Overnight French Toast Bake

Are you looking for something yummy and easy to make for your family breakfast on the 4th this week?  This just might be what you're looking for.  I saw this recipe on Pinterest (again trying to conquer trying all those things on my "recipes to try" board) and knew I had to try it.  I loved how the description said "love french toast but hate standing and flipping bread and never getting to sit down with your family".....Umm...yes.  They read my mind, in fact.   So we tried this for Father's Day this year.  My husband gushed about how delicious it was.  He even compared it to Kneaders french toast (quite a compliment as those of you in the West might know).   And I loved that it only took a few minutes the night before and then I popped in the fridge overnight and simply put it in the oven to bake in the morning.  Now that's my kind of fancy breakfast.   

Next time around I think I'll definitely cut the crusts off the bread as they got a teeny bit hard after sitting for a few minutes after being served.  I also loved the texas toast with it but might venture out and get a loaf of cinnamon bread next time and cut it nice and thick.  But if you make it as written you won't be disappointed.

Overnight French Toast Bake from Rach's Blog

Ingredient Checklist

1/2 cup melted butter (1 stick)

1 cup brown sugar

1 loaf Texas toast

4 eggs

1 1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Powdered sugar for sprinkling

Directions

1. Melt butter in microwave & add brown sugar....stir till mixed.

2. Pour butter/sugar mix into bottom of 9 x 13 pan....spread evenly to cover bottom of pan

3. Beat eggs, milk, & vanilla and add 1 T powdered sugar to egg mixture

4. Lay single layer of Texas Toast in pan

5. Spoon 1/2 of egg mixture on bread layer.  Sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on bread before next layer

6. Add 2nd layer of Texas Toast

7. Spoon on remaining egg mixture.  Spread a thin layer of butter on bread.  Sprinkle with white sugar and cinnamon.  

8. Cover & chill in fridge overnight

9. Bake uncovered at 350 for 45 minutes

10. Sprinkle with powdered sugar

11. Serve with warm maple syrup (I don't do the syrup part)

Tips:  The brown sugar and butter carmelizes at the bottom of the pan so serve bottomside up.  I also overbaked it a bit (because it hadn't specified covered or not and I realized it needed to be uncovered halfway through) and that part became hard after sitting out--so just don't overbake.  

Perfect Waffles

Last week was spring break and my husband was out of town.  So we went and stayed at my parent's house for a couple of days to shake things up.  My kiddos requested that Grandma make them waffles every morning.  Oh my.  I had forgotten how amazing my mom's waffles are!  They come from the original Betty Crocker cookbook--which I've learned has changed through the years.  All this time I was thinking I was making THE recipe I grew up with since I have a new edition.  But I was wrong.  And immediately knew it at first bite last week.  The waffles in MINE are totally different than the original cookbook.

These waffles are amazing!  They are light and fluffy and perfectly flavored.   They have that "just right" crunch on the outside with the correct softness beneath it.  The egg ratio is perfect as the whipped egg whites create so much airiness.  I'm SO happy to be reunited with this recipe.  I usually prefer pancakes over waffles--but not anymore.  I can't believe I never checked my recipe against my mom's but I thought I'd just fallen out with waffles.  But no more! Oh, and it goes amazingly well with maple syrup but even more AMAZING with buttermilk syrup.

Everyday Waffles from "The Original Betty Crocker Cookbook"

1 3/4 C flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 beaten egg yolks

1 3/4 C milk

1/2 C vegetable oil

2 stiffly beaten egg whites

Combine the dry ingredients.  In a separate bow, combine yolks, milk, and oil.  Stir into dry ingredients.  Fold in whipped egg whites leaving in a few fluffs.  Pour onto a hot waffle iron.

Buttermilk syrup:

1/2 C butter

1 C sugar

1/2 C buttermilk

1 tsp karo syrup

Bring to a boil then remove from heat.  Stir in 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp vanilla.

Hash Brown Quiche

My daughter was baptized on Saturday.  What a special day! She was baptized in the morning so we had our family back to our house for a brunch after.  This hash brown quiche was a hit!  It's been a long-standing favorite at our house so I was pleased with how the three pans I made were inhaled.  We make it often for dinner (we're big fans of breakfast for dinner).  It is SO delicious!  The hash browns combine with the eggs and milk and become fluffy and light.  As it cooks the majority of the swiss and cheddar cheese rise to the top and becomes ooey and gooey (yes, that's a word).  And the ham adds the right amount of saltiness to this savory dish. This is such an easy, delectable casserole.  You might find yourself going back for seconds fourths! 

 It worked out perfectly for a busy morning as I made them the night before and refrigerated them until I popped them in the oven in the morning.  I'd never made it this way before and was nervous it would turn out.  Thankfully they turned out exactly as they have in the past when I've made them according to the recipe.  My kid's voted that we make this on Christmas morning now instead of our usual casserole.  I think maybe we'll just make this in addition to our traditional dish.

Hash Brown Quiche from "The Essential Mormon Cookbook"

8 shredded frozen hash brown potato patties (I usually use 9 for a 9x13 pan)

1/2 cup butter, melted (I use 1/4 C)

1 C cubed precooked ham

1 C shredded cheddar cheese

1 C shredded swiss cheese

8 eggs

2 cups milk or cream

1/2 teaspoon salt

Place hash brown patties in greased 9x13 inch pan.  Pour melted butter evenly over the surface of potato patties.  Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes.  Remove from pan.  Sprinkle potatoes with ham and cheeses.  In a large bowl beat eggs.  Add milk or cream and salt.  Stir.  Pour mixture over cheese and ham.  Bake at 350 F for about 30 minutes.  Serves 8.

Tips:  If making the night before--just skip the step where you bake the potatoes.  Just pour butter over potatoes and proceed to adding the cheeses and ham on top of them.  After quiche is assembled, cover and refrigerate overnight.  Also, I bake it covered with the foil. 

Perfectly Crispy & Healthy Potatoes

I'm always on the hunt for a side dish that I can make in a pinch with ingredients on hand.  Well--I almost always have potatoes so this is a perfect option. We like to throw together breakfast for dinner at our house and this becomes a perfect addition to eggs, oatmeal pancakes, and turkey sausage  (our usual fare).  But we also love it pared with meat and a salad instead of baked or mashed potatoes.  And I love that you can make it healthy.  And it is so flavorful when perfectly seasoned with salt, pepper, and onion salt and has a nice, slight crunch.  It also tastes equally delicious with red or russet potatoes.

Perfect Crunchy & Healthy Potatoes 

Cooking spray

3-4 russet potatoes, peeled, and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

Salt & pepper

Onion salt

3/4-1 C water

Start by peeling the potatoes (I leave the skin on when using red potatoes) and cutting them into cubes

Heat a large saute pan to medium-high heat and liberally spray with cooking spray.  Add the potatoes.  Season liberally with salt, pepper, and onion salt to taste.  Saute stirring frequently and adding more cooking spray as needed for 4-5 minutes (can turn the heat up if needed).  Add the water and cover the pan with a lid.  Cook for 8 minutes.  I always put the timer on.  The water should have steamed the potatoes and be evaporated.  Take the lid off and add more cooking spray and saute potatoes until brown.   Remove from heat and serve.

Tips: You can add vegetable oil or butter while sauteing if you'd like.  I also taste a potato after it's steamed and see if I need to season it more before the final saute.  I saw a similar recipe on The Food Network where they put it in the oven for the final browning at 375 for about 20 minutes.  I've never tried that but I bet it'd be delicious, too.  I just like how this recipe doesn't take quite so long.

Cinnamon Coffee Cake

I made this to bring to a breakfast over the holidays and it was incredibly easy, perfectly moist, and had the amazing balance of cinnamon to cake.  I usually like to make things from scratch but couldn't resist when I saw that this literally was a "dump and stir" cake.  I think that the glaze added just that extra hint of sweet to top it off.  My husband is a big fan of coffee cake and was really hoping there'd be some left over for him to taste.  Luckily there was and he oohed and aahed over it.  I also loved that it was still moist even a couple of days after I had made it and the flavors just continued to meld together in such a yummy way.

Cinnamon Coffee Cake from Allrecipes

1 (18.25 oz) pkg yellow cake mix

1 (3.4oz) pkg instant vanilla pudding mix

1 (3.4oz) pkg instant butterscotch pudding mix

4 eggs

1 C water

1 C vegetable oil

1 C packed brown sugar

1 T ground cinnamon

1 C chopped walnuts (I omitted this)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F.  Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan, or a 10 inch Bundt cake pan. 

2. In a medium bowl, stir together the cake mix, vanilla pudding mix, and butterscotch pudding mix.  Add the eggs, oil and water, mix until well blended.  In another bowl, stir together the brown sugar, cinnamon, and nuts.  Pour 1/3 of the batter into the pan, spread evenly.  Sprinkle with 1/3 of the nut/sugar mixture.  Repeat two more times (for three layers).  

3. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, then turn the oven down to 325 Degrees F and bake for an additional 350-40 minutes. 

Tips: I substituted the butterscotch for another vanilla pudding (as that's all I had) and it still turned out really well.

Fluffy Whole Wheat French Toast

I don't you about you, but I'm always on the hunt for healthy things for my kid's breakfast--something that will keep them feeling full longer and not cause a sugar crash or cries of "I'm SO hungry" almost immediately after breakfast is through. 

My little guy is obsessed with pancakes and french toast.  But I feel like the "normal" version is more of an empty calorie breakfast that always has him begging for snacks all morning long.  It just doesn't fill up his tummy long enough.  So I scoured the internet and found a recipe for french toast that I adapted and made with 100% whole wheat bread and it actually tasted really, really good.  Over the years, we've made the switch from white bread to whole wheat bread.  But french toast is one thing I've never loved on wheat bread.  But my opinion has changed 100% from this recipe.  I even love it!  And my kids will devour it and it keeps them full until lunch because of the whole wheat.

I hate how french toast can sometimes taste a little eggy--but this recipe's secret is the flour.  Not only does the flour make it fluffy, but it also takes away any of that overly eggy taste that french toast can sometimes have (in my opinion).  This is now my new favorite french toast recipe--by a long shot. 

Fluffy Whole Wheat French Toast adapted from Allrecipes.com

1/4 C all-purpose flour
1 C milk
1 pinch salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 T brown sugar
12 slices whole-wheat bread*

Measure flour into a large mixing bowl.  Slowly whisk in milk.  Whisk in the salt, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla extract and sugar until smooth.  Heat a lightly oiled (I use a cooking spray like Pam) griddle or frying pan over medium heat.  Soak bread slices in mixture until saturated.  Cook bread on each side until golden brown.  Serve hot.

Tips: *I used the Honey Whole Wheat bread from Costco ("Prairie Grain Bread")--so that extra bit of Honey on the bread might also be key.  Let me know if you try it without that and how it tastes.  The flour will settle and so you'll want to mix it with a fork in-between dips.  Another key is to let the bread sit on each side for a couple of seconds to really absorb the mixture. I also sprinkled cinnamon/sugar pretty generously on the uncooked side (while first side cooking).

*Weight Watchers Points Plus: 3 points; 12 servings (12 slices bread)

12 servings: Calories: 160   Carbs: 30   Fat: 2   Protein: 8

Healthy, Delicious Smoothie

I am a big fan of smoothies! When we were first married my husband would make me a smoothie at least a couple of times a week. However, this smoothie is significantly healthier than the ones we used to make. This has such great flavor and is full of fruit--what could be bad about that? I now prefer making this over buying a smoothie from Jamba Juice. It also has the perfect amount of sweetness for me. And if you're doing (or have ever done) Weight Watchers, each serving is only two points (it makes two huge glass-full servings). You could totally adapt this smoothie to include various fruits and shake it up however you like. I love having this as a snack or even with breakfast. My kiddos love it too.

Mixed Berry Smoothie

1/2 C skim milk
1/2 C water
8 Splenda packets
1/8 C orange juice concentrate
1 1/2-2 C Kirkland brand blueberry, marionberry, raspberry frozen berry mix
2-3 tsp vanilla
1/2 C ice

Put all ingredients except ice into a blender. Blend. Add ice if you want it to be thicker.

Tips: Kirkland brand is purchased at Costco. You could substitute any mix of frozen berries--I haven't tried strawberries but it would probably be great. I love the blueberries in the mixture! If you want it a little bit sweeter--add more vanilla or Splenda packets. This is a really thick smoothie, so you could add more milk and no ice if you want it less thick.

Serves 2; Weight Watcher Points Plus: 2

Pumpkin Waffles

With fall slowly starting to creep in I've been itching to share some of my favorite falls recipes. These waffles are seriously to die for!!! Seriously.

I acquired this delectable recipe when I wanted to put together and share some new recipes pre-blogging a few years back and had asked my close friends from high school to share some of their favorites. My friend, Michelle, sent me over this recipe and said that I had to try it. I will never regret trying them!

They are AMAZING! Wait...did I already say that? There is just the right amount of pumpkin (I was worried it would be overwhelming) that pairs perfectly with the yummy buttermilk syrup. My husband gets SO excited whenever I make these. He claims he could eat this syrup with his shoe and it'd still taste good. Me...I'll just stick to eating it on these delicious waffles. We made these for a birthday breakfast party for my daughter last year and they were a huge hit with the adults and children. I get asked for this recipe all the time. You really do have to try these and let me know what you think.

PUMPKIN WAFFLES from Michelle T.

4 eggs separated
1 ½ cups milk
1 cup pumpkin
3/4 cup margarine
1 T Vanilla
2 cups flour
2 T baking powder
1 T cinnamon
1 T sugar
½ tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt

Beat egg yolks then add milk, pumpkin, margarine, and vanilla. Mix together dry ingredients and then add flour mixture. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks and fold into mixture. Cool in fridge several hours or overnight. Serve with hot buttermilk syrup.

BUTTERMILK SYRUP
½ cup butter
1 cup sugar
½ cup buttermilk
1 tsp. karo syrup

Bring to a boil then remove from heat. Stir in 1 tsp. baking soda and 1 tsp. vanilla.

Tips: I made these earlier this week for dinner on the fly when we were running low on groceries. I usually always chill them overnight but was really craving these (and had leftover pumpkin in the fridge) and so I made them and let them chill for about an hour. The result--they still came out perfect. So I think I won't stress so much about having them always chill overnight. They may have been slightly flatter--but very slightly. (And in case any of you might have noticed...I did post this recipe a couple of years ago pre-picture days and so here it is re-posted with a picture).

Brunch Rolls

I have been eyeing a cookbook at Costco for a few weeks now and I finally broke down and purchased it--solely because of this recipe. Well, I guess not solely. But as I flipped through it and saw this recipe, it pushed me over the edge in not being able to resist. I was helping to plan a shower for my sister-in-law's first baby girl and I thought this might be a fun variation on shower food. So my mom and I tried it out early to see if it was going to be as delicious as it sounds. It was really yummy and I loved that you could shake it up however you pleased to make your own brunch rolls. In the end we decided it might've been a little too much work to crank out a ton of them in the midst of all the the other last minute shower preparations before everyone arrived. But I do think this would be such a perfect, fun, and different thing to serve up to your guests--be it for a shower, holiday, or just for dinner. We made it exactly as the recipe described--but I'll note how we thought we would've altered it if we had made it for the shower.

Brunch Rolls from "Worldwide Ward Cookbook"

1 (8oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 C. butter, softened
2 C. ham, chopped
1 1/2 C broccoli, chopped (I did them pretty fine
2 C. cheese, finely grated (Swiss, Cheddar, or American work great)
1 C. fresh parmesan cheese, finely grated
1 C. scallions, finely chopped

Make your favorite recipe for white rolls (using half wheat flour is okay). Roll the dough out as if you were making cinnamon rolls. Spread with cream cheese and butter. Top with ham, broccoli, cheese, Parmesan cheese, and scallions. Roll up and slice, let rise, and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown. To make them extra pretty, brush with butter and sprinkle with sea salt, sesame seeds, or poppy seeds. (Use this general process to make pizza rolls, four-cheese rolls, and other varieties). These are especially great with a salad and fruit.

Tips: Here's how I might alter there recipe next time: 12 oz. of cream cheese, 2 1/2-3 C of ham (I would use chopped ham), 2 C broccoli, 3+ cups of cheese. I would also cook them for about 12-15 minutes and then check them--the bottoms were pretty overcooked at 20 minutes (and it could've been the pan I used, too).

Butterscotch Bundt Rolls

With Memorial Day approaching, I wanted to share this fabulous recipe! It's become a tradition in our family to do a big breakfast when my husband has a day off for a holiday. This has become one of our favorites to add to our menu. The rolls are really soft, gooey, and sticky! I really like the subtle butterscotch flavor mixed with brown sugar that these rolls have. But you don't have to just eat these with breakfast--they are also really good paired with a dinner of meat and potatoes, too. And a nice bonus is that they look kind of fancy and taste even better!

Butterscotch Bundt Rolls from "The Essential Mormon Cookbook"

18 frozen dinner rolls (I use Rhodes Rolls)
1 (3 oz.) package butterscotch pudding (NOT instant)
1/2 C packed brown sugar
1/2 C chopped pecans
1/2 C melted butter

Arrange frozen rolls in a greased Bundt pan. Sprinkle pudding, brown sugar, and pecans over rolls. Drizzle butter over all. Cover Bundt pan with dishtowel, plastic wrap, or waxed paper and let rise at room temperature overnight, or about 12 hours. Remove dishtowel. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Cool 5-10 minutes before inverting to a serving plate. Serve warm. Makes 18 rolls.

Tips: Just as an FYI, the last time I made these I only needed about 6-7 hours before the rolls were risen enough. So if you were making this the night before for breakfast, I'd probably suggest doing them right before you went to bed so that they don't get too huge.

Cinnamon Rolls

Oh how I love these cinnamon rolls! This outstanding recipe comes from my mom's friend, Michelle. She is famous for these cinnamon rolls in our neighborhood and amongst our Church group! And in turn, I've made these a few times for Church things here and I'm now the "Michelle" of the group bringing these often to our church functions. I love having a good excuse to make these since I'll eat them all myself if I could. I work with the young women in our church and they had begged that I bring these to our annual Christmas party. So I made them yesterday and sadly they are all gone now! They are so soft and moist and bake just perfectly. I used to babysit Michelle's kids every Monday after school and I loved getting to sample her cookies and cakes and felt in heaven if she had made these cinnamon rolls that day. Like I've said before, I am a sucker for homemade rolls and this recipe is in my top three that I've ever tasted (I know...that's a pretty profound statement...they're THAT good). This recipe is a roll recipe that I use to make my cinnamon rolls from. It is AWESOME!

Cinnamon Rolls from Michelle S.

1 C milk
1/2 C shortening or butter
1/2 C sugar
3 eggs (beat really well...that's the trick)
2 tsp salt
2 T yeast
1 C water
1 tsp sugar
About 6 1/2 C flour

Melt shortening or butter in milk over low heat and cool. Dissolve yeast in warm water with the 1 tsp sugar. Beat eggs in a large bowl until foamy. Add sugar and salt. Next, add milk mixture. Add yeast mixture. Stir in flour. Dough will be a little sticky. Let rise about 1 hour. Roll out on floured surface. Cut into parker house, crescent, or cinnamon rolls. Let rise until doubled in size. Bake at 400 degrees until golden brown (about 8-10 min). Frost when slightly warm.

Tips: After the dough is rolled out butter the dough and sprinkle a cinnamon sugar mixture over rolls. I usually do about 1 C of brown sugar and 4 tsp cinnamon. I am not a huge cream cheese frosting fan on cinnamon rolls. I know, I know...some of you might think I'm crazy! So go ahead and use a cream cheese frosting if you like. I think I'm more of a purist and really like tasting the roll over the frosting. So I just do a thickened glaze. I make this by melting about 4 T butter and then adding 1/2 tsp vanilla and then powdered sugar and milk until the desired consistency.