French Toast BLT

 

After the rousing success I had with the Beef Burgers with Bourbon Mushrooms, I thought I would try my hand at another recipe from that same 2016 issue of Sauce Magazine, namely, the BLT French Toast. I’m not going to lie to you, this did not sound good. I think I was more intrigued with the process, the fact that there was bourbon in the egg mixture, and that this was a savory dish involving French toast. As it turned out, I thought it was excellent, and something likely to be served at a high-end restaurant. I did not expect to taste the bourbon in the bread slices, but I did, and that really enhanced this knife and fork sandwich. It’s not difficult to make, but it takes some time due to the waiting in making the savory French toast. The garlic vinaigrette was a wonderful surprise, and I found myself really enjoying this restaurant quality sandwich that, I’m warning you, is big enough for two.

 Here is the recipe as printed. I cut it back by three.

French Toast BLT

5 eggs

2 c. heavy cream

¼ c. bourbon

6 1-inch slices challah

12 strips thick-cut bacon

2½ c. grated Gruyere

12 tomato slices* (about 3 small tomatoes)

Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette (recipe follows)

3 c. spring mix

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

 In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, heavy cream and bourbon until well combined. Pour in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Add the challah and soak 10 minutes. Flip the slices and soak an additional 10 minutes.

 Meanwhile, place a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook until just crisp, about 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Spoon off most of the bacon fat from the skillet.

 Add 3 challah slices and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a baking sheet, then repeat with the remaining slices.

 Bake the bread slices until cooked through, about 6 minutes. Top with the grated cheese and bake until the cheese melts, about 4 minutes.

 To assemble, place 2 strips of bacon and 2 tomato slices each on 3 challah slices and drizzle with the vinaigrette.

Toss the spring mix with enough of the vinaigrette to coat. Divide the greens evenly over the 3 prepared challah slices and top with the remaining 3 slices. Serve warm.

 Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette

2 heads of garlic

¾ c. olive oil, plus more for drizzling

2 T. sherry vinegar

1 T. Dijon mustard

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

 Preheat the oven to 375ºF.

 Slice off the tops of the garlic so the cloves are exposed. Place the garlic heads in a small baking dish and drizzle with olive oil. Cover with foil and roast until the garlic is golden brown, fragrant and softened, 20 to 25 minutes.

 Let the garlic cool, then squeeze the cloves into a blender, discarding the skins. Add the vinegar and mustard, and blend until smooth. With the machine running, add ¾ cup olive oil in a steady stream until well combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

*I used one large slice from a red Melissa's Produce Heirloom Tomato.

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French Toast Sticks with Blueberry Maple Syrup

 Weekends are a time for making delicious breakfast treats and these French Toast Sticks are something the entire family will enjoy. Crispy on the outside, puffy and creamy on the inside, the blueberry syrup makes these extra special. This recipe can be doubled or tripled quite easily to serve as many people as you are willing. If serving more than two, preheat your oven to 250°F and make the sticks in batches, keeping the finished ones warm in the oven while working on additional batches.

French Toast Sticks with Blueberry Maple Syrup

Serves 2

1/2 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons Melissa's dried blueberries

2 extra-large eggs

1/2 cups half-and-half or milk

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon Melissa's Organic Blue Agave Syrup (or good, organic honey)

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

2 large slices challah

Unsalted butter

Vegetable oil 

Pour the desired amount of maple syrup into a microwave safe bowl. Stir in blueberries. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Set aside to allow the blueberries to plump in the syrup while you make the French Toast Sticks.

In a 9" x 9" baking dish, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, orange zest, cinnamon, vanilla, agave syrup or honey, and salt. Slice the challah into 1-inch wide by 3/4-inch thick slices. Soak sticks in the egg mixture for 5 minutes, turning once.

Heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil in a very large sauté pan over medium heat until hot. Add the soaked bread and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until nicely browned. Plate and sprinkle with confectioners' sugar. Serve hot with maple syrup for dipping, or go for broke and pour the syrup over the sticks. 

This post is linked to:

Wow Us Wednesday
Work It Wednesday

What’s It Wednesday

Before and After Wednesday

Wake up Wednesday

The Homemaking Party

Gingerbread Challah

Let me give you an idea as to how my mind works.

  The other night Mr. O-P and I were watching football. At one of the breaks a commercial came on for a breakfast place. Could have been Denny's, could have been IHOP, could have been Bob Evans, I really don't know, because all I heard were the words “gingerbread French toast.”  All of a sudden I started to think, ooooooh that sounds tasty.  The plate of French toast in the commercial looked as if ordinary bread had been used, but I immediately started to wonder how I could turn my challah recipe (because French toast isn't French toast, good French toast anyway, unless it is made with challah) into gingerbread challah.  Gingerbread contains molasses, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. So I decided to substitute the honey in the original recipe for molasses and add ground cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. I can't tell you how amazing it smelled while it was baking; when people walked into the house they commented. As luck would have it, it tasted as good as it smelled.

Here is the recipe so you can try it yourself. It's a bit denser than plain challah because molasses is heavier than honey. It is also not sweet because it contains no sugar. It is intensely flavorful, however, and makes excellent toast, cinnamon toast, and is superb when used for a turkey sandwich. Later on I'll be trying it to make French toast. I'll let you know.

Gingerbread Challah

1 pinch saffron thread

1 tablespoon water, boiling

2 eggs, beaten

3 tablespoons molasses

2/3 cup hot water (100°F-105°F)

5 tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon salt

3 1/2 cups white bread flour

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

1 1/2 teaspoons yeast

1 egg, beaten

In a small bowl, soak the saffron threads in the 1 tablespoon of boiling water for 10 minutes.

In the meantime, place the beaten eggs, molasses, hot water and melted butter in a bowl. Mix well.

Add the saffron threads with the soaking water; stir and pour the mixture into the baking pan of your bread machine.

Mix the salt and spices into the flour and add to the baking pan and sprinkle the yeast on top.  Set the program to ‘dough.’

When the dough is ready (mine takes 90 minutes), transfer it to a lightly floured surface and knead it for 2-3 minutes.

Shape the dough into a loaf and place into a greased standard loaf pan. Cover with a sheet of plastic that you have sprayed with PAM.

When the dough has nearly doubled in size (30-45 minutes), remove the plastic wrap and lightly brush the top of the loaf with the beaten egg.

Preheat the oven to 425°F.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.

Transfer the loaf to a wire rack and leave it to cool before serving.

This post is linked to:

Thursday Favorite Things

Full Plate Thursday

Create It Thursday 

 Show and Tell Friday 

Friday Unfolded

French Toast with Warm Blueberry Sauce

Do Produce Stands and Roadside Markets beckon to you?  They do me.  I can’t drive by one of them without stopping to have a look around.  Some may think this nosey, but I consider it to be one of the precious joys of summer.  The bright colors of fresh produce, the crisp, fresh fragrance of newly picked berries and herbs, the varied shapes and textures, all of this is nature’s edible art.  This week blueberries called my name.  I bought three very large containers of them, much to the dismay of my overcrowded fridge, and am now using them in as many ways as possible.  What delicious fun! This morning I made a quick French toast topped with warm blueberry sauce.  Having previously made a loaf of ABM Challah, this delicious dish came together fast.  While the bread was soaking, the sauce was simmering on the stove.  Dust with powdered sugar, if desired, either way this is an easy and elegant breakfast.

French Toast with Warm Blueberry Sauce

3 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

2 tablespoons orange juice

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ teaspoon orange zest

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 (1-lb) challah loaf, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices

3 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Whisk together eggs, milk, juice, syrup, vanilla, zest, and salt until blended. Pour into a large baking pan and soak bread slices in 1 layer for 4 minutes, flip over and soak for another 4 minutes.

Heat half of the butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet or griddle over moderately high heat until foam subsides. Transfer 4 soaked bread slices to skillet and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Cook remaining bread in 2 batches, adding more butter as needed. Transfer slices as cooked to a large shallow baking pan and, when all are browned, bake in middle of oven until hot, about 5 minutes.  Serve with Warm Blueberry Sauce.

Warm Blueberry Sauce

2 tablespoons water

½ teaspoon cornstarch

3 ½ cups blueberries

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

½ teaspoon lemon zest

In 1-quart saucepan, combine water, cornstarch, blueberries, sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice.  Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Boil 1 to 2 minutes or until berries burst. Remove from heat; serve. 

This post is linked to:

Inspire Me Tuesday

Totally Tasty Tuesdays

Try a New Recipe Tuesday

Tasty Tuesdays

Baked Banana French Toast with Ginger-Maple Syrup

It you are unfamiliar with Sam Hoffer and her wonderful blog, My Carolina Kitchen, you need to hop on over (when you're finished reading here, of course) and check it out. It was here that I learned that Lilly Pulitzer, who recently passed away, published two delightful books on cooking and entertaining. Within minutes of having read this post, I headed out to locate them.  Fluffy and fun, just reading them made me feel like I was on vacation in Palm Beach, inhaling the salty air and sipping cocktails with friends.  Both photos and text will make you smile, the recipes will have you salivating. I have a long list of those I hope to try, and if they are all as good as this one, I will be a happy camper.

Just in time for Mother's Day...

Baked Banana French Toast

with Ginger-Maple Syrup

From Essentially Lilly by Lilly Pulitzer and Jay Mulvaney

Put this dish together the night before; the next morning it will be ready to serve after only half an hour of baking. Lightly toasting the challah makes stuffing it easier; skip the toasting step if using a day-old loaf.

Serves 2

1 to 1-1/2-inch-thick slices challah

1 large banana, cut on diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick slices

2 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

1/4 cup whipping cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

1 tablespoon minced candied ginger

1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Powdered sugar

Butter small baking dish (9x9x2-inch square cake pan or similar).  Lightly toast challah. Using small sharp knife, cut slit in bottom edge of each slice of bread to form pocket; insert 3 to 4 slices of banana in each. Place stuffed bread in single layer in prepared dish.

Whisk eggs in medium bowl to blend. Add milk, cream, and vanilla, and whisk to blend well. Pour mixture over bread slices in dish, basting to coat well. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Combine syrup and ginger in small saucepan; cover and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Uncover French toast and bake until puffed and just beginning to brown on top, about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, heat syrup-ginger mixture over low heat.

Sprinkle baked French toast with toasted almonds and powdered sugar, and serve warm with syrup.

This post is linked to:

Sweets for a Saturday

Sugar and Spice

Sunday Sweeties

Seasonal Sundays