Egg in a Waffle Window
Posted: January 14, 2012 Filed under: Breakfast, Dinner, Healthy, Snacks, Vegetarian | Tags: breakfast, cheese, easy, egg, food, waffle 14 Comments »
Are you familiar with an Egg in a Window? You may also know it as an Egg in Bread or an Egg in a Basket. The classic Egg in a Window is the most basic yet beloved of breakfast treats. I grew up on those things, and I’d be willing to bet most of you did too. My mother would whip one up for me in the morning, and I would devour the tasty little sucker with pleasure. In case you just moved here from Mars and you don’t know what an Egg in a Window is (or perhaps you’re reading this from Mars; in which case, greetings from Earth!), a classic Egg in Bread is a simple but delicious breakfast dish. It’s comprised of a slice of bread, with a little circle gone from the center into which an egg is cracked. The whole thing is fried in butter and typically seasoned with salt and pepper. Sometimes, it’s topped with melted cheese. What you wind up with is a fried egg fused into a slice of bread, creating some kind of buttery, golden brown breakfast hybrid. You can almost say the egg and the bread become one.
It’s definitely an occasion in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. How else could you describe something so tasty that results from such minimal time, effort, and ingredients? Treats like these don’t come around often; for something to be so good but so quick and easy is rare. Perhaps that is why the Egg in a Window is so widely loved by all.
I, of course, am a fan of these egg-stuffed slices of bread myself. One day, I found myself staring into the freezer with my usual conundrum: what on Earth should I eat? My eyes fell on a box of Eggo Waffles, and suddenly, my Smart Cookie gears began to turn. If an egg cooked inside of bread is delicious, then how impossibly good would it be to cook the egg inside of a waffle?
Like this:
Healthy Cookie: Cheesy Broccoli & Potato Scramble
Posted: November 18, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Dinner, Healthy, Low-Cal, The Smart Cookie Cook, Vegetarian | Tags: breakfast, broccoli, cheese, dinner, eggs, healthy, low calorie, low fat, lunch, potatoes, vegetarian 4 Comments »
Eggs are awesome. Know why?
- They’re so versatile. You can scramble ‘em, fry ‘em, bake ‘em into a quiche or frittata, slap ‘em on a breakfast sandwich, or even drink ‘em raw from a cup.
- The add-ins are endless: veggies, cheese, potatoes, meat, fresh herbs, and more!
- You can cook up an egg in mere minutes.
- They’re packed with protein and therefore great for meat-eaters and vegetarians alike.
- They’re good for you. They help your eyesight, they’ve got choline for your brain (which means they keeps you smart cookies smart!), and they’re low in calories and fat.
- You can eat them any time of day. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are all eggcellent opportunities!
- They’re delicious!
If that doesn’t make you want to chow down on some eggs, then I don’t know what will. Keep in mind, you don’t always have to have the same old scramble. Eating the same thing over and over again gets boring no matter what the food. So spiffy up your scramble with this cheesy, broccoli & potato twist!
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Judgement Time: IHOP’s Holiday Hotcakes
Posted: November 10, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Holiday, Judgement Time, The Smart Cookie Cook, Vegetarian | Tags: breakfast, eggnog, food, holiday, IHOP, nuts, pancakes, pumpkin, review, syrup 11 Comments »
I. Love. Pancakes.
Doesn’t everybody? I know there has been an ongoing waffles vs. pancakes debate, but for me, pancakes will always take the cake. They’re fluffy, floppy, fun, and delicious. Nothing gives me such child-like glee as to inundate a stack of these golden cakes in rich maple syrup then stick my fork straight through the fluffy interior. Pancakes and syrup may be a simple thing, but MAN, are they good!
You can imagine how a place like IHOP might just be heaven for me. True, I have often contemplated moving in and spending the rest of my life in a pancake utopia where all of my maple syrup-covered dreams come true. I decided to go to college instead, but if the whole “higher education” thing doesn’t work out, at least I’ve got that as a back up plan.
When I heard IHOP had released a line of new Holiday Hotcakes, I HOPPED right on over (I’m sorry, I had to). It was once of those situations that, from the moment I learned of the Holiday Hotcakes’ existence, it consumed my every waking thought. I counted down the hours until I may go to IHOP and try some for myself.
Now, The Holiday Hotcakes come in three flavors: Pumpkin Praline (which consists of pumpkin pancakes topped with caramel sauce and candied pecans), Eggnog (regular pancakes layered with an eggnog-flavored cream and topped with butter rum sauce), and White Chocolate Chip Mint (regular pancakes with white chocolate chips and topped with peppermint pieces). I tried the first two, as I’m not a huge fan of mint (sorry mint-lovers).
Seriously Cereal: Lucky Charms is Magically Delicious For All Ages
Posted: November 5, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Dessert, Seriously Cereal, Snacks, The Smart Cookie Cook | Tags: breakfast, cereal, food, Lucky Charms, marshmallows, snack 11 Comments »
The frazzled cry of, “They’re after me lucky charms!” still rings in the ears of many American adults. As children, we grew up watching Lucky the Leprechaun endlessly fleeting from greedy children with no sense of boundaries. They were, indeed, ALWAYS after his lucky charms. Poor Lucky never caught a break. Even today, he is still on the run. The children are as determined as ever, in hot pursuit of that colorful, marshmallow-studded cereal. But really, who can blame them?
Like this:
Seriously Cereal: Cascadian Farm’s Organic Cinnamon Crunch Cereal
Posted: October 21, 2011 Filed under: Breakfast, Healthy, Seriously Cereal, Snacks, The Smart Cookie Cook, Vegetarian | Tags: breakfast, cereal, cinnamon, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, food, healthy, organic, snack 3 Comments »Seriously Cereal is a new series to The Smart Cookie Cook. It explores all things cereal & is devoted to all you cerealists (cereal-enthusiasts) out there. We’ve got to stick together!
I’m sure that many cerealists like myself will agree when I say that General Mills’ Cinnamon Toast Crunch is one of the greatest cereals of all time. Those crunchy squares sprinkle my memories of childhood with sweet cinnamon-sugar bliss. Is it their pleasant crisp texture that made them so delightful? Is it their ribbed surfaces, all the more better for trapping sweet coating? No, as important as these components are, it is clearly that visible layer of cinnamon-sugar cradling each square that made them so darn tasty. What person, especially a child, doesn’t love pure sugary goodness?
Just because I’m technically an adult doesn’t mean I don’t still adore Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Age doesn’t affect deliciousness. I’m crazy about cereal, and I’ll still happily shovel in spoonfuls of the sweet stuff. However, if you’ve ever looked at the nutrition facts on Cinnamon Toast Crunch, then you know it’s pretty horrifying:
A teeny-tiny 3/4 cup serving has:
- 130 calories
- 3 grams of fat
- 10 grams of sugar
Now, let’s consider the fact that most people are probably going to eat TWICE that. Then we’re looking at almost 300 calories, 6 grams of fat, and 20 grams of sugar, and that’s not even counting the milk. Moreover, the ingredient list contains many scary, unidentifiable words, which is never reassuring.
When you’re a kid, none of this matters. You can inhale a swimming pool of ice cream or gallons of soda and not receive the slightest consequence, or judgment for that matter. When you’re an adult, it’s different. According to cultural standards, you aren’t supposed to eat sugary, indulgent things for breakfast. Plus, your metabolism starts taking time off and you find yourself becoming more health conscious.
So what do you do when you need your crunchy, cinnamon-sugar cereal fix?
