Wednesday Gourmet: Coffee French Toast

This weekend I dropped my pumpkin spice english muffin into my coffee mug.  Yes, the entire muffin fell into it.  And yes, it was a huge cup of coffee.  Since I try not to be too wasteful, I scooped out my english muffin and ate it and it actually tasted pretty good.  It made me think of coffee-flavored french toast.  Is there a recipe out there?  In my research, I only found a few.  I’ll have to do some testing with Jon this weekend 🙂

1.  Tiramisu French Toast from HowSweetItIs.com.  She has some really great recipes with beautiful photos.

2.  Coffee-Scented French Toast by Alan Coxon.

3.  Coffee French Toast video from The Fuel House restaurant in Toronto.

 

Wednesday Gourmet: French Toast with Berry Butter

It’s almost the end of summer and I’m getting a little sad. No more long, sunny days.  No more fresh berries.  No more sundresses & flip flops.  Well, there’s one way to preserve the happiness of summer…make berry butter!  The Pioneer Woman has an easy recipe with step-by-step pics and instrux.  Now, why didn’t I think of that?  We typically only thing of savory compound butters but sweet is the way to go!

French Toast with Berry Butter

Image from The Pioneer Woman

 

Total Time: 2 hrs 20 min
Prep 2 hrs | Cook 20 min
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 1 pound Unsalted Butter, Softened
• 1/2 cup Raspberries
• 1/2 cup Blackberries
• 1 loaf Crusty Bread: Baguette, French Loaf, Etc.
• 4 whole Egg Yolks
• 2 cups Half-and-half
• 1 Tablespoon Sugar
• 2 teaspoons Vanilla
• Zest Of One Lemon
• Maple Syrup For Serving
• Sifted Powder Sugar, For Serving (optional)

Cooking Directions

1. Make the berry butters: in separate batches, whip 2 sticks of butter at a time on high using the whisk attachment. Switch to paddle attachment. Add either raspberries or blackberries. Turn mixer on low for only about five seconds, just long enough for the berries to begin to mix in/break up, but not so long that it turns into a mess. Clean mixer bowl and attachments and repeat with other kind of berry.
2. With each batch, turn mixture out onto a long sheet of plastic wrap set over a long sheet of foil. Use the wrap/foil to roll the butter into a cylinder: first seal the plastic wrap around the cylinder, then secure the foil around it. Twist the ends, gradually applying more pressure as you twist in order to make the cylinder taut.
3. Once it’s a nice, neat cylinder of foil, place into the freezer for 30 minutes in order to quickly solidify it, then transfer it to the fridge until you’re ready to use it. Butter should be nice and firm.           NOTE: You can add a little sifted powdered sugar to the butter to make more of a sweet spread for bread and muffins! For French toast, though, the maple syrup makes things sweet enough.
4. To make the french toast, cut bread into slices 1/2 inch thick. In a dish, mix together egg yolks, half-and-half, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla. Whisk to combine. Dip bread slices in mixture, coating both sides, then remove from dish and set aside. Repeat until all bread is coated.
5. Heat iron skillet or griddle over medium heat. Sizzle butter in the pan when hot. Cook French toast on both sides until golden brown, being careful not to burn.
6. Remove berry butters from fridge. Unwrap one end and cut slices. Lay one slice each onto each serving of French toast. Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired, then drizzle with warm maple syrup.

Easter Brunch & Flower Pot Desserts

We went to David Burke Kitchen for Easter brunch today.  My sis, J and I.  It’s such an airy, modern, comfy space, like an urban farmhouse.  The decor was nice – old reclaimed wood, blue and white checkered napkins, denim booths, flowers in steel pails, simple decor.  Maybe it’ll inspire my new apartment decor.  Hmm, who knew I was a farm girl?  First Los Poblanos in Albuquerque, now David Burke Kitchen in NYC.

Photo from in-nycsite.com

We all had the prix fixe option since it was a good deal with great options.  For me…a bloody mary, tuna tartare tacos, suckling pig with a prosciutto-fried egg and sour cream apple pie.  The food was good, very rich, the service was good but slow.

My sis had the chocolate mousse cake with hazelnut-chocolate streusel and raspberry jam for dessert, which was served in a mini flower pot.  The presentation was adorable.  For those of you having spring parties or just want to do something fun, why not serve dessert in a flower pot!  Here are some inspirations.

The Pioneer Woman has a step-by-step tutorial for Springy Flower Pot Desserts with pound cake and ice cream.

Martha Stewart has a recipe for chocolate Flowerpot Cakes.

Try Bread and Honey’s Banana Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting.