Saturday Brunch

A good friend of ours was in town for the weekend, so we had him over for brunch.  Saturday brunch is always one of my favorite meals of the week.  On Saturdays, we almost always have brunch in the late morning rather than breakfast and then a separate lunch later on.  And it’s usually something hearty and special – French toast, pancakes, waffles, frittatas, etc.  We don’t usually have a cheese plate for brunch, but we went all out and served a really nice comte gruyere with crackers and homemade hummus (simple – one 15 oz can of organic drained chickpeas, 1 T olive oil, 2 T tahini, 2 cloves of garlic, and 1 T of lemon juice, blended in the food processor until the chickpeas are creamy).  The rest of the menu included baked French toast (seriously, the best recipe to have on hand if you have people coming over for brunch the next day), fresh fruit (strawberries and cherries), maple sausage, freshly cut bacon, and scrambled eggs.

This French toast doesn’t look like much, but it’s both easy and decadent.  It’s more like a cross between French toast and bread pudding.  I adapted it from this recipe at Smitten Kitchen.  The appeal to me is preparing it the night before and then just sticking it in the oven the morning of brunch.  It’s great for guests as there’s no standing at the stove frying – the pan goes right from the oven to the table and is ready to serve after 30 minutes of baking.  I like it simple, unadorned, with just some maple syrup – but you can add dried fruits or nuts if you’d like to mix it up a bit.

I’m always looking for new brunch recipes to try – what’s your favorite?  Share in the comments!

Baked French Toast serves 8

• 1 loaf braided challah or brioche
• 3 large eggs
• 3 cups whole milk
• 2 T sugar
• 3/4 t salt
• 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
• 3-6T of rum (I used 3T and couldn’t taste it much, I would increase the amt next time)
• To sprinkle over before baking:  2 T sugar + 2 tsp cinnamon

Slice the bread in 1″ pieces.  Layer them in a 13 x 9 baking dish.  I usually end up with two layers.  Any leftover pieces of bread, I rip up and stick into any gaps.

Combine all the other ingredients (except for the sprinkling sugar & cinnamon) in a large bowl and whisk to combine.  Pour over the bread.  Wrap in plastic and refridgerate over night.

The next morning, take the French toast out of the fridge an hour before baking to let it come to room temperature (this way, it will bake more evenly).  Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and sprinkle the sugar & cinnamon mixture over the top of the French toast.  Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, until the top is browned and crusty.