Brunch

Buttermilk Plum Pancakes

August 24, 2009 by Charles 3 Comments

In feeding my clafoutis addiction, I got into the habit of picking a handful of plums and peaches every Saturday morning at the Farmers’ Market. The peaches, both white and yellow, would make their way into my Peach Italian Ice. The plums, I decided, would partner perfectly with pancakes.

Plums were first cultivated in China about 2000 years ago, but didn’t arrive in the United States until about 1880, when the renowned botanist, Luther Burbank, began importing Japanese plums into California. Indeed, at last count, California was home to nearly 200 varieties of plums. Unfortunately, most plums are characterized…

Banana Chocolate-Chip Muffins

May 21, 2009 by Charles 9 Comments

I tend to stock-pile bananas. Every weekend, without fail, I buy enough bananas to get me through the work-week. Unfortunately, I tend to overindulge my banana enthusiasm. And before I know it, I’ve tossed another two overripe bananas into the freezer – with the idea that some day soon they would find themselves in banana bread.

“Soon” soon took on new meaning.

Last week I opened my freezer to a veritable army of frozen bananas, their ranks having swelled over the …

Banana French Toast

May 9, 2009 by Charles Leave a Comment

I don’t quite know what prompted it, but for an entire summer, my youngest brother had to have French toast before camp. What might have started as a special breakfast soon became the breakfast. Every day. And with time, his demands seemed only to grow. It had to have the crusts removed. It needed to be in the shape of a circle. It had to come with powdered sugar.

Sometimes we’d all have French toast, but more often than not, we were content with cereal. No matter. He stuck to his guns. And Mom faithfully complied, serving up French Toast, then rushing us all off to camp.

On this Mother’s Day, why not…

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

February 2, 2009 by Charles 4 Comments

Pancakes are universal – nearly every culture has a griddlecake of some kind. But not only are pancakes universal, they’re classical – literally. The Ancient Romans collected pancake recipes in the Apicius, their 5th Century cookbook.

From these early origins, the pancake has evolved into a quintessential American comfort food, a part of almost every family’s Sunday brunch.

This recipe …

Easy Sticky Buns

January 22, 2009 by Charles 5 Comments

As part of my college application, I had to provide the usual information – SAT scores, class schedules, teacher references, and essays. But unlike the common application, my alma mater had a section entitled “Hodgepodge,” which was an effort to gain at least a cursory insight into the applicant’s personality.

The questions in the hodgepodge section ran the gamut – from your favorite songs and television shows, to the books on your mantle. The Office of Admissions also wanted to know your favorite time of day. While the former questions gave me some pause, the latter I knew in an instant: Morning – which for me, meant breakfast.

Breakfast might only have been …