Baked French Toast

Breakfast is definitely my favorite meal of the day. More than any other meal, I enjoy going out for breakfast the most. Sadly, breakfast food is often heavy, fatty, salty, too sweet or simply too many calories. I am not one to eat at Denny’s but for comparison sake a French Toast Slam has nearly 800 calories and 45 grams of fat! Want to try the cinnamon pancake meal? Try 970 calories and 49 grams of fat. Denny’s isn’t the only culprit. Restaurants that serve breakfast want their food to taste good and often that comes in the form of fat usually butter or bacon grease. Now don’t get me wrong, potatoes cooked in bacon grease are one of my all-time favorite guilty pleasures, but everything in moderation is important. So, I have come up with a healthier version of one of my favorite diner foods, baked French toast. It’s a weekend treat that can be made Friday night and just thrown in the oven Saturday morning. Serve with some strawberries and nitrate free (preferably organic) bacon and you got yourself a delicious breakfast treat.

Baked French Toast

Serves 4-6 

 

8 ounces of wheat bread or challah, preferably stale, cut into 2" cubes.

6 whole eggs

3 tbsp light brown sugar

1 cup of 2% milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

¼ tsp cinnamon

Topping:

2 tbsp brown sugar

¼ tsp cinnamon

For serving:

Maple syrup

Powdered sugar

Fresh fruit of your choice

The night before:

Prepare 9x9 baking dish by spraying it with non-stick spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl, crack the eggs. Beat the eggs with a whisk until fluffy. Toss in the brown sugar and whisk again until the mixture lightens in color and the eggs seem to fall off the whisk like a ribbon. Mix in the milk, vanilla extract and cinnamon. Toss in the bread and mix to combine. Put the entire bread mixture into the prepared baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. (If you don’t want to wait, try to give it at least 4 hours, but believe me your patience will be rewarded.)

In the morning:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Mix together brown sugar and cinnamon for topping in a small bowl.

Take the French toast out of the fridge, uncover and sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon mixture over the top evenly.

Place uncovered in the center rack of the oven for about 40-45 min or until the top is golden and the egg mixture is set. Raw eggs are yucky.

Let cool ten minutes before spooning out onto plates. Serve with fresh fruit, nitrate free bacon, maple syrup and powdered sugar, if you’d like. J

This would make an awesome dinner too! Assemble in the morning and pop in the oven for dinner. Yum.

Almost Instant Make Ahead Oatmeal Bowls

Everyone knows oatmeal is such a great way to start your morning. It is loaded with whole grain goodness that has been shown to lower bad cholesterol while upping the good and balancing out blood pressure. Its heartiness keeps you full until lunchtime; its versatility is endless. My husband was literally eating a giant plain bagel every morning with fatty cream cheese. One giant lump of white flour, sugar and saturated fats, not to mention a ton of calories. One plain bagel with 2 tablespoons of whipped cream cheese comes in at 300 calories and is nothing more than a bunch of wasted carbs. The carbohydrates in oats are complex; they keep you feeling fuller longer, contain higher amounts of fiber and less simple sugar. The packets of instant oatmeal you get at the store have upwards of 12 grams of sugar; some even more, plus added preservatives. Why subject yourself to this non-sense when you can make your own?

I started making my husband oatmeal bowls that he can just add water to and microwave in the morning for a hearty, healthy low-calorie breakfast. Sometimes he pairs it with an apple or a yogurt to balance out his meal. I make 5 or 6 at a time and keep them in small reusable plastic bowls with lids so he can eat them throughout the week and not have to worry about assembling them in the morning. Convenient, huh? Oh, by the way, I make about 3 weeks’ worth of oatmeal for about $4. One of those oatmeal bowls you buy at the grocery stores costs almost $3.00!

Below is the recipe I use but there are so many variations you can make. Be creative PB2, chocolate chips, dried fruits, nuts, bananas, jam, vanilla bean, spices, apples are all great add-ins for your oatmeal.

These bowls are also a great make ahead breakfast or snack for kids. You can even pack an oatmeal bowl for lunch if there is access to a microwave for you or your little one.

Almost-Instant Oatmeal Bowls (Use organic ingredients whenever possible.)

To make 5 oatmeal bowls:

1 ¼ cups quick cooking oats

5 tbsp dried cranberries, raisins, golden raising or cherries (or a mixture)

1 ¼ tsp cinnamon

5 tbsp brown sugar

Salt

5 small reusable, microwavable bowls with lids or you can put them in plastic baggies and just pour it into a bowl in the morning. I like the bowls because I am not wasting any plastic baggies (those babies are expensive).

To assemble:

Place a ¼ cup of oats, 1 tbsp dried fruit, ¼ tsp cinnamon a pinch of salt and 1 tbsp brown sugar into each bowl. Put on the lid and give it a shake. Place in a dry, cool spot until ready to eat.

To Cook:

Add ¾ cup of warm-hot water to your oatmeal. Place the oatmeal bowl in the microwave and heat on high 2 minutes. Give it a stir and cook 30 more seconds. Feel free to add your milk of choice for serving.

Be careful your oatmeal will bubble!

Folic Acid

I recently took a social media class in college. Our final project was to create a blog. I chose to make my blog about pregnancy since it would tie in with the Hippie Baby concept and I would hopefully be able to use some of the posts here. Here is the link to that blog, though I doubt I will continue to keep up with it. Here is an article about the importance of folic acid plus a recipe!

You often hear about folic acid and how important it is when it comes to pre-conception and pregnancy. According to WebMD, folic acid is a water soluble B-vitamin that is crucial in preventing birth defects in early pregnancy. The chance of neural tube defects (i.e. spina bifida) and miscarriage are greatly reduced if folic acid is consumed enough either through food or through supplements such as prenatal vitamins. Folic acid helps create DNA which is obviously absolutely imperative during pregnancy. Many doctors suggest any woman of child bearing age should take a folic acid supplement or a prenatal vitamin since there is always a chance pregnancy can occur.
Many foods contain a great bit of folic acid naturally such as dark leafy greens, lentils, whole grains, asparagus and mushrooms. Consuming a variety of these foods will help you to be sure you are consuming enough folic acid in any given day. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Office on Women’s Health) suggests women of childbearing age, women who are trying to conceive and women who are pregnant should consume 400-800 mcg of folic acid daily. Here is a list of some of the foods high in folic acid:
These amounts are based on a 2,000 calorie diet:

Spinach/Kale: 1 cup, 263 mcg, 95% DV
Collard Greens: 1 cup, 177 mcg, 44% DV
Lentils: 1 cup, 358 mcg, 90% DV
Pinto Beans: 1 cup, 294 mcg, 74% DV
Asparagus: 1 cup, 262 mcg, 65% DV
Strawberries: 1 cup, 25 mcg, 6.5% DV
     
As you can see, getting your daily folic acid intake shouldn’t be too difficult but if you feel like you aren’t getting enough talk to your doctor about getting on a supplement or what type of prenatal vitamin you should be taking.

Here is a recipe high in folic acid and it happens to be my very favorite lunch!

Garlicky Kale with White Beans and Toast

2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1/8 - 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (depending on your heat preference)
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced or grated
1 can cannellini or navy beans, rinsed
1 bunch of kale, rinsed, hard stems removed and torn into 1-2" pieces
1 piece of your favorite crusty bread, toasted
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Heat olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes over very low heat in a medium saute pan until fragrant (2-5 minutes) Then add in the kale, you may need to do this in batches but the kale will continue to wilt and make more room. Once all the kale is in, stir constantly until it is cooked through and wilted. Then add the beans and heat through. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve on top of your favorite crusty toast and enjoy!