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Obviously I didn’t invent the dish, but in an attempt to make a creative and tasty breakfast one Sunday morning, I borrowed a page from the former Sugar Magnolia restaurant (in New Orleans) to make one of their most popular brunch dishes, Cream Cheese-Stuffed French Toast with Strawberry Coulis.  After a couple of calls to my friend Tom and some piecing together of the recipe, I gathered all of the ingredients and recreated the dish perfectly.  I now make it every Christmas morning, as it is one of my wife’s favorites.

If you are looking for a great brunch dish for friends, family or even your kids, this is it.  Serve it as an appetizer before a savory brunch, or save it for dessert.  It is a bit time consuming, but don’t let all of the work scare you, the end result is worth it.

I originally published this recipe on NolaFoodie.com on June 28, 2006.  Yea, the photograph was taken back then and isn’t all that great.  So sue me

Makes three to four pieces of stuffed French toast.

INGREDIENTS

• 6 to 8 slices of bread, dried
• 3 Eggs (beaten)
• Cinnamon
• Brown Sugar
• Butter
• Vegetable Oil

French Toast Stuffing:

• 1 package Philadelphia cream cheese (8 oz.)
• Honey
• Brown Sugar
• Powdered White Sugar
• Cinnamon

METHOD
For stuffing, combine all ingredients together in a bowl and mix with a large spoon.  Add each ingredient to taste.

To make the stuffed French toast, spread the stuffing mixture between two slices of dried (or stale) sliced bread, just as if you were making a peanut butter sandwich.  Repeat until all of the mixture is used, for a total of three or four “sandwiches.”  The thicker the bread, the better off you are with the stuffing.  However, I have made it before with regular white sliced bread, but recently used the Sweet Buttermilk bread from Pepperidge Farm.

On a plate with slanted edges, make the French toast egg-wash by combining eggs, cinnamon and brown sugar.

In a non-stick fry pan, heat vegetable oil and butter.  Place the first French toast sandwich face down in the egg-wash for several seconds, then turn over to coat the second side.  Then place it in the heated pan to cook, this may take several minutes per side.  Make sure to keep the heat on medium, as a high heat can burn the butter.  Cook the French toast until it is golden brown.  Remove and let it drain on paper towels.

For plating, slice the French Toast diagonally, then dust with powdered sugar and top with seasonal berries or the seasonal berry coulis.

Fresh Seasonal Berry Coulis

• 1 pint of berries (strawberries, blueberries or raspberries)
• 2 tbsp White Sugar
• Juice of 1 Lemon

METHOD
Heat a small saucepan and add berries, 2 tbsp of white sugar and squeeze in the juice of one lemon; stir all ingredients together.  The berries will cook down and render juices that will combine with the sugar to make a thick sauce.  Add extra lemon juice if necessary.  Continue to cook until your sauce is to its desired consistency, the longer it cooks, fewer whole berries will be present; 10 minutes should be adequate.

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