Baked French Toast

Every dad has a breakfast specialty.  Whether it’s as involved as Eggs Benedict topped with Hollandaise sauce or as simple as syrup and rainbow sprinkles on Corn Pops, dads everywhere have signature dishes they serve up as the first meal of the day.  On any given Saturday or Sunday morning, dads make themselves at home in the kitchen, even if it’s with all of the predictability of their one-hit wonder.  Maybe it’s time to expand your repertoire. 

I enjoy making almost any traditional breakfast dish and will be sharing some of those as time goes by.  Omelets happen to be my thing, and with raising chickens for the last 12 years or so, I’ve had access to an abundance of raw material.  However, omelets will have to wait for another day.

Recently, I was introduced to Baked French Toast.  It was on Ash Wednesday, March 9^th at Shady Maple Smorgasbord in East Earl, PA.  I know what you’re thinking.  The "first day of Lent" and "Shady Maple" appear to contradict one another.  And you would be right…IF we limited what we gave up for Lent to heavy, butter-laden, Lancaster County, carbohydrate-stuffed, belly-bursting Pennsylvania Dutch buffets.  But I’ve always thought that Lent should have a more spiritual focus.  After all, what would the Lord prefer that we sacrifice?  Our time, talents, and treasure…or a sampling of every breakfast meat known to modern man?  I think you know the answer.  Besides, it was my son’s 30^th birthday.  Was it even possible that Matt would give up his free Shady Maple birthday meal?  I think not.

Our six-car caravan left Parker Ford Church at 8:30 a.m. and arrived at “The Shade” in time to be greeted by a line waiting to pay and get in.  The buffet beckons every day but Sunday.  We each paid $9.50 and Matt was “carded.”  After he got the green light, our group of 14 was ushered to two adjacent tables and we were out of the starting gate.  Some ventured off to try one or more of fifteen varieties of pancakes (including sweet potato), others to dictate instructions for the assembling of the omelets of their dreams.  I waited in line for an order of Eggs Benedict and then decided to hit the buffet line to fill any remaining plate spaces with assorted sides.  I thought I had successfully accomplished this and was returning to my seat, when a steam table tray full of Baked French Toast caught my eye.  They were beautiful.  A company of uniformly arranged bread slices smothered in cinnamon bun-like goo, topped with chopped walnuts.  With the precision of a surgeon I grabbed the tongs and performed a toastectomy from the buffet, implanting the newfound delicacy in the last possible opening on my plate.  It was so good.

Baked French Toast eliminates the cooling effect that occurs when you butter and douse syrup on what had been hot French toast.  It comes already assembled!  I resolved to do some research on baked French toast recipes and cataloged the dish for future reference…until last Thursday.  I was visiting Dick Merritt, a former professor from my alma mater, Elizabethtown College, (and dad of three).  Our conversation had turned to food, and unprovoked, he asked me if I had ever had baked French toast.  It was a sign.  It’s his specialty!  And boy, is it delicious.  Here it is:

BAKED FRENCH TOAST

Baked French Toast - I added chopped pecans to half of the slices. 

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Loaf of unsliced crusty bread (or substitute any bread you like)

 (I used Italian bread made by Cuisine de France.  It had some huge holes inside; not as dense as I would have liked.  I thought maybe the Swiss had made it!  The holes mean that the dough either was left to rise too long, or that all of the air was not worked out of the loaves when they were shaped.  Someone at the bakery was not doing their job.  Maybe the French should stick to baguettes and croissants, and leave the Italian bread to the Italians.)

3 Tablespoons butter

¹/₃ cup brown sugar

½ teaspoon almond flavoring

chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts) – optional

two eggs

½ cup milk

¹/₈ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350°

In a glass 9” x 13” baking dish, melt the butter in the microwave.  If you have a metal pan, you’ll want to melt the butter in a microwave-safe dish.  (However, if you decide to put the metal pan in the microwave, call me first so I can come and watch.)

To the melted butter, add the brown sugar and almond flavoring and mix thoroughly.  Spread as evenly on the bottom of the dish as you can.  It won’t look like enough, but it’s just the right amount.  If you want to add nuts, now is the time to do that.  I kept one half of the dish plain and used chopped pecans for the other half.  I went a little nuts on the quantity, (as you can see from the picture above), but it was really good.

Slice the bread into ¾” slices.  Beat the two eggs with ½ cup milk.  Add cinnamon.  Dip bread in egg mixture on both sides and arrange in baking dish.  If not all slices have ground cinnamon on them you can sprinkle a little on them if you like.  If possible, make sure that most of the brown sugar mixture is under the slices of bread.

Bake at 350° for a half hour in center of oven.  The slices didn’t brown all that much on the top, (see picture below), but they were perfectly done after a half hour.  Use a spatula to remove and flip the slices of bread brown sugar side up to serve them.  (You may have to separate slices that have baked together.)

Here they are after 30 minutes in a 350° oven; not all that brown, but done perfectly.
Note the holes and cavities in the bread.

There you have it.  It’s just that simple.  Delicious, filling, and so easy even a dad can do it!  Trying adding Baked French Toast to your weekend breakfast repertoire.

P.S.  I'm still working on some icing recipes for Wacky Cake, (see 3/11/11 post).  An Ina Garten peanut butter frosting was recommended and I'm planning to try it over the weekend.  Stay tuned....

P.P.S.  One more thing:  I was chided this week that my directions may not be specific enough for some dads.  DON'T FORGET TO TURN THE OVEN OFF WHEN THE FRENCH TOAST IS FINISHED BAKING!!  (Thanks, Barb!)