We usually spend Christmas day with my wife's family. This year, my sister came up with the great idea of doing Christmas a little early with my side of the family. So, a little more than a week before Christmas, I had my grandparents and my sister and her family over for a holiday brunch.On the menu: this recipe for Baked French Toash served with Vanilla-Brown Sugar Syrup, Tomato, Garlic and Potato Frittata, Homemade Sausage Patties, and Cranberry Coffee Cake. These other dishes will be the subject of the next few posts, but first, the French Toast.
This recipe is tailor-made for brunch for a crowd. I assembled it the night before, stashed it in the refrigerator overnight so the bread could soak up the custard, and then I popped it in the oven a while before my guests arrived. I started by slicing a loaf of soft Italian bread from the supermarket bakery into twelve one-inch slices. (The Book didn't tell me to, but I cut the slices in half so that they'd fit better in the baking dish.) I buttered the bread and arranged them in the baking dish. I whisked together some eggs, milk and salt and poured it over the bread. The bread needs to soak for at least an hour, but overnight is fine, too. Just before baking, I sprinkled a generous amount of sugar over the bread.
The French toast got a bit toastier than I would have liked, but even though the picture above makes it look like it was burned, it wasn't. Everyone really liked this French Toast. It was crispy, buttery and not-too-eggy. I would absolutely make this again if I were making breakfast for a group.
On a personal note, I'm overjoyed to announce the birth of my son, Jack, born yesterday afternoon. He's a big guy - 9 pounds, 3 ounces - and he's sure to have a big appetite. I'm looking forward to cooking all sorts of tasty treats for him, but in the meantime, I'm going to savor every minute of babyhood. (For some reason, Blogger isn't cooperating with me, and not letting me post a picture. Take my word for it, he's just about the handsomest baby ever!)
Date Cooked: December 13 & 14, 2008
Degree of Difficulty: Easy
Rating: A-
5 comments:
Congratulations! And Welcome, Jack!!
This sounds great. I usually think French toast is too eggy so this might be for me.
Congrats on the new baby!
Congratulations on a healthy baby boy!
Congratulations, Adam!! And Welcome to the World, Jack--I'm sure you'll have a delicious life. :-)
Congratulations on the healthy baby boy! Sounds like he is in for a world of culinary treats!
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