Makes 8-10 crepes 
 
⅔ cup whole milk
⅔ cup water
3 eggs
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup flour
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons additional melted butter (for the pan)
**1 cup mixed fresh foraged herbs or purchased herbs-see options below
1 cup ricotta cheese-whole fat
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 lemon, zested
salt and pepper to taste

1. Place milk, water, eggs, and melted butter in a blender and mix until smooth. Add the flour and salt, a little at a time, mixing as you go and scraping down the sides of the jar as needed. This will help to keep flour from clumping. The batter will be thin.
2. Heat an 8-inch crepe pan or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, brush very lightly with melted butter. While tilting the pan in a circle, ladle the batter in to cover the surface with the batter. If using a 10-inch pan, prepare crepes with 1/3 cup of batter.
3. Sprinkle the batter with the herbs while the batter is still wet. Cook for 30-45 seconds. Using a crepe turner or rubber spatula, turn the crepe over and cook for another 30 seconds. Remove the crepe and place on a wire rack to cool. Repeat with the remaining batter. Cooled crepes can be stacked if needed.
4. Place the ricotta, oil, and lemon zest in a food processor and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. You can use an immersion blender as well. Fill crepes with whipped ricotta and a pinch of lemon zest.

 
Foraged greens and Herbs

• Creeping jenny, dandelion, chickweed, violets (leaves and flowers), clover, purple nettle, plantain, garlic grass https://www.growforagecookferment.com/what-to-forage-in-spring/
• dill, parsley, mint, chive, scallion
  
  

 
Recipe Variations

• Add smoked salmon or smoked trout to fill your crepe for a special brunch dish.
• Fill with steamed asparagus and drizzle with a hollandaise sauce or kale spinach sauce.
• Add 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella and 1/4 cup grated parmesan to the whipped ricotta. Fill your crepes and place in a buttered baking dish or cover with tomato sauce and bake.
• Prepare the whipped ricotta w/ the mozzarella and parmesan as above. Stack your crepes with a thin spreading of cheese between the layers. Serve as is or baked until the cheese melts.

 
Williams Sonoma has a good selection of crepe equipment. www.williams-sonoma.com/search/results.html?words=crepe

1 serving
 
1 cup unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk (if using canned coconut milk use 1/4 coconut milk and 3/4 cup water)
1/2 cup hemp hearts
1 tablespoon flax meal
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1 tablespoon coconut flakes
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon Vanilla MCT oil, coconut oil, or melted butter
1 teaspoon Erythritol
fresh or frozen berries
 

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a small sauce pan, stir to combine.
2. Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened to your liking, stir occasionally.
3. Serve and garnish with fresh or frozen berries.

 
Tip!
 
Make a large batch of the dry ingredients and store in a big glass jar for an even quicker breakfast. 

Makes 8-10 Belgian waffles or 14-16 4-inch waffles
 
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
6 large eggs, separated
3 cups whole milk
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (13 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon neutral flavored cooking oil or coconut oil plus more for the waffle iron
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
 

1. Measure the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt into a large bowl.
2. In another bowl, whisk together the yolks, milk, melted butter, cooking oil, and vanilla until combined. Slowly whisk the wet mixture into the dry mixture just until combined. The result should be slightly lumpy yet still combined.
3. Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer until they reach medium peaks. Stick your finger in, they should drip over a bit and stand up.
4.  
5. Gently fold half of the whipped whites into the batter with a large rubber spatula. Then gently fold the remaining whites into the batter. The batter should remain slightly lumpy and have large parts of egg whites not fully incorporated. (The batter will last a few hours in the fridge without deflating too much.)
6. Heat the waffle iron. Be sure it is hot before proceeding or your waffles may stick. Lightly brush the hot surface with some oil. Drop ¼ to 1/3  cup batter per waffle onto the waffle iron. Let it set, do not open until your waffle iron light goes on. The waffles will be golden brown on both sides. Remove to a plate or cool on a rack to serve warmed up later or frozen for up to 3 months.

This recipe is featured in my cookbook "Beautifully Delicious-Cooking with Herbs, and Edible Flowers". 
Make dessert or breakfast special with these beautiful crepes. Delicate and light, they provide the perfect landing place for fresh fruit, sweetened yogurt, and honey. I use pansy, calendula, violet, rose, bachelor button, and dianthus petals.  

Makes 8 crepes 
 
⅔ cup milk
⅔ cup water
3 eggs
3 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
1 cup flour
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons additional melted butter (for the pan)
1 cup edible flower petals 

Fresh fruit or fruit jam

1. Place milk, water, eggs, and melted butter in a blender and mix until smooth. Add the flour and salt to the blender and mix, scraping down the sides of the jar as needed. The batter will be thin.
2. Heat an 8-inch crepe pan or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, brush very lightly with melted butter. Pour ¼ cup of batter into the pan while tilting it to cover the surface with the batter. If using a 10-inch pan, prepare crepes with 1/3 cup of batter.
3. Sprinkle the batter with flower petals and place whole flowers face up. Cook for 30-45 seconds. Turn crepe over and cook another 30 seconds. Remove the crepe and place on a wire rack to cool. Repeat with the remaining batter. Cooled crepes can be stacked if needed.
4. Fill crepes with jam, sweetened ricotta, chocolate sauce, or fruit. You can drizzle with maple syrup, honey, or other sauce.

 
Variation
 
Herb Crepes with Lemon Yogurt Cream      
Replace the edible flowers with freshly chopped herbs and cook crepes as above. Dill with savory ricotta, cheese, or other savory filling. Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Herb options: parsley, chive, basil, dill, tarragon, and cilantro. Add smoked salmon or smoked trout to your crepe for a special brunch dish.

2-4 large eggs-depending on how many eggs you would like per salad
1 Tbs vinegar
Kosher salt

1. Fill a 4 quart sauce pan or a wide, straight-sided sauté pan with water (2 ½-3 inches) and add 1 tablespoon white vinegar. Heat  the water to a gentle simmer. 
2. Break each egg into a teacup.
3. Slide 1 egg into simmering liquid and immediately push white around yolk with a slotted spoon. Add remaining eggs in same manner. Simmer eggs 3-4 minutes. If cooking in batches or ahead of serving time, place the cooked eggs into a large bowl or pan of lukewarm water until serving time. To warm up the eggs, place in a pan of simmering water for 30 seconds. 

Serve: over toast with homemade blender hollandaise, on top of a my Parisian Salad, or simmered in spiced tomato sauce Shakshuka

Video: How to poach eggs

Shakshuka is a classic North African and Middle Eastern dish that’s eaten for breakfast or any meal of the day. Shakshuka means “a mixture” and the traditional version uses tomatoes, onions and spices as the base with eggs poached on top. The best Shakshuka that I have had was at Tatte in Boston. Everything there is delicious!

Serves 1
to serve 2, double the recipe and use a larger sauté pan.
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1 ½ cups bottled or canned tomato sauce(prepared with no sugar or seed oils)
½ teaspoon cumin, curry powder or other spice or spice mix
1 pinch crushed red pepper
1 small red pepper, sliced (bottled roasted peppers are fine too)
2-3 fresh eggs
Optional: Fresh parsley, basil, or cilantro, grated or shredded cheese of choice, leftover vegetables, shredded chicken, meat, seafood, olives, capers

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees or preheat your broiler. Warm the tomato sauce, seasonings, and red pepper in an 8-inch oven proof sauté pan. Heat until simmering and cook until the peppers are just beginning to soften-about 3 minutes.
2. Create a “nesting spot” for your eggs in the sauce. Break the eggs into the pan. Place the pan in the oven and cook for 3-5 minutes or until the eggs have set to your liking. Alternatively, you can place a tight-fitting lid on the pan and cook the eggs. Serve hot.

This is one of my favorite lunches. You can eat it for breakfast too! Egg salad is so good for you and really simple to make. I always have hard boiled eggs on hand so I can enjoy a hardboiled egg anytime in a salad or make egg salad when the mood hits. 
I often cook up a pound or two of bacon in the oven so I have cooked bacon available for any recipe. Sometimes I just snack on a crispy piece or use a slice to stir my Bloody Mary ;-). 
You will notice my specific use of Sir Kensington's Avocado Mayonnaise. It's a bit more expensive than Hellman's, but avocado oil is a healthier option to the soybean oil found in Hellman's. I love Hellman's Mayo, but recently gave it up when I took a closer look at the ingredients and saw that it contains soybean oil. I have eliminated highly processed seed oils from my diet and soybean and canola oil are right at the top of the list. 

Egg Salad with Bacon and Lettuce Leaves

2-4 hard boiled eggs, peeled and mashed
2-4 tablespoons Sir Kensington's Avocado Mayonnaise
1 tablespoons flat leafed parsley or mint, chopped (or both!)
salt and pepper to taste
Cooked bacon-I cook mine in the oven on a baking pan
Romain lettuce leaves

1. Combine the eggs, mayo, herbs, and salt and pepper together. 
2. Place two pieces of lettuce together and fill with egg salad. Top with bacon and serve.

Adapted from myfitnesspal.com

Makes 2 servings
​
½ cup, All-purpose Flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
2 large eggs
1 cup Vanilla Greek Yogurt - Low-fat 2%

1. Add dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and salt) to a bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients (eggs and Greek yogurt) until well mixed.
2. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir together until well combined.
3. Spray your pan or griddle with cooking spray and place onto stove on medium-low heat. Use a 1/4 cup measure or cookie scoop to portion out pancakes that are about 4 inches in diameter. 
4. Cook pancakes until the bottom side is brown and a few bubbles form on the top of the pancake (about 3-4 minutes), then flip the pancakes. You’ll notice that these pancakes won’t bubble up too much like traditional pancakes. Leave extra room in the pan because the pancakes may splatter when you flip them.
5. After flipping the pancake, cook until the other side is brown (about 2-3 minutes). Repeat with remaining batter. Top pancakes with blueberries, and enjoy.

Let me begin this post with a big THANK YOU to my friend Kaaren who gave me this recipe years ago.  It has become a favorite dish on my Thanksgiving table and a favorite recipe at my cooking demonstrations.  I make batches and batches of this tart-sweet sauce to freeze and have long after fresh cranberries are no longer available at the grocery store.  I'll even buy bags of cranberries and freeze them to assure I have this sauce all year long.  I use frozen raspberries which are sweet and economical.  
On the sweet side, I serve this sauce for dessert draped over pound cake and ice cream.  I also use it the breakfast table served on oatmeal, yogurt, and cottage cheese.  To add a savory side to the sauce I've prepared it with chopped fresh rosemary to compliment chicken, pork, and roasted vegetables.  I'm sure once you try it you'll love it too.

​Makes 3 cups
 
1 12 oz package of fresh cranberries
1/2 cup of sugar
1 cup water
1 12 oz package of frozen raspberries

1. Combine water, sugar, and cranberries in a medium saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off the heat.  Cool the cranberries to room temperature.
   
   
2. After the cranberries have cooled gently stir in the raspberries.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

 
*Make this a savory sauce by adding 1 teaspoon of fresh chopped rosemary and ½ tsp of salt while cooking the cranberries and sugar.