Freezer Pancake Breakfast Sandwiches

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I am not really a morning person.

My husband gets up really, really early for work and knows better than to try to wake me up lets me sleep. In appreciation for this, I try to make sure that he has something that he can grab for breakfast. These pancake breakfast sandwiches are his favorite! It is basically like a McGriddle from McDonald's. Except I know what is in these.

I like to make a big batch of them at once and put them in the freezer so that he can microwave them before he leaves for work. I do a lot of multitasking so it saves on cooking time, too.

Here are some of the things that I do to make this work:

  • Make your pancakes a little thick so that the syrup soaks in and it is a better sandwich size. 
  • Use a cookie scoop to put the batter on the griddle. It keeps them all about the same size.  
  • When they are cooked and cooled slightly, match them in pairs. Place one pancake on a plate. and pour about a tablespoon of maple syrup in the center. Quickly put the other pancake on top and flip the pancakes over so that it runs down into the second pancake, too. It might get a little messy, but you can use the next pair of pair of pancakes to wipe the plate off and soak up any excess syrup.
  • I used ham lunchmeat this time because I got a good deal on it locally. However, bacon or sausage patties would also be delicious. Bacon is, of course, his favorite.
  • Assemble the sandwiches and wrap them in a bit of Glad Press'n'Seal. It is a bit thicker than plastic wrap, so it makes it a little easier for him to eat on the go.
  • Place all of the wrapped sandwiches in a freezer bag so that they aren't getting lost in your freezer. Although, that has happened and it is a nice surprise if I find it in time.
  • To reheat, vent the Press'n'Seal and microwave on high for 2 minutes. Be careful!
These are great because I get to sleep in and he gets a nutritious breakfast. It also saves a lot of money vs. him stopping to get breakfast on his way to work.
Do you have any tips to make breakfast a little easier? I would love to hear about it!
UPDATE! I found a faster and healthier way to make the eggs for these sandwiches! See it HERE!
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Easy Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

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Today I am sharing one of our best family recipes! We always called this "Silly Cake" because it has no eggs and mixes up right in the pan. It is perfect if you have an egg allergy or if you ran out but still want chocolate cake. Also, having no bowl to wash is great if you don't like washing dishes. Are you sold on this cake yet? You should be. It is awesome!

Also, I think the chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting (actually, we say "icing") is pretty much a standard dessert where I live. It might be a PA Dutch/central PA thing. Peanut butter and chocolate are a great combination, so it just makes sense.


But, there is a funny story behind this cake recipe. I mention on my "about page" how I used to be an awful cook. Well, the first time I tried to make this cake, I used tablespoons for everything. Salt, baking soda, etc. When it came out of the oven and looked a little funny I was very insulted because Mom didn't want to put icing on it until we tried it. Poor Dad got the first piece. We asked if it was OK and he shook his head "yes", then his eyes got wide and he violently shook his head "no" as he rushed to spit it out. He said that he had never had a cake grow in his mouth before!

Thankfully, I learned the difference between tablespoons and teaspoons.

Don't let that story scare you. My 4yo and I made this cake last week and I took pics so that I can show you how easy this cake is to make.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a 9 x 13 baking dish. We usually use a metal pan but glass is fine, too.

Next, make two wells in the dry ingredients. Put the vinegar in one and oil in the other.
Then, pour water over everything...
...and mix together really well. (Sneak peek of an apron tutorial that is coming soon!)
It will look like this:
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when you poke it. Top with frosting (and sprinkles if your 4yo insists on them).
Here is the full recipe:
Silly Cake
3 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. granulated sugar
3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. vinegar
2/3 c. vegetable oil
2 c. water
Combine dry ingredients in baking dish. Make two wells in the dry ingredients for the vinegar and oil. Pour water over everything and mix well. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in cake comes out clean.

Peanut Butter Frosting
1 stick butter or margarine
4 c. powdered sugar
4 Tbsp. milk
1/2 c. peanut butter
Cream butter and half of the powdered sugar. Stir in 4 Tbsp. of milk and the remaining powdered sugar. Mix well. Add in 1/2 cup of peanut butter and beat until fluffy. (You can add more or less peanut butter as desired.)
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Crock Pot Corn Potato Chowder

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Yeah, I wasn't sure about that combination at first.  What happened was that I was using my divided crock pot to make baked sweet potatoes and I needed another side dish for the other half that would cook all day instead of just a few hours. Well, I found several different recipes for corn chowder and ended up mashing them together to make my own. It was surprisingly good! I figured that I better write it down so that I don't forget what I did and I might as well do that on the blog and share it with the rest of you.

Crock Pot Corn Potato Chowder

1 quarts frozen corn (canned would work, too)
2 cups peeled, diced potatoes
2 cups chicken broth
1 small onion, finely chopped
6 slices bacon, browned and crumbled
2 cups milk
salt and pepper to taste

Place corn, potatoes, broth, onion, and bacon in a 4 quart crock pot. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Warm milk in the mircowave and add to crock pot. (Cold milk could risk a sudden temperature change and cause the crock to crack.) Cook for 15-20 minutes and serve. A little extra bacon on top would make it even better!

Now, to learn from my mistake... I didn't have enough room in the crock pot to add the milk, so I had to scoop it out and put it all in a pot on the stove. That works, too.

I also made some barbecue chicken and a loaf of bread in the bread maker. It was a good, hearty meal for a cold night! I love crock pot meals!

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Baked Zucchini Gratin

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I can't believe I haven't shared one of my FAVORITE zucchini recipes on the blog before! Baked zucchini gratin is one of the first zucchini dishes I ever tried. Yum...

 

Slice zucchini about 1/4" thick or less and layer in a baking pan. You can also throw some sliced onion in there, but I usually don't cause some people (i.e. myself) are picky. This time I was using yellow zucchini (peeled- see last sentence) and I sliced it with my food processor.

Melt a half stick of butter and drizzle that goodness all over the zucchini.

Spread shredded mozzarella over the zucchini.

Melt the other half stick of butter and stir in bread crumbs and grated Parmesan.

Sprinkle it on top of the zucchini and bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until you can stab the zucchini with a fork and it is tender.

This stuff is so good!

 
Baked Zucchini Gratin
 
4 c. sliced zucchini
1 medium onion, sliced thin (optional)
1 stick butter, divided
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cups plain, dry bread crumbs
1/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese
 
In a 9 x 13 baking pan, layer onion and zucchini slices. Melt 1/2 stick of butter and drizzle over zucchini. Top with mozzarella. Melt remaining butter and mix in bread crumbs and Parmesan. Sprinkle evenly over the top of mozzarella layer. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

Our zucchini plants are going crazy, so I am always trying new zucchini recipes. Here are some other ones I have posted in the past:

Zucchini Alfredo
Zucchini Crab Cakes
Zucchini Pie
Zucchini Bread
Zucchini Chocolate Cake

Pinterest Recipes ~ Tested and Approved

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I LOVE PINTEREST!

When I am menu planning, I like to look for new recipes on Pinterest. I never know if they are going to be good or not, so I like to hear from other people that they have tried it and liked it. So, I thought I would share some of the recent recipes I have tried and liked!

Last night I made grilled honey mustard chicken (I didn't have dijon and had to use regular mustard) and it was great! (Well, to be honest, the grill ran out of gas and it took a lot longer to make than it should have, but that was not the fault of the recipe. #keepingitreal)

I also made creamy potatoes and peas. We have a few peas in our garden so I thought this would be a nice recipe to try. I added bacon as one commenter suggested, but you couldn't really taste it, so I felt like it was wasted bacon.

Other things I have tried and loved...

Pioneer Woman's Cheesy Cauliflower Soup. This was awesome! I usually make soup on Thursday nights during the fall and winter. I think this is a nice, lighter alternative to potato soup.

Skinny Turkey and Wild Rice Soup. We raised our own turkeys last year- one of them was 30 pounds! The others were 17-27 pounds and I had to get creative with the leftovers. This soup was the ticket! I have even frozen it- we ate some yesterday for lunch. I don't usually add the half-and-half. Sometimes I add a little milk, but it doesn't need it because it is already creamy and delicious!

Monte Cristo Sandwiches. If we have ham lunchmeat, this is one of my go-to-last-minute suppers. I had never even heard of these sandwiches before, but we love them!

Taste of Home's 40-minute Hamburger Buns. I made these a few weeks ago when we wanted burgers but didn't have buns. I usually do pretzel buns, but I was in the mood to try something new. I did let mine rise a little longer- maybe a half hour or so. They turned out great! Not too dense, which I was worried about with less rising time.

Have you tried any new recipes lately? I would love to hear about it! I can also add you to my Pinterest Check-Offs board if you send me your e-mail address. :)

New and Improved Zucchini Alfredo

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We are continuing "Zucchini Week" here and so far it is going well! I am still freezing more than we can eat, but it will be good in casseroles and zucchini bread this winter. Tonight we had sausage, potato, and zucchini packets on the grill, but last night my husband wanted my new and improved version of zucchini alfredo. The original recipe is HERE, but we like this one better. It is creamier and the texture is better with the addition of some pasta. If you are going for low carb, use the other one.

New and Improved Zucchini Alfredo
1 lb. penne pasta, cooked and drained
8 cups thinly sliced zucchini
2 cloves garlic
1 stick butter
2 cups milk
8 oz. cream cheese
6 oz. bag shredded parmesan cheese
1/2 cup mozzarella
1 tsp. salt
Saute the zucchini in butter with minced or pressed garlic cloves until soft, but not mushy. Meanwhile, melt cream cheese with milk in a medium saucepan. Stir in parmesan and mozzarella. Add salt. When the sauce is creamy, combine with the cooked pasta and zucchini. Heat thoroughly and serve.