There never seems to be enough time in the morning to sit down and have a proper breakfast, the way the Cleaver family used to in “Leave it to Beaver.” You know, June in her shirtwaist and pearls layering perfect pancakes onto Wally and the Beav’s plates as they talk about what a swell school year it’s going to be, and Beaver worries that Wally won’t invite him to his hamburger party, while Eddie Haskell tells June that she’s looking particularly lovely that morning. I remember watching that show as a kid and marveling that people might actually live that way. In my family growing up, we sat in grumpy silence at breakfast, avoiding eye contact and snarling at anyone who tried to start a conversation. Breakfast was toast, or you could have toast, but there was never a pancake or a piece of bacon on a school day.
Cut to reality, and breakfast is a very different animal now. There’s no reason it can’t be delicious and substantial, even when you’re eating in the car or bus, or at your desk at work. Here are three recipes for on-the-run breakfasts that can be made the night before and heated up just before you head out the door.
Note: I use shortcuts in two of these recipes: pancake mix and crescent rolls from the dairy case, because who do I look like – June Cleaver?
Bacon, Egg and Cheddar Crescent Rolls
Serves: 4
Prep time: 40 minutes, including 15 minutes to cook the bacon in the oven
Ingredients
- 1 package Immaculate crescent rolls (non-GMO), or other crescent rolls found in the dairy case
- 10 strips bacon, well-cooked
- 2 eggs, whisked together for making an eggwash
- 1/3 cup sharp, white cheddar cheese, shredded
Directions
- Cook the bacon in the oven at 400 degrees for fifteen minutes.
- While bacon is cooking, unwrap crescent rolls and brush several coats of the eggwash on to the dough.
- Sprinkle egg-covered dough with cheese.
- As soon as the bacon is well-cooked, pat dry and working quickly because the bacon will become brittle very fast, place pieces of bacon on top of cheese and roll dough into crescents.
- Brush crescents thoroughly with eggwash on the outer side of the dough and place on a Silpat-covered baking sheet.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until brown. Serve immediately, or allow to cool, then refrigerate until needed.
- If you’re refrigerating the rolls, it’s best to warm them in a 350 degree oven for 7 minutes, to keep the dough crisp.
Smoked Salmon Tartine with Boursin and Eggs
Note: A tartine is a hot, open-faced sandwich. This one is just as good cold.
Serves: 2
Prep time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 slices multi-grain seeded bread
- 2 ounces Boursin cheese
- 2 ounces smoked salmon
- ½ cup white onions
- 2 eggs, hard-boiled
- fresh dill for garnish
- 1 teaspoon butter
Directions
- Chop onions into narrow slices and cook in butter at low heat about 7 minutes until they are golden brown.
- While onions are cooking, toast the bread.
- Spread bread with Boursin.
- Drain onions and sprinkle liberally across the top of the cheese.
- Layer smoked salmon and hard-boiled egg slices on top of salmon and garnish with fresh dill.
- For a hot sandwich, heat in microwave for 45 seconds before serving.
Fruit-stuffed Pancakes To Go
Serves: makes 9 pancakes in a cup
Prep time: 45 minutes, including 25 minutes of baking time
Ingredients
- 3 cups pancake mix, and eggs and milk, as called for in the instructions for the mix
- 2 cups fruit (I used red raspberries and blueberries)
- ½ cup water
- 1/2 cup sugar
- maple syrup for adding to pancakes
- paper cupcake cups that are strong enough to stand on their own, or standard pleated paper cupcake holders in a cupcake pan
Directions
- In a small saucepan, put sugar, water, and 2 tablespoons of fruit and cook at low heat for 10-12 minutes until fruit dissolves and a thick syrup is formed.
- Wash remaining fruit and drain and set aside. Make pancake batter according to directions on container.
- When fruit syrup is thickened, pour over remaining fruit and mix together.
- Fill paper cupcake holders ¼ full with pancake batter.
- Layer a spoonful of fruit into the holders. Pour just enough pancake batter over the fruit to cover it, but do not allow batter to be more than three-quarters full in each cup.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes (the length of time will vary, based on the size of the cupcake holders) until golden brown on top.
- When ready to eat, cut a small round circle of pancake out of the top of the cupcake and pour some syrup into it.
- Grab a fork and go!
Note: If you’re making these the night before, store at room temperature and heat in microwave for 45 seconds before serving.
