Good morning! Maria’s Menu Picks is a new, featured “column” on Lake Wales Daily, bringing you recipes, meal, ideas, and more. sometimes coming up with new meal ideas is a challenge. Whether it’s breakfast, lunch, appetizers, dinner, or desserts, we hope to inspire you here to bring quality meal ideas back to the table.
And there’s more! I encourage you to submit your favorite recipes so that our community may share in the deliciousness you find at your own table. Recipes should include a full list of ingredients with quantities, a list of directions, and a photo for consideration. Email your submissions to [email protected]. I look forward to seeing what you’re cooking up in your own kitchen!
Family Breakfast Bake
The Fancy Breakfast Bake is a high-class casserole for all you early birds! It transforms one of French cuisine’s most elegant sandwiches, the croque monsieur, into a sliceable sunny sensation! Each sandwich is loaded with succulent ham and smoky Gruyère cheese, and then dipped into a savory egg custard to mimic the classic handheld. Then it’s all baked until golden, with juicy tomatoes on top for a burst of freshness!
Ingredients
8 slices deli ham
4 slices Gruyère cheese
8 slices white bread
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard
salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
mozzarella cheese, optional, to taste, shredded
5 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved, for topping
fresh parsley leaves, optional, to taste, for topping
Directions
Step 1 -Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Step 2 -Evenly layer the ham slices and the Gruyère slices on 4 slices of the bread. Using the remaining 4 slices of the bread, close the ham sandwiches.
Step 3 -Cut each of the ham sandwiches in half diagonally.
Step 4 -In a large bowl, add the eggs, the milk, the Dijon mustard, the salt, and the black pepper and whisk to combine.
Step 5 -Add the chopped onions and the garlic to the egg mixture and whisk to combine.
Step 6 -Dip each of the sandwich halves into the egg mixture, ensuring to coat all sides completely.
Step 7 -In an 8-inch square baking dish, arrange the sandwich halves in two rows, with the flat, cut-side down and the corners facing up. The rows will overlap slightly.
Step 8 -Pour the remaining egg mixture over the sandwich halves.
Step 9 -Sprinkle the mozzarella over top of the sandwich halves.
Step 10 -Let the baking dish stand for 10 minutes.
Step 11 -Bake until the top is golden and crisp, about 40-50 minutes.
Step 12 -Sprinkle the bake with the tomato halves and the parsley and serve.
