Citrus Baked French Toast

        I must let you guys know the most important fact about this before I go any further: it is the most ridiculously simple, sweet breakfast, which yields irresistible results. You can throw it together in minutes the night before, get up on a lazy morning and put it in the oven for 30 minutes. Sip on your coffee and relax, then voila yourself and others will beam with happiness. 
      French toast already has a simplicity appeal.  However, this kicks it up a notch to essentially all hands off in the morning with still getting to eat an epic breakfast. Isn't that just so awesome? 

     It was particularly perfect for my purposes of a brunch potluck on Sunday. The night before, my roommate and I went out to a concert that we had been long awaiting. Around 8 o'clock, I took the whole 10 minutes this requires to put it together, placed it lovingly in my fridge, and prepared to dance the night away. 

        After a luxurious sleep-in sesh the next morning, I woke up, took it out of the fridge, preheated the oven, and popped it in. I walked away and got ready for company-you might be able to hear my sigh of relaxation right now. Thirty minutes later, I was meet with puffy topped, golden brown, custardy, warm, blissful French toast and the guests began to arrive. My friend was kind enough to bring a whiskey and cayenne maple syrup that make the custardy texture and bright citrus flavors simply sing with happiness in my mouth. 

      For brunch party folks or those simply wanting a mouth-watering, smell-wafting dish in their house on a lazy Sunday morning, I cannot emphasize enough how much this is for you. A lot of baked French toasts call for much more of everything: more eggs, both milk and cream, more this, more that. I can fully attest it is not necessary for the texture you seek. You only need the basic things you probably already have on hand to create a whimsical weekend morning of French toast, coffee, and appreciation of the finer things in life. 

Ingredients:
1 loaf challah (nothing fancy needed)
3 c whole of 2% milk 
3 eggs
3 TBSP butter
3 TBSP brown sugar
1/2 TSP salt
1/4 TSP cinnamon
Dash of nutmeg
Zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon

Instructions: 
1. The day before, slice the challah in 3/4-1" slices. Lay it out and let it sit on your counter for the day, flipping over when you happen to be in the kitchen (no worries if you're not around though).
2. At night, arrange the slices in a 9x13 baking dish in two layers. Sprinkle half the zest on the first layer, lay down the second, and sprinkle the rest on top. 
3. In a bowl, melt the butter, let it cool for a few minutes. Next, whisk in the milk, eggs, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. 
4. Pour the mixture over the bread, cover, and place in the fridge over night. 
5. The next morning, take the French toast out, uncover and let it sit out while the oven preheats to 350F. Bake for 30 minutes until the top is lightly golden and puffed up. Remove, cool for 5 minutes and serve with butter and maple syrup.  

For the Whiskey Maple Syrup:

Melt 4 TBSP of butter in a sauce pan over low heat. Next add in 2 C pure maple syrup, 1/4 TSP cayenne, a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg, 1/4 C+ 1 TBSP whiskey, and stir until the ingredients have mixed together evenly. Remove from heat, allow the syrup to cool, and transfer into a glass serving bottle. 

This could be you. 

Love,

Boulder Butter 

Buttermilk Chess Pie

       When I was a kid, My Grandfather used to come down to Atlanta to spend Thanksgiving with us. During one of his visits, my dad, sister, grandfather and I were driving in the car, and we got into a discussion of everyone's favorite types of pie. (For the record, mine was apple with crumble topping at the time.) Dad and Hattie listed theirs and finally Grandfather named "Chess Pie." Much to Grandfather's disappointment, none of us had even heard of Chess Pie. We inquired as to what it was and Grandfather explained "It is like pecan pie, without the pecans." To this, my Dad responded, "So you mean it is just the goop?" At this moment, my Grandfather become endearingly indignant, and in a deep tone spoke the voice of a wise pie sage, "It is so much more than just goop, Scottie." The three of us of course burst out in laughter.

       Although it was the pie my Grandfather named as such an ultimately tasty treat many years ago, I only just now bought my large jug of buttermilk and went home ready to experience this pie. From when I finally looked up what was in it-cornmeal, eggs, lots of delicious buttermilk, and some bright citrus- I knew Grandfather had been right to take such a tone with us. It is so much more that just goop.

       It is a lusciously gentle lemon custard, just slightly and pleasantly textured by a small amount of cornmeal. The filling is reminiscent of a southern grain style pudding which is then baked inside a perfectly, flakey, buttery crust. The buttermilk gives the classic smooth, buttery, goodness so characteristic of its presence in baking. However, the biggest and most welcomed surprise was the top of the custard. Instead of being soft and pudding like, the sugar and cornmeal form an extremely thin sugar top crust. Therefore, when you first tap your fork down over the top to sink in, there is the smallest and most satisfying crunch. This is the Southern pie the majority of America still needs to find out about, because it is just gosh darn delicious. Thank you Grandfather for being the sage of pie eating, even when your younger generations were clueless!

Very slightly adapted from The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook by Cheryl and Griffith Day

Ingredients:
1 9-10" unbaked pie crust (I used Back in the Day's but pick your favorite)
4 TBSP (1/2 Stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 C sugar
4 eggs
1 TBSP all purpose flour
2 TBSP yellow cornmeal
1 pinch of fine sea salt
3/4 C buttermilk (low-fat)
1 TBSP lemon juice
Zest of 1/2 of an orange and 1/2 a lemon

Oven Temp: Start 350 (first 10 minutes), down to 325 (last 45-55 minutes)

Instructions:

1. Roll out your pie dough to a 12" round and place it into a greased 9" baking dish. Cut off the excess piecrust and poke the crust with a fork. Allow the piecrust a final rest of an hour in the fridge.
2. When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven.

3. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the sugar and butter with a hand mixer (or paddle attachment in your stand mixer) until it is light and fluffy.

4. Add in the eggs in, one at a time, until they are fully incorporated.

5. Add the flour, cornmeal, and salt and beat on low until just incorporated.

6. Add the lemon juice, buttermilk, and zest and mix to combine.

7. Remove the crust from the fridge, pour in the mixture and bake at 350 F for the first 10 minutes. Then turn the oven down to 325 and continue to cook for 45-50 minutes, until the filling is set.

8. Remove the pie from the oven and allow it to cook for at least 2 hours at room temperature before cutting.

Savory Bread Pudding

     My friends and I are lucky enough to get to spend some weekends together in a wonderful little town in Colorado called La Veta. Weekends in La Veta are about as happy and peaceful as you can get: not a plan in sight, except certainly a game called Z Ball, art projects, time in nature, and most definitely delicious food. As a group, we divide and conquer meals and everyone always brings tantalizing meals. It is a time of feasting, grazing, and best of all, sharing.

      Eating is wonderful, as is getting to cook, but there is a massive amount of joy that comes along with getting to feed other people. It is a small way to give them a part of yourself, your love, and your appreciation. There has been a rise in the trend of people eating on the fly, or while distracted by books and technology. However, I believe that this same rise has sparked a feeling of increased community when we do make the time to come together.

        Getting to feed a crowd is a wonderful treat because you get to share your heart with many in a moment of gratitude for each other, a warm belly, and the gifts of the earth. This recipe is a way that anyone can get to enjoy that amazing feeling. It is warm, comforting, filling, and homey. However, it is also very easy to make and a great way to feed a crowd without spending tons of money. You can serve it warm out of the oven at breakfast, alongside some fruit and a hot cup of coffee. Then the leftovers make a perfect lunch of dinner alongside a simple salad of greens.

        Bread Pudding is most often associated with sweetness, but I am telling you, a savory bread pudding will bring out a whole new meaning to this in your mind. It is cheesy and custardy bread, with thick pieces that still have some bite to them on top. There is brightness from the vegetables that add a depth of flavor as well as a balance to the heartiness of the dish. The spices add a nice pick me up, which compliment beautifully with the cheese. Sinking you teeth in feels like soulfulness and it continues on that way all the way down to your belly. I am telling you, sweet bread pudding is fine and good, but its time to give it a twist and see just what a different potential eggs, milk and bread hold together. A perfectly, messy scoop of this in a bowl is a non-pretenscious breakfast path to a person's heart. 

*Makes 1 full 3 quart (9x13) dish
Ingredients:  
3-4 baguettes
2-4 TBSP olive oil
1 small to medium yellow squash, cut into small quartered pieces
1 small to medium zucchini or mexican squash, cut and quartered
1 jalapeno, deseeded and diced
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 C grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 TSP salt + extra for sautéing veggies
1/4 TSP pepper + extra for sautéing
1/4 TSP chili powder + extra for sautéing
2 3/4 C whole milk
8 eggs
1 C shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions:

1. Dice the baguettes into rounds and then quarter them, so they are in medium-sized chunks. Lay them out for 8-24 hour to allow them to stale. You can speed up this process by putting them in the oven at 350 for 20 minutes, and then continuing to let them stale for a few hours, making sure they cool completely.

2. Preheat your pan, add the oil, then the onions, and lightly salt and pepper them. Sauté until they become translucent lightly. Next add the jalapeno, garlic, and squashes, and continue to sauté them. Finally turn off the heat and add the cherry tomatoes, mixing them so they just barely cook in the residual heat. Salt and pepper to taste.

3. Once the veggies have completely cooled, add them and the cubed bread to a greased baking dish, mixing together to distribute evenly.

4. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs; then add the milk, salt, and pepper, and whisk until combined. Finally, add the cheese and give a final whisk to mix it in.

5. Pour the mixture over the bread, cover with tinfoil, and refrigerate the pudding for 8-24 hours.
6. Remove the pudding from the refrigerator and allow it to warm up for 30 minutes; meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350.
7. Bake the pudding for 34-45 minutes, until it has fully set and the top has lightly browned.
8. Remove from oven and allow cooling for 10 minutes before digging in...and then going back for seconds.