“Life doesn’t come with a manual, it comes with a mother.” –unknown

I made the Japanese bread recipe, which was interesting, but then I had to do something with it, besides eat it! When I think back on making bread, the person it reminds me most of is my mother. My mother is in my baking a lot. It is her voice I hear in my head when I am mixing a recipe, and it is what she taught me that makes me comfortable with changing things up and trying new recipes. My mother taught me the science behind baking, so I would know how to create my own recipes and do my own thing. My mother taught me many things, because she believed in educated people. Everything she did had a lesson behind it, even dinner ended up with a geography lesson most nights. Learning was always fun and interesting with my mother. Even baking was about teaching, but for me it was more than the science, it was the time spent with her.

When I look back through my youth the images of my mom always include her doing something with her hands. I can see her kneading dough, peeling apples, trimming her plants or digging in the dirt. She was always happy when she was messy. As I bake, or do most things, I find myself singing songs, whistling or humming a tune. This was another thing that my mom taught me; music lifts the soul. She would always say that she knew when we (her children) were happy because we were singing or humming, and it’s hard to sing when you are sad. This may not be true for everyone, but in my life I have found that there isn’t a song in my head when I am sad, and so I turn to baking. You can’t be sad when you bake. I can’t be sad when I bake because my mom’s voice is there, and she has a beautiful voice. She always tried to ‘embarrass’ us in public by singing out loud, but she never did, most of the time we joined in. It might have been embarrassing if she didn’t have an amazing singing voice.

Today I choose to make French toast, and I invited friends to share. My mom makes amazing French toast, and she always served it with real maple syrup or fresh berries and whip cream. She would cut the toast into strips so that little hands had an easier time holding them. I decided to continue with the Japanese theme, and use the bread I made, and make a version of the Shibuya French Toast.

Japanese Apple French Toast

Ingredients:

2 apples sliced

1 cup sugar and 2 tbsps.

3 tbsps. Cinnamon

Fresh Baked bread loafs (one for each person)

2 cups fresh whipped cream

1 cup blueberries

1 cup butter

1 egg

• Cut top from bread loaf

• Remove center-cut into small squares (bite sized pieces)

• Whisk egg, 1 tbsps. Cinnamon, 2 tbsps. Sugar

• Dip bread pieces into egg mix

• Fry lightly on both sides (about 1 minute each side)

• Remove to baking sheet

• Cut top from bread loaf

• Remove center-cut into small squares (bite sized pieces)

• Whisk egg, 1 tbsps. Cinnamon, 2 tbsps. Sugar

• Dip bread pieces into egg mix

• Fry lightly on both sides (about 1 minute each side)

• Remove to baking sheet

• Drizzle melted butter over hollowed loafs and fried bread pieces

• Bake at 220 Celsius for 15 minutes

• Place hollowed loafs on plate, fill with fried bread pieces

• Mix apples, remaining sugar and cinnamon (bake for 15 minutes @ 200 Celsius)

• Remove and top French toast

• Add whipped cream

• Top with blueberries

*Baker’s note: This was easy to make once the bread was baked and ready. The center of the loafs are easiest to remove if the bread is fresh and warm out of the oven, so maybe plan it that way. Feel free to use any fruits or toppings that you like, I just had a lot of apples from apple picking so it worked out for me. You can bake the apples while you are prepping the French toast to go in the oven; I just did it after so they were hot and fresh. Invite friends, cook up some bacon, make mimosas (or don’t) and enjoy your morning!

#baking #recipes