Today is a special day as 12 bloggers from the Virtual Potluck, team past and present, have come together to support one of our own, Donna Currie of Cookistry, who just published her first cookbook with Taunton Press called Make Ahead Bread.
Donna is on a roll (pun intended) and has the most awesome giveaways planned for our readers as seen below. She is a master in the kitchen with her mad baking skills and each blogger from the VP team will be sharing recipes from the book along with the giveaways!
I had to feed a crowd this week, pure pleasure to have my family at home for several days, and strata is always a holiday dish. I make it with leftover French , Sourdough or Italian bread and in the Leftover Chapter of Make Ahead Bread (page 176), I chose the recipe for Sausage and Cheddar Strata adding spinach as seen in a similar recipe on page 177.
This book is definitely the best guide to baking bread and is quite helpful too, as it is packed with useful information and tips. Donna’s Book, Make Ahead Bread, is available for sale on Amazon. If you’d like an autographed copy, you can order one from Barbed Wire Books.
Sausage and Cheddar Strata with Spinach
Double the recipe if needed-
Ingredients:
5 whole eggs
1/2 to 3/4 cup half-and-half ( use amount to make certain bread is moistened)
salt and ground pepper, to taste
4 cups crusty Sourdough, cut into small 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 pound bulk country breakfast sausage cooked and drained (I buy mine from Fresh Market)
1/2 pound frozen chopped spinach, defrosted, drained, and squeezed to remove the water
4 ounces freshly grated cheddar cheese (mine is white not orange)
Preparation:
1) Cook the sausage in a medium sauté pan until it is no longer pink- not completely crumbled, but not huge chunks either, drain and set aside.
2) Combine eggs, half-and-half, salt & pepper, mix and set aside.
3) Layer half of the bread cubes in a buttered 1 quart casserole dish or similar and press down. Add half of the sausage spread evenly, then half of the spinach completely drained of excess water and half of the cheese. Repeat with the other half of all the ingredients, ending with the cheese.
4) Slowly and evenly pour the egg mixture all over the top making sure all bread cubes are moistened.
5) Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
6) When you are ready to bake, remove the plastic from the dish. Place the casserole in a cold oven and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Cook 1 hour and 15 minutes or until knife is inserted into the middle of the strata and comes out clean. Let the strata rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Now For The Giveaway!
There will be 12 copies of Make Ahead Bread, one to each winner.
Magimix is giving one winner a Magimix 3200XL 12-Cup Food Processor in Brushed Chrome.
WÜSTHOF is giving one winner a CLASSIC 9-inch Double Serrated Bread Knife.
Silverstone is giving a 5-piece set of bakeware (11×17 cookie pan, 10×15 cookie pan, 9×13 covered baking pan, 9×5 loaf pan and 9-inch cake pan) to one winner, in the winner’s choice of red or blue.
King Arthur Flour is giving one winner a rye bread baking kit.
Duralex is giving one winner a 9-piece set of mixing bowls.
Harold Import Company is giving three winners a made-in-the-USA hardwood baker’s rolling pin.
Microplane is giving each of the 12 winners an Elite Zester, Cube Grater, and Spiral Cutter.
GIR is giving each of the 12 winners a silicone scraper.
King Arthur Flour is giving each of the 12 winners a coupon for a bag of flour of your choice (good at your local supermarket) and a plastic bench scraper.
And Walker’s Shortbread is supplying cookies to three winners.
That’s a lot of great products to get you ready for baking this Christmas! Here is the breakdown:
Giant Super Grand Prize for one winner:
Make Ahead Bread cookbook, Magimix 3200XL 12-Cup Food Processor in Brushed Chrome, 9-Piece set of Duralex Mixing Bowls, Made in the USA hardwood baker’s rolling pin from Harold Import Company, Microplane Elite Zester, Cube Grater, and Spiral Cutter, GIR silicone scraper, Coupon for a free bag of King Arthur flour and a plastic bench scraper, One package of Walker’s shortbread cookies.
Really Big Grand Prize for one winner:
Make Ahead Bread cookbook, Wustoff CLASSIC 9-inch Double Serrated Bread Knife 5-Piece set of Silverstone Bakeware in winner’s choice of red or blue, Made in the USA hardwood baker’s rolling pin from Harold Import Company, Microplane Elite Zester, Cube Grater, and Spiral Cutter, GIR silicone scraper, Coupon for a free bag of King Arthur flour and a plastic bench scraper, One package of Walker’s shortbread cookies.
Grand Prize for one winner:
Make Ahead Bread cookbook, Rye Bread Baking Kit from King Arthur Flour, Made in the USA hardwood baker’s rolling pin from Harold Import Company, Microplane Elite Zester, Cube Grater, and Spiral Cutter, GIR silicone scraper, Coupon for a free bag of King Arthur flour and a plastic bench scraper, One package of Walker’s shortbread cookies.
NINE winners will get:
Make Ahead Bread cookbook, Microplane Elite Zester, Cube Grater, and Spiral Cutter, GIR silicone scraper, Coupon for a free bag of King Arthur flour and a plastic bench scraper.
Make sure to stop by the other FANTASTIC bloggers participating in the Cookistry Virtual Potluck Reunion Tour to check out their recipes and enter as well :
Shelby from Diabetic Foodie
Milisa from Miss in the Kitchen
Matt from Thyme in Our Kitchen
Rachel from Rachel Cooks
Tara from Foodie
Vanessa from Groovy Foody
Marnely from Cooking with Books
Jay from Bite and Booze
Theresa from Foodhunters Guide to Cuisine
Heather from Farmgirl Gourmet
Enter The Giveaway Below & Good Luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
