Kitchen Adventures 10.6

It struck me yesterday that my blogging to baking ratio has gotten greatly disproportional. I'm doing way more baking and cooking than blogging, and it just gets me further in the hole each time! Yesterday did not help the situation, though it did help my hungry tummy. I made a couple sides and a dessert for our Easter dinner, which was a delicious and fun time with friends. But, this post will not address those delicious dishes. Instead, today we'll talk about a scrumptious breakfast from my last family visit.

Karen and Ryan, my sister and brother-in-law, came down to visit me over their spring break in March. We had a wonderful time running around Norman and OKC! We toured OU, ate at Cafe Plaid, drove around Norman, went to the movies, ate at Hideaway, went to the OU art museum, ate at Buffalo Wild Wings, found almost every Sherwin-Williams store in the OKC metro area, went to the OKC bombing memorial, walked around Bricktown and Bass Pro Shops, met up with friends at the Library, went shopping, ate at Tarahumara's and Crimson and Whipped Cream. As you can see, we did a lot! And we ate a lot. :) We didn't eat out all the time, though. These two are coffee lovers, and I have some espresso powder left from an earlier baking adventure, so I thought I'd try to find something that could use some of this up. While flipping through one of my new Rachael Ray magazines, I came across a french toast recipe that incorporates espresso powder. I couldn't pass it up, so we had it their first morning here. It was nice to make breakfast with Karen and chat while things were cooking. We even said our prayer before eating. Mom would be proud. :)

This recipe is from Every Day with Rachael Ray.

French Toast with Espresso Cream

Ingredients:

2 T. instant espresso powder
1 c. sweetened condensed milk
4 eggs
1/4 c. heavy cream
1/4 tsp. salt
Eight 1/2-inch thick slices chullah bread (I used ciabatta bread)
4 T. melted butter

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the espresso powder with 1/4 cup hot water. Remove 2 T. of the espresso into a cup for later. Whisk the condensed milk into the remaining espresso.
2. In a baking dish, whisk together the eggs, cream, salt, and reserved espresso. Place the bread slices in the dish and turn to coat.
3. Melt 2 T. butter in a large skillet or griddle over medium heat. Add 4 slices of bread to the pan and cook for about 2 or 3 minutes, then flip the bread over and cook an additional 2 minutes or until golden brown. Do this again with the remaining butter and bread. Drizzle the espresso cream over the french toast when serving.