Baked French Toast Casserole

Baked French Toast Casserole

IMPORTANT NOTE**MAKE THE NIGHT BEFORE** the toppings can be made the morning of

I made this Christmas Eve so we could eat is Christmas morning and it was soooooooo good. It almost was a like a dessert. There was a lot left over, so we ate it for breakfast for a few days and it was still just as good.

Ingredients:

1 loaf French bread (13 to 16 ounces) **I used french bread, but I am sure any bread will do**
8 large eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Dash salt
Praline Topping, recipe follows
Maple syrup

Directions

Slice bread into 20 slices, 1-inch each. (Use any extra bread for garlic toast or bread crumbs). Arrange slices in a generously buttered 9 by 13-inch flat baking dish in 2 rows, overlapping the slices. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not too bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread slices, making sure all are covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Spoon some of the mixture in between the slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 40 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. Serve with maple syrup.

Praline Topping:

• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and blend well. We used our fingers to spread it evenly on top.

Meal plan for Dec 31 - Jan 4 and NYE Appetizers

So, I was going to post 3 recipes this past week.....but the flu hit my Little One Christmas Eve and she is finally recovered. So, I will be posting some tonight with my meal plan.

Meal Plan:

Meatless Monday: Baked French Toast Casserole **This would be great for a New Years morning breakfast.** Needs to be prepared day before**

Tuesday: Bourbon Street Chicken with Jasmine Rice

Wednesday: Bacon and Baked Potato Soup

Thursday: Spicy Thai Noodles

Friday: Steak Burrito

Anyone going to any New Years Eve parties and need to bring some appetizers? I have 2 recipes for you. I made these for a Christmas party and both were completely gone by the end of the night.

First is the Sweet Chicken Bacon Wraps. I cannot describe all the ways that I love this appetizer. Need I say more....BACON!!!!

I think this made approx 30-40

2 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts **more if they are small**
1 (1-pound) package sliced bacon **I slice in half or in thirds, depends on how big you cut your chicken**
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons chili powder
Toothpicks

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Cut chicken breasts into 1-inch cubes. Cut each bacon slice into thirds. Wrap each chicken cube with bacon and secure with a wooden pick. Stir together brown sugar and chili powder. Dredge wrapped chicken in mixture. 

3. Coat a rack and broiler pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place chicken wrap on rack in broiler pan. Bake 350 for 30 to 35 minutes or until bacon is crisp. 

My second recipe is my own recipe and I just call it Hot Taco Dip. This recipe is one that everyone loves. It is easy to make and sooooo yummy.

Ingredients:

1 pkg of philadelphia cream cheese (I use light)

Sour cream (optional)

1 lb of lean ground beef

Taco seasoning (I use epicures, but you can use homemade or the store bought) 

1 jar of Salsa (I use medium heat)

Cheese of your choice

1 bag of Tostitos (I prefer the mutli-grain) for dipping

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Have the cream cheese at room temperature or put in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to make it easier to spread. Put in a 8x11 casserole dish. I add a few dollops of sour cream, but sometimes I don't. Mix and spread evenly on the bottom of the dish.

3. Brown the beef on medium heat in a pan. **I sometimes add onions and peppers in this phase as well, depending on time and laziness** Add taco seasoning, I don't add a whole package, I just use enough so it is lightly to moderately seasoned. Let it simmer for 5 minutes.

4. Once it cooked, I add salsa. I use 1 whole medium jar or about half of a large jar. I add enough so it is evenly mixed with the beef. Add to your preference. Let simmer for 3 minutes.

5. Spread the beef mixture evenly on top of the cream cheese layer.

6. Grate your favorite cheese on top. I use jack cheese and marble.

7. Put in the oven for approx 15-20 minutes or until it is bubbling on the sides and cheese is all melted.

No meal plan, but still have some goodies!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

So, since it is the holidays, I won't have time to post as much and I will not be making as many suppers due to visiting family, etc... Plus, may daughter has the stomach flu and I have a sinking feeling it will be making its way around the household.

However, I will be posting the 2 appetizers I made for my Christmas party with the gang. It will be my Hot Taco Dip recipe and Sweet Chicken Bacon Wraps.

I will also be posting a Baked French Toast recipe I made for Christmas morning.

Stay tuned!

Snicker Fudge

Snicker Fudge

I am making this for my bake exchange with my girls this weekend. The ingredient list seems easy, just time consuming to make. I hope they turn out. I always end up making a new recipe for this exchange and I never know how it will turn out. Fingers crossed!! I will be back later with my review and pictures.

It was a HIT! It was a lot easier then I thought and not as time consuming as I thought. Since it was made in layers, I could do a layer, freeze it and come back to it when I had more time. It was also one of the best things I have baked for my bake exchange. It was very rich and sweet, so it should be consumed in small doses, or you may end up with a sugar hang over ;)

**NOTE** The caramel runs like crazy once it is cut. I suggest you keep it in the freezer**

Ingredients:

1 bag milk chocolate chips separated (you will need 2 cups, and the bag I bought didn't have exactly 2 cups, so I added some semi sweet that I already had)
Peanut butter
1 cup salted peanuts
1 1/2 cup Fluff
2 bags Caramels (you will need 14 oz and that is exactly 30 caramels)
1 can evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
4 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla
Tin foil or wax paper

1ST LAYER
 In and small bowl, combine:
1 cup of milk chocolate chips
1/4 cup of peanut butter

Line a 9x13 dish with tin foil or wax paper. Heat in the microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring after each. Stir until creamy and then pour the mixture in an even layer into the bottom of the prepared pan. Place the pan in the freezer.

2ND LAYER 
**I found it helpful to have all the ingredients measured and ready to go before I started because it comes together quickly**

In a medium saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. 

Add:

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup evaporated milk

Stir and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from the heat and add:

1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/Fluff

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir until combined.

Add 1 cup of salted peanuts.

Stir until combined. Remove the pan from the freezer and pour the mixture in an even layer over the chocolate layer. Place back in the freezer.

3RD LAYER

In a small saucepan, add:
14-oz. bag caramels, unwrapped **30 caramels**

1/4 cup evaporated milk

Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the caramel is melted and smooth. 

Remove the pan from the freezer and pour the caramel over the top in an even layer. Place back in the freezer.

4TH LAYER:

In a small bowl, combine:

1 cup milk chocolate chips

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

Heat in the microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring after each. Stir until creamy. Remove the pan from the freezer and pour the mixture in an even layer onto the top. Make sure the caramel layer is firm before doing this.

Refrigerate for 1 hour (or perhaps you could cheat a bit and freeze for a shorter time like I may or may not have done).

Peel the foil or paper off, then cut into chunks. The caramel will run, so keep in freezer or fridge.

Honey Pecan Pork Chops

Honey Pecan Pork Chops

Ingredients:
4 pork cutlets, tenderized, 1/4-inch thick
4 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions:Season flour with salt and pepper; dust surfaces of pork with seasoned flour.

Melt butter in large heavy skillet over medium-high heat; brown cutlets on one side, turn; stir together honey and pecans and add to skillet, stir gently. Cover and simmer for 7-8 minutes.

Serve cutlets with sauce from skillet.

I wasn't overly impressed with this recipe. It could be due to cutting it in half because I was only cooking 2 pork chops. They were big, so I shouldn't have cut it in half. It might have been better if I cooked the sauce separately because all it did was make the breading go mushy on the pork chops it got simmered.

I won't be making this recipe again. I have a sweet and sour recipe I love more and I will be making it soon.

Cooking green

I like to try in my own ways to be more environmentally conscious. I am not perfect and I will not preach, I just want to share the ways that I try to cook green in my home. I will also share how I have tried to my keep my kitchen more green.

1. I know it is not Monday, but I have decided to support Meatless Mondays (click for link). Some of you know that I LOVE meat. I don't want to say never, but it is highly unlikely I could become a vegetarian. However, I have decided to take the challenge of using no meat in my cooking on Mondays. I will have some vegetarian and even some vegan dishes come up. I have a friend who is vegan and she inspires me.

2. We compost vegetable and fruit scraps. It reduces waste and we can use it for fertilizer in our garden. We have something that looks like this in our backyard:

3. We have a garden. We have tried many different vegetables in our garden....but honestly, we need to do WAY more research. What we have done successfully is grow herbs and spices. They are easy to take care of and last forever. We do something called Square Foot Gardening (click link to find out more). Ours looks almost identical to this. The parts were cheap and it was easy to build if you are handy. I am not, that is why my man built it. 

4. We recycle everything that we can into those recycle bins you see by Shoppers or Superstore. I don't throw away old margarine containers or shampoo bottles. I rinse and recycle. We also recycle at the redemption center and get some money back!

5. We try to reduce the use of paper towel. This habit is hard to break and I would love to get rid of it completely, however, my man will not let me. Instead I bought some cheap facecloths (or you can turn old clothes into rags) and I keep them under the sink with a wet bag (if I remember to use the wet bag). I also want to use less napkins, but I need to find cheap, but pretty cloth napkins first. Yes, we will use more water to clean this, but I think it will not make that big of a difference in water usage compared to the savings in waste and cost in buying napkins and paper towel.

6. I try to buy organic and fresh produce from markets or were at least grown in Canada.

7. I have made my own kitchen cleaners to reduce the chemicals in our house. I also make my own laundry detergent and cloth diaper detergent (yes we cloth diaper and love it thanks to a friend who inspired me). I will admit to using half of my homemade and little bit of Tide, as I found it didn't clean them as well as I had liked. I also made the dish washer detergent, but didn't have success, however my parents did. I think it depends on the type of water you have.  Here are the recipes:

All-Purpose Cleaner
1 3/4 c Water
1 3/4 c Vinegar
1 tbs Dish Soap (a small squirt)
1 dropper full of Grapefruit Seed Extract or several drops of Tea Tree Oil **I used the Tea tree oil**

I gently mix this up (so I don’t cause too many bubbles!) and pour it into a spray bottle.  You can mix this up with just vinegar and water if you like.  

Glass Cleaner

1 1/3 c Water

1 1/3 c Vinegar

1 tbs Dish Soap (a small squirt)

1 dropper full of Grapefruit Seed Extract or several drops of Tea Tree Oil
1/3 c Rubbing Alcohol (this will give you a great streak-free shine)

Again, mix gently and you can leave out the dish soap and grapefruit seed extract (or TTO) if you need/want to.

Laundry detergent (2 tbsp/load, more if needed)

• 1 cup washing soda
• 1 cup borax
• 1/2 cup of oxiclean
• 1 bar of soap, finely grated

Dishwasher Detergent

1 1/2 Cups Lemi-Shine ** found at Canadian Tire with the cleaners**
1 1/2 Cups Washing Soda
1/2 Cup Baking Soda
1/2 Cup Sea Salt (any will do I’m sure)

Use 2 Tablespoons per load and if you like, vinegar can be added as the rinse agent in the event that you have any cloudiness.

So, I didn't make these changes overnight. It was a gradual process and we are not perfect, so every now and then, I may throw something in the garbage I normally would recycle or not make my laundry detergent as soon as it ran out, so I use Tide. But, I just keep trying as hard as I can. I would love to hear how you cook green or keep your house green or if you are inspired to make any changes!

Balsamic Bruschetta Grilled Chicken

Balsamic Bruschetta Grilled Chicken

         I followed this recipe closely, other then adding red onion to my bruschetta toppings. I am very glad I did. I did not use a grilling pan, as I do not own one. I am a BBQ woman. I use my BBQ all year round....of course it decided to pour down rain tonight....but it was worth it. I LOVED this recipe. If you like Bruschetta, then you will love this. There was little food prep time, a short cooking time and there was little mess to clean up afterword. I love low maintenance, but tasty recipes.

I served Caesar salad as a side and it went very well together. If you are only cooking for 2, cut the recipe in half. It still works out fantastic.

INGREDIENTS:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, thawed (I use the big Costco bag)
Pinch of salt
¼ Cup balsamic vinegar
¼ Cup extra virgin olive oil
8 slices fresh mozzarella cheese

4 Roma Tomatoes, seeded and diced
8 fresh basil leaves,**I used freeze dried because there was no fresh basil at the store**
3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
Pinch of salt
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat a grill pan over medium heat on the stove top. Spray with cooking spray. Combine balsamic and olive oil in a bowl. Season both sides of chicken with pinches of salt and place on grill. Brush top sides of chicken with balsamic mixture. Cook for 4-5 minutes and flip chicken. Brush with additional balsamic and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes or until cooked through. During the last 2 minutes of grilling place 2 slices of cheese over top each chicken to melt.

2. In a large bowl combine the tomatoes, basil garlic, salt and balsamic. Toss gently to combine. 

3. Place chicken breasts on a serving plate and top with tomato mixture. Serve warm.