French Toast Cups with Cottage Cheese and Fried Apples

I feel I need to begin this post with a reminder for prayer for the people of Japan. I am really bad at stuff like this. For some reason this sort of tragedy always seems to reduce my constant babble to a confused stutter. I guess I should be glad to know that something can quiet me :) I just feel that I absolutely can not discuss the makings of french toast cups this morning without pointing out that there are some very cold, hurt and devastated folks out in the world right now, who need to be remembered. It was not so long ago that the region I live in was rocked by it's own tragedy. I will never forget the sensation of returning to work (civilization) in a relatively unaffected area and hearing about the storm and it's aftermath through the eyes of people who had never lost electricity or more important television. The people I work with were wonderful and helpful and extremely concerned. Still, I will never forget how it felt, reporting into work (at a job I had only had for a couple of months) in a grungy pair of shorts and T-shirt that I had hand washed myself in a tub with a washboard. I remember how odd it was to me that every one's hair was still fixed and that they knew more about what was happening than I did. A lot more :) Don't get me wrong. My friends were experiencing the aftermath of the storm, but they experienced a different part of it than I had. My point is, I think it is easy (Even for me. Even now.) for us to watch this sort of thing on the news and not feel the full weight of what is actually happening, because in truth it is just more than we want to feel. It is easier to just turn that subconscious switch in our head that tells us we are watching television, not real life. Our media presents us with fantastic stories about this tragedy, but for the people of Japan, who are living it, it is just real. It is not fantastic or tragic, or great story telling. It is just keep it together, take care of yours, and survive. So please take some time this morning, if you haven't already, to say a prayer for Japan and it's people. Also, those who want to help can go to www.redcross.org and donate to Japan Earthquake and Pacific Tsunami. People can also text REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation to help those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific. I pulled this directly from the red cross website. If anyone has additional info about aid to Japan please feel free to comment it below :)

Now, about french toast cups :) I don't know why, but on the weekends I always want breakfast. REAL BREAKFAST! During the week I am completely satisfied with my 4 oz of yogurt and 1/2 a cup of fresh fruit with a coffee chaser, but on the weekends I want something special. This presents a challenge for me, now that I am trying to make healthier eating choices. A girl can only eat so many egg white omelets you know :) Yesterday, I made MRob and I a brunch of these yummy little french toast cups. I pictured this recipe with fresh blueberries rather than apples, but I had apples instead of blueberries and MRob loves fried apples, so I gave it a shot. It came out great! The little honey drizzle finish made it perfect. Here's how I made it.

Crack to eggs into a medium sized bowl and add 1/4 tsp cinnamon,

 

a pinch of nutmeg,

 

and a pinch of ginger.

Whisk thoroughly.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray 2 ramekins or muffin cups with non-stick spray. Soak a slice of bread in the egg mixture (I used Nature's Own sugar free bread, but I suspect that a regular whole grain bread might work easier).

Place the saturated slice of bread in the sprayed ramekin or muffin cup and form it to the shape of the cup letting the edges of the bread spill over the top as necessary. Place on a baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes checking at 15 minutes. The french toast cups are done win they are puffed up and lightly browned.

While cups are baking prepare filling.

You will need one large granny smith apple.

Turn a medium sized non-stick pan on to heat over medium heat. Peel and chop apple into 1/2 inch pieces sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon, 10 squirts I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, 1 single serving packet of Truvia, a pinch of nutmeg, and a pinch of ginger. Toss apples, thoroughly coating in dry ingredients.

Add apples to heated pan along with 1 tbsp of water. Reduce heat slightly and cook until apples are lightly browned.

 Add 1 cup of cottage cheese to a bowl with 1 single serving sized packet of Truvia, and 1/2 tsp vanilla. Stir to incorporate.

When cool, remove french toast cups from Ramekins by running a thin knife around the edge of the ramekin pressing against the ramekin. Gently pry the french toast cup out of the ramekin being careful not to tear. Place french toast cup on a plate. Fill center of cup with cottage cheese mixture and top with fried apples. Drizzle with 1/2 tsp of local honey and enjoy :)

Hope you have a great Monday :)

Love,

Stephanie H.

Vacation Rejuvenation

I am happy to report that we are back from our vacation to the beautiful mountains of Arkansas, and after a couple of days on the Buffalo River I am feeling refreshed and ready to get back to my routine. We had an absolutely great time despite having to change our plans a couple of times due to weather conditions. The original plan was to leave out on Friday after work, but then we found out that the weather was supposed to be bad early Saturday. Consequently, we decided to leave out early Saturday morning (4 a.m. early), and spend the time it would be storming, making our way to Arkansas, rather than hiking in soggy conditions. The revised plan worked perfectly. We arrived in the Ozark National Forest around 4:00 that afternoon.

 

 

We made our way to the lovely little town of Jasper (population 498).

We went straight to Emma's Museum of Junk. 

 

We visited this shop the last time we were in the area and really enjoyed looking around, so I

knew I wanted to get there early enough to spend a little time and take some good photos to share with you guys. Emma's as expected, did not disappoint. It is wonderfully, amazingly random and fun. I was shocked, when I went back and looked at the pictures I took, by the things I saw that I hadn't actually noticed in the store. I invite you to look for things you recognize in these photos and I would love for you to share a comment about anything you see that has meaning to you. Come on...It'll be fun!

Here is some of what we saw at Emma' Museum of Junk :)

 

 

My mom totally had that little "rings and things" ceramic thing up on top of that crate.

Yes, that is a hornet's nest. No, there were not hornets included (thankfully). It's a museum of junk folks. Hornet's nests are fair game.

 Yes, Emma does have Prince Albert in a can. Don't bother calling :)

 

 

 

I do believe my mother had/has? a lady's shaver very similar to that one :)

"I'm strong to the finish, 'cause I eat my spinach. I'm Popeye the sailor man. Toot Toot!"

Well since they're not soooooo old, hmmmm. Who am I to judge. I collect plates :)

 

 

Emma has a very relaxed marketing program :) Did I mention that I love this place?

 

Pine cone shingles...BRILLIANT!!!

These are really cool, and I am wondering now, why I didn't buy one.

Next we went to the Ozark Cafe for dinner.

 

Can you read that? It says, Celebrating 100 years. Amazing! It also says recommended by

Southern Living Magazine.

 

I totally should leave this part out, because my sister in law is never, NEVER, going to let me live this down, but here it goes.

We ordered…

…fried pickles as an appetizer.

Go ahead my dear sister in law. Have your fun, but mind you I hiked for 9 hours up the side of a mountain the next day. We were on vacation, and MRob wanted those pickles. He works hard. He should have the occasional vacation pickle if he wants it :)

For dinner MRob ordered chili dogs.

and I ordered something called a Cheese Volcano Burger. I have a weakness for hamburgers and cheeseburgers to be specific, but I never in my wildest dreams expected this:

This was, by far the craziest cheese burger I have ever come across, but it was darn good.

It was quite messy and the procedure for eating it took a couple of minutes to figure out,  but it

was good :)

 

After we finished eating and settled up at the restaurant we headed towards Kyle's Landing campground to set up camp for the evening.

MRob gathered fire wood on the way down to the campground.

I took pictures of MRob gathering firewood from the warmth and safety of the truck cab :)

That night the low was 27 °F, but I never knew it. MRob and I were warm and cozy in our down sleeping bags. However, I did notice it was plenty cold the next morning. Here's a picture of my crazy husband, folding up our stuff that morn, barefoot and in shorts in 20 something weather. Psychotic!!

The trail head.

The Buffalo River far below.

Twin Falls.

 

 

Cool looking root system at Twin falls.

Neat little shack along the trail. No idea what it was. By the size of it, I am guessing smoke house???

I totally want to plant a little patch of yellow flowers at the corner of my house after visiting Arkansas. I saw this by so many places that I wonder if it doesn't mean something.

Backpack Love :)

I had such a good time just hanging with my honey, doing our thing :) We ended up leaving Arkansas a day early, because it was supposed to rain again on Monday, and the road leading out of Kyle's Landing was so steep and gravely we were afraid we wouldn't be able to get out if it rained (we had already run into a little problem earlier with no rain). It reminded me of our first backpack trip (ever) to Buffalo River when we got caught in a severe thunderstorm with lightning cracking all around us. I wore a straw hat on that trip. It got so soaked with rain that it tightened on my head. Straw is not good for backpacking. Lesson learned :) We waited the storm out in one of the abandoned old homesteads on the mountain. We imagined what the people who lived there must have been like, as best we could, while we changed clothes, ate lunch and waited for the rain to pass. Then of course, there was also our wedding day. Our "outdoor" wedding day, when it rained cats and dogs as well. The entirety of our guest list had to cram into my sister's house at the last minute (thanks again sister). I got mud on my wedding shoes. My beloved cousin destroyed a palm in my sister's yard in a fit of impromptu interior wedding decorating (thank you beloved cousin, and most beloved sister). I cried all the way down the aisle and then some.

If you aren't laughing right now, you should probably have your laugher checked. Just saying :)

 My father laughed at me and told me "You ain't gotta marry him if you don't want to Stephie".  It was the happiest day of my life (Thanks God).

I think, that is what life is, really. Periods of sunshine, in between periods of rain. Sometimes though, the rainy periods can be the best parts. It's all in how you look at things. I'll stop my romantic ramblings now.

The point is, we have never let a little water slow us down. We roll with the punches. Making lemonade is a lifestyle choice :) We ended up using the extra time to stop at a bunch of the antique and junk stores on the way home. My final pictures are from a particularly memorable place called The Mall. You have literally never seen so much stuff in all your life. If antiquing/junking were a religion, then Arkansas would surely be it's Mecca.

Old timey gas pumps…

on top of old timey gas pumps. Not to mention a giant metal chicken and…

several Kmart signs.

Cow skulls, wind chimes, soda signs galore. Last, but definitely not least…

a horses head coming out of a Coca Cola sign, a tin man and a pack of flying antlers, topped off by…

 

a six shooter arch.

Have a great Friday and an awesome weekend :)

Love,

Stephanie H.

P.S. If anyone has extra Mardi Gras beads that they are planning to throw out let me know. Mrs. Emma wants some for her Museum and MRob and I were thinking to ship her some if we can find them.

P.S.S.  I'll tell you about the plants soon, but for now, they survived. Thanks Mom and Uncle Richard :)