French Toast Casserole & Owl Corner Returns!

Over Christmas, my mom and I decided to try a recipe that I had heard about from a co-worker for French toast casserole.  We thought it would be a great dish to serve on Christmas morning, but after looking at the recipe, we realized that we would have to tweak it a bit to fit our needs (the original recipe called for two "large" pans, and there were only four of us, so what were we going to do with the leftover one and a half pans??), and the resulting recipe is what you see below.  It's good, I think you'll like it!


Ingredients:
½ loaf of Texas toast, torn into pieces
4 eggs
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 stick butter (unsalted is preferred)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup pecans (optional, we didn’t use)

Directions: Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray (don't skip this step--we learned that the hard way).  Spread the bread pieces evenly in the pan, then mix together in a separate bowl the eggs, half and half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  You could add more spices, or additional spices, if you would like here.  Pour this mixture over the bread, and toss the bread to coat the pieces.  Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and allow to sit in your refrigerator overnight.

In the morning, melt the butter, then mix in the brown sugar.  Pour this evenly over the bread mixture, and then bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown on top.  You can also sprinkle more spices over the casserole before baking it for a little extra deliciousness.  Enjoy with butter and syrup, or my favorite way to eat French toast: peanut butter and syrup.  Soooo tasty!


Owl Corner 

Photo from Wikipedia

Today, we will learn about the Spectacled Owl.  The name pretty well describes its distinguishing characteristic: contrasting feathers around the eyes give this guy a distinguished, scholarly appearance.  One interesting fact about their appearance--the photo on the left shows an adult owl, but the juvenile owls are a photo negative as far as color goes: white head and black "spectacles".  It can take several years for a young owl to change appearance into adulthood.  The size of these owls is medium-large, measuring about 17"-18" fully grown.  These birds are considered anti-social, and prefer their alone time.  Their habitat ranges from parts of southern Mexico south into the northern half of South America, and also Costa Rica.  They are found in tropical rainforests and anywhere with trees, including savannahs and dry forests.  The females will lay a clutch of up to five eggs, but it is typical for only one of the chicks to survive into adulthood.  Those who do survive will prey on mice and small rodents, possum and skunk, as well as insects, spiders, caterpillars, and bats and birds, among other critters. 

I've done several owls for the Owl Corner, and now I'm considering branching out to other animals, namely different breeds of cats and dogs.  What do you think?

The Twelve Days of Christmas Recipes, Day 11: Simple Apple Crisp

I love apple crisp when the weather cools in the fall.  It makes a great comfort dessert all winter long, too, and I love to eat a warm bowl of crisp on a cold snowy day.  The smell of the apples and cinnamon make the house smell wonderful and homey.  With such an easy recipe, and all of the ingredients most likely already in your pantry, how can you not treat yourself?  Soooo good!

Day 11: Simple Apple Crisp

Ingredients:
1 1/2 C flour
1 1/2 C oatmeal
1 1/2 C sugar
2 TBSP cinnamon (or to taste)
1 tsp baking soda
1 C butter or margarine
2 cans of favorite apple pie filling

Directions:
Grease or butter sides and bottom of 9x13 pan.  Preheat oven to 350*.  In one bowl, empty cans of pie filling.  Add cinnamon and sugar to taste if desired, mix well and set aside.  In separate large bowl, melt butter.  Add flour, oatmeal, sugar, cinnamon, and baking soda, and mix until crumbly.  Pour apple filling into greased pan, and spoon crumbly mixture over top until apples are covered.  Bake at 350* for 40 mins. or until golden brown and center is bubbly.  Keep refrigerated.

Just one more day of The Twelve Days of Christmas Recipes!  Where has December gone?  

Luke 2:17-18: When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Recipes, Day 10: Snickerdoodles

These are a great cookie all year 'round, not just at Christmas.  They are one of my husband's favorite cookies, and around Christmastime, I color granulated sugar with red and green food coloring for a festive embellishment.  This recipe can also be found at Food.com.

Day 10: Snickerdoodles

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 3/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F.  Mix butter, 1 1/2 cups sugar and eggs thoroughly in a large bowl.  Combine flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, tablespoon of cinnamon and salt in a separate bowl.  Blend dry ingredients into butter mixture.  Chill dough, and chill an ungreased cookie sheet for about 10-15 minutes in the fridge.  Meanwhile, mix 3 tablespoons sugar, and 3 teaspoons cinnamon in a small bowl (if you want colored sugar, add a few drops of green or red food coloring to the sugar mixture and mix until the color is evenly distributed).  Scoop 1 inch balls of dough into the sugar/ cinnamon mixture (use a cookie scoop, if you have one).  Coat by gently rolling balls of dough in the sugar mixture.  Place on chilled ungreased cookie sheet lined with parchment, and bake 10 minutes.  Cool on cookie sheet for two minutes, then remove.

Luke 2:16: So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.
 

The Twelve Days of Christmas Recipes, Day 9: Spicy Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork

Howdy!  We're truckin' right along through the Twelve Days of Christmas Recipes.  Hard to believe how close Christmas is!  Won't be long before we're all counting the days until warmer weather and spring showers.  Until then, here is a recipe found on The Pioneer Woman website.  It's so simple--just throw a few ingredients together and stick it in the stove for about six hours.  Think of what you can get done in those six hours while it's cooking...gift wrapping...cleaning...more cooking...hiding from the guests with a glass of wine and your IPod...This is a great recipe for pulled pork, and really, if you need a break from Christmas turkey, this would be a great substitute to serve to your holiday guests!

Day 9: Spicy Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork

Ingredients:

1 whole large onion
1 whole pork shoulder (aka pork butt), 5-7 lbs, bone in
Salt and pepper
1 can, 11oz, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (I don't like really spicy stuff, so I use a 7 oz. can)
2 cans Dr. Pepper
2 tbsp. brown sugar

Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.  Peel the onion and cut it into wedges, and spread the wedges across the bottom of a large roasting pan or dutch oven.  Salt and pepper the pork, rubbing the seasoning into the meat with your hands.  Pour the entire can of peppers (sauce and all) over the top of the meat and into the pan.  Pour in the Dr. Peppers and stir in the brown sugar.  Place the lid on top of the pot and place in the oven.  Cook for at least six hours, turning the meat over a few times during cooking.  After six hours, remove meat from oven and test with a fork--if the meat pulls apart easily with the fork, then it's done.  If it doesn't, place the meat back in the oven and cook for another hour.  Once the meat is cooked and falling off of the bone, remove the meat from the pan and begin to pull apart with forks.  Discard juice, onions and fat pieces.  This makes a ton of pulled pork, and it tastes incredible!!

To see the original post of this recipe, click here.

Luke 2:15: When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

Twelve Days of Christmas Recipes, Day 8: Chocolate Fudge

A common treat for us around Christmastime is chocolate fudge.  This is the Carnation fudge recipe, with a link at the end with more detailed instructions, which I found online (thank you YouTube and Alton Brown of Good Eats, whose explanation of fudgemaking changed my life).  This is a little different than regular fudge, but is still sooo tasty and very easy--with all of your ingredients measured out and ready to go, this will only take about 15 minutes to make!

Day 8: Carnation Chocolate Fudge

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C white sugar
2 TBSP Butter
2/3 C evaporated milk
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 C semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 C mini marshmallows
Walnuts or pecans (optional)

Bring first 4 ingredients to a simmer over medium heat.  Simmer for 5 minutes (set a timer) and stir occasionally.  Turn off heat and remove from burner after 5 minutes.  Stir vanilla into hot mixture and combine.  Add marshmallows and chocolate chips, and stir until smooth.  Pour into an 8x8 or 9x9 pan lined with foil.  Tap against counter to settle and pop air bubbles.  Allow to sit on counter until chocolate stops steaming, then place plastic wrap over the top and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.  When ready to cut, use foil to lift chocolate out of pan and flip onto a cutting board.  Cut with a long sharp knife, and wipe blade with a wet towel between each cut.



To see the original post with step-by-step instructions and photos, click this link: Monday, August 20, 2012

Luke 2:13-14: Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

The Twelve Days of Christmas Recipes-Day 1, Chocolate Covered Almonds

I decided to try something fun for between now and Christmas.  Introducing...the Twelve Days of Christmas Recipes!  Each day I'll post a recipe for something that I traditionally make around Christmastime.  It could be cookies, candies, or meals.  Or, it could be none of the above!  At the end of each post, I'll include a passage from Luke leading up to the birth of Christ.  Merry Christmas!

Day 1: Chocolate Covered Almonds
First, you'll need some basic ingredients:
1 16 oz. package of roasted, unsalted almonds
1 1/4 C semi-sweet chocolate chips (I prefer Hershey's)
2 Tbsp shortening
1 1/2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (I prefer Hershey's)

First, melt your chocolate and shortening over low heat on the stove, stirring frequently to prevent burning.  Once melted, set aside to cool slightly.

Place two or three cooling racks on the counter and cover them with parchment paper. 

Pour your almonds in a medium-sized bowl.  Pour the cooled chocolate over the nuts, and stir until all of the nuts are coated.

Spread the nuts in a single layer across the parchment paper, and allow to set overnight.  You can place them in the fridge if you have room to help the process.

Lick the chocolate out of the bowl.  You've earned it.

The next day, break up the nuts into individual pieces or very small clusters.  Place them in a resealable bag.  Add to the bag 2 tbsp cocoa powder.

Shake the bag until all of the pieces are coated with powder.

Pour into a sealed container.  You have a delicious and somewhat healthy treat! 

Luke 2: 1-3: In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)  And everyone went to their own town to register.