Blueberry Breakfast Bread Pudding

The morning started innocently enough--sipping on coffee, checking out my Facebook page...

Then this showed up on my home page.  Thank you, King Arthur Flour, for your lovely bit of morning indulgence.  I had been craving bread pudding and this was amazing!!!!!

I'm a fresh blueberry junkie during the summer months.  I tweaked the recipe to make it more Weight Watchers-friendly.  (But you can go the more luxurious route, if you wish.)  All the food groups were represented, it was easy to throw together and it was on the table in under 15 minutes.

1 slice bread, crusts removed (Their recipe called for white bread.  I used Nature's Own WhiteWheat bread.)
1 teaspoon butter (I used Land O'Lakes Light Butter With Canola Oil.)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons fresh blueberries
1 egg (or equivalent amount of Egg Beaters)
1/3 cup half-and-half cream or milk (I used 1% milk.)
1 tablespoon sugar (I went for it!  No Splenda this time! If the berries are tart, you can go up to 2 tablespoons sugar.)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup fresh blueberries, for garnish

Spray the inside of a 10 oz. Pyrex ramekin with Pam.  Set aside.

Spread butter on the bread.  Sprinkle it with cinnamon and cut it into small cubes.  Place half the cubes into the ramekin.  Top with 1 1/2 tablespoons of the blueberries.  Repeat.

Whisk together the egg, cream or milk, sugar and vanilla.  Pour over the bread and berries in the ramekin.  Set aside for 10 minutes.  The soaking will give the finished product a silky, custardy texture.

Microwave on HIGH power for two minutes.  Check for doneness.  If it's too mushy, microwave for another 30 seconds.  Carefully remove the ramekin (it's hot!) and invert it onto a serving plate.  Remove the ramekin and top the yummy pudding with the blueberry garnish.

(Weight Watchers info:  6 Points.)

Good (And Good For You!) Blueberry Pancakes

I made these for breakfast this morning and our daughter rubbed her tummy and said "MMMMM" repeatedly.

She didn't know she was getting a powerful dose of antioxidants, fiber and Omega-3 fatty acids.  They just tasted like doughnuts to her!  And they're easy to make:

1 1/2 cups Aunt Jemimah Original Pancake and Waffle Mix

1/2 cup ground flax seed (Measure after grinding.  I use a bullet-style mini food processor for this.)

2 large eggs

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon canola oil

Dash of vanilla extract

Fresh or frozen blueberries that have been thawed, drained and patted dry

Butter and real maple syrup, for serving

Combine the dry ingredients and set aside.  Whisk together the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla in a small bowl and add to the dry mixture.  Stir to combine.  (The batter will be very thick.) Heat up the largest nonstick skillet you have (or griddle) over medium heat.  Quickly rub a stick of butter over the cooking surface; you won't need a lot.  Ladle out the batter in 1/4 cup portions; you may have to spread out the portions with a spoon or your fingers.  Sprinkle on blueberries to taste.  When the edges of the pancakes look dry, it's time to flip.  Decrease the heat if the pancakes are browning too quickly. These take a little longer than "regular" pancakes to cook through, but you will be rewarded with soft, puffy clouds of fruity goodness.

A shake of powdered sugar is a nice touch, but the wee one just wanted them plain today.  Top with butter and syrup and dig in!

Yield: 9-10 pancakes