Since breakfast is my favorite meal of the day it was only fitting that before March Meatball Madness came to a conclusion that we come up with a Breakfast Meatball.

I stumbled on this idea quite by accident.

When ALDI delivered my sister’s groceries, they inadvertently substituted frozen breakfast meatballs for frozen breakfast sandwiches.

Who knew such a thing even existed?!!

I mean we’ve all heard of sausage balls, but to incorporate French toast to the mix….brilliant!

Minimal ingredients and a very simple process make these French Toast Breakfast Meatballs a wonderful school or work day breakfast.

Of course no one would turn them down on the weekend either!

If you cook up a batch of Buttermilk French Toast over the weekend, save a couple slices to incorporate into your meatballs during the week or pop them into the freezer to pull out when needed.

The Meatball Ingredients

• For the meatballs I combined a pound of all-natural ground sausage
• An egg
• 2 tablespoons of pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon of ground sage
• 1/2 of teaspoon of salt & pepper
• 2 cups of small cubed (1/4-inch) prepared French toast

The Process

• Roll the mixture into balls about 1 1/2″ in diameter. I made 32 meatballs.
• Bake on a parchment lined baking sheet at 400 degrees F. for 15 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and serve with warm pure maple syrup.

Growing up in New Hampshire made me a bit of a maple syrup snob.

Once you’ve had ‘real’ maple syrup there’s no turning back. Every year, just before spring, I buy my maple syrup from Ben’s Sugar Shack, located just a few miles from my hometown.

Their prices are reasonable, they ship quickly, their bottles are gorgeous, and their syrup is delicious!

Speaking of delicious :)

French Toast Breakfast Meatballs were definitely a hit! You totally get the French toast taste and feel, which makes them nice and soft with hints of cinnamon, but the combination with the sausage makes them savory and very juicy.

It’s a wonderful flavor fusion!

Don’t forget to follow us @LemonyThyme on Instagram and Facebook! And check out our latest TikTok videos and Pinterest boards too!

All my best,
xo Libby

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Libby with Lemony Thyme

French Toast Breakfast Meatballs have the French toast taste and feel, which makes them nice and soft with hints of cinnamon, but the combination with the sausage makes them savory and very juicy. It's a wonderful flavor fusion!

Course Breakfast

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

For the Buttermilk French Toast

• 6-8 slices french bread, sliced 1-inch thick you'll want 2 cups once cooked and cubed
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 Tablespoon butter for pan frying French toast

For the French Toast Breakfast Meatballs

• 1 pound all-natural ground sausage
• 1 large egg
• 2 Tablespoons pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon ground sage
• 1/2 teaspoon salt optional
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper optional
• 2 cups 1/4-inch cubed prepared French toast see above

To Serve

• 1/2 cup warm maple syrup for serving

Instructions

For the Buttermilk French Toast

• In a shallow bowl, beat eggs with buttermilk and cinnamon. Dip bread slices in egg mixture, turning several times so they absorb some of the liquid. Heat butter in a skillet over medium heat. Pan fry the dipped bread slices until golden brown on both sides. Cool slightly then chop into 1/4-inch cubes.

For the French Toast Breakfast Meatballs

• Preheat oven to 400° F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine ground sausage with egg, maple syrup, sage, salt & pepper. Then mix in the chopped French toast until thoroughly incorporated. Make 1 1/2-inch diameter meatballs and place on parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes. Serve with warm maple syrup.

The post French Toast Breakfast Meatballs appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

First and foremost, Happy New Year!! We are looking forward to a delicious year ahead.  New Year’s Day may seem like an odd time to post a recipe for Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits.  I’m guessing a good number of you (and me) are launching resolutions today, likely containing at least one involving health and wellness. Am I right?

It’s just that I have been really working to perfect homemade biscuits over the past year.  On Christmas Eve, my work mates and I had the most incredible brunch.  We all decided the day before that we would bring in some ingredient from our fridge or pantry. No one needed to go to the grocery store, just bring what you have.  We had homemade crepes with Nutella and strawberries, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, cheesy grits casserole, home fries, toast, cantaloupe, homemade biscuits and sausage gravy, and the biggest veggie frittata you could imagine.  All prepared in our office break room.

A work family that cooks together, sticks together.

Did I mention we wore our pj’s to work that day too?  Ho, ho, ho!!

So after this Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits recipe passed the test at the office and this morning’s batch sealed the deal, I knew I was ready to put it out there.  These are buttery biscuits, with crispy bottoms & edges, and flaky insides.  They are incredible under sausage or bacon gravy.  Make one heck of a vehicle for a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit.  And my personal favorite, those flaky nooks are begging for soft butter and a drizzle of honey.  Oh my my!!

I think the key to making great biscuits is your ingredients and mixing bowl must be cold.  In fact your butter needs to be frozen, as in over night in the freezer, frozen.  Keeping your ingredients cold makes for nice flaky biscuits, instead of those dry ones.  You know the ones.

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Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes minutes

Total Time 27 minutes minutes

Servings 8 -10

Ingredients

• 2 cups self-rising flour
• 2 Tbl. brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 stick frozen butter
• 1 cup buttermilk very cold
• 1/4 cup heavy cream very cold
• melted butter for brushing tops

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Place buttermilk, cream and medium sized metal bowl in freezer for 10 minutes.
• Using a box grater, grate frozen butter onto a paper plate. Remove bowl from freezer, add flour, brown sugar and salt. Whisk to combine.
• Add grated butter to flour. Using a pastry cutter, combine butter with flour until mixture appears crumbly. Make a well in the center of the flour. Pour in buttermilk and cream. Using pastry cutter, gently fold flour into cream until just combined. Don’t overwork the dough.
• Generously flour your work surface. Turn dough out onto counter and sprinkle with a little flour. Turn edges of dough in toward center just a few times. Pat into a rectangle about 1 1/2 inches thick. Using a 2-inch biscuit cutter, cut into the dough and lift without twisting. Place onto prepared baking sheet one-inch apart.
• Bake for 12 minutes or until tops are golden brown. Remove from oven and brush with melted butter.

Notes

Butter should be frozen overnight. I also put the mixing bowl, buttermilk and cream in the freezer for 10 minutes before beginning.

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It all began with an overripe bunch of bananas.  I bought them with the best smoothie intentions.  Before bed last night I declared Banana Cake is going to happen.  Thanks to Pinterest and Sprinkle Some Sugar this holy amazingness happened.  On Easter Sunday.  Banana Upside Down Cake is a recipe you’ll want to remember.

Melt a stick of butter in your cast iron skillet.  Stir in a cup of brown sugar love. Top with a layer of banana slices then pour in your tender cake batter.  Ease into Banana Upside Down Cake with confidence.  This super simple recipe will fill your kitchen with sugary butter love.

Start to finish one hour.  It will be the most celebrated hour you’ve spent when your family takes their first bite.  Amazing.

Recipe source Sprinkle Some Sugar.

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Banana Upside Down Cake

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 10 -12

Author Sprinkle Some Sugar

Ingredients

For the topping (bottom of the pan)…

• 6 Tbl. butter melted
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 bananas sliced 1/4″ rounds

For the cake…

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• pinch salt
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup mashed bananas about 2 medium
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/3 cup oil
• 2 eggs

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Melt butter in cast iron skillet. Remove from heat and stir in brown sugar. Arranged sliced bananas over brown sugar. Once inverted this will be the top of your cake.
• In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Then add in remaining ingredients and stir until well combined (but not overworked). Pour batter over bananas.
• Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Let cake cool for 5 minutes then turn out onto a large plate. Don’t wait longer to invert or the caramelized sugar will stick to the pan.
• Best served warm.

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College Football Season is upon us.  In fact, for our team it’s GAME DAY!! Since we’re a foodie family, Game Day is one more reason to create new dishes.  Our inspiration comes from our opponents.  Yes, we like to envision our rivals as a meal.  For example if we’re playing the Arkansas Razorbacks….we might have a meal of Braised Pork.  I’ve been warned that talking College Football is akin to discussing religion and politics.  So instead we’ll focus on these Southwest Skillet Corn Fritters {with Avocado Ranch Dip}.  We devoured them.

I’ll leave you with these pictures and a recipe.  I’ve got a game to watch ;)

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Southwest Skillet Corn Fritters {with Avocado Ranch Dip}

Servings 4

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

For fritters…

• 2 ears of fresh corn steamed, kernels removed
• 1 small onion diced
• 1-2 jalapeno finely diced
• 1 Tbl. butter
• salt & pepper
• 2 Tbl. fresh cilantro chopped
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup corn meal
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. cumin
• 1/4 tsp. chili powder
• pinch cayenne & salt
• 1/4 cup buttermilk or milk
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbl sugar
• oil for pan frying

For avocado ranch dip…

• 1 avocado
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 1 tsp. white vinegar
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 1/4 tsp. paprika
• 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
• dash cayenne & salt

Instructions

For fritters…

• In a skillet, sauté corn kernels, onion and jalapenos over medium heat until onion is tender. Season will salt & pepper and cilantro.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients. Add in corn mixture and stir to combine. Line a shallow baking sheet with parchment paper. Spoon out fritter sized portions of corn mixture onto baking sheet. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
• Heat 1-inch of oil in skillet, pan fry fritters in small batches, turning over when golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towels.

For avocado ranch dip…

• Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Blend until well combined.

The post Southwest Skillet Corn Fritters {with Avocado Ranch Dip} appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

When I first began the Lemony Thyme blog it was our fresh herb porch pots that I recognized/acknowledged/gave credit to/sited/attributed for my cooking inspiration.  Fresh Herbs still continue to amaze and inspire me daily.  However, I have found an equally intriguing element to cooking.  Recreating fridge/pantry staples from scratch (or mostly from scratch).  Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing is super easy to make at home and just as good if not better than the bottled variety.

So about this ‘from scratch’ thing.  Yes, you can make Buttermilk and Mayonnaise from scratch.  I actually started separate posts for both well over a year ago but have either yet to perfect or find the need to recreate these fridge staples. Yet.

Store bought buttermilk is made from natural ingredients and will generally last for a month or so in the refrigerator.  So unless I run out and don’t want to get out of my PJ’s, I’ll probably stick with store bought here.

Homemade Mayonnaise on the other hand is awe-mazing.  While we did successfully make it from scratch once (albeit rather late in the evening with poor record keeping), we’ve also attempted it 3-4 times unsuccessfully.  Since homemade mayonnaise really should be used within a week vs. our ranch dressing that can be refrigerated for two weeks, I like store-bought mayonnaise in this recipe.  For the time being.

So for now, our Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing was made from five ingredients that we generally always keep on hand, far less than the bottled variety.  Using fresh herbs like chives or parsley also give this dressing a wonderful flavor boost.

Recipe Note:  the base for this dressing is a 2 to 1 ratio of buttermilk to mayonnaise, with garlic powder, fresh herbs and black pepper added to taste.

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Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing

Ingredients

• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1-2 Tbl. fresh chives or parsley
• black pepper

Instructions

• Combine all ingredients in a glass jar with lid and shake until well combined.
• Yield is 1 1/2 cups. Can be stored in refrigerator for up to two weeks.

The post Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

Last week’s nostalgic tour of our favorite Classic Salad Recipes inspired me to make Green Goddess Dressing.  An abundance of fresh basil (thanks to our Aero Garden) added one more layer of green goodness.

Our Green Goddess Dressing gets it’s creaminess from a base of mayonnaise, sour cream and buttermilk.  Anchovies, fresh lemon juice and garlic deliver a captivating punch.  Adding fresh herbs give this dressing it’s bright flavor and signature color.  We chose fresh basil, parsley and scallion, while tarragon is also a classic ingredient.

We first enjoyed this dressing on our Green Goddess Salad.  We later dipped fresh green beans and celery in it.  It’s soon to find it’s way into a chilled pasta salad.  I’m completely hooked on homemade Green Goddess Dressing.

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Green Goddess Dressing

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

• 1 Tbl. anchovy paste
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup fresh ‘soft’ herb leaves such as basil, parsley, tarragon
• 1 scallions thinly sliced
• 2 Tbl. lemon juice
• salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

• Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blend and puree. Chill before serving. Store in refrigerator for up to one week. Yield = 1 1/2 cups

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Peach Buttermilk Cobbler {with Vanilla Ice Cream}.

I discovered several months ago and quite by accident that some people prefer cobbler over cake.  It just so happened on that day I had a quart of fresh blackberries.  And so I made, and we mutually enjoyed, Blackberry Buttermilk Cobbler.

On this day, I happen to have 10 peaches fresh from the Farmers Market.  I’ll start by making Peach Buttermilk Cobbler.

This might just be the easiest cobbler recipe I’ve come across.  The batter is prepared then poured into a buttered casserole.  Fresh fruit is sprinkled over top, then dusted with sugar and dotted with butter.  Into the oven it goes.

As the smell of cobbler filled the air…. scratch that, as much as I’d like it to sound all romantic and stuff it was the sound of the timer that brought family to the kitchen.  It was however the smell of freshly baked Peach Buttermilk Cobbler that grabbed their attention.  And without hesitation we said “vanilla ice cream sure would go well with that.”

Was there vanilla ice cream in the house?  Nope.  Was I going to let that hold me back?  Nope.  Thank goodness for Homemade Ice Cream, made in a Ziploc bag, in just 10 minutes.

While the Georgia peaches are so fresh and beautiful, Peach Buttermilk Cobbler with Vanilla Ice Cream was the perfect dessert to enjoy on this end-of-summer holiday weekend.

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Peach Buttermilk Cobbler {with Vanilla Ice Cream}

Course Dessert

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 6

Author adapted from Ree Drummond

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups plus 2 Tbl. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 cup self-rising flour
• 1 cup buttermilk shaken well
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 4 Tbl. butter melted
• 2 cups fresh sliced peaches about 4 peeled & pitted
• 1 tsp. cold butter
• 2 Tbl. cinnamon-sugar for dusting
• Ice cream or whipped cream for serving

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 2-Qt. baking dish.
• In a medium bowl whisk together 1 cup of sugar, cinnamon, flour, buttermilk, and vanilla. Then add in melted butter.
• Pour the buttermilk mixture into the baking dish. Sprinkle the sliced peaches in a single layer over the batter. Dust the peaches with 1/4 cup of sugar. Cut cold butter into small pieces and dot top of cobbler. Bake 40 minutes then sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar. Continue baking an additional 10 – 15 minutes until bubbly and golden brown.
• Allow to rest or not. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

The post Peach Buttermilk Cobbler {with Vanilla Ice Cream} appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

Bacon & Sage Soda Bread.

I first tackled making Irish Soda Bread on St. Patrick’s Day.  Much easier than I had expected, made from ingredients we typically have on hand.  AND can be ready in 35-40 minutes, which is nice.  Especially when the Classic Beef Stew you’re making is almost finished and you realize you have no crusty bread, which is practically an ingredient on it’s own.

Because we wanted to infuse this bread with the flavor of sage and bacon, we replaced the melted butter with the bacon drippings infused with sage.  Soda Bread is a no-rise, no-fuss bread.  Ingredients are combined, a little kneading of the dough, then straight into the oven.  Bacon & Sage Soda Bread, aka Crusty Bread went so nicely with our Classic Beef Stew.

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Bacon & Sage Soda Bread

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

• 2 cups Self-rising or All-purpose flour plus additional for kneading and dusting
• 3/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly cracked pepper
• 4 strips bacon
• 6 fresh sage leaves
• 2 Tbl. bacon drippings add melted butter if necessary
• 1 cup well-shaken buttermilk

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and pepper.
• Cook bacon in a skillet until crispy brown. Remove bacon and crumble. Add sage leaves, and allow to cook 2-3 minutes.
• Add 2 Tbl. pan drippings, crumbled bacon, and buttermilk into flour mixture. Use a rubber spatula to mix ingredients, scrapping down sides of bowl until just combined.
• Turn dough out onto a well floured surface. Knead dough, turning about 6-8 times just until it comes together (do not overwork). Form into a 6-inch round and place on an ungreased baking sheet. Use a sharp knife and cut a 1/2″ deep ‘x’ in the top of dough. Use a fine mesh sifter and dust top of bread with flour.
• Bake for 30 – 35 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.

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Cheez-It Crusted Buffalo Chicken Fingers

The allure of Chicken Fingers….what a powerful thing. 

I can spend hours creating a dish to share at a family gathering, knowing full well it will never compete with the platter of chicken fingers.  I’ve come to accept that.

I have seen grown men nearly knock one another down trying to get to the last nugget.  I will not judge.

So while I like to share recipes that incorporate fresh herbs, layers of flavor, sometimes exotic ingredients….I recognize the importance of a good Chicken Finger recipe when you need to pull out the big guns.  I think I’ve found it.

My first Cheez-It Crusted Chicken experience was at my sister’s house several years ago.  I had arrived in for a week-long visit and she was preparing my welcome dinner.  Sarah is quite resourceful.  So as we stood in the kitchen talking a mile a minute, she dredging chicken thighs in crushed Cheez-It’s, all I could do was assume she had run out of breadcrumbs.  It wasn’t until we sat down to dinner and I put the first bite of Cheez-It Chicken Love in my mouth that I knew this was the plan all along.

Crispy, cheesy, salty goodness.  No one is claiming Cheez-It Crusted Buffalo Chicken Fingers belong on the healthy living choices list, but if you’re looking for something men will fight over, here you go.

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Cheez-It Crusted Buffalo Chicken Fingers

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into strips or 1 1-lb package of chicken tenders
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup Frank’s Hot Sauce
• 2 cups Cheez-It Crackers

Instructions

• Combine chicken strips, buttermilk, and Frank’s in a large zipper bag; refrigerate for at least an hour or up to overnight.
• Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.
• Place crackers in a medium zipper bag and crush to small pieces. Transfer to a shallow dish. Take each chicken strip, shake off excess buttermilk, dredge in crackers, place on prepared baking sheet.
• Bake 15 minutes, turning once until crispy and internal temp. reaches 165 degrees.

The post Cheez-It Crusted Buffalo Chicken Fingers appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

Wait this is a Blackberry Buttermilk Cobbler post. 

Sorry. 

I really need to make a cake so I at least have one on the pages of Lemony Thyme.

“I’d prefer pie over cake any day.”  Wait.  What?!  Pie?  Does anyone actually prefer pie over cake?  “Actually….cobbler would be my dessert of choice.  Blackberry Cobbler.”

That was the inspiration for this Blackberry Buttermilk Cobbler post.  I read a bazillion cobbler recipes, settled on a plan, baked it into heaven, opened a tub of ice cream, dug out two spoons, and set it down between us.  Let’s see about this Cobbler vs. Cake.

Clearer minds prevailed.  I hadn’t pictured it.  Probably ought to show it scooped into a dish all pretty like.  

Once pictured, we stood at the counter, spoons in hand, and agreed wholeheartedly that Blackberry Buttermilk Cobbler will give a fine cake a run for it’s money…most days.  Who knew?

Don’t forget to follow us @LemonyThyme on Instagram and Facebook! And check out our latest TikTok videos and Pinterest boards too!

All my best,
xo Libby

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Blackberry Buttermilk Cobbler {Who Knew?}

Course Dessert

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 55 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4

Author adapted from Ree Drummond, inspired by B.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups plus 2 Tbl. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 cup self-rising flour
• 1 cup buttermilk shaken well
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 4 Tbl. butter melted
• 2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries
• 2 Tbl. cinnamon-sugar for dusting
• Ice cream or whipped cream for serving

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 2-Qt. baking dish.
• In a medium bowl whisk together 1 cup of sugar, cinnamon, flour, buttermilk, and vanilla. Then add in melted butter.
• Pour the buttermilk mixture into the baking dish. Sprinkle the blackberries in a single layer over the batter. Dust the berries with 1/4 cup of sugar. Bake 40 minutes then sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar. Continue baking an additional 10 – 15 minutes until bubbly and golden brown.
• Allow to rest or not. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

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