Cheddar and bacon filled Corn Waffles are great for Sunday brunch or for casual school mornings. I like to triple this recipe and stash them in sandwich bags in the freezer.

The kids can toast them in the morning and eat them out of hand on the way out the door or enjoy a whole 5-minute breakfast on a plate with butter and syrup if they’ve allowed themselves enough time.

Corn Waffles

When I spied these cornmeal waffles in Sandy Coughlin‘s new cookbook, Big Boards and More, I knew exactly what we’d be making for our Sunday brunch. We love cornbread waffles so much, I figured it could only get more delicious with bacon and cheddar in the mix.

Sandy’s cookbooks are genuinely created for food lovers. My whole family loved the Dessert Fondue Board from her first book and like her first book, there is a whole lot more in this cookbook than just the gorgeous charcuterie! There are 100 recipes for everything from soups and tacos to breakfasts and desserts.

I made these waffles in my brand new Dash waffle iron (I was absurdly excited to learn that the company so well known for their teeny waffle irons has FINALLY made a waffle iron that would cook four at a time of the handy 4-inch waffles! I ordered one as soon as I saw it.) Turns out that I LOVE it. I honestly thought it might be a little gimmicky, but it browns perfectly on both sides in very little time.

Oh! And in case you’re considering it, I bought the Aqua color waffle iron that is currently on sale for 30% off. How cool is that? A great new waffle iron AND a sale? Day. Made.

If you make waffles often, and for more than a few people, a double-sided waffle iron is priceless. I love mine and it effectively cuts the cooking time in half when you can bake two big waffles at a time. Definitely a win on a lazy weekend morning.

If you frequently make waffles with the intention of freezing them, this square waffle iron might be for you. The size is perfect for freezer waffles and it makes (4) 4-inch waffles at a time. All 4 will fit perfectly in a gallon-size freezer bag or alternatively, each 4-inch waff

Apple Cider Donut Muffins

I love the crisp autumn air, the leaves changing colors on the trees, the pumpkin spice everything and most of all, these apple cider donut muffins!

These apple cider muffins are one of our favorite healthy breakfast options. They have the perfect amount of sweet from the cider and brown sugar and the sour cream helps keep them extra tender and moist. 

Does your family have any fall traditions? I’m not sure if it’s like this everywhere else, but when fall rolls around here in Utah, all sorts of pumpkin patches pop up with corn mazes and fun activities for families. One of our favorite places is down in a little town called Santaquin at Rowley’s Red Barn. It is the cutest farm with a red barn where you can buy ice cream, fall produce, the best apple cider on earth AND the most outrageously delicious apple cider donuts. I don’t know what they put in those donuts, but they are dangerous!

These apple cider donut muffins are those donuts but in muffin form because, let’s be honest, muffins are just easier than donuts! Everyone has a muffin tin but not everyone has a donut pan. It’s time to make these donut muffins a new fall tradition in your family!

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Baked oatmeal, loaded with summer berries and lightly sweetened with brown sugar is a great way to start the day. 

Baked Berries with Oatmeal

A few days ago, I was having a conversation recently with our followers on our Facebook page about fall flavors and it turned into a discussion about why we associate certain seasons with certain flavors and foods.

It has only been in recent years that things like fresh strawberries and blueberries are in grocery stores year around. While I do love making and enjoying things in season when I get a craving for dishes with fresh berries it is so nice to be able to find them regardless of time and year and location.

That being said berries are a mainstay in my refrigerator. The other day I had a few things that needed to be used up and baked oatmeal is the perfect way to make sure those berries didn’t go to waste.

This oatmeal recipe isn’t overly sweet and it allows the bright flavors of the berries to shine through.

Baked oatmeal is one of those breakfast dishes I don’t like to oversweeten before making. It is easy to take the sweetness up a notch by topping it with honey or maple syrup when you serve it – if the finished oatmeal needs to be sweetened at all.

Oatmeal is one of my children’s favorite breakfasts and we’ve gathered a huge collection of great oatmeal recipes over the past few years.

My youngest son loves oatmeal so much, there was a phase where he attempted to order it at almost every restaurant we visited.

There was nothing quite like watching the waiter’s face when he requested, “A big bowl of oatmeal, please,” while we are dining at a Mexican restaurant. Luckily, he loves chips and salsa almost as much, so it was easy to distract him.

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Cranberry Apple Walnut Oatmeal is a tart and sweet body-warming dish perfect for filling those bellies before a busy day.

Cranberry Apple Oatmeal

Fall brings about such cozy feelings for me. Not only cozy sweatshirts and fires but cozy, warming things in my belly. The full-body warming feeling that comes from oatmeal is such morning comfort.

Being surrounded by local apple orchards, apple picking season brings about a bowl of fresh apples on the counter for weeks on end. There really isn’t a better snack and any that get soft I can easily toss into oatmeal or other dishes.

In August the orchards in our area put out a schedule of when each variety will be ready for picking. McIntosh’s are always first followed by Honeycrisp. Honeycrisp is our favorite for snacking! So good, fresh, crispy, and sweet.

For baking, I like Golden Delicious and Johnathan’s. Having local access to orchards here in Ohio it has been fun to discover varieties we hadn’t tried before like Ambrosia and Empire. I am curious about what you find in your areas?

This breakfast is so easy, warmed, and cooked in just one pot. Dicing a few apples – I even leave the peel on, warming them with oatmeal and spices fills your house with the scents of fall.

The aroma of spicy cinnamon and apples cooking always gets me in the mood for autumn. Oatmeal is everything I love about apple pie cooked into a hearty comforting breakfast.

Apple Oatmeal with Cranberries and Walnuts

• rolled oats
• water
• apples
• chopped walnuts (pecans may be substituted)
• dried cranberries
• kosher salt
• cinnamon
• butter
• light brown sugar, maple syrup or honey

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