Torrijas (p. 462)

Torrijas are Spanish Sweet French Toast with Citrus Syrup and, despite being in the dessert section of the cookbook, Matt and I had them for breakfast this morning. Perhaps not the most 4th of July-like recipe, but still something special for my favorite holiday of the year.

The syrup part takes the longest, so I started that first, combining fresh squeezed orange and lemon juice.

Add in brandy, Cointreau, sugar, and orange zest in a small sauce pan, and cook down into a thick liquid.

Meanwhile, I also had a sauce pan on the stove of milk, a cinnamon stick, and lemon zest. This cooked on a much lower temperature, just to thicken and allow the milk to absorb the flavors of lemon and cinnamon.

For my bread I used Challah, but you could use any crusty white bread.

Once sliced, lay these out flat in a rectangular dish and pour the heated milk mixture (minus the aromatics) over the bread to soak for several minutes.

From here on, you cook this just like french toast. Dip each milky slice into beaten egg and put in a heated skillet with a little olive oil. Cook on each side until done.

 Then serve, with the citrus syrup.

This is much sweeter than normal French toast, but a great spin on it. The Challah bread cooked beautifully and added its own flavor to the dish. I served this with bacon to have a little savory addition to the meal, and we had a lovely 4th of July breakfast. Even if I never make this recipe again, I think from now on  I'll make my French toast extra special by pouring the heated, flavored milk mixture over the bread to sit aside for a few minutes before cooking. 

oranges -- $1.58

brandy -- $5.99 (tons left)

lemon -- $.57

Total Cost of Torrijas: $8.14

($2.71 per serving)