Eggnog French Toast

A couple of weeks ago, the boys and I went out to bunch with some friends and we ordered Eggnog French toast.  It was delicious, and I decided I needed to try to replicate it at home.  I found this recipe online at allrecipes.com and it seemed pretty close.  I only modified it slightly.  It would make a perfect Christmas Morning breakfast!  My boys gobbled it up.

Eggnog French Toast
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups Eggnog
2 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice (I used this brand, but you can use whatever your favorite is)
Firm white bread (such as Challah or French)*

*I used a particularly yummy loaf of bread from Tabora Farm.  It was a large, rounded loaf and I used 1 1/2 batches of the batter mixture to make the entire loaf.  One batch of batter will probably need at least half a loaf of bread, depending on the size of the bread and how much batter it soaks up.  You can also substitute whole grain bread, it will just be a little denser.  Since the eggnog has about a zillion calories anyway, I figured this would just be a splurge!

1.  In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, eggnog, and pumpkin pie spice.  Pour batter into a shallow dish and thoroughly coat each slice of bread.

2.  Cook french toast on a lightly greased electric skillet (set to 300 degrees) or in a skillet on the stove over medium heat, until golden brown, flipping once.

Enjoy!

Easy Apple Cake

I am so behind this year with Christmas shopping and baking!  I am usually someone who shops and wraps everything way in advance.  This year....  another story.  I am still not done.  But I am really enjoying my boys' reactions to the Christmas lights and decorations and our Christmas tree.  They've only broken one ornmament so far, so I think we're doing pretty well! 
I made that yummy Apple Cake again last night (the one I mentioned in my last post) and was able to get some pictures of it.  I realized after looking at the pictures, that apple cake just does not photograph very well.  Trust me, it tastes better than it looks!

Easy Apple Cake
1 cup Grape Seed Oil*
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 cup walnuts, chopped (or pecans or other nuts of your choice)
3 cups fresh apples, chopped
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

*I've been really into grape seed oil lately for baking.  I think it helps keeps baked goods moist.  But you can substitute 1-1/2 cups canola or vegetable oil (the math is correct--  you need less oil if you are using grape seed oil).

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
2.  Mix oil and sugar thoroughly with electric mixer.  One at a time, add eggs and mix well.
3.  Add nuts and apples.
4.  In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.  Then add the flour mixture to the oil mixture, and fold in vanilla.
5.  Pour into greased tube or bundt pan and bake 1-3/4 hours or until toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Another cookbook update....  I DO still have some left.  The craft show did not seem to be terribly busy this year, and we did not sell out.  I am willing to ship out what is left.  They are $10 each, including tax.  Shipping is $2.90 via First Class Mail, for one book.  If you are not in a rush, Media Mail is $2.41.  Please email me at: savorysecrets@yahoo.com and I will let you know the specifics for how to pay by paypal or check.  It is first come/first serve.  I think I have less than 50 left and I am not planning on doing another printing.

I am hoping to get a blog post up in the next week about an amazing (if I do say so myself!) apple cake recipe I developed this fall.  We went apple picking twice and ended up with something like 46 pounds of apples!  I played around with some apple cake recipes and ended up with one I am really happy with.  It's also really easy!