Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Sophisticated Reese's

Being Tuesday, I needed something to make for Jeff to bring in for the Wednesday treat day so his coworkers can "test" what I've been making. This was a little labor intensive but I must say it was worth it. After my first bite I was in love! A decadent dark chocolate layer on top controls the sweetness of the creamy, but still firm peanut butter layer. You can still see the little pieces of brown sugar in the bottom layer that adds to the richness of these little gems. I'm not sure how many will actually make it to the office tomorrow, but I know one thing - I will be making these again! The second picture has a little glare from the light - sorry about that!



Why not keep the sweet theme going? Tonight was breakfast for dinner. Orange-Almond French Toast Casserole(adapted from CL) is very much like a giant sticky bun, execpt it is much better! We don't care for "soft/mushy" french toast and this is much the opposite! It is quite firm, but not quite crunchy. It does not have that soggy factor that sometimes happens. Flavor from the orange juice and zest makes this dish stand out from normal french toast. The orginial recipe called for pecans but I was out so I used sliced almonds and would do so again. I also used Golden Syrup instead of the corn syrup. This is crazy good - I served soft scrambled eggs on the side to offset the sweetness.



Orange-Almond French Toast Casserole (My adapted version from CL)

1 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted
2 tablespoons Lyle's Golden Syrup
Cooking spray
1/3 cup sliced almonds
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
1 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large egg whites
2 large eggs
12 (1-inch-thick) slices French bread

Combine brown sugar, butter, and golden syrup; pour into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle sliced almonds evenly over sugar mixture and gently press down.

Combine rind and next 7 ingredients (rind through eggs); stir with a whisk. Arrange bread slices over sliced almonds in dish; pour egg mixture over bread. Cover overnight.

Preheat oven to 350°

Uncover and let stand at room temperature 20 minutes. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until lightly browned.

21 comments:

  1. May I just say that peanut butter cups are my favorite candy? And that pointing me in the direction of that recipe would make me very happy?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oooh...oooh! I love making my own peanut butter cups. I prefer mine just a wee bit sweeter than Reeses.

    Yours look gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  3. those peanut butter cups look awesome!

    -- stella

    ReplyDelete
  4. Joe--

    Shut up! That photograph is gorgeous. You always make me hungry. Thanks a lot!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Oh lord! Those homemade peanut butter cups are TOO MUCH! YUM!

    Are you going to share the recipe or did I miss it somewhere?

    ReplyDelete
  6. ARGH!
    what are you doing to me Joe? Oh my this is the last thing I need :)

    Looks sooo good! worth the wait ;)

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'm drooling too much to write!!! Gorgeous post, as usual.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Wow, I am simply stunned. Was that a sugar-high Tuesday, or what?

    ReplyDelete
  9. The peanut butter cups do look quite good!! Where did you get the recipe for them?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wow. I am utterly speechless. Possibly because I am haveing to restrain myself from licking the screen. Please share the recipe with us if you can.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Gorgeous PB cups. The french toast looks fab too.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Great peanut butter cups, Joe. I used to make chocolate covered peanut butter eggs every Easter, so I know the homemade kind is amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh Joe! Won't you share with us your peanut butter cup recipe? :) They look wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Gorgeous! Jeff's co-workers are a very lucky bunch!

    ReplyDelete
  15. I miss American candy, yours are nice a big and so I don't have to eat both Resses just one.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Wow! These look scrumptious. I agree about the texture of the French toast--mushy is less desireable. Your recipe looks fantastic. Thanks for sharing it.
    Andrea

    ReplyDelete
  17. Awesome!! I am not the biggest fan of peanut butter myself, but I have to say that I would love to try your candy, it looks amazingly good, and 1000 times better than any comercial stuff around!
    Ana

    ReplyDelete
  18. I have to say, this was a big hit at the office :)

    ReplyDelete
  19. Thanks everyone for the kind comments! I wish I kept more for me to eat!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Your peanut butter cups look divine! I love Reeses and I bet a homemade version would be even better.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Your Sophisticated Reese's look incredibly good. I don't like peanut butter so much, but I would love to try these with almond or hazelnut butter.

    ReplyDelete