[1] Make it in advance. In the morning, just place it in the oven (photo © Kraft).

[2] To cube bread, day-old (or even two-day-old) is better (photo †© King Arthur Baking).

[3] Cook and crumble bacon (photo © iGourmet).

[4] Grate a brick of Cheddar (photo © Microplane).

We tried this do-ahead baked egg bake recipe this past weekend, and enjoyed the ease of doing the prep work in advance.

We rolled out of bed, turned on the oven to preheat, and within the hour were enjoying a sumptuous casserole.

The recipe calls for spinach, bacon, and Cheddar, but you can customize it as you like.

 
 
DO-AHEAD EGG BAKE (CASSEROLE)

The recipe is courtesy Kraft. Prep time is 20 minutes, cook time is 40-50 minutes.

Ingredients For 12 Servings

 
Preparation

1. WHISK eggs and milk in large bowl until well blended. Stir in bread. Add spinach, bacon and 1-1/2 cups cheese; mix lightly.

2. POUR into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; top with remaining cheese. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

3. HEAT oven to 350°F. Bake, uncovered, 48 to 50 minutes or until the top is puffed and golden brown.
 
 
TIP: FRESH EGGS ARE THE BEST

You can make your egg dishes and baked goods even more flavorful with Eggland’s Best. Because the eggs are typically delivered to supermarkets within 72 hours of laying, they have a great fresh-from-the-farm taste.

Of course, your retailer needs to put the fresh eggs on the shelf, rather than stockpiling them in the warehouse. Check with the store manager to be sure.
 
 
TIP: DIAL DOWN THE CALORIES

You can save 50 calories and 6 g total fat per serving by preparing this recipe with cholesterol-free egg product, fat-free milk, turkey bacon and 2% milk shredded Cheddar cheese.
 
 
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*You’ll need about half of 1-pound loaf of bread to get the 8 cups of cubes.
 
 
 
 

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By the way, today is National Caramel Apple Day, a perfect day to make this cocktail. If you want to make actual caramel apples, here’s the recipe.

The difference between candy apples and caramel apples, and caramel apples vs. toffee apples, is below.
 
 
RECIPE #1: TOFFEE APPLE (CARAMEL APPLE) MARTINI

Ingredients For 1 Drink

 
Preparation

1. SHAKE all ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled Martini glass.

2. GARNISH with an apple slice.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. PLACE a handful of toffee in the bottom of a saucepan and add half a cup of warm water.

2. COOK over gentle heat, stirring until the toffee is dissolved. Allow it to cool.
below 

 
 
CARAMEL APPLES VS. TOFFEE APPLES

Caramel apples are the same as toffee apples; the former term is more popular in the U.S., the latter in the U.K. However, caramel candy is different from toffee candy, and the term “toffee apple,” while prevalent, is not accurate.

Both caramel and toffee are made by combining sugar, butter, and water. Caramels add milk or cream (and sometimes, flavors) and are cooked at a lower heat, to the firm-ball stage (248°F). Both of these factors make them softer and chewier than toffee.

So if it’s soft, it’s caramel.

There are numerous sweets on the market called “toffee” that are actually caramel, including “toffee apples.” If the apple were coated in actual toffee, it would be even harder to bite into than the hard red candy apple coating.
 
Here’s more on the differences between butterscotch, caramel, taffy and toffy.
  
 
 

 
Serve with:

Our once-a-year arrived when we received this recipe. This is a festive, make-ahead dish: The shrimp can be breaded up to 24 hours in advance and kept refrigerated. Prep time 30 minutes.

The recipe is by Johnny Prep. It can be served family style, or individually plated.

 
RECIPE: COCONUT SHRIMP WITH SPICY
APRICOT, PLUM & PINEAPPLE DIP

Ingredients For 5 Servings

For The Dipping Sauce

 
*Pitted canned prunes can be substituted.

Preparation

1. PLACE jams or preserves, pineapple and horseradish in food processor and process until ingredients are fully mixed together. Place in a dipping bowl or individual ramekins and set aside.

2. PLACE bread in food processor along with cayenne pepper; process into coarse bread crumbs. Stir in coconut.

3. PLACE bread crumbs mixture, flour and eggs into separate dredging bowls. Whisk eggs with fork. Season each with salt.

4. ARRANGE dredging containers in a row starting with flour, then eggs, then bread crumbs, plus a large plate to hold the breaded shrimp. Shrimp can be breaded up to 24 hours in advanced and kept refrigerated.

5. DREDGE each shrimp in flour first, then egg wash, then breadcrumbs. Apply pressure during breadcrumb stage to ensure full coating.

6. FRY shrimp until golden brown in oil, using a deep frying pan or a deep fryer. Drain on paper towels and season lightly with salt.

7. PLACE on a platter with the dipping bowl in the center; or divide into individually plated portions.
ABOUT CHEF JOHNNY PREP

Chef Johnny Prep is an author, entrepreneur, cooking show host, soup expert, and an advocate for children’s health. The author of The Five Star Entertaining Casual Cookbook, simple high-end restaurant-quality recipes. Visit JohnnyPrep.net.

A few years ago, our globe-trotting gourmet friends, Laurel and Harry, returned from Florence raving about a particular meal. The primi and secondi piatti were outstanding in their own right, but the dessert was an epiphany—an incredible, edible forest.

As they explained it, they were served a plate that looked like a ceramic sculpture of an enchanted forest. But every tree, blade of grass, flora and fauna were made of cake, cookies, bread pudding or other dessert.

The pastry chef subsequently left to achieve fame on Italian food TV, but we have always dreamed of that dessert.

While it would take amazing technique to reproduce it, we did come across this sylvan yet approachable steak tartare from the gifted chefs at David Burke Fromagerie.

 
Then, enjoy your edible art.