SERVES 6 (Makes one 8 x 8-inch strata)
TIME 2½ hours, plus 1 hour chilling and 20 minutes standing
Dry bread at 225degree about 4 hrs
Why This Recipe Works
When developing our breakfast strata recipe, we found that buttering whole, dried bread slices gave the dish good texture and richness. Carefully selecting and then sautéing just a few complementary ingredients for the filling removed excess moisture and prevented the casserole from becoming waterlogged. Our breakfast strata recipe calls for weighing the strata down overnight in the refrigerator before baking, which improves the strata’s texture and makes it the perfect make-ahead breakfast dish.
Ingredients:
8 – 10 slices supermarket French bread (1/2-inch thick) or Italian bread (6 – 7 ounces)
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
4 medium shallots, minced (about 1/2 cup)
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 teaspoon Salt
½ cup medium-dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
6 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups)
6 large eggs
1 ¾ cups half-and-half
To weigh down the assembled strata, we found that two 1-pound boxes of brown or powdered sugar, laid side by side over the plastic-covered surface, make ideal weights. A gallon-sized zipper-lock bag filled with about 2 pounds of sugar or rice also works. This recipe doubles easily; use a 9 by 13-inch baking dish greased with only 1 1/2 tablespoons butter and increase the baking time as directed in step 4. Feel free to substitute any good melting cheese, such as Havarti, sharp cheddar, or colby.
Instructions:
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 225 degrees. Arrange bread in single layer on large baking sheet and bake until dry and crisp, about 40 minutes, turning slices over halfway through drying time. (Alternatively, leave slices out overnight to dry.) When cooled, butter slices on one side with 2 tablespoons butter; set aside.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Sauté shallots until fragrant and translucent, about 3 minutes; add spinach and salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring occasionally, until spinach and shallots are combined, about 2 minutes. Transfer to medium bowl; set aside. Add wine to skillet, increase heat to medium-high, and simmer until reduced to 1/4 cup, 2 to 3 minutes; set aside.
3. Butter 8-inch square baking dish with remaining 1 tablespoon butter; arrange half the buttered bread slices, buttered-side up, in single layer in dish. Sprinkle half of spinach mixture, then 1/2 cup grated cheese evenly over bread slices. Arrange remaining bread slices in single layer over cheese; sprinkle remaining spinach mixture and another 1/2 cup cheese evenly over bread. Whisk eggs in medium bowl until combined; whisk in reduced wine, half-and-half, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Pour egg mixture evenly over bread layers; cover surface flush with plastic wrap, weigh down (see note, above), and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
4. Remove dish from refrigerator and let stand at room temperature 20 minutes. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Uncover strata and sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup cheese evenly over surface; bake until both edges and center are puffed and edges have pulled away slightly from sides of dish, 50 to 55 minutes (or about 60 minutes for doubled recipe). Cool on wire rack 5 minutes; serve.
I am planning on making this for a teacher’s event at my son’s school this week, so to make sure I knew what I was doing first, I made it this weekend to test it out. Knowing I would need to do it the night before this week, I made it on a Saturday night to bake off Sunday morning for my family. I LOVED the ease of just putting it in the oven in the morning, and WOW it delivered! I will note some changes I made in case it’s helpful to anyone else- – my grocery store didn’t have shallots, so I used 1/2 cup yellow onion instead, and it worked great – I omitted the wine reduction (serving it at a school and felt funny about putting wine on the ingredient list!)- it doesn’t seem lacking at all without it in my opinion – my husband and I loved the Gruyère, but I think for a crowd, the flavor is very pungent and might not be for everyone. For a crowd, I think I will replace it with cheddar or havarti This is a recipe I definitely plan on keeping! The Italian bread slices gave it such a nice thickness, and it is very impressive coming out of the oven!