Ingredients
1 pound Italian bread loaf
1 stick butter, melted
1/8 cup olive oil
3 teaspoon onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
3 teaspoon parsley, chopped
12 ounces cheese, shredded, such as cheddar, mozzarella, and monterey jack

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 350*F. 

2. Mix melted butter, olive oil, onion, garlic, mustard, poppy seeds, and parsley in a medium bowl. 

3. Deeply score bread into cubes, being careful not to cut all the way through the bottom crust. 

4. Pour butter mixture carefully into criss cross scoring, using a spoon and making sure to get mixture into all the slices.  Work cheeses into cracks. 

5. Wrap loaf with foil, sealing sides, and bake 15 to 20 minutes.  Remove from oven, unwrap loaf, and bake another 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and gooey. 

Photo

Comments
This recipe is from Food Wanderings in Asia.  This is an amazingly decadent and delicious version of garlic bread and I can’t wait to revisit this recipe to get a picture since I don’t think I took one initially!

Ingredients
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon dried herb mix, such as Sandwich Sprinkle
2 cans Pillsbury Grands  Flaky Layers biscuit dough, each biscuit cut into quarters
3/4 cup butter
8 - 10 cloves garlic, minced

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 350*F.  Spray bundt pan with cooking spray. 

2. Combine grated Parmesan, salt, pepper, and herb mix in large ziptop bag.  Add biscuits to bag and shake well to coat.  Place biscuit pieces into bundt pan. 

3. Put butter and garlic in small microwavable bowl.  Microwave 1 to 2 minutes or until butter has melted.  Stir with fork them drizzle evenly over biscuit dough. 

4. Bake 35 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool 10 minutes then place plate on top of pan, invert, and remove pan. The bread should slide out nicely.  Serve warm. 



Comments
This recipe is from Pillsbury.  The original recipe calls for 4 tubes of biscuits, but that seemed like it had to be a typo!  I used two tubes and that worked out perfectly.  I thought these were very tasty, but I think I might cut back on the butter next time, perhaps just half a cup would do the trick?

Ingredients
8 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup whole milk
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
12 ounces gruyere cheese, shredded
8 slices sandwich bread of your choice
8 to 12 slices deli ham
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 eggs
Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions
1. Heat broiler. 

2. To make béchamel sauce melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat.  Whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly, until flour begins to color.  Stir in milk then add bay leaf.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture thickens, about 10 to 12 minutes.  Remove bay leaf and stir in salt and Parmesan and gruyere.  Let cool until ready to use. 

2. Arrange 4 slices of bread on flat surface.  Top each with 2 to 3 slices of ham.  Spread a spoonful of sauce on top of each sandwich then top with remaining slices of bread. 

3. Heat 3 tablespoons butter in large skillet.  Add two sandwiches and brown on one side, about 2 minute.  Flip sandwiches and brown on other side, about 2 more minutes.  Transfer to baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Repeat process with remaining 3 tablespoons butter and 2 sandwiches. 

4. Split the remaining béchamel sauce over top of 4 sandwiches then transfer baking sheet to broiler.  Broil until the tops of sandwiches brown, 2 to 5 minutes. 

5. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in skillet and fry the eggs to desired doneness.  Place one egg on top of each sandwich then serve. 



Comments
This recipe is from Kitchenette.  I first heard about Croque Madames in high school French class.  You can remember the difference between Croque Madames and Croque Monsieurs because women have eggs.  Bad joke, right?  But it works! 

Lance and I really enjoyed these sandwiches but they were super filling.  Next time, I would omit the top slice of bread and make these as open face half sandwiches.  I.e., bread, ham, béchamel, and fried egg.  I’m not sure if I’d toast the bread first or if I’d give it a few minutes in the skillet with nothing on top of it.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups wheat berries
2 tablespoons plus 1/2 cup olive oil
2 cups frozen corn kernels
2 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 handful basil leaves, thinly sliced
6 large tomatoes, diced, or 3 cups small tomatoes, halved
2/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated or shredded

Instructions
1. Place wheat berries in dry skillet over medium-high heat.  Toast, stirring constantly, until the grains pop and deepen in color, about 4 minutes. 

2. Place wheat berries in rice cooker bowl and cover with hot water; let soak in machine for 1 hour.  Drain wheat berries and return them to rice cooked.  Add 3 cups water, 1 pinch salt and stir to combine.  Close machine and set for brown rice or regular cycle. 

3. When machine finishes cooking, let wheat berries steam in cooker for 15 minutes then transfer to sieve to drain. 

4. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Add corn and pinch of salt.  Stir corn occasionally and cook until a bit browned, about 10 minutes.  Transfer corn to large bowl. 

5. Add another tablespoon olive oil to skillet and cook sliced zucchini, stirring often, until tender, about 2 to 3 minutes.  Transfer zucchini to bowl with corn. 

6. Pour 1/2 cup olive oil into immersion blender cup and add lemon juice, garlic, salt, black pepper, and half of basil leaves.  Blend until smooth. 

7. Transfer wheat berries to bowl with corn and zucchini.  Add dressing, Parmesan, tomatoes, and remaining basil.  Stir to combine and season with extra salt and pepper if necessary. 



Comments
This recipe is from The Flour Sack.  I feel like I made it forever ago so I don’t remember much about it, only that it was tasty and we enjoyed it.  Fresh corn kernels would probably be better, but I don’t always have the patience for that! This was a good way to use up lots of in season veggies, though.  The original recipe called for barley, but I’ve got a ton of wheat berries and I’m happy to say that they worked super well. 

Shown here with some roast that I have no recipe for.

Ingredients
Butter, for the baking dish
8 ounce loaf of bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup olive oil
1 large shallot, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup fresh basil, chopped
1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese, grated
7 large eggs
1 cup whole milk

Instructions
1. Heat the oven to 375*F.

2. Butter a 9 by 12-inch glass baking dish. Add the bread cubes and set aside.

3. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook 2 minutes, until slightly soft. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the basil.

4. Pour the tomato mixture over the bread cubes, add Parmesan, and combine well.

5. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, milk, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper until smooth. Pour the custard over the bread mixture and gently toss to coat.

6. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until slightly puffed and golden. Cool 5 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve.



Comments
This recipe is from Weeknights with Giada.  I picked it because I had a bunch of leftover little tomatoes that I thought this would use up nicely.  This was a very tasty dish, a nice and savory strata type of thing.  The basil was lovely and all the flavors worked very well together.  Yet again, Giada delivers. 

Shown here with Mom’s Chicken.