RECIPE: Cinnamon Roll Waffles (NOT Paleo or Low Carb!!)

Every once in a while we find recipes for things that are just too decadent to pass up. I've been very good following a Low Carb lifestyle and staying extremely active, so I decided to allow myself a cheat day. Yes, that would be a 24 hour period where I can, within reason, allow myself to deviate from my regular lifestyle choices. I ate a fully loaded pumpkin muffin for lunch yesterday and within minutes I was dealing with a major hot flash. For dinner I mostly ate low carb ... Raclette and steamed broccoli, but I did have a few strands of pasta, and that really pushed me over the edge. Hot flash city! (I will have to admit, though ... I was FREEZING, so the added heat wasn't totally unappreciated.)

So, this brings me to breakfast this morning. Before I vowed to stick to low carb eating, I had purchased one of those tubes of pre-made cinnamon rolls. You know the kind ... You unwrap the label and the tube splits open making sounds similar to a gun going off ... The kind that contains a small pot of sugary cinnamon glaze that seeps put inside the tube and creates a huge mess before you even realize it. Yes ... You know the one. Many of us grew up smelling them as they baked in the oven and we just about burst with excitement waiting to taste their yummy goodness. (Then paid dearly for it later!)

Today was no different from those childhood memories. Well, almost. The big difference was that the waffle iron was involved and the baking time was shortened considerably. Here's what happened ...

I started with a hot waffle iron, butter flavored grape seed oil and Pillsbury "Grands" cinnamon rolls.

 After spraying the heated waffle iron, I placed the raw cinnamon rolls inside and closed the lid.

 Once the green light came on, indicating they were done, I opened the lid and ... 

 Sure enough ... They were perfectly done!

 I warmed the cinnamon glaze and drizzled it on top of the waffles and served with fruit, meats and a spot of cheese.

 Makes for a beautiful breakfast!

RECIPE: Baked Egg and Smoked Turkey Cups

I have seen recipes similar to this all over the Internet, but they almost always include ham. I don't eat ham, but I figured there are plenty of deli-sliced meats that would be tasty instead of ham. I was in Trader Joe's the other day and found antibiotic-free smoked turkey, so I bought some.

INGREDIENTS:
6 large eggs
6 slices smoked turkey
Sea salt
Fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup grated or crumbled cheese (your choice - I LOVE the English Cheddar with caramelized onions!!! Salem Blue Cheese crumbles are good, too!)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Spray muffin tin cups with olive oil, or use silicone muffin cups. (I used the silicone muffin cups from World Market. They sell them in packs of sis for $2.49.)

3. Place a piece of smoked turkey (or whatever meat you want) into the cup creating a 'cup' for the egg.
4. Carefully crack and pour one egg into each cup and sprinkle with sea salt and pepper.
5. Bake the egg cups for 12 - 17 minutes, depending you your preferred doneness of the egg. After about 12 minutes the whites should be firm and the yolks will be runny. We like our yolks firmer, so I baked them for 17 minutes. The edges of the turkey were a little crunchy, so I'll try 15 minutes next time. So much of this depends on your oven and your preference.
6. Remove from oven, sprinkle cheese on top and serve!

Breakfast is served! (And, yes, that's a slice of the Rosemary Olive Oil bread I made last night!)