Fruity Desserts

 It's definitely time to put away all those cold weather ingredients.leave the cinnamon for the fall. It's too hot to fool with chocolate . Your best bet is fruit. There's nothing like a sweet treat loaded with the bounty of the season.

Strawberries are always a good addition to any cake, cupcake, muffin and even bread. Just keep in the mind that the berries should be pulverized then cooked down over a low flame.let this cool and you can fold into the batter. You can do the same for strawberry frosting too.(Keep in mind this is also wonderful on chocolate cake and cupcakes too. Another lovely and colorful treat is strawberry bread.This is perfect to make for Sunday teas or showers. It can be topped off with a vanilla glaze icing if you like , if not it's good on it's own,It's a quick bread so there'[s no yeast involved, just baking soda and baking powder for rise.Many home bakers low baking a strawberry and rhubarb pie. This is combining another harvest of the season, rhubarb with the berries for a sweet and tangy flavor. You can add just a teaspoon of orange juice to punctuate the other two's flavors. It's just stirring the cut rhubarb and berries with brown sugar, orange juice , cornstarch (for thickening, vanilla and salt. BAke in a traditional rolled out pie crust.

Of course the other star of the season is the blueberry. We're almost upon it here in New Jersey where it will last for three months until August. Again they're as versatile as the strawberry. Most home chefs love creating a Sunday morning stack of blueberry pancakes to start the day. Yet it can also work in another breakfast staple -  strata. Think a bread pudding scattered with the berries and then topped off with a home cooked  blueberry sauce. Use cubed French bread for this, layer it over blueberries and cream cheese. Then let it soak in an egg , milk and maple syrup overnight. While the strata is baking make the syrup. THis involves cooking down the berries with a mix of cornstarch, sugar and water.  Butter is added to this for richness and then poured on individual slices of the strata. (you could also save the syrup to pour over vanilla ice cream too).Peach season is also coming up. There are so many wonderful recipes to try with this ripe, plump fruit.They wonderful in such old fashioned desserts as buckles and crisps.A buckle is an easy egg free batter that just consists of milk ,f lower baking soda and salt.It;s wicked together and then spread in a pan .Layers of thinly sliced peaches are placed on top of it.A buckle is good with a blob of vanilla ice cream or freshly made whipped cream.

Fruit is the star of the season. Try any Berry or peach in a sweet dessert.It;'s tasting the bounty of Spring

Question Time Your Favorite Casserole

 With all this writing about casseroles  which is your favorite?

Baked mac your way or original

Lasagna  vegan or non vegan

Breakfast stratas - from cheesy to downright maple-y

Anything with tuma or chicken and a Campbell's soup added

Classic green bean

Let us know here. There may be a recipe and how to in the near future. In the mean time chew on this.

Hot Meals For A Blustery Night

 With March comes blustery winds and cold nights. This is the time for hot meals that are ribsticking and tasty. What to make? Anything from soups to casseroles,

Stock your pantry with a variety of different broths. These will act as the base for soups and chowders. You can make chicke, beef  and/or vegetable broths if you have the time. Store them in the freezer until they're ready to us. What is a good soup? Try a fragrant leek and potato soup.  This is an easy cook. You can add either freshly boiled potatoes or canned. Leeks are abundant right now. Use all parts of them for a tastier potage. A baked potato soup is also a good recipe to make, Top with shredded cheddar or a blob of sour cream.A good miestrone soup is another hearty broth to try. Add a variety of different veggies, from tomatoes to parsnips and carrots. Add beans for more protein. Try a mix of cannelini and kidnesy beans for color and flavor. Do you add pasta? Yes! Try smaller pasta like ditalini or shells. for a heartier fare try stews.Like soups all sorts of ingredients can be added. Try a beef stew with carrots and parsnips along with potatoes and corn. A chicken stew can resemble a pot pie without the soggy pastry bottom. Have a rich creamy gravy that's perfect with dumplings.

Cassaroles are a tasty and filling dish on a cold March night. The most famous and well liked is lasagna. This can be made several different ways. It can be filled with beef crumbles or it can be vegan, Add plant based crumbles or sausage for a different flavor. Ricotta gives it a creaminess but you don;t have to have it. Try a layer of vegan or regular Parmesan for a different flavor. Try adding sliced eggplant, and bell peppers. Another crowd pleaser is baked Macaroni and cheese. Again you can bake the classic or. vary it. The traditional recipe calls for elbow macaroni and a good sharp cheddar. Butter flour and milk gives it a creaminess and velvetiness. A layer of breadcrumbs is added to give it a nice crunchiness and crispness. You can  vary this with crumbled bacon or have laors of bacon between the macaroni and cheese sauce. You also can sub in other cheeses like a mix of Parmesan and Asiago  - sort of like what Panera offers. If the family is craving breakfast for dinner then try a cheesy strata. This is layering French or Italian bread with egg and cheese. You could add strips of ham ro bacon to it for a more flavorful bite.

A cold March night deserves a hot , filling meal. It can be a soup, stew or cassarole.Try any to warm up the family.

March Plans

 Even though it's only the first of the month ,March is a holiday rich one. There's St.Patrick;s day  followed by Purim. Pam Sunday and Easter Sunday end the month. Throw in bridal showers for those May and June brides and you have a lot fo planning and cooking to do.

St Paddy's Day may be the easiest to prep for. Its just corned beef and cabbage , right? Actually there's a lot more . You may want to make homemade colcannon, that yummy mix of kale and cabbage cooked with mashed potatoes and garlic or onions. The dish becomes labor intensive if you use homemade mashed. The colcannon only takes about ten to fifteen minutes to crisp up like a giant potato pancake. The're also Irish soda bread.If you used up your flour for some Valentuines' day cookies and cakes then it;s time to go out and ge tmore along with raiins for this treat. If you;re celebrating Purim, then it's also baking . This time is hamentasen ,  filled cookies to symbolize eating Hamen's ears or pockets. The dough must be chilled before being rolled out, and cut into triangles. They then have to be filled with either poppyseed or Mohn, prune, Levkar or apricot filling. These can be a lot of work especially if you;'re making tow or three dozen for a party. You may also want to bakes a loaf or two of kulich a challah type bread too.

Pam Sunday and Easter also mean a lot of planning, cooking and baking. This is the time to start planning if you want a smaller dinner or a large one with family and friends. Usually Palm Sunday is spent with the immediate family while Easter is a bigger gathering. You could have just a small ham with some trimmings for Palm Sunday and save the big family brunch for Easter a week later. Most families serve ham or incorporate it into quiches and frittatas . You could also  serve a whole ham accompanied by a cheesy strata full of eggs and cheddar. Bake mini muffins in different flavors as well . These are perfect for the little ones. As for dessert, a traditional Easter lamb shaped cake is always nice. Just remember that this is labor intensive and you'll need a lot of flour , sugar and butter for the cake and frosting./ Since this is also the month for bridal showers now is the time to start planning for bridesmaids and mothers. If the weather grows warm and Springlike, then think of a back yard tea party with sandwiches and small cakes. Again the couple's mothers can also get together and prepare hot dishes such as roasts and sides for an indoor sit down dinner if that's more preferable.

March is here and with it a host of holidays. Start deciding and planning what you want to make and bake. Be prepared for this busy month ahead.

New Year New Treats

 How better than to start a New Year than with new and fun recipes. You don't have to look far. It's right at your fingertips .

Yesterday's New York Times Food section had some great ideas for parties and the morning after  for this weekend.One of the highlights and it should be the highlight of  any New Year's dessert table is the Paris Brest- Claire Saffitz a regular contributor and author of may a baking cookbook gave the recipe. This is a grand choux pastry filled with a complicated pudding like creme of hazelnuts  almond butter , vanilla, eggs milk and butter. The sweet was created in honor fo the famed Paris-Brest bike race back in 1910 by Louis Durand.It's a spectacular choux pastry cake which is both light and filling along with being an elegant end . Serve it after a dinner of lobster, oysters and filet mignon.It will require a lot of work which should begin on New Year's Eve. For something a little less intensive J Kenji Lopex-Alt goes the Nigella Lawson route  wiht a comforting  and simple chestnut risotto followed by gaily colored cream cheese pound cake.The rice is topped with cremini mushrooms and cut onions and celery.Arborio or carnaroli rice is cooked with chestnuts and white miso. Sour cream is surprisingly added as a topping. dessert is moist pound cake topped with raspberry preserves and whipped cream. Freeze dried raspberries give the bright pop of color.

There's even a dish for the day after. start 2023 with Melissa Clark's mushroom butternut squash strata. Squash seems like an unusual ingredient to add to a breakfast dish , usually laden with bacon toast, eggs and cheese. Yet it works. She also adds a mix of different muishrooms such as cremini, white shiitake and oyster cut into chunks along with one and three quarter pounds of butternut squash (this has a lovely sweet flavor.)There are also eight large eggs for richness as well as  three quarters of a cup of heavy cream or two and three quarters cups of  half and half . Shallots and sage give it a burst of green along with flavor.Yes there is a cheese. Ms Calrk adds in three quarters of a cup fo Parmesan and two cups of shreded mozzarella. There is no meat in this. You can add red pepper flakes for some bite.Stratas require bread and there is a  cubed French bagutte , added for testure and flavor. The mushrooms, and shallots are cooked first . The liquids are mixed together  with the veggies being added to it. The last is the bread cubes and the whole batter is poured into a prepared pan to be baked at 350 degrees Farenheit for an hour. It's then set under the broiler for a few minutes for a crispy top,

Start 2023 with new recipes. They could be for an elegant dinner , a cozy supper or a restorative brunch. All are perfect with their flavors.

Food For Protest

 There have been more protests and walk outs in recent history. What fuels a march? Besides fury and a reason to make society better, boundless energy. That energy needs to be had by food.

No matter what you believe in, those demonstrations make you hungry. Some shop owners will hand out free bottles of water and if you're lucky sandwiches. However these are few and far between. Seasoned marchers will advise that starting the day with a protein packed breakfast is the best way to go. Some have eggs and beans, some go for any type of eggs with bacon or sausage or both. You could also start an active day with a protein packed smoothie. This involves a scoop of protein powder, usually vanilla or fruit flavored mixed with different fruits and milk. Vegans will appreciate a kick from soy, almond or oat milk. What's good about a smoothie is that' it's portable. If it can't be finished just pour the leftover into a thermos and have for lunch later. What to do if you're hosting a group of fellow protesters? Think a strata which is an easy eggy . cheesy casserole. You can also add much needed protein in the form of ham, bacon or breakfast sausage or all three. This can also be made vegan, by using Just Egg vegan substitute., Miyoko's creamery cheeses and Morningstar Farm's soy breakfast meats.

Once your protest start, consider what to bring and how to pack it.  A cooler works if you're not too far away from your car. This can be packed with ice and hold sandwiches ,drinks and snacks. Keep in mind that you'll be exerting a lot of energy. Levels should be kept up because marches and sit ins are not short affairs. Some can last for ten to twelve hours. Carry water which is necessary  ,not just for hydration but for lubricating parched vocal chords after chanting and protesting. You could also carry energy drinks such as Gatorade. Stay away from such high energy drinks like Red Bull. They will dehydrate you along with making you run for the bathroom several times  over. This can cause a problem unless you're marching in a park where there are restrooms. Save the soda and tea for after the march. These too can have a diuretic effect. Keep a few energy bars in your pocket.  These will give you the fuel to carry on and carry on strong. Stay away from the overly sweet and chocolate coated ones. Try ones that are made with oats and honey.

It takes energy to defend a cause you're passionate about. The energy requires the fuel to carry on. Eat and drink well to ensure you march on.

Thermos STAT

The temps are Arctic frigid. You're wearing what seems to be five layers of clothing and you're still shivering. It's time to bring the heat - whether temperature wise or taste. It'll keep winter's icy chill at bay - hopefully.

One thing is certain during this frigid days  a hot meal is everything.We need fortification for those frosty drives to school and work. Ditch the boxed cereal. Think piping hot oatmeal or farina with a hot tea or hot coffee to wash it down. This is the time for a calories be damned breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast.If you still feel guilty, then go with poached eggs, they're not fried just boiled accompanying soy bacon. Sub in whole wheat or even pita for regular white bread. As long's as it's toasty and can keep you full and warm. Another hearty idea is a breakfast strata. This casserole type dish combines what we love about the first meal and the density of a dinner.If you've never made one before then go for the simplest recipe. The night before layer thick slices of white or whole wheat bread in a greased square baking dish. Beat four eggs and half a cup of milk along with oregano or thyme, Refrigerate overnight. The next morning preheat oven to 350, pop the strata into it Bake for half an hour and then sprinkled on shredded cheddar and bake for five more minutes. Cheese should be melted and the strata nice and puffy, Serve with strong hot tea or coffee for a body warming breakfast.

Always have a hot drink in the car during this weather.As much as you need bottles of cold water in the summer, you need either tea , coffee or cocoa. You can have a thermos or stop in at your favorite coffee shop.You'll also feel more alert too. Definitely go for a hot lunch. If you're worried about diet, then stick with a hot , light soup and plain tea. You can also add fire  Try a dish with heat. One favorite is pasta arrabiata or angry pasta. This is the perfect dinner dish too,Most of the recipes for it call for a quarter of a teaspoon of hot pepper flakes, but if you want real fire, then add half a teaspoon. Chili is another perfect lunch  or dinner. You can even make extra to create an  office meal for yourself. A pinch of hot pepper can do the job unless you want to go into alarm territory. Then it's time to get out the jalapenos.As for drinks, a hot after dinner  tea is always good, but you can make chai and spice it up with cinnamon . Mexican hot cocoa is not only hot but can be fiery with the addition of pinch of red pepper powder. You can also add this to any chocolate cake, cookie and cupcake recipe along with chocolate frosting to give it some sweet heat.

This is the time to bundle up and fortify yourself against these freezing days. Dress warm. Eat hot. It's the best defense against frost and frostbite.

The Best Christmas Gifts

What does a foodie and home chef  want  for Christmas? Anything that deals with food and the kitchen. Well, I don't know about any of you out there but I got my wish in the form of a madeleine pan and n eight piece glass baking set. It has definitely set the juices flowing again.

As you can see I received the much-coveted madeleine pan. I love madeleines and have been dying to bake them for a long time. Now with a tin and working oven I am definitely going to try my hand at this. These cake-like cookies are a bit labor intensive. but worth it the work, The recipe requires melted butter to be gently folded in along with freshly grated lemon zest. Baked madeleines are then dusted with granulated sugar while still warm. There are recipes for lavender infused ones and chocolate. The first is made with lavender infused honey while the chocolate ones are more like miniature baked cakes.Once I master the original recipe I'd like to move on to the espresso ones with espresso  icing. There is even a  savory madeleine recipe that involves  Parmesan cheese and rosemary or chives. These would be perfect for a brunch or an afternoon snack, along with being a bread for salad Nicoise.

My second gift is an eight piece bake set from Anchor-Hocking. This is exciting too because there's a wide range of dishes and treats I can bake. The larger casserole dish has got me thinking and researching chili bakes, those yummy yummy combos of chili and cornbread. They're kind of like a Southwestern shepherd's pie.but with the extra zing of chili powder. There is a covered  smaller sized dish for smaller bakes , such as bread puddings or strata,I am looking forward to making pies and quiches with homemade crusts too,.I've just found an easy quiche crust recipe that calls for olive oil, flour and cold water. Another recipe I 'd love to tackle is deep dish pizza, layered with mozzarella and veggies.I could also make a childhood favorite, Crazy Crust Pizza using Bisquick. The set also comes with two ramekins for custard or possibly for melting butter or margarine in the microwave. There are all sorts of possibilities with this amazing set and I;'m looking forward to trying out  scores of great recipes.

I've got my Christmas dishes and am chomping at the bit to try them out. I can't wait to tackle the complicated but oh so delcious madeleine recipes and the other baking recipes with my new Anchor Hocking set. It's going to be a fun winter ahead, as I try all sorts of new dishes in my cozy kitchen.

The Ultimate Bacon Cookbook

Bacon lovers are a rare breed. Their lives revolve those mouthwatering cured strips and will do anything to incorporate it into their diets. Luckily, here is a great new cookbook out there with all sorts of savory and sweet recipes that feature bacon.

101 More Things To Do With Bacon (Gibbs-Smith Publishing} is a fun cookbook and a great Father's Day gift for those bacon loving paters. The book was written Eliza Cross, who has penned several of these little cookbooks featuring such diverse ingredients as pickles and beer.She is also a bacon lover and the founder of BENSA, the bacon enthusiast society. It is a slim cookbook (122 pages) but chock full of interesting recipes from breakfast to candy(!). She also includes two pages of helpful hints that help in cooking it. Home cooks will appreciate such facts as nitrate free bacon is sometimes saltier than regular bacon due to processing. She recommends adjusting the salt accordingly if using nitrate free slices. There is more advice regarding artisanal bacon, now a standard in some kitchens and being made by many adventurous home chefs.Also sweet flavored bacon, such as the ones flavored with apple cider, brown sugar or maple syrup may cook up faster than the regular kind and could burn quicker There are also tips on freezing  and microwaving it as well as what to do with bacon grease. She gives smart advice on disposing it - never pour the down the sink.It solidifies quick and creates clogs. Instead put in into a can and dispose of it through the garbage. Bacon fat  can also be reused in several recipes too and used to fry up hotcakes.

Bacon recipes are fun and these are no exception. The book is divided into different chapters, from breakfast - of course - to desserts. The breakfast ones are not what you would think, There are some truly original ones such as apple bacon strata, a layered breakfast casserole that features Granny Smith apples and pecans and the jalapeno bacon popper quiche, an egg pie loaded with heavy cream and cheese  along with the strips and peppers. The appetizers are also varied . There is slow cooker bacon cheeseburger dip that not only uses a pound (!) of it but also a pound of lean ground beef for a fun and flavorful dip.Bacon batons are a neat way to start a party. These are spiced and sugar bacon strips wrapped around the thin Torinese breadsticks, or grissini, Bacon is also a fine addition to  soups and Ms. Cross does add it to tomato bisque along to a wild rice and chicken chowder.. Bacon cheeseburger makes it way into soup with a dash of beer.There are also a chapter on salads, from macaroni to potato along with a chapter on sandwiches. Try the bacon cheese melts instead of the usual grilled cheese or the bacon cheese dogs.for a fun barbecue treat. The strips also make their way into such sides as bacon asparagus saute and bacon and mushroom dressing. Bacon is a wonderful addition to any main meal and compliments the flavor of other meats, poultry and seafood. There's even a BLT pasts with it and arugula gracing bowtie pasta. Bacon in dessert is also wonderful. There is the yummy man candy that also has dark beer as well as a bacon maple fudge. Try the bacon bread pudding with vanillas sauce.

101 More Things To Do With Bacon is a fun cookbook, perfect for any bacon lover. It is a fun mix of sweet and savory recipes.. Get it today to get more joy out of those cured strips of heaven.

,he books comes out in August but you can preorder it and others on Amazon.

101 Things to do With Beer

101 More Things To Do With Bacon

Pumpkin It Up!

How D'ya Like Them Apples?

A Perfect Christmas Breakfast

One of the best things about Christmas morning is a cozy family breakfast together.  There;s nothing like sitting down and sharing a sumptuous and yummy special treat. A breakfast casserole is the perfect dish for this It has the best AM foods like bacon eggs and bread along with some other flavorful ingredients. It is the perfect start to a holy day and holiday.

Melissa Clark gave her recipe for it in her A Good Appetite column today's New York Times  Food section. It's similar to strata with a few tweaks..It's an easy bake for novice home chefs and a break from the usual holiday morning fare for more experienced cooks.There is a ratio of  one egg to one cup of dairy to a cup of cubed bread However there are so many variations, to try any one is a good combo. Start with the bread. As per Ms. Clark, the lighter the loaf, the more ethereal the casserole. A good choice is the airy French brioche, followed by the honey sweetened challah,good white bread (think straight from the bakery or Pepperidge Farm sandwich white) and a light whole wheat bread.Stay away from the ones that are too hearty, seedy or grainy, She uses toasted  croissants that have been oven toasted for only five to ten minutes.Try  to get good croissants if you can at this late date.. Au Bon Pain has the best but Dunkin Donuts and Stop and Shop have good ones too. Just remember that the staler it the the more the read will absorb the custard. Another way of having  crispy bread is toasting it in a very hot oven  (NO toasters ,please). This will dry it out and also give it a deep caramelized flavor.

This recipes calls for a lot of eggs, eight in all. Ms. Clark also suggests just using the yolks for a truly custardy texture, along with three cups of milk and one cup of heavy cream. You could also just add all milk or all cream however the combination of the two adds to the casserole's silkiness.A quarter of a pound of Italian sausage is added however you could also use maple infused breakfast ones , cubed ham or cooked bacon (or if you want all of them) . Gruyere is a must  and if you can get the smoked for the intense flavor. It's grated so it blends in perfectly into the dish. sauteed and roasted vegetables can be added too. Try spinach, mushrooms or cherry tomatoes. If you want potatoes, then serve them on the side as extra crispy hash browns or plank fries.I think they'd be a bit too much in this dish.Ms. Clark even recommends adding bits of dried fruit such as figs or apricots. Have the figs simmered in port or the apricots in white wine first to make them even more tastier.It's a nice shot of boozy sweetness amidst all the savory. The recipe does call for scallions and sage for flavoring, You could also sub in rosemary and oregano if you're tossing in the tomatoes and Italian sausage.Everything is place din a buttered casserole dish and baked the next morning.

Make this yummy and easy breakfast casserole Christmas morning. It's a nice treat after present opening and gift giving. It's warm and cozy , just like the holiday itself.

Bread Puddings Savory And Sweet

Bread pudding is one of the most versatile and easiest dishes to make. It can be a savory casserole like strata or a gooey dessert like a brioche pudding;Best of it, its' hearty and satisfying ,the ultimate comfort food for combatting the crazy days ahead of us.

Savory bread puddings are the perfect weekend meal. All you need is stale bread for starters and the  rest is up to you. One of the best recipes is the zuppa montagne , a Piedmontese winter dish made with stale Italian bread, chicken or vegetable broth and Swiss or Fontina cheese. A more textured version is subbing in breadsticks (the Stella D'oro kind works best here) and layering on the bottom of a casserole dish. If you want crunch and texture added shredded cabbage , preferably the Savoy kind , cooked in butter , as a second layer. The cheese is then layered on followed by the broth. Use three to four ladlefuls of this , reserving some of the broth to pour over later. Cook at 325 degrees Farenheit for forty minutes. You can also microwave this too for a quick five to six minutes.There is a popular rosemary and bacon bread pudding circulating on the web right now.This is a custardy version , involving eggs. along with sharp cheddar and of course, bacon. Sauteed onions are also thrown in for sweetness.After baking in a 375 degree oven for forty minutes, it's all set to come out, golden and puffy like a cheese soufflé. For those who love something more exotic , try strata which means layers. Stratas can be made for any meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner. It's layers of bread,peppers. bacon and onions with milk and cream added for pure custardiness.

Sweet bread pudding is a nice change of pace from the usual cakes and pies.It's also a homey treat at a tree trimming or holiday party. One recommendation is using stale baguettes or Italian bread instead of regular white bread.It gives the pudding chewiness and texture along with a mellow yeasty flavor. Still use three or four eggs but cut back on the sugar. Many recipes call  for a cup of white sugar. I'd halve that or use a more earthier tasting brown sugar. Milk or cream can be used . These can be mixed., because using just cream can make the dish heavy and dense. Purists will want raisins for more sweetness. Many (including myself) are not fans of this. If you want extra sweetness, try a  dollop of salted caramel drizzled on it.A truly decadent variation is New Orleans style which uses a buttery whiskey sauce as an accompaniment. If you want something decadently Gallic , try a brioche bread pudding. Brioche is a yummy French roll, egg and butter rich.It is the perfect ingredient in a decadent dessert. Add cream, and butter along with eggs, sugar and brandy to bake with it into a lush pudding.Lemon or orange zest can be added for more color and flavor. Serve this with whipped cream or crème Anglaise, a sauce that combines cream, sugar eggs and Armagnac brandy.

A savory or sweet bread pudding is a great slice of comfort during this hectic holiday times ahead A slice of strata is a great weekend meal while a brioche bake is the perfect dessert for a holiday party.Make the traditional or create your own for some yummy fun.

Inn Food

This is the season to visit inns. There‘s nothing like a relaxing fall weekend at a bed and breakfast. You can enjoy the foliage, a walk on a crisp beach or invigorating mountain hike. You can go antiquing or pick up some fun knickknacks for your home. Bes tof all you can experience some good home made food thanks to the inn’s owners.

Most inns serve very homey breakfasts , brunches and sometimes lunches. You can wind up a huge helping of bacons and eggs plus fresh made waffles and pancakes. Some get a little fancier with their own muffins and scones. A few more ambitious B&B owners will create breakfast strata or French toast made with croissants. Some will also provide the eggs from on site chicken coops and fruits from their own trees. All are accompanied with endless cups of steaming coffee and hot tea. The breakfasts are also communal to you can chat and even help the owners or get to know other guests. This way you can also find like minded people to accompany you to the often quaint nearby towns or scenic vistas.

Some B & B’s do serve lunch and dinner but these are the ones that have onsite restaurants. Both meals will probably be served family style and will have many local recipes and specialties. There are some in the Chesapeake area that make wonderful crab cake sand crab fritters. Some Pennsylvania ones draw from their local product and some good solid Amish dishes.

This is not only the time to relax at a cozy B&B but to enjoy the good, homemade food to has to offer. After a relaxing night’s sleep you can fill up on a goody hearty and tasty breakfast. It’s the perfect start for a fall weekend away!