Flavored cream cheese with bagels - Honey Walnut Cream cheese and Veggie cream cheese

Bagels and cream cheese is such a classic breakfast. It is a great on the go breakfast. Quick and easy like spreading butter on bread except its spreading cream cheese on bagel. Making flavored cream cheese takes the breakfast to the next level. You do not need to spend extra bucks on buying flavored cream cheeses because making them at home is easier than whipping cream and as with anything homemade, it can be customized to your taste. The flavored cream cheese can be made ahead of time and refrigerated for a week.

Honey Walnut Cream cheese

This is our favorite kind of cream cheese. It is sweet enough for breakfast without being dessert-like. Honey gives it a complex sweet flavor which cannot be achieved with sugar. Walnuts add a nice crunch. I also add a little bit of yogurt to my flavored cream cheese to lighten it and make it more spreadable right out of the fridge.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup	cream cheese
1/4 cup	yogurt *see notes
1/8 tsp	salt
1 tbsp	brown sugar
3 tsp	honey
1/8 tsp	cinnamon
1/3 cup	finely chopped walnuts *see notes

• Microwave the chopped walnuts for 1 minute to toast them up. Keep an eye on them as all microwaves are different and do not let them burn.
• Put all the ingredients except walnuts in a bowl.
  
• Whip up the cheese using the whisk attachment on a hand mixer. A regular whisk on muscle power works too.
• Fold in the finely chopped toasted walnuts.

  

  lovely golden color from the honey

• Put in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a week.

Notes:

• If you think you will not like a thinner consistency on the cheese, do not add all the yogurt. Add just a tablespoon first and then add a little bit at a time if you would like a thinner consistency. Using greek/strained yogurt would not alter the consistency much.
• The finer you can chop the walnuts, the easier it would be to spread the cheese. The walnuts should be small enough to blend in and yet large enough to have a bite.

Veggie cream cheese

A great way to eat your veggies for breakfast. It tastes light and refreshing like veggies always do. I like to use crunchy vegetables for this. You can use any veggies you like. You can even add some finely chopped green chilli or some hot sauce to make it spicy. We do not prefer spice specially for breakfast.

Somehow I forgot to click a picture of the veggie cream cheese. I still cannot imagine how I could have missed it because these days my camera lives in the kitchen and I click almost everything I make. Crazy, I know!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup	cream cheese
1-2 tbsp	yogurt
1/4 tsp	salt
1/4 tsp	pepper
1 tbsp	finely chopped cilantro
3 tbsp	finely chopped red onion
2 tbsp	finely chopped cucumber
1 tbsp	finely chopped red bell pepper

• Combine cream cheese, yogurt, salt and pepper in a bowl.
• Whip using a hand mixer or your hand
• Fold in the finely chopped veggies.

Notes:

• The veggies release some water so yogurt can be skipped. We do not mind the looser consistency.
• As I mentioned, customize the veggies and seasoning to your preference. If you want a spicier spread, add a finely chopped green chili or a dash of hot sauce.