Saved by the Kale

Healthy living is Happy living

Navigation

Pumpkin Pie French Toast

Pumpkin everything!! Jim and I had a Sunday morning to ourselves after the kids spent the night with the grandparents. That was so nice and relaxing, but it also gave us a chance to whip up some french toast. We don’t make french toast too often because our weekend mornings are still fairly rushed. We might have to change that now… this pumpkin pie french toast was awesome!

Pumpkin French Toast Recipe

Jim and I were talking about how there is literally a pumpkin version of just about any dessert-ish recipe. We naturally thought about what things we haven’t seen a pumpkin version of and settled on french toast. We love french toast, and having no kids for the morning gave us a little time to experiment. So off to the kitchen we went.

pumpkin pie french toast

 

The french toast itself was pretty easy. We added pumpkin and the usual pumpkin pie spices to the batter. Turns out that it cooks beautifully and tastes even better. 

Pumpkin Pie French Toast
Yields 10
Easy and delicious french toast with a pumpkin pie batter.
Write a review
Save Recipe
Print
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
15 min
Total Time
20 min
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
15 min
Total Time
20 min
Ingredients
  1. 2 eggs
  2. 6 Tbsp canned pumpkin
  3. 4 Tbsp powdered sugar
  4. 2/3 Tsp cinnamon
  5. 1/2 Tsp ground ginger
  6. 1/2 Tsp ground cloves
  7. Dash nutmeg
  8. 1 Tsp vanilla extract
  9. 1/2 C milk (2%)
  10. 3 Tbsp butter
  11. 10 slices brioche bread
Instructions
  1. Combine all ingredients except butter and bread in a mixing bowl and whisk thoroughly
  2. Heat a nonstick pan over med-high heat
  3. Add a bit of butter to the pan and let melt
  4. Dip each piece of bread in the batter for about 2 seconds per side and then place in pan immediately
  5. Let cook for about 90 seconds on each side, or until lightly browned
  6. Continue until you've used all of the batter and bread, adding a bit of butter each time
Notes
  1. Maple whipped cream and maple syrup go well with this
Saved by the Kale https://savedbythekale.com/
We wanted something unique to go with the french toast, so that’s where the maple whipped cream came in. It’s just a slight twist on the traditional whipped cream and goes nicely with the pumpkin spices. 

Maple Whipped Cream

Maple Whipped Cream
Yields 2
A delicious twist on traditional whipped cream. Maple syrup gives it a candy-like taste.
Write a review
Save Recipe
Print
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
5 min
Total Time
10 min
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
5 min
Total Time
10 min
Ingredients
  1. 1/2 Pint heavy whipping cream
  2. 1 Tbsp maple syrup
  3. 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
Instructions
  1. Chill the bowl of your stand mixer (or your mixing bowl if whipping by hand) in freezer for 5 minutes before starting
  2. Combine all ingredients in the bowl and beat on high for 1-2 minutes, depending on your desired thickness. Scrape down sides a couple of times.
  3. Keep refrigerated and use within 2 hours
Notes
  1. Replace maple syrup with 1 Tbsp vanilla extract for vanilla whipped cream.
Saved by the Kale https://savedbythekale.com/

Charleston Red Rice

Nearly 10 years ago we visited Charleston, SC for the first time. We love Charleston and have been back many times since, but on that first trip we discovered a local dish called Red Rice at Hyman’s Seafood. Neither of us had ever heard of red rice, so we asked the waiter about it. They said that it was a tomato-y rice and sausage dish that had a bit of heat. That sounded good to us, so we ordered it and were absolutely floored. We’ve been hooked ever since. 

Charleston Red Rice Recipe

Charleston Red Rice is South Carolina low country dish similar to the sausage and rice that I grew up with as a kid, except much better. Sausage, onions, and bell pepper is a good base for any dish, but it’s fabulous with rice. We typically make a batch of red rice as a main dish, but it’s an amazing side dish as well. It’s warm and spicy and would be great for those chilly evenings coming over the next few months. 

Charleston Red Rice ingredients

How to make Charleston red rice

Charleston Red Rice
Serves 6
A local speciality in Charleston, SC. Charleston Red Rice is a sausage and rice dish with tomatoes, onions, and bell pepper.
Write a review
Save Recipe
Print
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
1 hr
Total Time
1 hr 15 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
1 hr
Total Time
1 hr 15 min
Ingredients
  1. 2 C white rice
  2. 1 lb sausage links, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  3. 2 cloves garlic, minced
  4. 1 medium onion, medium dice
  5. 1 bell pepper, medium dice
  6. 3 C water, plus additional as needed
  7. 1 4oz can tomato paste
  8. 1 Tbsp brown sugar
  9. 1 Tbsp butter
  10. Cayenne pepper to taste
  11. Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Heat a large pot over med-high heat.
  2. Cook sausage until browned.
  3. Add onion, bell pepper and garlic and cook until translucent (3 minutes)
  4. Add rice and butter and cook until rice is slightly browned (3 minutes)
  5. Add water and remaining ingredients, stir to incorporate thoroughly.
  6. Reduce heat to medium-low and cover. Let cook for 15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes.
  7. Add more water as needed and cook until rice is tender.
Notes
  1. This rice will be sticky when cooked, so don't expect fluffy. Also, it's common for some of the tomato to stick to the bottom of the pot and get very brown. This is normal, so as long as it's not burned you'll be OK.
Saved by the Kale https://savedbythekale.com/
Charleston Red Rice

Red rice is one of the best local specialty dishes that I’ve found. It’s simple and delicious. What are some of your favorites?

Homemade Whole Wheat Tortillas

Making tortillas at home is something that we’d never considered until a couple of days ago at the grocery store when we couldn’t find any that didn’t contain soy. I’ve been trying to avoid soy as much as possible, but it seems like everything you buy contains it! It’s so frustrating. So then and there we decided to give homemade tortillas a try… and we are so glad we did!

Whole wheat tortillas

We made whole wheat tortillas from scratch. They are much better than the store bought variety and have a better taste. Jim has always preferred white flour tortillas to the whole wheat variety, but he changed his mind with this recipe. These tortillas came out soft, but more firm than store bought. They worked great for quesadillas, and I’m sure that we’ll be using them in other recipes from now on. 

How to make whole wheat tortillas

Homemade Whole Wheat Tortillas
Yields 16
Scratch-made whole wheat tortillas. Soft and delicious.
Write a review
Save Recipe
Print
Prep Time
25 min
Cook Time
20 min
Total Time
45 min
Prep Time
25 min
Cook Time
20 min
Total Time
45 min
Ingredients
  1. 3 C whole wheat flour
  2. 1.5 Tsp salt
  3. 1/2 C Canola oil
  4. 1 Tsp Baking powder
  5. 1 C Warm water
Instructions
  1. Setup stand mixer with dough hook attachment.
  2. Add all ingredients to mixer and mix on medium speed until a ball of dough forms. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
  3. Decrease speed to low and mix for 1 minute more.
  4. Transfer dough to floured work surface. Divide into 8 (burrito) or 16 (taco) portions, depending on the size tortillas you want to make.
  5. Flatten the dough balls with your palm until they are disc-shaped.
  6. Cover with a tea towel and let rest for 15 minutes.
  7. Using a rolling pin, roll out each disc as flat as possible. Taco sized tortillas will be around 6 inches in diameter.
  8. Heat a nonstick pan over high heat. Cook tortillas for 1 minutes on the first side and 30 seconds on the second. Don't let the tortillas get more than slightly browned.
  9. Store in a gallon sized freezer bag.
Saved by the Kale https://savedbythekale.com/
Whole wheat tortilla recipe

Whole wheat tortilla recipe

Root Beer Glazed Ribs

These are the best ribs we’ve ever made at home. Seriously, they are that delicious! We’ve made ribs hundreds of times, but none have been this amazing. 

Root beer glazed ribs

Root Beer Glaze

Let’s talk root beer for a minute. I’ve never been a huge fan. Jim loves root beer and tries to keep a few bottles in the fridge at all time. I recently tried some of the root beer that Jim got at Starbucks and really liked the spice it had, so when he suggested a root beer glaze / sauce for some barbecued ribs I was totally on board. The root beer glaze is totally different from any barbecue sauce that we’ve made before. It’s a bit sweeter, with some spice notes. It also has a touch of sriracha, so there’s a bit of heat too. 

The Ribs

Big racks of spare ribs are typically our go-to rib cut. However, we saw some beautiful St. Louis-style spareribs at the grocery store and decided to go with them this time. St. Louis-style ribs are just spareribs that have been trimmed a bit look more uniform. You don’t have as many of the small bones and cartilage as you see in traditional spareribs. These beauties cooked a little more quickly because of the size, which is always a good thing.

Barbecue Time

Jim cleaned up the ribs and removed the skin from the back. Then he coated them with his homemade rib rub and let them sit for about an hour before throwing them on the smoker. We use a mixture of oak (75%) and hickory (25%) for smoking, and try to keep the temp in the 250 to 300 degree range. Any lower than that and things get too smoky.  They cooked in about 3.5 hours.

Root beer glazed ribs recipe

 

Ribs on the smoker

Root Beer Glazed Ribs

Root Beer Glazed Ribs
Serves 6
Quite possibly the world's best barbecued ribs. The sweet and spicy root beer glaze offers a twist on the traditional bbq sauce.
Write a review
Save Recipe
Print
Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
3 hr 45 min
Total Time
4 hr 15 min
Prep Time
30 min
Cook Time
3 hr 45 min
Total Time
4 hr 15 min
Ingredients
  1. 2 racks of St. Louis-style ribs
  2. 1 C Sweet and Smoky BBQ Rub
  3. 1/2 C Apple Cider Vinegar
  4. 1 C Water
  5. 12 Oz Root Beer
  6. 1/8 C Turbinado Sugar
  7. 2 Tbsp Ketchup
  8. 1 Tsp Sriracha
  9. 1/2 Tsp Salt
  10. 1/2 Tsp Ground Black Pepper
Instructions
  1. Peel away the skin on the back of the ribs
  2. Season both sides of the ribs liberally with the rib rub (recipe below)
  3. Cook in smoker for 3.5 hours at 250-300 degrees F
  4. Combine water and apple cider vinegar in a spray bottle and spray ribs every hour while cooking
  5. While ribs are cooking, combine root beer, turbinado sugar, ketchup, sriracha, salt and pepper in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes until slightly thickened, stirring frequently.
  6. Sauce the ribs about 30 minutes before cooking time is up.
  7. Slice ribs into 2 bone sections and serve.
Notes
  1. Sweet and Smoky BBQ Rub recipe is at http://savedbythekale.com/sweet-smoky-bbq-rub-recipe/
Saved by the Kale https://savedbythekale.com/

Your Turn

We love barbecue in the Lastinger household. What’s your favorite style of bbq? Have any amazing sauce or rub recipes you want to share? Jim is always available for barbecue questions, so feel free to ask in the comments.