oh my.
Why hasn't strata entered my world (and mouth) sooner?
I cannot tell you. However, I can tell you that it will never leave again.
A FABULOUS way to use up bread. And eggs.
A FABULOUS way to entertain guests...that leaves you FREE from the kitchen.
A FABULOUS way for a two week postpartum Mama to actually get food on the table, since dinnertime is inevitably the time littlest babe wants to nurse. And edible food, no less.
And Strata ought to be synonymous with Simple. I'll take that up with Roget next opportunity I get.
Here is the recipe, plain and simple.
You'll need:
1 pound sausage
1/2 pound bacon
which you can brown. Right now.
While that is cooking, grab your bread and start cubing. I used unsliced bread-so I can't verify the amount of bread. If you were using sliced, I would say....it would be about 10 slices. cubed.
Of course, the cheese is one of the best parts~so don't be stingy. I used 1 1/2 cups. And SHARP cheese is a must. All others might just make this second rate.
Add the bread and cheese to a large mixing bowl, and when the sausage and bacon is fully cooked, you can add the meat mixture to the bowl too. Make sure the bacon gets crumbled, so everyone gets a taste!
Next pour three cups milk over everything. There is nothing worse than milk-soggy bread so this part sort of grossed me out. Momentarily.
Then, wisk 8 eggs and 1 1/2 teaspoons of mustard together and pour THAT slimy concoction over the soggy mixing bowl. Stir together.
Then admire~ it doesn't look that gross after all.
Cover and stick in the fridge for 8 hours, or overnight. Forget about it. Do something for YOU. Enjoy yourself-because you don't have to give another thought to dinner (or breakfast) (or brunch) for another 8 hours or more.
Give nice big sigh of relief.
Go nurse wailing, half-starved child. (oh wait. That's me.)
Take Strata from fridge 30 minutes before putting in oven. Preheat oven to 350 and then bake for 60-65 minutes.
Just wait until you open that oven door when it is all done. It is beautifully fluffy and golden, and just...a work of art. It tastes as good as it looks, too. Trust me. Better yet: don't. Go see for yourself.
