My turn! So, my recipe choice for hosting Craving Ellie in my Belly this week was the Blueberry Almond French Toast Bake. Last time I hosted, I chose the Broccoli Cheddar Breakfast Bake. Both recipes are basically a strata-type recipe, tons of eggs over a hacked-up baguette, assemble the night before, soak overnight, bake in the morning. Are you noticing a trend? Hello, lazy breakfast lady.
I liked this recipe a lot. I don't know that I would make it just for our household, just for the hell of it, but it's a great brunch recipe for either hosting or for taking along as a guest. I made this a couple weeks ago for the Hattonette Birthday Brunch we had here with some of our family. I made the Broccoli Cheddar one again for the brunch too. It was great having them both, one sweet, one savory, both delicious. And please imagine, if you will, all the egg madness the night before, as I separated 8 eggs for EACH DISH. That is a LOT of disgusting gooey egg white nonsense (and a lot of wasted yolks, as I had no energy whatsoever to do anything with them). Blech. But as the (cough) transcendent homemaker that I am, I did it without complaint. Sort of. The point is, I did it.
So, did you Ellie groupies enjoy it?
Blueberry Almond French Toast Bake, from So Easy by Ellie Krieger
Ingredients:
Cooking spray
1 whole-wheat baguette (about 18 inches long, 8 ounces), cut into 1-inch cubes
8 large eggs
8 large egg whites
2 cups 1 percent lowfat milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
2 cups fresh blueberries
1/3 cup sliced almonds
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
Directions:
Spray a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Arrange the bread in a single layer in the baking pan. Whisk together the eggs, egg whites, milk, vanilla, cinnamon and maple syrup. Pour the egg mixture over the bread in the pan, spreading it around so the liquid saturates the bread. Scatter the blueberries evenly on top and sprinkle with the almonds and brown sugar. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Uncover the baking pan and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Serve warm, cold or at room temperature.
