For some reason I feel the need to apologize for this recipe. I feel like it should be illegal. It is one of those things that I will not make again until next Easter because it is too good. We try to eat healthy for breakfast every day of the year. But, there are two days (Easter and Christmas) that I give us permission to eat whatever we want: sausage, bacon, mom's coffee cake. It would be great for a birthday breakfast or brunch for a special occasion. When I pull this out of the oven I think, "syrup too?!" but I gotta admit, the maple made it that much better, even though it is already dripping in all the buttery, sugary, carmel-y goodness. Overnight Praline French Toast
1 large or 2 small loaves cinnamon bread or french bread (I use about 1 1/2 loaves of Kneader's cinnamon chunk bread - heavenly!)
8 eggs
2 cups half and half
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 TBS sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
dash salt
praline topping (recipe follows)
In a greased 9x13 pan, arrange bread slices in rows, overlap and stack them a bit. In a large bowl, mix eggs, half and half, milk, vanilla, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Pour mixture over bread slices. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
Praline Topping:
1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 TBS light corn syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup chopped pecans
Maple Syrup
Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add remaining ingredients and stir constantly until mixture bubbles and is smooth. Spoon topping evenly over bread slices. Bake at 350 uncovered for 40 minutes or until puffed and golden. Serve with maple syrup.
