Roses are red, violets are blue, i love french toast, how about you??

My mom got me some of the MOST AMAZING Italian Panettone (a type of bread) from Eataly, which is a delicious Italian cafe with a true Italian market in the back (quite expansive, actually).  Anyway, she had it shipped to me in Chapel Hill all the way from NYC for Valentine's Day!

House-made bread is a specialty at Eataly.

The Panettone was more than Miss A and I could handle and mom recommended making French Toast with it -- so we did.

It came beautifully wrapped!

And looks like this when you unwrap it... ours was HUGE!

This is honestly the simplest breakfast recipe I've ever followed - besides just popping something in the microwave.  I had always been intimidated by the thought of making french toast (mainly because I had no idea how you made it), but I recommend this to even the most basic of cooks!

EASY EATALY BAKED FRENCH TOAST

Ingredients:

The Eataly Panettone... mmmmm

6 1/2in-thick slices of toast of your choice (French bread is great, or sunflower seed bread)
1/2 cup skim milk
4 egg whites
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of ground nutmeg
brown sugar and maple syrup (to taste)

Preparation:
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees
- Combine milk, egg whites, vanilla, and nutmeg in a shallow bowl and beat.
- Dip the bread in the mixture, coating both sides.
- Spray a baking sheet/dish with vegetable cooking spray and place bread in a single layer
- Sprinkle brown sugar on top
- Bake for 10-12 minutes (or until lightly browned)
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar on top for a diner-worthy look!

Yum yum eat-em-up!

Next time I want to try variations, including: bananas, berries, pecans, etc!

...all images borrowed from the Eataly website, unless otherwise noted

Good Morning Sunshine! Now Serving Baked French Toast for Brunch

After an exhausting Friday-night-out with the girls, nothing sounds more amazing than French toast.  But who has the time to make French toast?!  Certainly not A and I.  Enter the solution A's family shared with me: Baked French Toast.  Every time I have visited A's family in Atlanta, we always wake up to that delicious smell of warm maple syrup and the oven creating wonders.  Without fail, A, her twin sister L, and I will all stumble out of bed and follow our nose's to the kitchen where Mama R and Papa R are preparing this easy, delicious breakfast feast.

My favorite thing about this recipe is that you can make it the night before, refrigerate it overnight, and toss it in the oven the next morning for 45 minutes and ta-da! breakfast is served!  It's great with fresh mixed berries on the side (think blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries) and a big ol' cup of coffee to get your day started, or a mimosa, depending on what kind of mood you're in!

This is a super short, super quick, super easy dish to prepare and is liked by almost everyone.  I happen to not be a big fan of cream cheese (or not at all), but it is necessary for this recipe.  I like to reduce the amount of cream cheese, add some extra bread, maple syrup, and cinnamon on top.  I'm still trying to figure out a delicious alternative to the cream cheese so I don't end up eating around it, but I have yet to strike gold.

BAKED BRUNCH FRENCH TOAST

(Courtesy of Mama & Papa R)

Ingredients:

1 loaf of French bread (about 1 lb) cut into rough cubes

8 oz cream cheese (I like to reduce it to 4-5 oz)

12 eggs 

2 cups skim milk 

1/3 cup maple syrup (and extra to put on top)

Preparation:

Cube the bread and place about 1/2 in layer in the bottom of a greased 9x13 cake pan.

Cube cream cheese & place on top of bread cubes.

Add remaining bread cubes on top.

Combine the eggs, milk, and syrup in a bowl.  Pour over the cubed bread.

Cover and refrigerate overnight (somehow makes it taste better).

The next morning, bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes (bake covered for ~35 minutes and then uncover).

Serve with lots of maple syrup and fresh berries on the side.

The other variation of this brunch dish (which I have yet to try this exact recipe) sounds delicious and just as easy.  For someone who's not crazy about cream cheese, I think I might like the following recipe even better.  I have added the fruit and other additions to this recipe from past brunch cooking experiences, and I can't imagine any of it would taste bad -- especially when it's all drenched in maple syrup!  I'll have to make it this weekend and let you know...

BAKED CINNAMON & VANILLA 
FRENCH TOAST W/ BANANAS

Bananas w/ Maple Syrup over Baked

French Toast

Ingredients:
1 lb French bread (you can slice diagonally into 1-in slices or cubes)

8 eggs
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups half-and-half cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 cup butter
1 1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp light corn syrup
2-3 bananas (depending on how much you like them... I LOVE them!)
Powdered sugar & cinnamon (to sprinkle on top).
Preparation:
Grease (or butter) a 9x13in baking dish.  Arrange about 1/2 of the bread pieces in the bottom of the dish.
In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, cream, vanilla, and cinnamon.
Pour 1/2 the egg mix over the bread slices; add rest of bread on top; pour rest of egg mix on top (making 2 layers).
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
The next morning, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Combine butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup in a small saucepan; heat until gently bubbling.
Pour mixture over bread mixture.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes covered.
Remove cover; add banana slices to top; continue baking at 350 for 10-15 minutes (until it looks golden and just barely crispy on top).
Sprinkle some cinnamon & powdered sugar on top; serve with maple syrup and a fruit side.

My mouth is watering just looking at the recipe and these photographs?! Mmmmmm... I might not be able to wait until this weekend to make it.  Breakfast for Dinner anyone?!

Hooray for Mac Monday: Mac's Famous & Delicious Irish Style Breakfast

        Welcome to the first installment of Mac Mondays.  There are some things you should know about my cooking style.  First, cooking is an art for me, not a science.  When you are in the kitchen, it should be fun, not stressful.  Any recipes that I share are a guide and simply meant to point you in the right direction.  I encourage you to put your own spin on any of the recipes and adapt them to your own tastes--get creative!  Second, and more importantly, you should know that I, as my sister, have adapted my father's favorite cooking saying: there is no such thing as too much garlic!  If it isn’t breakfast or dessert, then there should be garlic.  Period.  End of story.

        Now to get to the good stuff.  Since this is my first post, I feel it's appropriate to start with the meal that "breaks the fast," the first meal of the day: breakfast. 

Mac’s Irish Style Breakfast

Ingredients:

2 eggs/ person
1 small potato/person
3 slices of bacon/person
Unsalted butter 
Salt and Pepper
Bread

 2 Quick Mac Tips:

1. If you decide to use a healthy alternative to butter, make sure it is olive oil based.  If it isn't, it will not prevent the eggs and potatoes from sticking to the pan - a tragedy in this delicious meal.
2. If you decide to make scrambled eggs instead of sunny side up, you will need 3 additional ingredients: milk, sliced American cheese (Kraft of course, but cheddar cheese is also delicious), and crushed red pepper.

Bacon: 

        Bacon is quite possibly one of the easiest things to cook and it can take an average breakfast and make it great.  Just like the movie Waiting taught me, in cooking, “the difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little bit extra.”

Directions:

• Preheat a medium non-stick skillet over medium heat.
• When it is hot (you can test it by splashing a little water and listen for the sizzle), place about 3 slices of bacon in the pan.
• The crispier you like your bacon, the longer you want to let it cook on each side.   As bacon cooks it shrinks in size much more noticeably than other meats.  I like to use the size of the bacon as a measurement as to when it is cooked to my liking.  Typically, I cook the bacon for about 6-8 minutes. 
• Remove bacon from the pan when finished; let the oils drain by placing the slices on several-layers of paper towels (either on a plate or on aluminum foil so the grease doesn't seep through to the counter top).
• Place the bacon on a baking sheet and put in the oven on a warming setting (usually about 175 degrees or 200 degrees) until you finish cooking the rest of the meal. 

Hash Browns:

Directions:

• Wash and peel the potatoes completely; shred them using a cheese grater using the biggest size.
• Preheat a medium non-stick skillet over medium heat (you may use the same skillet from the bacon if you prefer); add enough butter to melt and coat the pan.
• Add the shredded potatoes into the pan 1 serving at a time (1 patty); use a spatula to shape the potatoes into a thin patty; add salt and pepper.
• Cook the patty on each side for 5-10 minutes (or until they brown and have a nice crisp to them); make sure to make thin patties so that they'll cook evenly.
• Place the finished has brown patty on a baking sheet and put them in the oven on the warming setting (with the bacon) to keep them warm while you prepare the rest of the meal.

Sunny Side Up Eggs:

        With this style of breakfast I prefer to do sunny side up eggs because when you break the yolk over the hash browns, it adds a delicious rich flavor.  However, my sister would disown me and probably never let me contribute again if I didn’t share my scrambled egg recipe that has been my “specialty” since I was 5! 

(I will put that at the end of the post--promise!)

Directions:

• Using the same medium skillet over medium to low heat, add enough butter to cover the bottom of the pan
• Crack the eggs (be careful not to drop any shells in!) and drop them right into pan; leave enough space for however many other eggs you want to cook at the same time (typically the limit is about 3).
• Once the egg white turns white and the yolk begins to slightly firm up, then you are ready to serve. 

Serving Suggestions:

        Serve the eggs over the hash brown patty with bacon along side.  Serve with a glass of orange juice or a nice glass of Irish tea (or coffee if you're my mom or my sister) and enjoy.  Toast some bread (I like Italian bread, especially from the previous night's dinner) and dip it in the yolk and put some hash browns on top - it's awesome!  

        For breakfast, this is a pretty work intensive meal.  It's perfect to impress at a family get-together, but if you have the time on just a typical Sunday morning, then it is well worth it!

Scrambled Eggs: 

• In a medium mixing bowl, add the eggs, splash of milk, dash of salt, and a pinch of pepper; to kick it up a notch (which I always do), add a pinch of crushed red pepper.
• Whip them together vigorously until you have a consistent yellow color throughout the mixture.
• In a medium skillet over medium-low heat, add butter to coat the pan; pour in the egg mixture when the pan is hot.
• As the eggs start to scramble, tear the American cheese (or cheddar) into pieces and add it directly into the pan.
• Once the cheese is melted, the eggs should begin to stick together, and you're ready to serve!  The eggs will still be a little bit moist, but they will continue to cook even after you take them out of the pan.

...a note from K...

**I don't normally like eggs and don't typically crave them, EXCEPT when I go back home to New York to visit and my brother is making his scrambled, sunny side up, over easy, or any other egg concoction he makes.  They are amazing; I always recruit him to make them for friends and family and they have yet to disappoint.  Definitely a K&A fave!** 

        I hope you enjoyed this week’s post.  I will be trying out some new recipes and revisiting some old ones this week for dinner in anticipation for next week.  See you then.

Remember, there's no such thing as too much garlic (except for breakfast)!

Mac