Crème Brûlée Croissant French Toast | The Perfect New Year’s Day Brunch!
I love traditions, especially when they involve food. One of our fam favourites for years now has been to wake up on Christmas morning, opening stockings and then feast on this total decadence. The time it takes to bake is about the same amount of time it takes to get through unwrapping all those little treasures stuffed into that knitted sock, so it’s perfect. But let’s not kid ourselves, friends. This is totally dessert for breakfast. And you know what? On Christmas morning that seems just about right to me.
{Side note: This is clearly not a gluten free recipe, and I don’t actually eat it myself. I’ve made a gluten-free, eggless version for myself the last couple of years but it’s…errrmm…not so photo-worthy if you know what I mean. Truth is, most of my enjoyment comes from the groans of glory coming from my guys as they eat theirs.}
Confession: This IS the perfect New Year’s Day Brunch dish, but I have NOT styled a perfectly pretty table to present it to you. I had planned on taking the holidays off with my family to just relax and connect, but when so many of you saw my Instagram photo and asked for the recipe, I knew I had to oblige. So without further ado…
Here is my recipe for:
Crème Brûlée Croissant French Toast
INGREDIENTS:
1 stick unsalted butter {grass fed is ideal}
1 cup maple syrup
1 1/2 cups whipping cream {Have I mentioned this is not a “start your diet today” kind of dish?!}
2 eggs
2 TBSP ground chia seeds
1 TBSP cognac {optional}
4-6 flaky croissants, the size will determine the number required {the ones at Colette in Toronto are as close to Parisian as it gets ’round these parts, so head there if you can when picking up your supplies. You’ll want to stay for brunch, trust me!}
METHOD:
Add butter and maple syrup to a saucepan and bring to a gentle boil until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. Pour into the base of a 9×12 baking dish.
Cut the croissants in half and line the pan with croissants {cut side down} so as to absorb the caramel sauce. Cut small pieces to fill in the gaps after you’ve layered in the whole pieces so that the entire dish is completely covered in croissants.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the cream, eggs, ground chia and cognac. If you don’t want to use chia {or you don’t have any} just use 2 more eggs. And if you want to go totally eggless, just use 2 more TBSP of chia and skip the eggs. See? Options.
Pour the cream mixture evenly over the top of the croissants and cover with cling wrap. Refrigerate overnight. In the morning, preheat the oven to 350˚F and bake for 30 minutes. Cut into slices and serve with fresh fruit, bacon and really good coffee. It is New Year’s Day, after all!
I have to take just a moment to reminisce with you about 2014. If I were to sum it up in one word, for me it would be beautifully unexpected. OK, so that’s two words. But if I had just said unexpected that wouldn’t have quite captured it. Tate was the most beautiful surprise we could have asked for and he’s completely changed our lives for the better. He’s been a bit like a “restart” button after some really hard surprises with family and health. And so as I head into 2015 I’m celebrating the beauty of the unexpected as I see it crawling around my living room and cruising furniture getting ready to walk.
Seems like a bit of a metaphor to me.
If you’ve had a hard year – if some of your unexpected’s have been less than beautiful – I feel you. But our dreams, our potential and our futures are all bright, friends. Their beauty hasn’t faded, and just like Tate, my gut tells me they are on the verge of getting their feet underneath themselves and not just learning to walk, but learning to run.
Look out, 2015. Here. We. Come.
xx
s.
