Breakfast Strata with Spinach and Gruyère
Substitute any semisoft melting cheese, such as Havarti, sharp cheddar, or Colby, for the Gruyère
1/2 loaf French or Italian bread (8 ounces), sliced 1/2 inch thick
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
4 shallots, minced
1 (10-ounce) package chopped frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine
6 ounces Gruyère cheese, shredded (1 1/2 cups)
6 large eggs
1 3/4 cups half-and-half
Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 225 degrees. Arrange the bread on a baking sheet and bake thoroughly dry and crisp, about 40 minutes, flipping the bread over halfway through baking. Using 2 tablespoons of the butter, spread butter on one side of each piece of bread.
Melt the remaining butter in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the spinach, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and a pinch of pepper and cook until the spinach is heated through, about two minutes. Transfer the spinach into a medium bowl. Add the wine to the skillet and simmer over medium-high heat until it measures 1/4 cup, about three minutes; set aside to cool.
Grease an 8 inch square baking dish. Arrange half the bread, buttered side up, in a single layer in the dish and sprinkle with half the spinach mixture and 1/2 cup of the Gruyère. Repeat to form a second layer with the remaining bread, remaining spinach, and 1/2 cup more Gruyère.
Whisk the eggs, reduced wine, half-and-half, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together until smooth, then pour evenly over the top. Cover the surface with plastic wrap and weigh the strata down with a large zip lock bag of sugar. Refrigerate for at least one hour - up to 24 hours.
When ready to bake, adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat to 325 degrees. Meanwhile, let the strata stand at room temperature for 20 minutes. Remove the weight, unwrap the strata and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of Gruyère. Bake until both edges and center are puffed and the edges have pulled away slightly from the sides of the dish, about 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.
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