Breakfast Strata

This is the recipe my friend Dwayne Heisler makes every year for the Bloomsburg Early Music Workshop, a cool 3-day event he hosts at his house.  Dwayne ships in three top-notch early music instructors and invites about 30 singers and instrumentalists, many of whom stay at his house or with other members of the Bloomsburg Early Music Ensemble. And then we practice and play in his garage!  It's the weirdest garage band you'll ever see.




Sliced White Bread (or any kind you wish that you can cut into a circle)
Cooper Sharp Cheese Shredded (enough to generously layer the pan)


Chopped Green Onion
Cooked Ham in small cubes (optional)
Broccoli or Asparagus


One egg for each “circle” of bread (you can have more but no less)
Milk


Salt, Pepper and other seasonings like Crushed Rosemary, Fresh Cilantro or Dill

Directions

Cut the circles out of the bread (or any shape using cookie cutter or glass) and line them in the pan to make sure you have enough. They should be close to or just touching. Remove the circles from the pan and spray the bottom and sides well. Take scraps of bread and the ends if needed for the crust. Break these into small pieces and create your first layer.


Spread your shredded Cooper Sharp Cheese layer over the bread


Slightly steam your broccoli OR asparagus and cool in an ice bath for color. Chop and mix together your green onion, broccoli OR asparagus, cooked ham cubes. Spread this mixture over the cheese.


Place your cut out bread circles on top.


Using one egg per circle – beat with milk – like making scrambled eggs with a little more milk. Add salt, pepper and other seasonings to the egg mixture. Spoon this mixture over the bread circles to wet them then pour in the rest of the mixture evenly. Grind some fresh pepper over each of the circles.


Cover with plastic wrap and allow to set in the refrigerator over night or at least 4 hours.


Remove plastic wrap and bake at 350 for between 1 to 1 ½ hours until brown on top and eggs are set (test with a knife in the center to come out clean).

Cheese blintzes

This recipe is from Mark Russ Federman's book, Russ and Daughters, the story of a famous appetizing store in New York.  Appetizing stores are like delis for fish - especially smoked fish.  The idea is that they sell all the foods, under the laws regarding kosher cooking, can't be eaten with dairy.

I learned about this the hard way.  My immediate family does not keep kosher.  I knew a few basics -  that pork was verbotten for kosher folks, for example, and so was shellfish.  But it wasn't until we were visiting my much more religious relatives in Scotland that I learned that you can't eat dairy with meat. We were at a restaurant, and I started to order a roastbeef sandwich with cheese when my mother kicked me under the table, then ordered a cheeseless roast beef sandwich for me.  I got whacked again when I tried to pour milk in my tea after the meal.  She explained afterward.

Apparently it has something to do with a line in the Torah forbidding Jews from cooking a kid in its mother's milk.  Why this translates to not eating beef with milk from an unrelated cow on the side is a question that's beyond me.

A couple hints about this recipe: I found it was easier to make the crepes than I imagined, and also a lot of fun.  The batter recipe also made a LOT more crepes than it claimed.  Be prepared - you will likely run out of filling. Theoretically, this makes 12 to 14 blintzes, enough for six people. I made a half batch and got 20. But then again, I played around to see how thin I could make the crepes.

Can't find farmer's cheese?  No problem.  Take small-curd cottage cheese, stick it in cheese cloth, and let it hang over a bowl for 7 hours so most of the whey is strained out.  I'm told coffee filters work in place of cheese cloth, too.  The whey tastes kind of like buttermilk and is a nice snack.

You can put any fruit sauce over this, but I actually like it best with fresh fruit instead. The peaches from Drum's Produce on River Hill are especially nice with these.

Ingredients:

Crepes:
2 cups whole milk
4 large eggs
1 1/3 cups flour

Filling:
1 /12 pound farmer's cheese (don't panic! See note above on how to make a reasonable facsimile when you fail to find it at the store.)
1/2 cup plus 2 TBs sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Cooking:
Unsalted butter.

1. Combine crepe ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. Pour batter into a bow and let it rest 30 minutes.

2. While the batter rests, make the filling by combining all its ingredients in the food processor and running it until the mixture is smooth. Incidentally, I think this would also make a dynamite cannoli filling.

3. Melt a little butter in a heavy 8-inch non-stick skillet - or heat the skillet on medium and rub the butter over it.  Don't compromise on this one - the skillet MUST be non-stick.  A few crepes cooked on a non-stick pan won't kill you.

4. Ladle in just enough batter to coat the bottom of the skillet - tip the skilled to coat it evenly.  Let it cook until it's set - it'll only take a minute or two. Then use a plastic spatula (so you don't scratch your pan) to loosen the crepe. Flip it over to cook for a couple seconds on the other side - until it's nice and gold. Then remove to a paper-towel-lined plate.  Repeat until you run out of batter.

5. Spoon about 4 TBs of filling down the center of each crepe. Fold over the ends, then roll it up like a burrito.  Serve immediately or rewarm in a 250-degree oven. Note - Sam Dion feels strongly the crepes should have even more filling, so much that they come out round. 

Whole-grain Gingerbread

(Photo: Clare Barboza)

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Gingerbread — it's not just for dessert. Especially if you ask breakfast-lover Megan Gordon, whose recipe from Whole-Grain Mornings relies on three forms of ginger (ground, crystallized and fresh) to give it a rich spiciness."This bread gets even better with time — and, to me, tastes best on the third day," she says. "It gives those dark molasses flavors time to settle in."

Whole-Grain Gingerbread

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup spelt flour (or all-purpose flour)

1/2 cup packed muscovado sugar or brown sugar

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger (optional)

1 Tb. grated fresh ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

2 Tbs. grated orange zest

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper (optional)

8 Tbs. unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan

1/2 cup unsulfured molasses (Gordon uses blackstrap)

3 Tbs. honey

1/2 cup whole milk

1/4 cup plain whole-milk yogurt, homemade (see recipe below) or store-bought

1 large egg, beaten

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9-inch square pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, baking soda, salt, the three kinds of ginger, cloves, cinnamon, orange zest, and pepper. Use your hands to break up any clumps of sugar, and whisk well.

In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Add the molasses and honey and cook, stirring, until the mixture is warm but not boiling. Pour into the flour mixture and stir to combine. Add the milk, yogurt, and egg and fold together until combined. With a little arm power, the mixture will soon look like a loose brownie batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the edges pull away from the pan slightly and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Let the gingerbread cool completely in the pan before slicing and serving. Any leftovers can be covered and stored at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Yield: 9 servings

Per serving (3-inch square piece): 333 calories, 54g carbohydrates, 6g protein, 12g fat (7g saturated), 3g fiber, 50mg cholesterol, 172mg sodium

From USA Weekend

From About.com Kosher food

Challah Strata with Mushrooms, Peppers, and Asparagus

By Miri Rotkovitz

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Challah Strata with Mushrooms, Peppers

© Miri Rotkovitz

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• leftover challah recipes
• strata
• kosher brunch recipes
• egg dishes
• shavuot recipes

A great way to use up leftover challah, this Challah Strata with Mushrooms, Peppers, and Asparagus makes a delicious brunch dish or late-night dinner.  If you're serving a crowd, you can double the recipe and bake it in a 13" x 9" baking dish. 

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 55 minutes

Standing time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Yield: Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

• 1 pound challah, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 8 to 9 cups)
• 1 tablespoon butter, plus extra for greasing the baking dish
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 3 large cloves garlic, smashed, peeled, and finely chopped
• 1 10-ounce package crimini mushrooms, cleaned, stemmed, halved, and cut into wedges
• 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 12 asparagus spears, trimmed and chopped into 1/4" pieces
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella
• 5 ounces herbed goat cheese

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Generously butter an 8" x 8" baking dish, or a 2-quart ceramic gratin dish. Place the challah cubes in a large bowl and set aside.
2. In a chef's pan or large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high  heat. When the butter has melted and begins to foam, add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds.
Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms release their juices and soften. Add the red pepper and asparagus and cook 5 minutes more, stirring frequently, until most of the liquid in the pan has cooked off. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Remove from the heat and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Pour the egg mixture over the challah cubes. Gently fold the challah into the custard so that all of the cubes are saturated. Let stand for 15 minutes so the challah can absorb the egg mixture.
4. Spoon half of the challah into the prepared baking dish, and smooth with a spatula to cover the bottom of the dish. Top with the vegetables, spreading them to evenly cover the challah. Sprinkle with half of the shredded mozzarella. Crumble half of the goat cheese over the dish.
Top with the rest of the challah cubes, spreading them to the edges of the dish. Top evenly with the remaining mozzarella and goat cheese. Drizzle with olive oil.
5. Bake the strata in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until it is puffed and golden, and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Enjoy!