I baked up some caramelized onion and goat cheese tarts for a little soiree we are attending later today.  Alas, after I finished stuffing the tart shells I still had leftover goat cheese custard and leftover onion/mushroom mixture. These remnants looked far too tantalizing to dispose of and breakfast had yet to be tackled. My path was clear, we would use the goat cheese custard and the onion/mushroom mixture for breakfast.

I pondered a simple omelet. I pondered quiche. Then inspiration struck, I would use up some old bread and make a savory bread pudding.  I added a bit more egg to the goat cheese mixture and soaked the bread for a few minutes.  I oiled a couple of ramekins and put a big glop of bread pudding into the awaiting vessel.  I topped that with a generous dose of onions and mushrooms. Then I finished it off with the last bits of the bread mixture.  I baked it a 375 degree oven for about 20 minutes.  I served it with an over easy egg, some sliced kiwi, and a nice mug of hot cider.  It was delicious and perfect for fall.  The best part was no food went down the garbage disposal.

Like all well bred women, my mother always told me not to play with my food. However, as we get older we realize that sometimes ignoring the rules is just as important as, generally, following them. Food is fun. It has wonderful tastes, smells, colors, and textures. Something with so many wonderful attributes is just begging to be played with.

For me, breakfast is not just the most important meal of the day, its also the most wonderfully yummy for one specific reason — maple syrup. I live in New Hampshire and we take our maple syrup very seriously. While those of you in the rest of the world (except our dear neighbors in Vermont) like the nearly clear, grade A maple syrup (or, god forbid, Mrs. Butterworth) we know that the best syrup is the rich, dark, delicious, grade B syrup. Since every weekend breakfast at MaisonBisson must contain food that is syrup friendly, we eat more than our share of pancakes, french toast, and waffles. Last weekend I decided to have a little fun with breakfast. Mr Smiley here is the result. My husband liked him a lot, and I think others who are young at heart, or just plain young, would enjoy him too. Its easy and it reminds you not to take things too seriously.

My wonderful neighbor, Wendy, went berry picking and dropped me off a large container with luscious, fresh blueberries and raspberries. I decided to try a bit of an experiment and use the batter for one my favorite cakes with the berries. The result was this heavenly sour cream berry bread.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour an 8-cup loaf pan.
Melt 5 tablespoons of salted butter, pour into a large bowl, let cool.

Add and stir together until smooth:

• 2/3 cup of sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup of sour cream
• 1 large eggs

Add in pinches to break up any lumps and whisk in:

• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder

Stir until just combined:

• 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

Fold in:

• 1 cup of berries (I used a 50-50 mix of blueberries and raspberries.

Pour into the bread pan and bake for one hour to one hour and 15 min.

The bread is delicious warm, cool, or toasted and buttered.