Decadent breakfast treats for chilly autumn mornings

By JENNIFER GRAUE

Between the crisp, cool air and shortened days, autumn weekends seem to be made for sleeping late, followed by long, leisurely breakfasts that fill your home with the aromas of brewed coffee, fresh baked sweet breads and sizzling sausages.

Sadly, the reality is that most weekend breakfasts turn into harried, short-order affairs of bacon and eggs — or Pop-Tarts.

That’s when we should take a cue from bed and breakfast inns. They are, after all, the masters of leisurely morning meals, says Pamela Lanier, a family travel expert who turned her B&B expertise into a new cookbook, “Cinnamon Mornings and Savory Nights” (Lanier Publications/Random House, $19.95, 160 pages), featuring recipes from inns across North America.

The hallmark of breakfast at an inn, the Petaluma resident says, is that it’s something out of the ordinary: “It’s not just eggs and toast. The dish has other elements to it — whether it’s stuffed French toast or a veggie omelet — that make it cuisine.”

Filled with recipes for baked apple pancakes, coffee cakes and at least nine kinds of French toast, each more decadent than the last, Lanier’s book practically exudes the heady aromas of autumn — crisp mornings, a crackling fire, cinnamon and sage.

“Cinnamon is a magical ingredient. It goes in so many dishes and wakes the whole thing up,” says Lanier.

Put a cinnamon-laced coffee cake in the oven in the morning, and even the sleepiest of sleepyheads will find his way into the kitchen in fairly short order. Add some herb-flecked country sausage to the mix — sage has a natural affinity for pork, which is why it’s so often used in breakfast sausage — and the result is breakfast nirvana.

There’s a reason we’re drawn to cinnamon and sage in cooler weather, beyond their delectable fragrances. Aromatherapists and herbalists say these plants have warming qualities. Practitioners of traditional folk medicine use them to prevent and remedy colds. And even some over the counter cold medicines today contain the chemical compounds found in sage and cinnamon.

More to the point, cinnamon and sage taste marvelous and they pair beautifully with apples, pears, pumpkins and mushrooms — the seasonal foods that give the morning meal such a cozy autumn feel.

At the Wine Country Inn & Gardens in St. Helena, Calif., it takes the form of a layered cheese strata, filled with cheddar cheese and mushrooms. At New Hampshire’s Greenfield Inn, that translates into a homely but delicious version of do-ahead French toast, drenched in caramelized brown sugar and topped with berries or saut ed apples.

And for Emily Hoche-Mong, who runs Montara’s Goose and Turrets Bed and Breakfast with her husband Raymond, autumn breakfasts are all about celebrating the season with local fare: seasonal fruit plates, oatmeal with cinnamon, brandied cherries with creme Chantilly, and another local delicacy.

“As it gets to be crab season in the fall, we do a deviled crab in a cream sauce served in a pastry bouchee,” she says.

Hoche-Mong’s menu may sound complicated, but the key, she says, is preparation.

“It really pays to do something that you can fix ahead, simple kinds of frittata and casserole dishes. In the morning you can bring it out and pop it in the oven. It’s lovely for families because the cook can enjoy the morning,” Hoche-Mong says.

With long holiday weekends arriving, that’s especially good advice for cooks with a house full of company. Hoche-Mong says her recipe for sausage biscuit pinwheels freezes beautifully. Lanier’s book also offers several dishes that can be made a day or two in advance and refrigerated. And a cinnamon bun recipe that gets its lift from baking powder, rather than yeast, can be thrown together at the last minute.

Of course, some might argue that if you want a delicious, no-fuss autumn breakfast, you could just go out. But that would mean denying yourself the ultimate indulgence on a chilly autumn morning: pajamas at the breakfast table.

QUICK CINNAMON BUNS

Makes 8-10

13‚Ñ4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon sugar

1‚Ñ4 teaspoon salt

1‚Ñ4 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces

1 egg

1‚Ñ3 to 1‚Ñ2 cup milk

Filling

1‚Ñ4 cup butter, softened

1‚Ñ2 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Glaze

1‚Ñ2 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1‚Ñ4 teaspoon maple flavoring

Milk to thin

In a food processor, pulse together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Add cold butter and pulse until evenly distributed.

Whisk together the egg and 1‚Ñ3 cup milk. Then, with motor running, pour the liquid into the flour mixture and pulse until just combined. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead lightly, adding just enough flour so the dough becomes smooth.

Roll the dough into a 12-by-12- inch square. Spread with softened butter, coat with brown sugar and sprinkle with cinnamon. Roll dough into a log and chill for 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a muffin tin. Cut the cinnamon roll into 8 to 10 slices, about 1‚Ñ2-inch thick, and place cut-side down in the muffin tin. Bake 15 to 20 minutes. Let rest a few minutes, then remove hot muffins from pan.

Whisk the powdered sugar with melted butter, maple and just enough milk to reach a glaze consistency. Drizzle over warm muffins.

Adapted from a Sherwood Forest B&B recipe, Lanierbb.com

SOURDOUGH EGG STRATA

Serves 8

12 slices lightly buttered extra-sourdough bread

4 cups grated cheddar cheese

1‚Ñ2 medium onion, diced

1 cup thinly sliced mushrooms

10 eggs

4 cups milk

2 heaping tablespoons spicy mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1‚Ñ4 teaspoon pepper

Cut bread into small cubes. Place half the bread cubes into a large, greased baking dish. Sprinkle with 2 cups cheese, onion and mushrooms. Add second layer of bread and top with remaining cheese.

Beat eggs, milk, mustard, salt and pepper together. Pour this mixture evenly over the casserole. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bake for approximately 45-50 minutes or until top is golden and lightly crusted.

The Wine Country Inn & Gardens, St. Helena, Calif., published in “Cinnamon Mornings and Savory Nights” by Pamela Lanier

SAUSAGE BISCUIT PINWHEELS

Rolled, uncut logs can be refrigerated overnight or frozen.

Makes 25-30 pinwheels

3‚Ñ4 to 1 pound bulk, well-seasoned pork sausage

2 cups flour

1‚Ñ2 teaspoon baking powder

1‚Ñ4 teaspoon baking soda

Pinch salt

1‚Ñ2 cup shortening

3‚Ñ4 cup buttermilk

Sift 11‚Ñ2 cups flour in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and add baking powder, soda and salt. Mix well, then cut in shortening. Add buttermilk and mix well. Add last 1‚Ñ2 cup of flour and blend until smooth but not sticky. Wrap dough in waxed paper and chill for one hour.

Roll out dough on a floured surface to 1‚Ñ4-inch thickness, roughly an 18x8-inch rectangle. Spread sausage thinly over the dough. Leave a 1‚Ñ2-inch along one long edge free of sausage, so it will seal when rolled. Starting along the long end, roll dough into a log-shaped cylinder. Chill at least 30 minutes so logs will cut cleanly.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cut logs in 1‚Ñ2-inch rounds. Place 1‚Ñ4-inch apart on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes or until sausage is cooked and dough is golden.

Emily Hoche-Mong, Goose and Turrets Bed and Breakfast, Montara, Calif.

DEVILED CRAB EN BOUCHEE

Serves 10

6 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons butter, divided

6 tablespoons flour

3 cups milk

1‚Ñ4 teaspoon salt

Tabasco sauce

8 ounces crabmeat

3 tablespoons each minced onion, bell pepper, celery

1‚Ñ4 cup peas or corn, optional

1‚Ñ4 teaspoon gumbo file, optional

10 puff pastry bouchees or shells

Make a white sauce by melting 6 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour and continue whisking until mixture starts to bubble. Cook two minutes longer. Pour in milk and stir until it starts to thicken. Season with salt and a few drops Tabasco, to taste. Add crab and keep warm.

In a skillet, melt 2 teaspoons butter, add vegetables and saut . When tender, sprinkle the gumbo file over them, then add vegetables to the crab mixture and keep warm.

Crisp the bouchee shells in a 325 degree oven for 5 minutes. Pour mixture into bouchees, allowing some to pour over sides. Top with slivers of bell pepper, parsley, nasturtium or other colorful garnish and serve.

Emily Hoche-Mong, Goose and Turrets Bed and Breakfast, Montara