oven-baked french toast

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Originally uploaded by jennifermf

Perhaps this isn't the most attractive food photo ever, but I assure you, this was sicky sweet and all the sugar you could dream of in a breakfast food. Honestly, it was delicious. However, it was REALLY sweet. What's in the picture was breakfast for two days. I made this with some stale multigrain bread we bought at a farmer's market in the area. We'd gotten a free loaf (ProTip: Hit the farmer's market closer to closing time to get better deals and free stuff) in addition to the one we bought, and this one went stale. And TA-DA! oven-baked french toast was born.

Note: this recipe is great because you can make it the night before, let it sit in the fridge and then throw it in the oven the next morning. However, you don't have to let it sit overnight, and can bake it right away. Letting it sit overnight soaks the bread with the apple yummies, though.

ingredients:

2 apples, cored and cubed
3 tbsp Earth Balance
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 cup apple juice or water
1 cup soy milk
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
4-6 thick slices of day-old rustic bread

directions:

In a medium saucepan, cook apples in Earth Balance on medium heat until apples start to soften. Add cinnamon, sugar, and maple syrup and cook until apples are soft. Pour half the ingredients to the bottom of an 8 x 8 baking pan. In a bowl, whisk together apple juice (or water), soy milk, lemon juice, and vanilla. Dip each slice of bread into mixture until fully covered, and arrange on top of the apple mixture in the baking dish. Pour remaining batter over the bread, as well as the remaining apple mixture. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

To cook, heat oven to 350 degrees, bake for 35-40 min. If desired, serve with maple syrup, but it probably won't need any!

Your favorite vanilla ice cream (I love So Delicious!) might also be a great addition, although if you want to be healthier, some veggie sausage patties would balance this out nicely and add a little protein to this carb coma.