Baked French Toast

Many Sunday afternoons you can find Caleb and me having brunch at home after church. Most of the time we have omelettes or buttermilk pancakes, but recently I tried this baked French toast. I was able to put it all together and stick it in the fridge before church, so when we got home all I had to do was pop it in the oven for a little while. I'm a sucker for anything in individual servings, but this would also be perfect to serve weekend house guests, since you are able to do the work ahead of time. Happy Monday!

Baked French Toast
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 small French baguette (I used whole wheat), cut into 1-inch cubes (about 5-6 cups)

Add the eggs to a large mixing bowl. Whisk briefly. Add the milk, maple syrup, and vanilla extract to the bowl. Scrape in the seeds from the vanilla bean pod. Add in the cinnamon. Whisk well until the mixture is evenly combined. Stir in the cubes of bread until evenly coated.

Lightly grease four individual oven-safe serving dishes. Divide the bread-egg mixture evenly between the dishes. Cover dishes with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least two hours or up to overnight.

When you are ready to bake, heat the oven to 375 degrees. Remove the plastic wrap from the dishes. Place dishes on a baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes or until puffed up and lightly golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. Serve as desired with a dusting of confectioners' sugar, maple syrup, or fresh berries.

source: recipe from annie's eats

Croissant French Toast

This past weekend I had the sudden urge to make French toast for breakfast.  I'll usually take pancakes over French toast any day, but I really wanted some French toast made with croissants.  We don't go to church until 10:45 on Sunday morning, so I was able to get up in enough time to make us a breakfast of French toast before church.  I loved that the croissants made this French toast a little lighter and airier, and it was the perfect start to our Sunday.

Croissant French Toast
5 large eggs
1 cup half-and-half
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp finely grated orange zest
4 croissants, split horizontally
1 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Whisk eggs, half-and-half, sugar, cinnamon, and orange zest in a large bowl to blend.  Add croissants to egg mixture; turn to coat evenly on both sides.

Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium-low heat.  Brush with melted butter.  Lift croissants from batter, allowing excess to drip back into bowl.  Cook croissants on griddle until browned on both sides and just cooked through, about 5 minutes per side.  Place 2 halves on each plate and serve with toppings of choice.  Makes 4 servings.

source:  recipe adapted from Bon Appétit, December 2011