Guess who's coming for breakfast?

I love my breakfast Saturdays.  It turns my ordinary ho-hum weekend into something extraordinary and a day I look forward to.  7:35 am rolled around and no officers.  I started to worry there may have been some confusion due to the impromptu breakfast last weekend, but then I looked outside and noticed the roads were wet from a light rain -- that explained it.  Anyway, they arrived and, I'm happy to say, with appetites.

Among other things, I made my Applesauce Pancakes. Ridiculously easy to make: 

Applesauce Pancakes
2 cups Aunt Jemima Buttermilk Complete pancake mix
1-1/2 cups water
1 little 4 oz. cup of Motts Cinnamon Applesauce

Update 1.1.12 -- I have recently started adding chopped pecans and a splash of McCormick 'All Spice' to my Applesauce pancakes.  McCormick All Spice is a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg and clove all-in-one. I am somewhat of a 'late bloomer' in the kitchen, so I am learning a lot of this as I go....but having a BLAST!  Some of you have shared with me that your kids and grandkids love the recipe as originally posted (without the pecans and All Spice). My advice to you is don't change it! If they love it, I would go with the 'if it ain't broken, don't fix it' concept. Split the batter if you want to try the All Spice and pecans and let them have a bite. I have a feeling they'll like it though. :)

Mix the pancake mix and water together until the large lumps disappear (use a wire whisk if you have one).  Add the applesauce and stir or whisk well.  Let stand 1-2 minutes to thicken.  I usually transfer the mixture to a plastic tea pitcher -- it makes it easier to pour.  Heat the griddle to 350 degrees.  After the griddle is hot, lightly grease to prevent sticking (I use spray Pam.)  Pour the mix on the griddle making 3-5 pancakes.  After the pancake starts to bubble and the bottom is a golden brown, flip it over.  Takes just a minute after you flip it, then it's done. 

Enjoy! 

To all of my officers, be safe and thank you for your service always.

p.s. I was brave this morning and slept in .....

No more babysitting the bacon!

When I cooked my first breakfast for the South Division 1st shifters on June 26, 2010, 11 officers came that first morning. There were so many police cars coming and going throughout the morning that a TV news truck pulled up and asked one of the officers what was going on. That still makes me laugh!

Anyway, it didn't take me long to learn that I needed to 'cook smarter' if I had to fry up three packs of bacon at a time. Thank goodness, some friends of mine (Frank and Diane) were visiting from Tampa that weekend and Diane told me about a chef on the Food Network who cooks bacon in the oven.  So I tried it and I really liked it. 

Martha Stewart has a fool-proof way to cook bacon.

Of course, I have to modify the way I do it because I 'partially' cook the bacon a few days ahead of a big breakfast. Then the morning of the breakfast, I cook it the rest of the way on a stove-top griddle. It's a HUGE time-saver.

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
• Line your rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Bake for 12-13 minutes, rotating the sheet once at the halfway through cooking time.
• SET A TIMER!  It is so much easier to forget about it when it's not on the stove. I set my timer for 7 minutes, then rotate the pan and bake for another 5-7 minutes (check it at 5 minutes to see if it needs another minute or two.)  Ovens vary, so you might need a few extra minutes. I have a double-oven and the bottom oven tends to cook about 2-3 minutes faster than the top oven. Whether you're using one oven or two, I would start checking it after a total of 11 minutes. 
• Don't forget, my cooking time is for 'partially' cooked bacon. Cook longer as needed if you are ready to serve it.   

 
What I love about cooking a lot of bacon at one time is that if I have any left over, I can microwave individual slices for 60 seconds for a quick BLT or just a minute or two in the frying pan.

I store my partially cooked bacon in a Tupperware or Rubbermaid rectangle air-tight container and stack the back in-between paper towel sheets.

Just a typical Saturday morning at AHOP

Some friends of mine have been encouraging me to start a blog to document all of my cooking events for the CMPD.  Yesterday, the blog finally started to take shape and it developed a cute little personality, so I thought I would start the blogging process today.

Yesterday the rain woke me at 3:15 am.  It wasn't a breakfast Saturday, so I could sleep in.  But I started thinking about my officers and what kind of day they'd have if the rain continued.  The next thing I knew, I was sending an email to the two 1st shift sergeants to see if there was any interest in an impromptu breakfast.  One sergeant replied encouraging me to go back to sleep and said "are you sure you want to do this?"  He had been summoned the night before to be at the office at 3:30 am, so I think my email was a pleasant surprise.  So I got busy! Impromptu is always fun!  5 officers, 2 volunteers, laughter and great conversation.