STUFFED French Toast

So I've said before that one of Peter's FAVORITE breakfasts is french toast made from a fresh loaf of homemade challah bread. Well, we both had a mid-week day off, so I decided to go big for breakfast on our day off together. I took his favorite french toast and kicked it up a notch... stuffed french toast! Of course I was inspired by all the fresh strawberries in the markets right now :) 

I basically followed my regular french toast recipe, except I added some orange zest as well as I bumped up the eggs and milk a bit since I am using just a few more slices of bread this time.

Recipe: 

• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
• 2 Tablespoons honey
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Zest of one Orange, plus a few squeezes of juice from   that zested orange
• Bread (I used 6, half-inch thick slices of sweet homemade challah bread)

Filling: 

• 10-15 Strawberries
• 1 Tbsp. Sugar
• 4 oz. light Cream Cheese or 'Neufchatel' Cheese

The night before, I washed, chopped, and tossed my strawberries with 1 tablespoon of sugar. I covered it with plastic wrap and let that juice overnight in the fridge. In the morning, I very lightly pureed the strawberries with a hand blender (I didn't want it totally pureed because I wanted to get some actual strawberry pieces in our bites of french toast :)

Then, I whipped the light cream cheese for a little bit...

...and added the strawberry puree into the mix (reserve some of the strawberry puree for serving later):

Then, just like in my other french toast recipe, I soaked the bread in the egg mixture, but only for a few seconds on each side because these slices are much thinner and will 'sog' faster and thus fall apart more easily:

As I soak each piece, I lay it on a cookie cooling rack that has been set up over a jelly roll pan to catch any drippings. 

I spread some of the strawberries-n-cream filling on one slice, then top it with another slice.

While the bread is still somewhat soggy, I lightly squeezed around the edges to help seal the filling inside the seams:

I grilled the french toast on my big electric griddle until it had a beautiful golden crisp on the outside of each side:

When all the stuffed-toasts had been grilled 'till golden, I slid them back onto the cooling rack and into a preheated 350 degree F oven for about 5-10 minutes (I didn't really keep track of the time, I just put them in 'till they puffed up and until we were ready to eat). 

This serves multiple purposes: 1) it cooks all that soaked bread all the way into the center, and 2) it keeps them hot until you are ready to eat.

I sliced each piece diagonally so that you could see all the sweet, creamy, pink filling inside the french toast!

Served with some fresh fruit, whipped cream, syrup and some of the strawberry puree.... this is to die for!!!!!

Of course Peter had the double-decker serving! hehe

Island Rice

We served our Island BBQ Kabobs over a bed of this sweet and scrumptious 'Island Rice'...and yes, just because there's pineapple in it I am calling it 'Island', hehe. I had been dying for the chance to make a marinade and heat up the bbq, so I jumped on the opportunity when it arose last weekend. However, my afterthought was, "oh wait, I can't just serve meat alone! What should I make to go with it?" This rice was the last minute 'mad scientist' creation that ensued. Sometimes those end up being the best recipes, and we think this one definitely earned that ranking :) The pineapple and cilantro gave the rice a light and fresh flavor that was perfect for a summer BBQ and complimented the flavors in the kabobs as well. 


Recipe: 

• 2 cups Rice
• 2 cans Pineapple, crushed or chunks (reserve juice)
• about 4 cups reserved Pineapple Juice (from above pineapple in rice, and from kabob pineapple cans if serving with kabobs) 
• 1/2 bunch Cilantro, chopped (plus extra for garnish)

Cook rice according to instructions on its packaging, but substitute pineapple juice in place of the water. If you don't have enough pineapple juice, then use water to make up the difference. 

When the rice is done cooking, fluff with a fork and stir in the pineapple and the chopped cilantro. 

Serve on a platter and top with Island BBQ Kabobs. Garnish with extra cilantro from rice, and lime wedges from kabob marinade. 

Island BBQ Kabobs

Last weekend we had more BEAUTIFUL beach weather. Peter and I went for our Saturday morning walk, then we took a cruise down the coast to get Peter a new pair of sandals at the Rainbow Sandals factory in San Clemente. On our drive back home, we called a bunch of friends to meet us at the beach and join us for a BBQ afterwards. So far, it had been a perfect 'summer' day... and it was only going to get better. I had been dying to try a new marinade, so on the way home we picked up a couple pounds of meat from the deli, whipped up a quick marinade, and let the meat marinate while we were at the beach. When we came home it was only 20 minutes to cook the rice and grill the kabobs and we were eating dinner in no time!

Island Kabobs: 

• approximately 2 lbs Beef, cut into 1 inch cubes
• Island Marinade (see below)
• 1 Red Onion, cut into large chunks then separate layers
• 1 can pineapple rings, cut into quarters (reserve juice for marinade and side rice)
• 8 long, metal skewers

Island Marinade: 

• Zest of 1 Lime
• 2 Tablespoons Lime Juice
• 1/2 cup Pineapple juice
• 1/2 cup Soy Sauce
• 1/4 cup Honey
• 1/4 cup minced Garlic
• 1 Tablespoon Cayenne Pepper
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard
• 2 Tablespoons Corn Starch

Combine all marinade ingredients, except corn starch, in a bowl big enough that will later fit all the meat as well. Then reserve 1/2 cup of the marinade out of the bowl to use for basting the kabobs while on the bbq. 

Whisk 2 Tablespoons of corn starch into this 1/2 reserve marinade- this will thicken into somewhat of a glaze as we paint it onto the meat over the bbq. 

Stir all your meat into the marinade, cover with plastic wrap, and let marinate for 1 hour or more... while you're enjoying the beach :) 

**The longer the meat marinates, the better it is because the acidic juices will tenderize the meat more with time. 

Assemble kabobs by skewering the ingredients, alternating between the onion slices, meat, and pineapple quarters. Discard the marinade that remains in the bowl. Heat bbq to medium high. (while grill is heating, start the Island Rice side dish. This way, the rice and kabobs will be done at the same time!) When the BBQ is hot, place the kabobs right onto the grill.

If you haven't done so yet, whisk 2 tablespoons of corn starch into the 1/2 cup reserved marinade. After the kabobs have grilled on one side for about 7 minutes or so, flip them and brush them with the marinade glaze. 

Proceed to cook the kabobs on the second side for another 7 minutes, basting continually with the marinade glaze. Serve these delicious island kabobs over a bed of island-style rice!

It was so fun to set the table outside, bring out some music, and enjoy this pseudo-summer weather while dining outdoors with our friends!