Coming into the New Year marks a birthday for me, personally, as well as a 1st birthday for InnTheKitchen.com.  What started as a small category on InnsideStory.com grew into this wonderful collection of breakfast recipes that I've enjoyed creating, eating and sharing. I've compiled my favorites below.  Breakfast is the first meal of the day, start it off well!  Celebrate the day.  Happy New Years!

"People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas."  ~Author Unknown

#1 -- Cherry Almond Oatmeal Bake

Looking for a hot & steamy breakfast? I'm not talking about a romantic breakfast for two ... but instead a bowl of sweetness that fills your belly full and gives you the same comfort of a warm fuzzy blanket on a cold morning. Perfect for filling up before skiing or any other outdoor fall and winter activities where you have a houseful of cold and hungry folks to feed. (Read More ..)

#2 --  Autumn Sangria

I can't think of a better way to kick off the season than with a glass of spice infused Autumn Sangria.  My good friend, Maranda gave me this recipe and I always make a batch every Fall.  First I'm gonna show you how to make it.  Then we're gonna clink glasses and have a little toast.  Okay ... maybe just clink your glass to your computer monitor ... just be sure to not spill any on the keyboard.(Read More ...)

#3 -- Salsa & Eggs

This has to be the easiest and healthiest breakfast I've made in a long time.  Simple ingredients, fabulous flavor. It was given to me by the Grandison Inn located in Oklahoma City and it is their most requested breakfast dish among guests. Once you make it for the first time, it's the kind of recipe that stays in your head that you can whip up quickly without even thinking twice about it.  Don't ya just love those? (Read More ... )

#4 -- Blueberry Citrus Scones

Blueberries make a great low fat snack for munching while working on your computer or watching a movie.  But this recipe ... is definitely NOT of the low-fat-guilt-free diet variety.  But they're worth every calorie!  Besides, when you look at the ingredients ... some milk, some orange juice, some eggs ... you can convince yourself that this is a healthy breakfast.  Right?  Well ... at least believe me when I say that they're super delicious. (Read More ... )

#5 -- Rhubarb Jam

My grandmother's sister ... my great aunt ... came down to visit us from New Hampshire recently.  She still lives in the little teeny town they grew up in called Berlin.  I loved spending time with them and hearing about their stories of "the good ole days" which, ironically, were partially during the Great Depression.  Life was simple and much slower back then and everything they ate was grown in their yard and cooked from scratch.  (Read More ...)

#6 -- Marshmallow .. From Scratch!

Not really for breakfast, but could be!  My friend Eric always had some good treats baked up.  So when he told me he had a recipe for Marshmallow I begged him to share!   He had  me asking ... WTF is actually IN a marshmallow?  You mean they're not magically produced by Willy Wonka?  There are ingredients I can buy at the store to make these?  Awesome!  They're unbelievably easy! I'll walk  you through it step-by-step with photos and post the full recipe at the end.  (Read More ... )

#7 -- New Mexico Souffle

Want to add some color to your breakfast?  Then then read on because the blend of lavender, dry mustard, cayenne and green chilies makes this a rainbow of flavor.  But it's not sweet like Skittles. This New Mexico Souffle fills your senses with calm floral lavender and leaves you with a zippy heat from the chilies.  Get ready to have a party in your mouth, New Mexico style. (Read More ... )

#8 -- Cinnamon Rolls

Flour ... Butter ... Eggs ... Milk ... Sugar ... Oh, how I love thee ... let me count the ways.  It never ceases to amaze me how many different things can be baked from just tweaking a combination of the above ingredients.  I'll have to have a marathon-list-making post of all the different creations. For this morning, I'm going to make a traditional chilly-morning-gooey-cozy-comfort-food favorite ... cinnamon rolls.  (Read More ... )

#9 -- Beer with Breakfast

Inspired by a visit from Tom and Gayle, I paired breakfast with beer.  It was a late breakfast ... I promise ... after noon.  This was a little outside of my box as it was not an "inn" that gave me the recipe. I found the recipe on Tom's website, BrooklynBrewery.com . Having beer with breakfast intrigued me. While I have to confess that I'm not normally a beer drinker ... this was an AMAZING flavor pairing.  (Read More ...)

#10 -- Croissant Bread Pudding

We recently enjoyed a whirlwind weekend in San Francisco. It's a lot to see in only four days, but I'm really happy that we squeezed in drive out to Napa Valley where we met with the innkeepers at the Glass Mountain Inn, a gorgeous inn located in St. Helena.  How about a little Grand Marnier with your breakfast?   (Read More ... )

We will open the book.  Its pages are blank.  We are going to put words on them ourselves.  The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.  ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce