It’s May and All’s Okay

Posted on by
springtrees

Dogwoods in my neighborhood.

Silly little rhyme I know. But all is okay, thankfully, and I’m still cooking. I truly just haven’t had time to experiment on anything new due to work commitments. (Not a bad thing!)

Still, there have been moments squeezed in to enjoy the glory of Spring and some time with family and friends. Here are a couple of little slideshows of what’s been going on since last I posted…so long, long ago in April.

Mother’s Day brunch strata and some scenery in Florence, Alabama…

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Spring blooms and woodland walks…

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

And of course, I had to make some Souvlaki and tzatziki, because it reminds me so of our Spring honeymoon in Greece.

Love this cookbook.
Marinade is the key…I add peppers and onions, too.
Souvlaki from the grill with peppers and onions, roasted potatoes, Greek salad and tzatziki.

I hope this post finds you all well, enjoying happy seasons and good weather. Summer is rapidly approaching for us, and with it all the great produce that comes our way. Rest assured, I’ll be sharing more recipes with you soon so stay tuned. Have a lovely week!

Here’s the recipe for the strata I made for Mother’s Day brunch. It’s great for any special occasion and it feeds a crowd!

Prosciutto, Sun Dried Tomato and Basil Strata
(Adapted from Bon Appétit) Serves 6-8 generously

16 1/2 inch slices of sourdough bread, crusts removed
8 ounces of prosciutto, thinly sliced
8 ounces of goat cheese, crumbled
6 ounces of provolone cheese, grated
1/4 cup chopped green onion
6 Tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
1/4 cup well drained and chopped sun dried tomatoes
3 Tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
7 large eggs
2 1/2 cups 2% or whole milk
1 generous tablespoon dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Line the bottom of a 13 x 9 x 2 inch glass baking dish, or same size casserole, completely with 1 layer of bread, trimming slices to fit. Arrange half of the prosciutto over the top of the bread, then sprinkle half of the goat cheese and half of the provolone over that. Sprinkle half of the green onions, half of the sun dried tomatoes and half of the basil. Repeat the layers in that order, beginning with a second layer of bread and ending with the basil. Cut the remaining bread into 1/4 inch cubes and sprinkle over the top of the strata.

In a medium size bowl, combine the eggs, milk, mustard, salt and pepper, and whisk well. Pour the egg mixture over the strata, pressing down on the bread with a spatula. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate over night.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and uncover the strata. Let the strata sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Sprinkle the grated parmesan over the top of the strata and bake for about one hour, until the center is set and the top is golden. Cut into large squares and serve.

Note: You can substitute your favorite cheeses easily in this dish. Fontina would be nice instead of the provolone, for instance.

I served this with Citrus Salad with Mint Sugar. Delicious.

Finished Strata.

Finished Strata.

24 thoughts on “It’s May and All’s Okay”

  4. Strata is such a nice dish to serve as you can get all the work done ahead of time. I’m sure yours was a real treat on Mother’s Day. I enjoyed your slide show…it looks like you are having a beautiful spring.

    Like

    Reply ↓

  5. The blooms are gorgeous…I recall how beautiful Atlanta was during this time of year because that is where we spent our 10th wedding anniversary (18 years ago today!). I was down there on business and was staying at the Ritz; I remember convincing JT to come down for our anniversary but only if we stayed in a more affordable hotel so the day after my conference I moved to the Howard Johnson. I cried for an hour, then I took myself and tried to hunt down a hotel more in the likes of the Ritz but sadly I could not. You see we had just extended ourselves a bit more than was comfortable moving back to Toronto to our new house in the upper beach…we really shouldn’t have been travelling but JT could never say no to me. The HJ was a rude awakening for sure, not that it was bad, it just wasn’t the Ritz! We were very fortunate because my company got us tickets to the opening ceremonies for the new stadium for the Olympics (not the Olympic Opening Ceremonies, just the stadium). Al Gore (VP at the time) did the speech. It was hotter than hell and the stadium had dark blue seats…ouch! I really loved that underground mall and we had a lovely brunch in Buckhead. All in all it was a wonderful trip even with the hotel fiasco. Your strata would make an exceptional brunch for sure and I love the salad you served it with too. I’m glad you are busy with new business, it’s feast or famine in our industry for sure.

    Like

    Reply ↓

    • What a memory you have of Atlanta! Sorry you had to leave the Ritz…that is quite a come down to go from there to a Ho Jo. Yes, it can be hotter than hades here and will be pretty soon. 😉 Spring has been lovely and this week I think we move to summer in time for our Memorial Day holiday. It’s supposed to hit 90 degrees…yikes! Happy Anniversary, Eva!

      Like

      Reply ↓

  7. Hello Betsy! I call it May Madness, life is just a bit crazy. So glad you posted this delicious strata…with sun dried tomatoes got my attention. I hope things slow down a little so you can enjoy a bit of summer. Take care, BAM

    Like

    Reply ↓

    • Hi BAM! Actually it’s been March/April/May Madness around here from a work perspective, but I’m not complaining! I just don’t have time to do all the things I want to do in addition to all the ones I must do, but it will ease up. The sun dried tomatoes add a nice punch to this strata for sure. I hope all is well with you. I do plan to take a little time off during the summer, thanks! 🙂

      Like

      Reply ↓

  8. The image of your street is gorgeous. It must be so lovely to have all the snow finally melted. I love the look of your strata. I haven’t heard of a strata before – looks very yummy xx

    Like

    Reply ↓

    • Thanks, Charlie Louie! Actually that is one street over from us…it’s more narrow than our street so the trees made much more of a statement. We haven’t had any snow here since early April fortunately. I feel for our Canadian friends who just now had their snow melt a week or so ago. We’re full on into summer here this week!

      Like

      Reply ↓

    • Hi Sharyn! It’s nice to be back. I was starting to wonder if I’d decided to take a sabbatical from blogging and didn’t tell myself! 😉 We did have a gorgeous spring which is now rocketing into summer…90 degrees on Friday and all is green. Hope all is well with you.

      Like

      Reply ↓

    • I’m so glad you enjoyed the flowers and the strata, Norma. I hope you’re finally having the beautiful spring you deserve after such a brutal winter. I’m just as late catching up with everyone as I am posting!

      Like

      Reply ↓

  12. Well howdy stranger – it’s been a while! Glad to hear you’re keeping well and to see that spring is blooming so beautifully where you are. It’s getting warmer and brighter here all the time… longest day coming up in July 26th (sun comes up and officially sets 22 hours later, although it’s not like it will be “dark” at any point during that day).

    Like

    Reply ↓

    • Hi Charles! I know it’s been a while and all I can say is that working 12-14 hours a day and weekends for two months didn’t leave much time for blogging! 😉 Now summer is upon us here…spring is basically gone. Time for all those great summer veggies and peaches. So glad you are experiencing the lighter days as well. Happy weekend!

      Like

      Reply ↓

Tell me what you think... I love comments! :)