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Savory bacon & cheese stuffed French toast

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Slightly stale or day-old bread will work best here. I especially love it with challah or brioche, though I think leftover slices of this milk bread would work well, too. Here, I used Artisan Bread in Five’s no-knead challah, but made using the garlic, chives and smoked gouda filling here.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3–4 rashers bacon
  • 3–4 very thick-cut (about 1-inch or more is ideal) slices of day-old bread (I used this no-knead challah made with this filling)
  • about 2/3 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (or cheese of your choice — I substituted a handful of shredded smoked Gouda; Gruyere would also work wonderfully)
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
  • salt and pepper as desired
  • 1 tsp minced garlic
  • 2–3 tsp reserved bacon grease (from above), for frying
  • maple syrup for serving (optional, but I love it)

Instructions

  1. Cook the bacon, either by baking or pan-frying, to the doneness of your liking. To bake, simply place the bacon on a rimmed baking sheet and place in a cold oven. Turn the oven to 400 degrees and let heat for 10-15 minutes, or until bacon is crisp and fat is rendered. (Keep an eye on it for the last 5 minutes to ensure it doesn’t burn.) To panfry, lay the bacon in a single layer in a cold skillet. Turn the heat to medium and cook until crisp, flipping as necessary. Reserve bacon fat for frying the French toast. Let bacon cool briefly, then chop into small pieces and set aside.
  2. Use a serrated knife to cut through bottom crust of each slice of bread, slicing almost to the edges, to make a “pocket” for the cheese and bacon.
  3. In a small bowl, mix shredded cheese and cooled bacon until combined. Stuff each slice carefully with your desired amount of the bacon and cheese mixture.
  4. In a shallow bowl large enough to hold the bread slices, whisk the egg, milk, Parmesan cheese, and a pinch of salt and pepper until well-combined. Soak each slice of bread in the egg mixture until both sides are well-coated.
  5. In a cast-iron skillet, heat 2-3 tsp of the reserved bacon fat over medium heat with the minced garlic until the garlic crackles. Add the soaked bread slices and fry until golden-brown on both sides, about 2 minutes per side. Serve immediately with extra bacon, if desired, and plenty of maple syrup if you’re so inclined.

Notes

The amount of bread you need will vary depending on the size of your slices — I used a squat challah, so we made four slices, but you might just need two from a larger loaf.

Find it online: https://tworedbowls.com/2015/03/04/bacon-cheese-stuffed-french-toast/