Strawberry rhubarb ricotta-stuffed French toast

We kick things off this week with a recipe. And not just any recipe, but that for the ricotta-stuffed, strawberry rhubarb French toast that I made for S for Mother’s Day last weekend. This received rave reviews all around.

First, I whipped up a batch of fresh ricotta. You can use store-bought (1 or 2 cups), but fresher is always better. I also diced up a couple strawberries and added them to the cheese. This was the most time-consuming part; for as awesome as it turned out, it really didn’t require a ton of time.

Next, I sliced up a fresh loaf of bread into pieces about 2″ thick. You should end up with about 6 slices from a regular sized loaf.

Carefully cut each slice in half, about 2/3 of the way through. You could also just use regularly sliced bread, and make a sort of sandwich, but I kept each thick slice partially intact so it was all one piece. Then put a heaping tablespoon of the ricotta filling inside each slice. You can stuff it as much as you want, but I didn’t stuff it so much that things were spilling out the sides.

For the dip, whisk together one egg, one cup of milk, and a teaspoon each of vanilla and cinnamon in a large bowl. Put each slice in the mix, flipping to coat each side well. Place on a hot griddle for about 3-4 minutes per side, or until golden brown.

He really wanted some…

To make the strawberry-rhubarb compote, cut up strawberries and rhubarb (I used roughly a 2:1 ratio, so about 2 cups berries and 1 cup rhubarb), and add to a medium saucepan. Add a tablespoon or two of honey and the juice of one lemon, or 1/4 cup orange juice, then simmer for about 10-15 minutes, or until things get nice and soupy.

To serve, top a piece of the French toast with a spoonful of the compote and some freshly whipped cream, and maybe even a fan-cut strawberry. These are big enough that one is plenty for each person, and maybe even too much for some… although they’re so good that it’s hard to stop eating 🙂