Spinach And Bacon Strata Food

CARAMELIZED ONION, SPINACH AND GRUYERE STRATA WITH SAUTEED CHERRY TOMATOES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Put the bread on a baking sheet and toast until lightly golden brown on both sides, about 10 minutes. Remove and let cool.
• Meanwhile, heat the butter and canola oil in a large saute pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onions and toss to coat, then add the sugar and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are golden brown and caramelized, about 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
• In a large bowl, combine the toasted bread, caramelized onions and spinach. In another large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, heavy cream, 1 1/2 cups cheese, the mustard, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, the thyme and nutmeg. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Add the bread mixture to the baking dish, then pour the egg mixture over the bread and press down to make sure it is totally submerged.
• Increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Bake the strata, uncovered, until it is golden brown on top, puffed slightly and doesn't shimmy with uncooked custard when you shake the pan, 50 minutes to 1 hour; sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup cheese during the last 10 minutes of baking. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.
• Meanwhile, prepare the tomatoes: Heat the canola oil in a large saute pan over high heat until it begins to shimmer. Add the cherry tomatoes, season with salt and pepper and cook until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the chives and remove from the heat. Serve the strata with the sauteed tomatoes.

BACON, CHEDDAR AND SPINACH STRATA

Steps:

• Oil bottom and sides of a 9x13-inch baking dish with about a tablespoon of bacon fat.
• Place bread cubes in a large mixing bowl.
• Crack eggs into a separate mixing bowl. Season with salt, pepper, cayenne, and nutmeg. Add cream and whisk mixture thoroughly.
• Pour egg/cream mixture over the bread cubes and mix to distribute ingredients evenly. Allow bread mixture to sit about 15 minutes to absorb the liquid.
• Transfer half of the bread mixture to the baking pan; spread evenly over the bottom and press mixture down a bit. Top with half of the grated Cheddar cheese. Add cooked bacon pieces in an even layer over the cheese. Place the cooked spinach over the bacon; top with half of the remaining cheese. Finish with the rest of the soaked bread cubes, spread evenly and pressed down slightly. Sprinkle with the rest of the grated cheese. Cover and let strata sit at room temperature for 1 hour before baking.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake strata in preheated oven until set, about 45 minutes. Optionally, you can broil the strata for a minute or two to brown the top.

SPINACH & CHEESE STRATA

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and drained spinach and cook 2 minutes more. Set aside.
• Butter a 3-quart or 9x13-inch baking dish. Spread one third of the bread cubes in the dish and top evenly with one third of spinach mixture. (Try to break it up as much as possible so there are no huge clumps of spinach.) Sprinkle with one third of each cheese. Repeat layering twice, ending with cheeses.
• In a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the half-and-half, mustard, salt, pepper, and nutmeg and whisk until well combined. Pour the custard mixture evenly over the strata. Cover the strata with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Bake the strata, uncovered, until puffed, set and golden brown all over top, 70-80 minutes. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes before serving. It will settle a bit as it cools.
• Note: The cook time is based on the strata going immediately from the fridge to the oven. If it sits out at room temperature before baking, the cook time will be about 10 minutes less.

BACON SPINACH STRATA

Steps:

• In a large skillet, saute mushrooms and onions in oil until tender. Place half of the bread cubes and 1/2 cup Swiss cheese in a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Layer with bacon, cheddar cheese, mushroom mixture, spinach and remaining Swiss cheese and bread cubes. , In a large bowl, combine the eggs, milk and seasonings. Pour over casserole. Cover and refrigerate overnight., Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 45-55 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean (cover loosely with foil if top browns too quickly). Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

SAUTEED SPINACH WITH BACON

Steps:

• In a large skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until crispy, 5 to 8 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove bacon, leaving fat in skillet; drain on a paper towel. Set aside.
• Increase heat to high; fill skillet with as much spinach as will fit. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing spinach and adding more as it wilts (it may take up to 2 minutes to fit it all). Continue to cook until tender, 1 to 3 minutes.
• Tilt skillet to drain water from spinach (using slotted spoon or a spatula to hold spinach back). Mix in vinegar; season with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with crispy bacon.

SPINACH AND CHEESE STRATA

Steps:

• Squeeze handfuls of spinach to remove as much liquid as possible, then finely chop.
• Cook onion in butter in a large heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in spinach, then remove from heat.
• Spread one third of bread cubes in a buttered 3-quart gratin dish or other shallow ceramic baking dish and top evenly with one third of spinach mixture. Sprinkle with one third of each cheese. Repeat layering twice (ending with cheeses).
• Whisk together milk, eggs, mustard, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl and pour evenly over strata. Chill strata, covered with plastic wrap, at least 8 hours (for bread to absorb custard).
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Let strata stand at room temperature 30 minutes.
• Bake strata, uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 45 to 55 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

BACON & CHEDDAR STRATA

Steps:

• In a large skillet, cook bacon in batches until crisp; drain on paper towels. Crumble into a small bowl. Add red pepper, onions and tomatoes. In a greased 13x9-in. baking dish, layer half each of the bread, bacon mixture and cheese. Top with remaining bread and bacon mixture., In another bowl, combine eggs, milk, mayonnaise and seasonings. Pour over top. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover and refrigerate overnight., Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake, covered, 40 minutes. Uncover and bake 5-10 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting.

HOW TO MAKE A STRATA

Steps:

• Grease a 9x13 pan. Chop bacon into 1 1/2 inch pieces. Cook until crispy. Set aside on paper towels and pat to remove excess grease. Pour all but a couple of tablespoons of the bacon grease out of the pan. Cook shallots in remaining fat until softened. Set aside. Whisk eggs for 1-2 minutes. Whisk in milk, mustard, salt, and pepper. Stir in reserved bacon, shallots, cheese, and parsley. Fold in the torn bread. Pour into the prepared pan and cover with foil. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, up to 24. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Bake strata for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until golden, puffed, and set in the center. Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving. (The strata will deflate as is rests.) Scoop portions with a large spoon rather than trying to cut into squares.

SPINACH AND BACON STRATA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute chopped bacon in large skillet until crisp. Using slotted spoon, remove bacon from skillet to paper towel-lined plate to drain.
• Reserve small amount of bacon drippings in skillet. Add onion to skillet and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and spinach and saute 2 minutes. Stir in 1/2 teaspoons seasoning salt and reserved bacon.
• Place half bread cubes in a buttered 9x13" baking dish. Sprinkle half of the cheese over the bread, top with half of the spinach mixture. Repeat layering.
• Whisk milk, eggs, and remaining 1/2 teaspoons of seasoning salt in a large bowl and pour evenly over the strata. Gently push surface of bread down into milk to coat. Chill strata, covered with plastic wrap, at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
• Bake strata uncovered until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, about 45 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

BACON, SPINACH, & CHEDDAR STRATA

Steps:

• Cook bacon in a small sauté pan over medium heat until crispy. Drain on paper towel. Reserve grease. Cook onion in the same pan over a medium heat until soft, about three minutes.
• Mix bread, onion, bacon, spinach, and salt in a large bowl. Spread evenly in a greased 2½ qt casserole dish.
• Mix 5 eggs, 1 ½ cups milk, and salt in the same bowl. Pour over bread mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
• When ready to bake, remove from fridge. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix remaining eggs (3) and remaining milk (1/2 cup) together. Pour over egg/bread mixture and use a spoon or spatula to make sure the egg is evenly spread and falls into all the cervices.
• Bake for 45 minutes or until puffed and brown.

SPINACH, BACON AND CHEESE STRATA

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add bacon and cook, stirring, until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Add onion sauté until vegetable are soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add spinach and fold until wilted. Remove vegetables from pan and set aside.
• Preheat broiler.
• Off heat, coat same skillet with cooking spray. Arrange bread slices tightly in bottom of skillet.
• In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, EggBeaters, milk, mustard, salt and pepper; pour over bread and allow milk mixture to soak in entirely (like when you make French toast). Sprinkle bread with 1 tablespoon of Parmesan cheese.
• Place skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Cook, shaking pan frequently to promote even cooking, until almost cooked through to the top, about 4 or 5 minutes.
• Place skillet under broiler to set eggs, about 2 minutes. Remove skillet from broiler; top with bacon-vegetable mixture, cheddar cheese and remaining tablespoon of Parmesan cheese. Place skillet under broiler again until cheese melts, about 1 to 2 minutes. Slice into 6 pieces and serve. Yields 1 piece per serving.