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We are currently updating our newsletter-sending software. Unfortunately, this means mailing of the Breakfast Report will not resume until September. Apologies to current subscribers. Very soon, new subscribers will be able to sign up again via this page. In the meantime, please enjoy the newsletter we would have sent out had we been able. Thanks!

Summer 2009 Theme: Summer Breakfast Lovin'

Happy Summer Breakfast Lover,

We've got some great things cooking at MrBreakfast.com. We're happy to announce the launch of our new, improved website and the unveiling of The Cereal Project. Tell all your friends... and even people you don't know. Regular newsletters are set to resume this fall. Talk to you then. Have a fantastic summer.

Your pal,
Mr Breakfast

Recipe Of The Month: Easy Banana Bread

This issue's featured recipe is a simple, basic banana bread that's received super high marks from the great breakfast lovers who have left comments on MrBreakfast.com. I hope you like it as much as we do.

Easy Banana Bread

1 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 medium bananas
8 Tablespoons butter or margarine
1/3 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

This recipe makes 6 servings.

Cream sugar and butter, mash the bananas and add to the mixture.

Beat and add the eggs. Slowly add the flour, salt, and baking soda. (If desired, fold in the walnuts at this point.) Pour into a loaf pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 40 to 50 minutes.

Easy Banana Bread

Cooking Notes:

This recipe makes one 9 1/2 X 5-inch loaf or three 6 X 3 1/2-inch mini loaves.

For an in-depth article (with video) about this recipe, please see Mr Breakfast's blog post called Banana Bread... So Easy, ItÕs Bananas!

That's all there is too it. Let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment on this recipe's page on MrBreakfast.com.

More Featured Breakfast Recipes For Summer

Let us know what you thought of the recipes by posting a note on MrBreakfast.com.

Grapefruit Crunch

This is a simple way to add spark to a healthy breakfast of grapefruit. You can use your favorite flavor of yogurt to customize it to your tastes.

Green Eggs And Ham

In this recipe, it's avocado and green onion that give the eggs a greenish hue. Fun for St. Patrick's Day or after reading the famous book to kids (please leave out the bourbon if serving to children).

Red Flannel Hash

Great for around St. Patrick's Day when corned beef brisket is easier to find and often cheaper. Top with poached eggs to make the meal complete. Very popular in New England.

Mashed Potato Pancakes

I like these with butter and maple syrup. But since they're more savory than sweet, they are also terrific with a fried egg and grated cheese on top. You can also try adding some chopped parsley or basil for color - or spice them up with jarred roasted red pepper or jalapenos! Delicious!

Flax Seed And Nut Granola (Low-Carb)

An oat-free, low-carb granola with three kinds of nuts, two kinds of seeds and shredded coconut. It is sweetened with Splenda (or similar sugar substitute).

Better Blueberry Waffles

A good reliable blueberry batter. These waffles are great with a thin spread of butter topped with a few fresh berries and a dollop of whipped cream. Great with maple syrup too.

To Find Your Perfect Breakfast:

MrBreakfast.com now has 2883 breakfast recipes. (And don't forget the 23618 restaurant reviews.)

There's Over 325 Ways To Make Toast

Over the last three years, MrBreakfast.com visitors have submitted their recipes for toast. Check it out: 326 Ways To Enjoy Toast.

10 Tips To Make Perfect Waffles

Respect Your Waffle Maker. Be sure to read the instruction manual for your unit thoroughly. Different waffle makers are designed to cook waffles differently. Some people may tell you to coat your waffle maker with cooking spray. There's a good chance your manual will have different advice. If you bought your waffle maker in the last 5 years, chances are you should not use cooking spray.
"Non-Stick" Is In The Batter. The amount of oil or butter in your batter will determine whether or not your waffles will stick to your waffle maker. If you are consistently making waffles that stick, try increasing the oil or butter.
Separate The Egg Whites From The Yolks. If a light and fluffy waffle interior is important to you, separate your eggs. Add the beaten yolks to the wet ingredients of your batter. Then, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold the eggs whites gently into the final batter using a spatula.
Avoid Violent-Mixing. Waffle batter is a tricky character. It should be smooth enough to flow freely through the dimples of the waffle plate, but it should never be over-mixed (over-mixing turns the flour into gluten which produces a chewier, less-fluffy texture). The solution is gentle patience. Using a rubber spatula (or a spoon if you don have one), mix the wet ingredients of your batter into the dry ingredients as if the batter had tiny, breakable items in it that you don't want to break. Using a gentle motion and a couple extra minutes, mix the batter until smooth.
No Buttermilk / No Problem. A lot of the more interesting waffle recipes you'll find ask for buttermilk. The problem is most people don't keep buttermilk around. Regular milk can always be used in place of buttermilk. The difference in the texture of the completed waffle is negligible. If your dying for that extra bit of tanginess that buttermilk adds, you can make an easy buttermilk substitute by adding a Tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to a cup of milk. The acidic ingredient will cause the milk to curdle. Let it stand 15 minutes and there you go. Some people will probably even prefer the kiss of freshness that lemon juice can add.
Don't Lift The Lid Too Early. As a general rule you should always wait until your waffle maker says it's okay, by way of its indicator light or beeping mechanism. If you have a waffle that's sticking to the plates (see tip #2 to avoid), lifting the lid too soon could cause your waffle to rip, leaving one poor half of a waffle stuck to the top and the other half sadly adhered to the bottom.
Steam: A Waffle's Natural Kitchen Timer. If your waffle maker doesn't have a doneness indicator, watch the steam coming out of the unit as you cook. When the steam stops, lift the lid. The waffle should be done. Chances are that it will be well-done. On our test waffle maker, complete steamlessness matched a setting of 8 out of 10 on the doneness dial.
Everybody Dig In (At The Same Time). If you're cooking for more than one person, you'll probably want everyone to eat at the same time. But your waffle maker only makes one waffle at a time. Is all lost? Is all hope gone? No way. Set your oven to 250 degrees at the same time that you pre-heat your waffle maker. As you pull completed waffles from the maker, transfer them to the oven. A short time in the oven can actually improve the crispness of a waffle. Think of it as giving your waffles a light toasting right after you make them.
Don't Waste Waffles. Only wild, wacky women with weird ways and wide wallets waste wonderful waffles. If you make too many waffles, just place them in a freezer bag after they've cooled. Place wax paper between multiple waffles and squeeze as much air from the bag as possible. When you're ready to eat them, set out the preferred number of waffles and let them defrost for about 10 minutes. Then, heat the waffles in your oven at 300 degrees for about 5 minutes. If the waffles fit comfortably in your toaster, go for it. Just defrost them and toast at a medium-low setting. Note: If you're purposely making waffles for later use, cook them at a setting slightly lower than you'd ordinarily use. Then, they'll be just the way you like them when they're hit with more heat.
No Mess / No Regrets. If you clean your waffle maker shortly after it's cooled, you'll guarantee your machine's future waffle success and it will be much easier to clean than if you waited. For a list of tips on cleaning waffle makers, click here.

BONUS TIPS:

Always have softened butter or margarine and warmed (at least room temperature) syrup ready for your waffles. There's nothing worse than sitting in front of a perfect waffle and trying to spread cold butter on it. Your picture perfect waffle will rip and tear like nobody's business.
Use a plastic or rubber utensil to remove your waffles from the waffle maker. A fork or knife may be more handy, but over the long haul those seemingly harmless stabs at the waffle plates will cause havoc on your waffle maker.

NEW PRODUCT REVIEWS

Delights Breakfast Bowls
From Jimmy Dean

I recently tried 2 new varieties of Jimmy Dean Delights Breakfast Bowls: Farmhouse and Broccoli, Cheese & Ham. The Farmhouse bowl has eggs, potatoes, onions, green & red peppers, Cheddar cheese, turkey sausage and Portabella mushrooms. The Broccoli bowl has scrambled egg whites, diced potatoes, broccoli, Cheddar cheese, ham & red onion.

The cooking instructions for both are easy: microwave 2 minutes, stir, microwave 1 more minute. Both varieties looked fairly appetizing coming out of the microwave... although not nearly as appetizing as they appear on the box.

Farmhouse Delights Breakfast Bowl Product Review

Farmhouse Delights Breakfast Bowl Product Review

Farmhouse Delights Breakfast Bowl in Real Life

The Farmhouse bowl was just okay. There were nice sized pieces of egg, potato and sausage with noticeable peppers. The cheese only came through in occasional bites. The main flavors were egg and potato. Surprisingly for a Jimmy Dean product, the sausage was bland and made little impact on the overall flavor. The Portabella mushroom pieces were hardly noticeable. The egg pieces were the best part. The biggest negative was the small puddle of liquid (less than a teaspoon) left at the bottom of the bowl.

Broccoli, Cheese & Ham Delights Breakfast Bowl Product Review

Broccoli, Cheese & Ham Delights Breakfast Bowl Product Review

Broccoli, Cheese & Ham Delights Breakfast Bowl in Real Life

The Broccoli, Cheese & Ham bowl was my favorite of the two. It was delightfully cheesy with strands of cheese hanging from nearly every forkful. The potato chunks were tender and tasty. The large pieces of egg white were good, but not as good as the egg in the Farmhouse bowl. The broccoli tasted fresh. The ham provided terrific flavor, but was slightly chewy every so often. The main flavors were cheese and potato. The onion was barely noticeable. This bowl, too, suffered from an annoying little puddle of liquid at the bottom.

I was surprised that I like the Broccoli variety better. I tend to favor sausage over ham. But considering the sausage was flavorless and the ham was delicious, the Broccoli bowl beat out the Farmhouse bowl by a considerable margin. It also didn't hurt that it was indulgently cheesy.

Overall, these bowls were satisfying and filling. I give the Farmhouse Bowl a rating of 4.5 golden eggs out of 7. I give the Broccoli, Cheese and Ham Bowl a rating of 5 out of 7.

Nutritional Considerations:

Each Farmhouse Delights Breakfast Bowl has 300 calories, 18 grams total fat (8 grams saturated 0 grams trans), 195 mg cholesterol, 560 mg sodium, 17 grams totals carbs, 2 grams dietary fiber, 2 grams sugar and 17 grams protein.

Each Broccoli, Cheese & Ham Delights Breakfast Bowl has 250 calories, 12 grams total fat (7 grams saturated 0 grams trans), 40 mg cholesterol, 710 mg sodium, 17 grams totals carbs, 2 grams dietary fiber, 2 grams sugar and 18 grams protein.

The price we paid: $3.49

(5 out of 7 Golden Eggs)

Hostess Twinkies Cereal
From Post

Twinkies Cereal doesn't really taste like Twinkies. It has more of a pleasant, simple vanilla cake flavor - nothing more.

Eaten dry, the Twinkies-shaped pieces are a touch softer than you might expect. They're still crisp, but more tender than, say, Cap'n Crunch. A light powdered sugar coating does give the smallest feeling of creaminess that you might associate with the iconic snack cake.

Hostess Twinkies Cereal Product Review

The cereal stays crisp in milk for upward of 8 minutes. The milk takes on absolutely no flavor from the cereal.

I found the cereal a little boring, offering nothing new in flavor. On the other hand, my 5 year old daughter found the cereal to be "amazing" and thought the cereal pieces were "cute". She said she would give the cereal a 6 out of 7. I'm more inclined to give it a 4. Splitting the difference, this cereal gets 5 out of 7 golden eggs.

Hostess Twinkies Cereal in Real Life

Nutritional Considerations: Each 1 cup serving of Hostess Twinkies Cereal has 180 calories, 7 grams total fat (6 grams saturated and 0 grams trans), 0 mg cholesterol, 135 mg sodium, 29 grams total carbs, less than 1 gram dietary fiber, 16 grams sugar and 1 gram protein.

Kids Like Hostess Twinkies Cereal

The price we paid: $3.99

(5 out of 7 Golden Eggs)

Read the complete reviews for these products and more at the
Mr Breakfast Product Review Home Page.

Researchers at the University of Nottingham, UK found that skipping breakfast can raise cholesterol levels and diminish the body's sensitivity to insulin (the hormone that regulates blood sugar) in healthy, lean women.

Quick Breakfast For Busy Mornings

So you don't have time for breakfast? That's crazy talk. Check out this article for some great time-saving breakfast tips.

Check it out.

Oatmeal Saves The Day

Does this harsh economy have you tightening your breakfast budget? What a great excuse to find out more about the inexpensive wonder food called oatmeal.

Check it out.

The Spring 2009 Mr Breakfast Clothing Line

Research shows that 99.99999% percent of your friends don't own any of this stuff. What perfect gifts!

Sausage T-Shirt

$18.99

Vote4Breakfast Underpants

$8.99

Eat Oatmeal T-Shirt

$9.99

Click here to see the entire Mr Breakfast Collection.