I am always on the lookout for great make-ahead breakfast ideas. A morning person I am not. If I can steal an extra 45 minutes of sleep, I will. Especially these days (with a newborn). I am typing this at 3am. Baby Brett enjoys his 2a to 4a playtime. We’ve decided to just give in. Put him in his bouncy seat and let him kick and coo. I love to hear his sweet little talk and see his big grin. I just have to stay active or I will doze off.

We usually grab cereal (Donnie) or a spoonful of Nutella, a banana and a glass of milk (me) for breakfast during the week. Weekends present the opportunity for experimenting and heartier fare. Jack is usually not ready for breakfast until about 10am, so we like to enjoy brunch on Saturdays. I make cheese biscuits, sausage and eggs most Saturday mornings. Occasionally Donnie whips up blueberry pancakes. If we’re home on Friday night and have sausage on hand, I make Shamrock Casserole…eggs, cheese, sausage.

I discovered this recipe, a Louisiana twist on the Shamrock Casserole tradition, in Mardi Gras to Mistletoe: A Collection of Festive Favorites from the Junior League of Shreveport-Bossier, Louisiana. I bought the cookbook for Mom a couple of years ago for Christmas. Imagine my surprise when I unwrapped the same cookbook! Good thing neither of us bought a copy for ourselves. My mom and my sister share the thrill of the hunt for a new recipe that will become an old stand-by. You know, one of those recipes that your family requests and you make so often you don’t have to use the recipe? Those are my favorites. Maybe you can add this one to your list.

Cajun Strata

2 T butter

2 c sliced fresh mushrooms

1 c chopped onion

1/2 c chopped celery

2 garlic cloves, minced

8 c French bread, cubed

1 lb. andouille, thinly sliced

12 oz. cheddar cheese, grated

1/2 c chopped green onions

2 c milk

4 eggs, lightly beaten

1 T Dijon mustard

1 t Creole seasoning

Melt butter in a skillet and add veggies and garlic. Saute for 5 minutes or until tender. Layer half the bread, half the sausage, half the cheese, half the veggies and all the green onions in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Top with remaining bread, sausage, cheese and veggies.

Whisk milk, eggs, mustard and Creole seasoning in a bowl until blended and pour over prepared layers. Chill, covered, 8 to 10 hours. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

So, who would have ever expected that this combination would work and work so well? My grandmother is always responsible for bringing these jewels to family functions. Traina’s Bakery in Jonesboro, Louisiana is responsible for supplying us with this side dish every holiday. The rolls are so soft and buttery. But, you get a nice punch from the black pepper and bits of fried bacon that are entwined in the delicate bread dough. That’s what makes these things so punchy.

It doesn’t matter what you serve alongside these rolls, they will be the star. I like them best with green bean bundles. That would be a perfect meal in itself.

My mom, sister and I are going on a road trip! The last trip the three of us took was to Vegas, baby…pre-children. This time we are making the trip a little more tame and heading to M-I-crooked letter-crooked letter-I-crooked letter-crooked letter-I-humpback-humpback-I! That’s right, the southern state of Mississippi! Leaving the little ones in good hands with their dads and heading South.

This Southern girl would never dream of hitting the road without some homemade goodies for the ride. So, I whipped up a batch of these delicious breakfast mini-muffins. These muffins are part of a strong tradition in our family. In fact we call them Christmas Sausage Muffins because my mom always makes them on Christmas morning. As long I as I can remember caring what I ate on Christmas morning, these muffins have been part of the line-up. There was a blip in the system one year I came home from college. But, luckily my sister and I protested, and these little darlings made it to the table. Well, not exactly. You see, that is the only downfall of these little bite-sized treats. They rarely make it to the table. We consider them more of a breakfast appetizer. We pop them while making the rest of our Christmas breakfast!

At my house two batches are necessary. My husband cannot tolerate green onions, so (dear wife that I am) I cut the sausage in half and brown his half without the onions. I know…high maintenance.

I am sure my mom can tell you the origin of the recipe. It is not a SupperStarter.com original, but here are the basics:

Brown 1 lb. hot ground sausage and 1/2 cup chopped green onions. Drain. Add about 1 1/2 to 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, 1 cup biscuit mix (we use Pioneer), and about 1/2 cup milk or enough to make a thick batter. Spoon into mini-muffin baking tins, filling each cup half-full. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes or until golden brown.

We grilled pork chops last week. Yes, in the midst of Hurricane Gustav crashing ashore. We lost electricity, so grilling seemed to be the perfect solution. I’ll have to say that I did not enjoy the event like I usually do. the trees were bending and swaying in the tropical storm-force winds and the rain was pelting my plants. But, we were hungry. So we ventured out. Well, my husband did anyway. Jack and I stayed inside and played with flashcards while watching Daddy through the window.

I love grilled pork chops. There’s something about the char that makes them so tasty. We brushed these with pepper jelly before grilling. My husband also basted them with the pepper jelly while he was enduring the weather conditions.

Speaking of pepper jelly…isn’t it so southern? What recipes do you make with pepper jelly?