Nothing beats the comfort, warmth, and taste of good home cooking, especially in the winter months. Take a treasured recipe, and add to that some local, fresh ingredients, and you have recipes that will quickly become favorites any time of the year. And no one knows local and fresh like our innkeepers! Are you ready to bake up some cherry topped german pancakes? For good measure, we've also included pumpkin bread, a favorite among the recipes that will certainly keep you warm and cozy this season – think of it as dessert at breakfast!

Cherry Topped German Pancakes

Recipe by Westphal Mansion Inn, Hartford:

Ingredients:

Cooking spray
5 eggs
1 ¼ cup flour
1 ¼ cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp sugar
Dash of salt
Canned fruit pie filling (warmed) or soft baked apple slices work great too!
Cool whip/for garnish

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°F. Place a 10 inch cast iron skillet on the center rack in a preheated oven or use 6/ one serving mini baking dishes and place them on a cookie sheet in the oven for 3 minutes. Meanwhile, mix ingredients 1-7 in a bowl and beat with mixer until blended. Remove hot bakeware from oven after 3 min. Spray the hot skillet or 6 individual baking dishes with cooking spray. Pour batter into the hot/sprayed pans. Return to the oven for 20-25 minutes for the skillet and 15-20 min. for the 6 mini baking pans. Cut into wedges or serve single portion baking dish ones. Sprinkle with powder sugar and top with warmed can cherries or any kind of warmed fruit; top with whip cream.

 

Pumpkin Bread

Recipe by Eagle Centre House B&B, Eagle:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup salad oil
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin
1 2/3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup raisins, (optional)
1/2 cup nuts, (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil and water. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and baking powder. Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and mix to combine. Add the oil/water mixture and stir to incorporate. Fold in the raisins and nuts and pour into the prepared pan. Bake 1 hour, or until a knife inserted in the center comes away clean.

Are you ready to Seek the Unique?

  Looking for ways to tread lightly on the earth when you travel? Try green-certified independent inns to start, and then ask the innkeepers for recommendations on locally owned shops and restaurants. Spring always seems like the ideal time to talk about eco-lodging, what with Mother Nature waking from winter slumber, delicate plants and edibles poking through the once ice-crackled earth, and travelers eager to inhale the fresh air and exhale wind-chill hangovers.     Here in Wisconsin, we have a voluntary certification program called “Travel Green Wisconsin,” and we’re proud to say the Wisconsin B&B Association was a pioneer in this movement to promote eco-friendly travel. Among the many inns that are certified are Lake Ripley Lodge B&B in Cambridge with their new rain gardens boasting Native Wisconsin wildflowers, and Crystal River Inn in Waupaca, who serve food from their garden, harvest local wild fruit, and make all their jellies and jams. [caption id="attachment_2315" align="alignleft" width="260"] Lake Ripley Lodge B&B[/caption] [caption id="attachment_2316" align="alignright" width="263"] View from Crystal River Inn[/caption]                 Going above and beyond what Travel Green Wisconsin requires are Pinehurst Inn B&B in Bayfield, which was named one of the “Top 10 Eco-friendly Inns” by BedandBreakfast.com and received the 2014 Wisconsin Governor’s Stewardship Award, and Artha Sustainable Living Center in Amherst, where guests appreciate local, organic food and are welcome to attend the yoga studio’s weekly classes. You can find a more complete list of travel green certified inns on our website. [caption id="attachment_1394" align="alignleft" width="300"] Pinehurst Inn[/caption] [caption id="attachment_1395" align="alignright" width="268"] Artha Sustainable Living Center[/caption]                 But the Wisconsin B&B Association’s commitment to the environment doesn’t stop there. We’re also proponents of “conscious travel,” with innkeepers always happy to suggest ideas for shopping local, dining at locally owned restaurants, and visiting attractions that preserve the history and culture of the community. We’re all in this together!

Are you ready to Seek the Unique?

Savory and Sweet Recipes Nothing like veggies fresh-from-the-farm or your own garden to make a recipe just taste better. Ready to bake up a savory strata? For good measure, we also included a fruit cobbler – think of it as dessert at breakfast. Garden Gate B&B is located in Sturgeon Bay, the gateway to Door County. The innkeepers don’t mince words when it comes to food, noting that breakfast is their signature. They shop the local farmers’ market to source super fresh ingredients, like those used in this Brunch Strata. Brunch Strata 3 cups sliced mushrooms 3 cups chopped zucchini 2 cups fully cooked ham, cubed 1 ½ cups chopped onions 1 ½ cups chopped green peppers 2 garlic cloves, minced 1/3 cup vegetable oil 3 8-oz. packages cream cheese, softened ½ cup half & half cream 12 eggs 4 cups day old bread, cubed 3 cups (12 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese 1 tsp salt ½ tsp pepper   Sauté mushrooms, zucchini, ham, onions, green peppers and garlic in oil until vegetables are tender. Drain, pat dry and set aside. In mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and cream until smooth. Beat in eggs and stir in the bread, cheese, salt, pepper, and vegetable mixture. Pour into 8 individual ramekin dishes. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees F for 35-40 minutes or until knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.   This cobbler recipe from Lake Ripley Lodge B&B in Cambridge is the perfect springtime dessert. And this B&B is the perfect summertime destination, thanks to all the classic vacation accoutrements here – screened wrap-around lakefront porch, patio, shade trees, pretty gardens, private swim pier, kayaks and canoes, yard games, you name it!   Rhubarb Strawberry Cobbler   1 cup white sugar 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour 3 ½ cups sliced fresh strawberries 3 ½ cups diced fresh rhubarb 2 tsp vanilla or almond flavoring 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour 1 cup packed brown sugar 1 cup butter 1 cup rolled oats ½ cups almonds, chopped Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large bowl, mix white sugar, 3 tablespoons flour, vanilla, strawberries, and rhubarb. Place the mixture in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Mix 1 ½ cups flour, brown sugar, butter, and oats until crumbly. Add chopped almonds. Crumble on top of the rhubarb and strawberry mixture. Bake 45 minutes in the preheated oven, or until crisp and lightly browned.