Outside Summer Time!

Summer time is a favorite time of mine (hmmm, a poet and didn't know it, hahaha!).   Kicking up my feet and  relaxing on the deck or in the yard.  It's laid back, slow, and I feel like I don't have a care in the world.  A tall glass of freshly brewed iced tea, swinging on the swing and listening to the sounds of nothing is a happy thing in my book, the lazy days of Summer.  

During the Summer months I try to cook everything for every meal on the grill, why dirty up the kitchen and heat up the house when you don't have too.  My gears were turning on Friday night as to how I could do a whole breakfast on the grill. Was it a risky thing to do? I didn't care, because if it didn't come out right, we would just eat cereal.  But it did turn out and it was perfect!  Try it, you won't be sorry, it was fun too.  I love eating outside, relaxing, reading the morning newspaper and having a great breakfast on the weekends.

I got the bacon started in the cast iron frying pan.  Invest in a few, they are inexpensive and they work great on the grill.  You wouldn't want to put your good cookware on the gas the grill.  

In another cast iron frying pan, on the side burner of the grill, were the hash browns.  Cook them like you would do inside, a little oil in the pan, season with salt and pepper and that's all they need.  The cast iron frying pan puts a great crust on them, makes them crispy.

 On my lightly oiled griddle (this came with my grill), Texas Toast French Toast is grilling.

 They grilled up perfectly.

 Bring on the pure maple syrup, or flavored syrups I love them too, and what can I say DELICIOUS!  Do not be afraid of the grill, you can cook anything on that thing that you cook inside.  Next I will try baking on it, that ought to be interesting.  Stay tuned!

I Love A Big Breakfast On The Weekend

My hubby's life revolves around food, he thinks about his next meal before he is done the one he is eating!  He lives to eat, not the way it should be, eating to live.  Three days before the weekend he is thinking about what he is going to have for breakfast!  I don't know why, I live in the moment of OK I'm hungry what shall I eat, that's when I figure out what I am eating.  His mind is on food 24/7, and I have never known anyone like that but him.

So, while he was conjuring up what he wanted to eat for our weekend breakfast, he thought, get this, that I should make a loaf of homemade blueberry bread and make French toast out of it, yeah right that's what I want to do, slave in the kitchen on the weekend and make homemade bread to cut up and use for French toast.  When I make bread, I spend all day in the kitchen to make a beautiful loaf of bread, that will last for a few days so we can feast off of it, enjoy it, not cut it all up and bake it again! He loves blueberries and eats them every day for breakfast in his cereal, so I came up with a better, easier version, of what he wanted for breakfast, Baked Blueberry French Toast.  It's a very easy, make ahead before bed, bake the next morning casserole of French toast.
  Recipe below.

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 Simple ingredients, fresh blueberries, half and half, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, Texas toast.  I use Pam so nothing sticks to the pan.

 In a mixing bowl - Eggs and half and half.....

 cinnamon......

 and vanilla.

 I use my trusty old fashioned beater to mix it, I love this thing!  Don't have to drag out the mixer.

 It's all combined and ready to pour.

 I use Texas toast because it can stand up to the liquid mixture, it's a thicker cut of bread and I always use it making French toast.  Line up a few slices and cut on the diagonal.

 Wash and drain the berries.

 Sprinkle them in and behind the slices of bread, you want to them touch all the bread, and then toss some of them on top.

 It's now loaded with blueberries. Next, pour on the egg mixture, get behind and on top of the bread slices.

 There will be some in the bottom of the baking dish, that will soak up overnight and during baking.  WOW, that looks good already!

 Cover tightly with plastic wrap, put in the refrigerator overnight.

In the morning, take plastic wrap off ......

 cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees.

 While that was baking I started some maple sausages to go along with it.

Breakfast was served and we dug in to a wonderful French toast casserole with blueberries.  I dusted it with a little confectioner's sugar......

 served it with both blueberry and pure maple syrup and the sausages on the side.

 The French toast is crispy on the top with a smooth, light, custard texture in the center, perfect!

Baked Blueberry French Toast

Ingredients

Cooking Spray

1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

4 eggs

1 cup half and half or milk

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla

8 slices Texas toast (thick cut bread)

Directions

Spray an 8 x 8 baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.  Wash the blueberries in a small colander, set those aside to drain.  In a medium mixing bowl, add the eggs, half and half, cinnamon and vanilla, whisk until all is combined.  Cut the bread slices on the diagonal.  Layer the slices crust side up in the baking dish. Layer the blueberries in between all the slices, front and back, then on the top last.  Slowly pour the egg mixture over the bread, be sure to get in between the slices and on top of the slices.  Some of the mixture will puddle in the bottom of the pan.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Take the plastic wrap off the baking dish and replace with foil.  Bake for 1 hour, as always all ovens are different and baking time will vary.  Uncover the dish for last 15 minutes of baking, so the top browns and crisps up. Serve with maple syrup. Makes 4 -6 servings.

NOTE:  This recipe can also be doubled, use a 9 X 13 baking dish.

Holla For Some Challah

Whether we go out or stay in, we love a nice big breakfast on Sunday mornings.  Eggs, bacon, scrapple, ham, steak, hash browns, pancakes, waffles or French toast, we love it all.  This Sunday I was in a French toast kind of mood.  I had a small loaf of challah preserved in the freezer so I took it out the night before and made French toast out of it.  It was sweet and delicious, if you have never tried making French toast out of challah, do it, it's fantastic! 

Slice the challah to your desired thickness.  Dip on both sides, in a mixture of eggs, cinnamon, heavy cream and vanilla extract.  I used 6 eggs for my small loaf, and use as much or as little as you like of the the other ingredients.  I am also brave enough to use flavored coffee creamers if I don't have heavy cream,  they taste great!

 Use a tablespoon of canola oil on the griddle, heat it up and place the slices on the griddle.  When brown and crispy on one side, flip them over, cook on the other side.  Transfer toasted pieces to a serving plate.

 And, VOILA!  Yummy French Toast.

Wake Up Sleepy Head - French Toast and Crispy Bacon

French Toast, as far back as I can remember, was always made with eggs and bread, that was it.  Whoever was cooking it, always flattened it with a spatula to make sure it cooked all the way through.  YUK! I hate it flattened out, not very tasty or appealing to the eye.  I add a few things to mine nowadays that give my French Toast a sweeter, richer flavor and it's light and fluffy.  Recipe below.

Start with your ingredients.  I mix them all in a shallow bowl, like a pie plate, its easier and the bread fits perfect.

 Dip the bread on both sides and on to the griddle they go!

Flip them over, PERFECT!

Delicious French Toast like you never had before.

 Easy tip on how to cook bacon without getting everything greasy:  Cook on a baking sheet with a cooling rack.  Preheat the oven to 300 degrees, this temperature keeps it from smoking.  Line the rack with bacon, making sure bacon is not hanging over the edge of the pan, and in about 25 minutes crispy cooked bacon.  One pound of bacon should fit on 2 large baking sheets.  It is a little bit healthier cooking it this way, because a lot of the fat drains off of it, lands in the pan, and the bacon is not bathing in it.

Sunday Breakfast French Toast

1 Tbsp canola oil

1 loaf of Texas Toast sliced bread

6 large eggs

3 Tbsp heavy cream

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Powdered Sugar for dusting

Pure Maple syrup

Coat a griddle with the tablespoon of canola oil. I spread it with a paper towel.  Set the heat to medium to warm up the griddle. Crack the eggs into a shallow dish.  Add the heavy cream, vanilla and cinnamon. Whisk together until all in combined.  Dip the bread on both sides in the egg mixture, then put on the griddle.  When browned on one side flip and cook the other side.  If you have a gas or electric stove cooking times will be different.  Dust with powdered sugar and serve with warm maple syrup and bacon.  Makes 10 slices.

NOTE: I also use flavored coffee creamers in place of the heavy cream, they give more depth of flavor to the French Toast.