Month: November 2011

My sister-in-law asked me for this french toast recipe a while back and I totally forgot.  So over the weekend, I was reminded to share.  I love this recipe.  I usually make it when we have lots of people staying over and I don’t want to be stuck in the kitchen making breakfast.  This can be prepared the night before and then just thrown into the oven in the morning!  I don’t remember where I got it… someplace.

• French Toast:
• 1 loaf crusty sourdough or french bread (you definitely need a hard crust bread for this recipe, I recommend the sourdough)
• 8 whole eggs
• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 3/4 cup sugar (I never use this much sugar I use about 1/4)
• 2 tbl vanilla
• Topping: 
• 1/2 cup all- purpose flour
• 1/2 cup firmly paced brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 stick cold butter, cut into pieces
• fresh fruit (optional)

Grease 9×13 inch pan with butter. Tear bread into chunks and evenly distribute in pan.   Mix together eggs, milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla.   Pour evenly over bread.  Cover tightly and store in the fridge several hours or overnight.   In a separate bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt.   Add butter pieces and but into the dry mixture until it resembles fine pebbles (use a knife to mix it up.  If you use a spoon and stir it up it’ll form a paste, which is difficult to spread).  Store in a ziploc in the fridge.   When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350.  Sprinkle crumb mixture over-top and bake for 45 minutes (or 1 hour for a firmer, less liquid texture).  You could also add fruit before cooking as well.

I’ve been looking for a pizza spaghetti bake recipe for a while now.  Odd, yes, but true, it must be something about living in the Midwest, I felt I must have such a recipe in my rotation.  I found this recipe while out visiting my parents (I actually stole it from one of my mom’s cook books).   It is awesome.  Dave and Ajax both loved it and it made a ton.   Bonus!

• 12 oz. uncooked spaghetti (I used whole grain pasta which made me pretend this was healthier than it was)
• 1 lb Italian pork sausage
• 2 jars (14 oz) pizza sauce (I thought 2 jars was way too much, so I only used one and a quarter – I had the quarter jar left over from something else.  I think you could get away with 1 jar though) – (Oh, I also just used regular red pasta sauce, nothing fancy)
• 1 package (6 oz) diced pepperoni (I only used 1/2 a package of pepperoni – cut them in half to make the package last longer)
• 1 cup ricotta cheese (I used cottage cheese instead)
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (I only used 1/4 cup cheese because that’s all we had)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (I used about 1 cup of cheese, not 2)

• Heat oven to 350. Spray 13×9 inch baking dish with cooking spray.   In dutch oven, cook and drain the pasta as directed (break up the pasta into thirds before adding it to the water).   Use the minimum cook time.  Return spaghetti to dutch oven.
• Meanwhile, in 10 in skillet, cook sausage (I also added a diced onion to the sausage) over medium heat, till no longer pink and drain.   In dutch oven, toss spaghetti, sausage, pizza sauce, and pepperoni.
• In medium bowl, mix ricotta and Parmesan cheeses and eggs.  Spoon half the spaghetti mixture into baking dish.  Dollop w/ cheese mixture; spread evenly over top.   Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.   Top with remaining spaghetti mixture.  Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.
• Bake uncovered 30 to 35 min. or till bubbly.