shabou: Brunch Date

We had some friends over today for brunch, to see the new house, and of course play with Harper.

I decided to make a strata for two reasons. Most important, it's delicious.
Almost as important, I was able to make it the night before and then just bake it in the oven this morning, before they arrived. This was key because I knew I wouldn't have time to start cooking in the morning, between everything else that had to get done.

I highly recommend trying this recipe. You can assemble it up to 24 hours in advance, stick it in the fridge and then bake for an hour before you're ready to serve. It fills the entire house with delicious aromas, is hearty enough to serve as a main course and tastes like it took you hours to make (even though it is super simple).

I served mine aside a Caesar salad (recipe here), smoked salmon & croissants and of course, mimosa's.

Strata with Spinach, Sausage and Caramelized Onions

Ingredients:

5 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
2 large yellow onions, finely chopped
4 oz. French bread, cut into 1-inch cubes
12 oz. Italian sausage, casings removed
3 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups spinach
8 eggs
2 1/2 cups half-and-half
1 1/4 cups shredded Fontina, Swiss or Gruyere cheese (whichever you prefer or you can do a combo)
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper
recipe adapted from Williams-Sonoma

Directions:

In a large pan over medium heat, warm 3 Tbs. of the olive oil. Add the onions, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are completely limp, 10 to 15 minutes. Uncover, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are golden brown and sweet, 35 to 45 minutes; do not let them burn. Remove from the heat and let cool. You will need 2/3 cup caramelized onions for the strata; cover and refrigerate the remaining onions.

Butter a 10-inch nonstick braiser.

Put the bread in a large bowl.

In a large sauté pan over medium heat, warm the remaining 2 Tbs. oil. Add the sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to the bowl with the bread.

I used about half a baguettes worth of bread

I used 2 mild and one hot sausage

Return the pan to medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the spinach and cook, stirring occasionally, until wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the bread mixture.

In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs and half-and-half. Pour the egg mixture over the bread mixture. Add the onions, cheese, salt and pepper and stir until well blended. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 to 24 hours.

Preheat an oven to 350°F.

Remove the plastic wrap from the pan. Bake the strata until golden brown and cooked through, about an hour.

Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.