Overnight French Toast

This recipe originally came from the first Stoneware Sensations cookbook by The Pampered Chef. It’s one of the recipes I fell in love with a decade ago.  Recently, I added the strawberry sauce and made it even more spectacular.  The ease of making it the night before means it’s a great weekday breakfast too! (This recipe can be easily halved to make just four servings.)

1 loaf french bread
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
4 T granulated sugar, divided
1 t vanilla
1/8 t salt
¼-½  t ground cinnamon (optional, to taste)
1 cup sliced strawberries
2 T granulated sugar
1/2 cup + 2 T heavy whipping cream, divided
1 banana, sliced 

Arrange the French bread slices (cut side down) in a 9×13 baking dish. Combine the eggs and next five ingredients; blend well and pour over the bread slices.  Cover with foil and refrigerate 1 hour or overnight.

Slice fresh strawberries and sprinkle with granulated sugar.  Cover and chill overnight.

The next morning, preheat oven to 400.  Bake the bread uncovered for 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove to cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar. 

Put strawberries (with the juice made by the sugar) in a small saucepan and simmer about 3 minutes.  Remove strawberries from the juice and set them aside.  Add ½ cup whipping cream to strawberry juice and whisk until boiling.  Pour into a glass container, add 2T more whipping cream and beat on high about 2 minutes.  It will thicken only slightly, but this is fine.

Arrange a serving of French toast slices on plate and drizzle with strawberry sauce.  Spoon sliced strawberries and sliced bananas on top and enjoy!!

Kasie's Lasagna

This is my sister-in-law’s famous lasagna recipe, and the only one that I cook anymore.  It’s that good…

Meat Mixture:
1 lb. ground beef
1 clove freshly pressed garlic
1 T parsley
1 T basil
1 t salt
1 can diced tomatoes
2 6-oz cans tomato paste

Cheese Mixture:
1 24-oz. container cottage cheese
2 beaten eggs
1 t salt
½ t pepper
2 T parsley
½ c parmesan cheese

Additional Ingredients:
1 lb. sliced mozzarella cheese
Lasagna noodles (I use oven-ready noodles so I don’t have to cook them separately.)

Brown the meat; drain.  Add next 6 ingredients and summer uncovered 20 minutes until thick, stirring often. 

Cook and rinse lasagna noodles if not using the oven-ready kind. 

In another bowl combine all ingredients for the cheese mixture.

Line the bottom of an 8×8 pan with lasagna noodles.  Layer half the cheese mixture over the noodles, followed by a layer of mozzarella slices, and then half of the meat mixture.  Repeat layers. 

Bake at 375 for 45 minutes.

I often use two loaf pans (instead of the 8×8) and freeze one for later.  🙂

Overnight Oatmeal

Tags

breakfast, oatmeal

In a saucepan or microwaveable bowl mix

1 cup oatmeal
1 ½ cups milk
½ cup apple cider
dried fruit of choice

Let sit overnight in the refrigerator. The next morning, warm the oatmeal on the stove or in the microwave.