This time of year, we’re all looking for the easy way out, aren’t we?

Fast, easy, time-saving… holiday buzzwords all.

Which is too bad. The December holidays – Chanukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa – are all about friends and family, food and fun. Why do we find ourselves rushing through them?

Because we’ve piled too much on our plates, that’s why. And I don’t mean too many cookie-swap cookies.

The last thing you want to stress over is making sure everyone’s fed on Christmas morning, right? Which is why you put this Baked Stuffed Cinnamon French Toast together a day or so ahead, then stow it in the fridge. When Christmas morning rolls around, simply stick it in the oven, and hurry back to the tree.

Looking for a way to enjoy those special Christmas moments with your (well-fed) family?

You’ve found it.

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“Vive le pain perdu!”

That’s the headline on the email that delivered this blog to your inbox.

That is, if you get our emails; and if you don’t, what are you waiting for? Online-only specials, links to the latest recipes and blogs… c’mon, sign up!

But back to that pain perdu.

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On a recent trip to New York City, I had a conversation with Regina Ragone, the Food Director of Family Circle Magazine. She said she’d had a note from a reader whose child had an egg allergy. The reader’s question was, “what can you do to make eggless French Toast?”. I got that glazed look I often do when I’m thinking about a new food invention, read the rest of this entry »

Ever have one of those conversations when someone absolutely puts their finger on the pulse of a universal experience? Phil Jones did that for me in his email last week: “When using cinnamon, e.g., for French Toast, how do you get it to blend in nicely, instead of floating on top of the mixture, and/or making an unmixed coating on the bowl at the edge of the liquid?”

My reaction was visceral: “He is SO right!” Is there anything more annoying?

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