Overnight Blueberry French Toast Casserole

Juicy berries, crunchy walnuts plus yummy cream cheese and warmed up maple syrup make this a fantastic breakfast or brunch dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day! 

It is an established fact that my family loves French Toast (or eggy bread as my British hubby would say) for breakfast and especially for brunch. I have a few versions of it including 3 in this blog! We surely cannot get enough of it. I have tried many variations of this delicious American-style stuffed French toast but the blueberry version is one of our favorites. It is just so wonderful to bite into this warm overnight-soaked baked bread and then into your mouth suddenly burst delicious juices from the berries! But that's not all - the almost melted cream cheese provides a delightful contrast of texture and flavor which makes your palate truly dance with joy! As if that's not enough, make it even better by drizzling your freshly baked french toast with warmed up pure Maple syrup and then help yourself with a generous dusting of powdered sugar on top to add extra sweetness and love! Aren't you hungry yet?

Meatballs and Mushroom Soup

Well, with the Polar Vortex descending on the Midwest this week and causing record high temps, I thought it fitting to make a recipe that will help fight the arctic cold and keep all of us warm. While the weather may get warmer in the next few days, sadly, we are still very much in the midst of winter and truly need something deliciously comforting to help us fight the winter blues! This soup did it for us.

Gluten-free Waffles

My family loves breakfast! We consider it one of the most important meals of the day. While we often don't have the luxury of having a hot and prepared breakfast everyday, on weekends I make it a point to make something that my kids love and the whole family enjoys. While pancakes are a great favorite, my kids last year began clamoring for some waffles. I told them I had to find some waffle maker first. Off we went to the thrift store - I didn't want to immediately buy a new one until I actually knew how to make a waffle. I have been wanting to buy this all-clad gorgeous Belgian waffle makers but oh-boy they are way to expensive and beyond my budget even when they are on sale so I thought, I'll have to check out the second hand store first. Thankfully, we found one that looks like new and hardly used if at all - though I must say, beside it was a gross-looking waffle maker that looks like it was never ever cleaned properly as grease and stain was all over it. I wondered why they were selling that one. We passed on that and quickly grabbed the unused and almost brand-new looking one. We came at the right time!

Top 20 Favorite Recipes of 2013

Now that 2013 is done and gone, let's recap some of the best and well-enjoyed recipes in our blog for 2013. Please enjoy!

Chocolate Pecan Pie

The ultimate dessert for Thanksgiving and Christmas - CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE! This is superbly yummy, easy and looks so pretty, too!

Ok, I wanted 2013 to end with a big bang and I also wanted to welcome 2014 with something big, therefore I have decided to write this delicious recipe as my final post for the year. I love nuts and chocolate, so it is but appropriate to make a dessert that has both - CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE!

I honestly don't know if there's anything else that sounds as yummy as that combination! I leave that judgment to you so without further ado, here's a super-scrumptious dessert that is the fitting end to what has been a truly wonderful year for blogging! Thank you so much dear readers for your continued support and loyalty to our blog. I wouldn't still be blogging if not for your amazing help and encouragement. I hope you enjoyed all the posts of 2013 as much as I enjoyed writing each and everyone of them.

Looking forward to 2014 and beyond!







For the crust:

Ingredients

1/4 cup Pecans
1 cup All-purpose Flour
1/2 cup brown Sugar
1/2 Salt*
1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
6 Tablespoons unsalted Butter, sliced into 6 parts

*Preferably sea salt, if you can find it.

Handy tool: Food processor

Procedure
                   
Preheat the oven to 350F. Place the pecans on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for about 8-10 minutes or until nicely browned.  You can also dry-fry (roast) the pecans on the stove top using a small skillet. Just be careful not to burn it.

Grease or butter a 9-inch pie pan/plate.

In a food processor, mix the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and the toasted pecans until coarse. Add the butter and pulse until everything is combined.

Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pie plate, patting the dough along the sides of the pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Allow to cool.

For the Pie Filling:

Ingredients

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted Butter, melted
1/2 cup brown Sugar
3/4 teaspoon Salt*
2 Eggs, room temperature
3/4-1 teaspoon pure Vanilla extract (optional)
2 cups Pecans
5 ounces, dark eating chocolate (60-70 % Cocoa), coarsely chopped

*preferably Sea Salt, if you can find it.

Procedure

In a bowl, mix the melted butter, sugar and salt. Add the eggs, vanilla extract (if using) pecans and the chopped chocolate and quickly stir to combine.

Pour the mixture into the cooled crust. You can opt to re-arrange the pecans in a pattern like I did but if you're in a hurry, this is unnecessary. You can just dump all in the crust.

Bake for 25 minutes. Cool completely before slicing. Please enjoy!

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