Egg on Balsamic Onion Toast

Good morning all, or good afternoon for some. It is the last Sunday before the 2nd semester starts again, so I think it is worthy of a delicious breakfast don't you? Although this one is super easy, it is slightly time consuming. But it doesn't have to be.

The longer you cook your onions, the deeper of a flavour you will get. However, ain't no shame in a quick fix.

Baked Tomato with Egg, Bacon and Cheese

Breakfast can be fun no? Especially when you do fancy things on a dime. Like bake an egg in a tomato. Madness I know!!!
I saw this recipe on one of my favourite blogs Poor Girl Eats Well. I like her philosophy. It says it all in the title.

Egg and Sausage Breakfast Pizza

Whoa nelly! It is pizza for breakfast again.

You know what the best part of this pizza was? The fact that when I made this I am pretty sure I was drinking a ceasar as a hangover cure... and then I spilt it on the pizza (post picture of course - or probably while I was drinking to juggle a camera and a drink is one hand). And I ate it anyways (clearly I did... I was hungover)

Whole Wheat Yogurt Banana Blueberry Pancakes

Man, I just love pancakes. People think I am crazy when I walk down the hall munching on a cold pancake as a snack.... not crazy, just love.

I've posted about pancakes before (and will again and again and again). But this time I thought a healthy twist may be in order. That way I don't feel so bad about scarfing a second helping.

Oatmeal Orange Crusted French Toast with a Citrus Yogurt Glaze

Oatmeal for breakfast. It is so boring. I eat it like everyday in the winter. Sometimes for lunch too. I am certainly over it. 

Bacon and Avocado Breakfast Pizza

Breakfast pizza? Whhaaaa???

That's right folks, yesterday I got a bit crazy and put my breakfast ON A PIZZA. 

Only crazy people do this. 

Poached Egg, Salsa, Avocado/Steak and English Muffin Breakfast

I love breakfast, I really do. However, I don't often have time to make an amazing meal. Usually on the menu is cereal, yogurt, toast, fruit, oatmeal...BORING. I want sparkle! I was glam! I want FLAVOUR!!! Wouldn't you feel the same if you were condemned to tiresome breakfast food? Well here it is folks, a reason to break free! (Pun intended muahaha)

Banana Nut French Toast

I have always viewed French Toast as a blank slate for flavour. Which means, you can start with a basic recipe and add whatever spices or ingredients you want to change the whole dish around. Well today I was craving some really good banana bread. But my bananas were ripe, I didn't have the time to make a batter then wait for it to bake and I was out of flour. Sigh. So, why not take the flavours of my fave banana bread recipe and put it into some french toast.

Peanut Butter and Jelly French Toast

French toast is great on its own, but why not jazz it up every once in a while and make your Sunday morning breakfast a treat. I know my goal was to stay away from PB & J sandwiches, but I couldn't help it! It is a classic combination!That is why I needed to add this to the Ultimate Student Collection.  I added fresh fruit to not only make it a bit healthier, but add another level of flavor and texture. 

Want a few tips about how to make a great basic french toast? Check it out here. 

Peanut Butter and Jelly French Toast

2 slices of bread

French Toast Egg Mixture (2 eggs, splash of milk, dash of vanilla... or look here)

2 Tbsp of Peanut Butter (any kind - crunchy, smooth, natural)

2 Tbsp of Jelly/Jam

Handful of fresh fruit

Dip bread in egg mixture and cook in frying pan over medium heat until golden brown. 

While still warm, spread peanut butter and jelly over one slice of french toast. Top with fresh fruit. 

Pour over maple syrup (but be careful because the jam is already really sweet, so you may not want to add to much liquid sugar). 

How-To: Make Basic French Toast

I love french toast. It is easy to make and composed of ingredients I nearly always have on hand. It is extremely versatile and can please anyone. My french toast has been a bit of a crowd pleaser for the past few years, and it is all because of 1 little secret. Well guess what...my secret is about to be a secret no longer!

(Oh man... I can't believe I am about to give this one away...!)

So there are 2 parts to french toast: the batter and the bread.

Part 1: The Bread
Some professionals will tell you that the bread you use is what makes the french toast awesome. While that could be true, I don't usually use fancy bread. I don't really have fancy bread on hand, nor do many people I know. But I will tell you what fancy bread I am referring to - brioche or challah bread -  or otherwise known as "egg bread". It is light and fluffy, yet sturdy enough to handle the egg batter and a #1 choice for french toast.

You can really use any type of bread you like and different breads will change up the flava, so go ahead and be creative.

Part 2: The Batter
The batter is composed of egg and a liquid (milk, cream, water whatever). That is really all you need. But add flavour to the batter and you add a wow factor to your french toast. I am going to show you some basic ideas to get you started, and then I will set you free! Typical flavours would be cinnamon and/or vanilla.

Okay... here it is.... man oh man.

Basic French Toast

2 Pieces of bread
2 Eggs
Splash of liquid (milk, cream, water)
1 tsp of vanilla
1-2 tsp of sugar

Whisk together egg, liquid, vanilla and sugar (there you have it people! That is it! My little secret! I add sugar and vanilla to my batter! And I DON'T use cinnamon aaaallll the time! Whew.)

Heat a skillet at med-high and melt butter or use coat with cooking spray.

Dip bread in liquid. Be sure not to let it soak too long because if you are using ordinary sandwich bread (like I always do) the bread will fall apart and become soggy.

Place in hot pan and let cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown and flip.

Simple. As. That.

Top with your favourite toppings. I like to be inventive with french toast, so please stay tuned for some ridiculous recipes!

Homemade Berry Pancakes

Ahh... Sunday morning. The only day of the week I actually have some time to put some effort into breakfast.  But alas, an empty fridge leaves little to be desired. So what to do? What to make? Well I will be the very first to admit, I love pre-made pancake batter. You know, the ones you just add water to. Seriously they are easy and delish!

But today, I decide to take it one step further and try my hand at homemade pancakes. I have flour, I have eggs... so why not? The better question is, why not do this before? Super easy and super tasty, I topped them with a fruit mixture (a.k.a. whatever fruit I had) to add an extra zing!

Trust me, after you get a taste of these bad boys, you will never go back to the box stuff again!

Homemade Berry Pancakes

1-1 1/2 cups of flour
2 tsp of baking powder
3/4 tsp of salt
1 egg
2-3 tsp of oil

Mix dry ingredients together (begin with 1 cup of flour). Add wet ingredients and mix until most of lumps are out. Here you may need to add more flour. Batter should be thick but not chunky.

Heat a skillet (or frying pan) to medium heat. Add oil to pan if it is not a non-stick pan. Pour batter into pan. When little bubbles begin to form on the pancake, and the out rim looks like they are beginning to turn golden, then you know it is time to flip!

Top with mixed berries and real maple syrup and you are ready to eat!!