Christmas Cooking For Dummies
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If you love French toast but don’t want to be chained to the stove on Christmas morning, Overnight French Toast with Orange-Maple Syrup is the recipe for you. You make the French toast the night before, it soaks in the custard overnight, and then you just pop it in the oven Christmas morning. Have the kids whisk together the custard and help with the syrup.

Overnight French Toast with Maple-Orange Syrup

Preparation time: 8 minutes

Cooking time: 50 minutes

Yield: 10 servings

1-pound loaf challah or egg bread, sliced into 1-inch thick slices

One 10-ounce jar (about 1 cup) apricot all-fruit jam

3 cups half-and-half

1/3 cup sugar

4 large eggs

4 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon cardamom

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

  1. Spray a 15 x 10 x 2-inch pan with pan coating. Spread the jam evenly over the bread slices and arrange them in the pan, jam side up, with each piece overlapping half of the one below.

  2. Whisk together the half-and-half and sugar to begin to dissolve the sugar. Whisk the eggs and egg yolks, cardamom, and cinnamon into the half-and-half and sugar combination. You’ve just created a custard. Pour the custard evenly over the bread. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

  3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Unwrap and bake the French toast for about 50 minutes or until it’s puffed and golden. Serve with Maple-Orange Syrup.

If you cannot find challah or egg bread, you can substitute a dense white bread, such as Pepperidge Farm brand bread, if necessary. It will change the dish somewhat, but it will still work.

Per serving: Calories 382 (From Fat 135); Fat 15g (Saturated 7g); Cholesterol 220mg; Sodium 294mg; Carbohydrate 53g (Dietary Fiber 2g); Protein 10g.

Maple-Orange Syrup

Preparation time: 5 minute

Cooking time: 5 minutes

Yield: 10 servings

1-1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tablespoons orange juice concentrate

  1. Heat the maple syrup and orange concentrate together in a small saucepan on the stovetop or in the microwave. Just whisk together and heat.

  2. Serve the Overnight French Toast right out of the oven with the warmed syrup.

Per serving: Calories 110; Fat 0g (Saturated 0g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 4mg; Carbohydrate 28g (Dietary Fiber 0g); Protein 0g.

About This Article

This article is from the book:

About the book author:

Dede Wilson, CCP, contributes to Bon Appétit and Pastry and Design magazine and to NBC's Todayshow. She is also the Food and Entertaining expert for CanDoWoman.com.

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