Creme Caramel French Toast

Yield – 4-6 servings

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 loaf multi grain bread, sliced (slightly stale bread is great for this recipe)
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cups milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (or use homemade vanilla extract!)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

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Directions

• In a small heavy saucepan melt butter and brown sugar over medium heat, stirring, until smooth and bubbly.

• Pour into a 8′ by 8″ baking dish.
• Cut bread into slices  into smaller pieces and arrange upright (crust side down) over the brown sugar mixture.
• Fill the entire bottom of the dish with tightly packed bread.
• Whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla and salt.

• Pour over mixture.
• Push the bread into the mixture with the back of a spoon.

• Cover and refrigerate overnight or for up to 24 hours.
• In the morning, remove the chilled dish from the refrigerator, remove cover, push the bread sown into the mixture again and set on counter for a half hour to an hour.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the bread is golden on top and a knife inserted into the casserole comes out clean.

• Serve immediately.
• To serve lift pieces out and flip onto plates. This will give a wonderful sauce that works beautifully instead of maple syrup.

Frugal Tip: Somewhat stale bread can be reused in many ways: this recipe, bread pudding (see Magda’s Cherry Bread Pudding), bread crumbs (whir through the food processor and freeze or freeze whole pieces, then whir through the food processor when you have accumulated enough bread make it worth it), croutons (cut the bread into cubes, saute and use in stuffing/dressing, toppers for soup (such as French onion soup), bread salads (such as Fattoush or panzanella), bread dumplings and more!