Pages

10/12/18

Homemade Cheesy Au Gratin Potatoes


Because we don't indulge in carby potatoes often, I'm THRILLED when we do and they are sooooo good that it's worth every. single. carb.

These are that.

I used my vegetable spiralizer instead of using a food processor or grater to simply slice them.  You absolutely can slice your potatoes thin for traditional au gratin potatoes - but to get the look of the ones in my photos, just use a spiral slicer of whatever brand you like.  

 




Cheesy Au Gratin Potatoes

4-6 large potatoes (I used Klondike Rose potatoes in these photos)
1/4 c green onions, sliced
1/4 c butter (1/2 stick)
1 T flour
1 t salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 c heavy cream
1/2 c unflavored, unsweetened almond milk or regular milk
2 c grated cheese - cheddar

Spiralize or slice your potatoes thin into a greased or sprayed casserole dish that is safe for the oven.
In a saucepan on the stove, melt the butter, add the green onions and cook briefly to soften them.
Add the flour and whisk and cook for a minute or two.
Add the salt and pepper, and the cream.  Whisk and bring to a simmer.
Add the cheese, continue to stir or whisk to melt the cheese.
Pour over the potatoes.
Bake in a 375 (or 350) oven for about an hour. The potatoes should be tender, and most of the liquid sauce absorbed and thickened with just a bit of liquid left.  Remove the potatoes and let them set 10 minutes before serving to set up.  They will absorb a little more of the sauce and thicken as they cool a bit.

If you don't spiralize them and you simple slice them, you might need to add another 15 minutes for baking.  If they are getting darker than you like, just put foil over them for the last 10-15 minutes.  Don't bake them covered the whole time though or they will be too runny.





Butter and onions with the flour added - whisk and cook for a minute or two

After adding the cream and cheese...

Pour over the potatoes and bake for about an hour for spiralized - about an hour and 20 minutes might be needed for regular sliced potatoes.





Print Friendly and PDF

10/10/18

Cinnamon Breakfast Muffins - Coffee Cake Style! Two Versions, including sugar free and low carb

Sugar Free and Low Carb Version - literally as I was eating it for breakfast with coffee

If you don't have to worry about carbs or cook sugar free, I love a recipe I posted back in 2007 for a copy cat Entenmann's recipe - make it into a loaf pan or into muffins.  I LOVE that coffee cake but because we more often than not are eating low carb and sugar free by choice, I use the one I posted just after this one.  More on that in a minute.

FIRST:

A regular, full flour and full sugar version I posted in 2007

Entenmann's Style Coffee Cake Loaf

3 3/4 c flour
1 3/4 c sugar
1 T baking powder
1/2 t salt

Mix in a large mixing bowl and then remove 2 cups of the dry mix to reserve for later.

Now to the rest of the flour in the mixing bowl add;

1 stick butter (not margarine)
2 eggs
2/3 milk

The batter will be thick, spread this into a greased and floured pan (I use a little of the reserved flour topping mix to flour the pan). Now, you are wondering what size aren't you? Any size you want. If you use a 9X13 pan, you will have a thin cake, a 14 inch square would be nice, a 9X9" square will be a thick cake. I personally like to use a bread loaf pan. I like mine as a 'pound cake'. Spread the batter into your pan.

To the reserved flour mixture add;

1 stick butter
1/4 c brown sugar
2 t cinnamon
dash of salt

Mix this together with your finger tips until it forms pea sized crumbles. Cover the entire cake with this topping. If you chose to use a loaf pan you will only use half the topping. Freeze the rest in a baggy to use on muffins at a later date!

Bake at 350 degrees - a 9X13" pan approximately 30 minutes or a loaf pan it will have to bake at least 60 minutes. I bake mine about 1 hour and 15 minutes until a sharp knife inserted into the center comes out clean.


 __________________________________________


Low Carb and Sugar Free Coffee Cake Muffins

2 T real butter
2 oz. cream cheese
4 eggs
1/2 c sweetener of choice (I use a mixture of granulated Ideal and Truvia with a few drops of a liquid sweetener)
2 t vanilla
1/2 c unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 c almond flour
1/2 c coconut flour
1 t baking powder
1/4 t salt

Topping:
1 c almond flour
1/4 c coconut flour
1/3 c sweetener of choice (granulated 'sugar' style)
1/2 t molasses
3 T butter
1 t cinnamon

(If you can find a good 'brown sugar' version of a natural sweetener, you can use that in place of the sweetener and molasses.  I have used two brands in the past that I loved but they both stopped making the brown sugar versions - grrr - and the splenda and Truvia versions you see in the stores now have real sugar in them so they are NOT sugar free.  I had an order for Just Like Sugar Brown that was canceled last week for lack of availability so I don't know if they are stopping production as well.  Honestly, over the past two years, I usually just make my own 'brown' sweetener by mixing a dab of molasses into regular white sweeteners.  This gives the flavor that goes so well in cookies and muffins.)

I use the 'large' muffin tins that have 6 spaces, lined with the large muffin liners.  Spray your liners with a Pam style spray.  Mix your muffin batter together either in an electric mixing bowl or your food processor until blended smooth.  Divide into your muffin cups.  Now mix the topping ingredients either by hand or with a fork until it resembles pea like crumbs or just put it into your food processor and pulse it a couple times.

Cover your muffins with the crumb topping.  Bake at 350 about 25-30 minutes for smaller regular sized muffins (12) or about 45 minutes for the large size.  Because I find baking with almond flour always takes longer to get 'done' in the middle, I cover my baked goods with a piece of foil after about 30 minutes to keep them from getting too dark, and then around 40-45 minutes I turn the oven OFF but leave the muffins IN.  I check on them about every 5 minutes by lightly pressing on the top to see if they are set up and firm - not jiggly anymore.  Then let them cool completely out on a cookie rack.  These are best the next day and stay very moist inside.


Crumb Topping:



Pile it on...


Literally took a photo of my breakfast muffin and coffee as I was enjoying it!




Print Friendly and PDF