Breakfast Couscous

In an attempt to eat a more varied breakfast, I made this Breakfast Couscous dish last week. I had made it once before and remembered it was easy, so decided to give it a second try. It is in fact very easy to make. I adapted it from the original recipe found in Cooking Light because I didn't have all the ingredients. Also, the recipe was intended for use while camping, so it did provide directions using dried milk, but I went ahead and used regular 2% milk instead. It made enough for 3 breakfasts, about 2/3 c. each serving.


Breakfast Couscous
adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients:
1 cup milk
1/4 c. water
1/2 c. uncooked couscous
1/2 c. dried cranberries (or 1/4 c. dried cranberries, 1/4 c. raisins)
2 T. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
optional: toasted walnuts or pecans, chopped

Directions:
1. Boil water and milk in a small saucepan.
2. Stir in remaining ingredients and remove from heat.
3. Cover and let stand 10 minutes.

See, very very easy!

Breakfast for Guests

This recipe came from Food & Wine magazine--a birthday gift from Lucas. I was skeptical about the ricotta cheese, but it made for incredibly moist pancakes with a slight crispiness on the edges. We tried a few without blueberries as well (Lucas is not a huge fan of berries in bread like items), and found that they are good either way (Lucas did enjoy those with blueberries as well). They were served with pure maple syrup and butter and will in fact be served to anyone who comes to stay with us and is here for breakfast. If you want to try them yourself:
Ingredients:
1.5 c. flour 1.5 c. plus 2 T. milk
1 tsp baking powder 6 oz. ricotta cheese
1.5 tsp kosher salt 1 T. vanilla
3 eggs, separated 1 pint fresh blueberries

Directions:
1. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the milk, ricotta cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients to this bowl until smooth.
2. Beat the egg whites at medium speed until frothy. Beat at high speed until soft peaks form, then fold egg whites into batter until no streaks are left.
3. Heat a griddle, then lightly butter it. Ladle a scant 1/4 c. of batter for each pancake, using the cup to thin out the batter onto the griddle (they cook best if thin). Cook over moderately low heat until they begin to set (1-2 minutes), then lightly press a few blueberries into each pancake. Flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown. Transfer to plate and keep warm in oven. Can be made ahead and refrigerated overnight. Whisk batter before using.