Vanilla Cardamom Cast Iron Skillet French Toast With Pan Roasted Apples And Date Molasses Food

CHEF JOHN'S FRENCH TOAST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Whisk eggs, milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon, allspice, and salt together in a large bowl. Place bread slices in egg mixture and soak, turning to coat, until bread is completely saturated.
• Melt butter in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, cook bread in hot butter until golden, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer toasted bread to a baking sheet.
• Bake toast in the oven until outside is crisp and slightly puffed, 12 to 15 minutes.

FRENCH TOAST-WICHES WITH QUICK-COOK WARM CHUTNEY

Steps:

• Put all of the ingredients for your chutney in a medium pot and bring liquid to a boil. Reduce heat a bit and let the chutney cook down for 10 minutes. Remove gingerroot before serving.
• Begin to assemble an assembly line leading to your pan. Place a pile of bread next to a shallow dish or disposable pie tin containing the eggs, beaten with milk, sugar, and nutmeg. Nestle a piece of cold butter in a folded paper towel and keep on hand to wipe and grease your skillet. Pile apples, cheese, and turkey on the cutting board to finish your assembly line.
• Preheat nonstick griddle or large skillet over moderate heat.
• To make sandwiches, coat pan with butter, dip 4 pieces of bread on both sides in the egg, and place in the pan. Cook 2 minutes and turn 2 slices over. Top the 2 slices you turned with thin layers of cheese, apple, turkey and another slice of cheese. Top sandwich filling with the other 2 slices of bread, keeping the uncooked side up; you are just sliding these pieces over from pan to top of sandwich. Now flip the entire sandwich over to cook the opposite side of the sandwich. Gently press down on the sandwich as it grills the last minute or two. Repeat the process with the remaining ingredients.
• Cut sandwiches on a diagonal and serve with small buttercups or ramekins of warm fruit chutney for topping.

VANILLA FRENCH TOAST

Steps:

• Whisk eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Melt butter in skillet over medium-high heat. Dip bread slices in egg mixture and brown each side in skillet. Serve with maple syrup.
• ©2012 ACH Food Companies, Inc. Spice Islands is a registered trademark of ACH Food Companies, Inc.

CARDAMOM VANILLA POUND CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Generously butter pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess.
• Whisk together flour, cardamom, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat together butter and granulated sugar in mixer at medium speed, scraping side of bowl occasionally, until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape seeds from vanilla beans with tip of a paring knife into butter mixture, reserving pods for another use, and beat until combined well, about 1 minute. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in lemon juice until combined well. At low speed, add flour mixture and milk alternately in batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture, mixing until just combined.
• Spoon batter into pan, smoothing top. Gently rap pan on counter to eliminate air bubbles.
• Bake until a wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool in pan 1 hour, then invert onto a rack and cool completely, about 1 hour more.
• Beat cream with confectioners sugar and vanilla extract using whisk attachment of mixer until it just holds stiff peaks. Serve cake with whipped vanilla cream.

CARAMELIZED SHEET-PAN FRENCH TOAST

Steps:

• The day before serving, in a medium bowl, combine eggs, egg yolk, milk, cream, salt, vanilla, nutmeg, cardamom, 2 tablespoons/25 grams sugar and the liqueur, if using. Whisk well until thoroughly combined.
• Place the bread in a gallon-size resealable plastic bag or shallow dish that will fit the slices snugly. Pour the egg mixture into the bag or dish to soak in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours. If in a bag, lay on a plate and turn the bag over from time to time. If in a dish, cover and flip the slices carefully now and then to ensure even soaking.
• When ready to cook, heat oven to 425 degrees. Remove the slices from the bag or dish, letting any excess drip off, and place on a plate. Coat the bread evenly with the remaining 1/2 cup/100 grams sugar.
• Heat a sheet pan or large cast-iron skillet in the oven for 5 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon butter to the pan. Spread it around and add the sugar-coated bread, spacing evenly. Reduce heat to 400 degrees. Cook until the bottoms are evenly burnished and golden brown, 14 to 18 minutes.
• Flip the bread and add the remaining tablespoon butter in slivers around the slices. Cook until the bottoms are nicely browned, 7 to 8 minutes. Turn the slices on the cut ends to caramelize, 4 to 5 minutes. Serve immediately with the syrup and berries.