Crab and White Wine Strata
10 slices 12-grain bread, crusts removed.
1 pound grated Swiss cheese
2 cups crab meat picked to remove shells
1 onion, minced
2 tablespoons salt
white pepper to taste
8 eggs
1 cup milk
½ cup semi sweet white wine
Line bottom of a greased 12-inch backing dish with half the bread covering the entire bottom. Layer cheese then crab meat and onion and cover with remaining bread. Beat egg and milk with salt and pour over top layer of bread. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour. Garnish with dry parsley. Serves 4.
Fresh Strawberry Stuffed French Toast
1 loaf Challah
1 cup strawberries hulled and cut in quarters
6 tablespoons sugar
12 eggs
1½ cup cream cheese, room temperature
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups milk
Mix strawberries, 3 tablespoons sugar, cream cheese, and set aside. Whisk together almond extract, eggs, milk and remaining sugar. Cut bread into six 1½-inch slices and then cut each piece again almost through to form a pocket. Fill each pocket with 1/6th cream cheese filling and place in well greased backing dish. Pour egg wash over all the bread and let stand for 10 minutes, Turn each piece over to soak up the egg mix. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Bake with a tent of foil for one hour at 350 degrease. Garnish with powered sugar. Serves 6.
Oatmeal Apple/Pear Crunch French Toast
12 1-inch pieces French bread cut on the diagonal
½ cup oatmeal, toasted in oven on cookie sheet for 15 minutes
½ cup butter at room temperature
½ cup flour
½ cup brown sugar
12 eggs
1½ cups milk
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 apples/pears cored and sliced into thin wedges
Place bread on the bottom of a well greased baking dish. Put several pieces of apple or pear on each piece of bread. Whisk eggs, milk and almond extract and pour over bread with apples/pears. Combine brown sugar, room temperature butter, flour and toasted oatmeal to a coarse consistency and place a generous amount on each bread with apple/pear. Cover and refrigerate overnight and bake tented with foil at 350 degrees for one hour. Serve with maple syrup. Serves 6.
Gouda and Stout Pancakes with Lemon Butter
½ cup all purpose flour
1 tablespoon plus ¼ cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
½ cup milk
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons plus 1/4 stick butter, melted, and cooled
2 tablespoons stout (such as Guinness)
½ cup finely grated gouda cheese
Lemon Butter
½ cup (1 stick) butter
4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Sift flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, and salt into large bowl. Whisk milk, egg, egg yolk, 2 tablespoons melted butter and stout in medium bowl until well blended. Whisk into flour mixture. Stir in cheese. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Heat 6-inch diameter nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Brush lightly with melted butter. Pour ¼ cup batter into skillet, tilting skillet to coat bottom evenly. Cook until bottom of pancake is golden brown, about one minute. Turn pancake over. Cook until golden brown, about 1 minute. Transfer to platter, fold pancake into quarters. Repeat with remaining batter, brushing skillet lightly with melted butter between pancakes.
Melt ½ cup butter in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Remove from heat. Add lemon juice and remaining ¼ cup sugar and stir until sugar dissolves.
Serve pancakes with lemon butter. Makes eight pancakes.