Shortbread Lasso Biscuits

This shortbread recipe is loosely based on the “official” Lasso shortbread. It’s not too sweet, but it’s very buttery and tasty!

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

3/4 cup confectioners (powdered) sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 300 F.

2. Sift flour and salt into large bowl.

3. In separate bowl, butter should be soft - the consistency of mayonnaise, but not melted into a liquid.

4. Mix the vanilla into the butter.

5. Sift the sugar into the butter and mix thoroughly.

6. Mix the sifted flour into the butter/sugar mixture and combine evenly.  It will be crumbly.

7. Use a square pan, either covered with parchment paper or coated in butter. Pour the mixture into the pan and evenly spread out and press down to about 1/2” thick. Use a piece of parchment as a barrier sheet under your hand to flatten in the pan.

8. (Optional) You can cut into squares in advance before baking to make the cuts smooth later.

9. Bake until golden and firm, approximately 45-60 minutes.

10. Cool and re-slice, if necessary.

Strawberry Napoleons

My kid made these and we loved them so much, we made them weekly for a while. Delicious and a very easy recipe for kids. You could make them with other fruit or mixtures, depending on what you have or what’s in season. You could also add other flavors to the cream filling, or color it pink (or whatever color you like) to get creative and make it even more special.

Ingredients

1 box frozen puff pastry sheet (or homemade)

1 box instant vanilla pudding, 3-oz size

1 cup milk

1 1/2 cups whipped topping (like Cool Whip) or sweetened whipped cream

1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries

Powdered sugar for dusting at the end (optional)

Melted chocolate, sprinkles, or other topping for drizzling at the end (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Prepare the frozen puff pastry by thawing it and cutting it into 12 equal rectangles, using a pizza cutter or knife. You could also use a ruler if needed.

3. Add the puff pastry rectangles to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or silicone mat. Bake for 13-15 minutes until the rectangles puff up and are golden brown.

4. Remove the puff pastry rectangles from the oven and allow to cool. Split them in half to make 24 rectangles.

5. In a bowl, mix the vanilla pudding with the milk. Let it set for 5 minutes. Fold in the whipped topping, to create the pastry cream.

6. Wash and slice the strawberries. If you use frozen strawberries, thaw them out and drain away most of the juice so they’re not too drippy.

7. Using a spoon or piping bag, put some cream on a rectangle, place some strawberry slices on the cream,   Add a little more cream, and then add a puff pastry rectangle on top.  Like a little sandwich.

8. On top of each little strawberry cream pastry sandwich, top with a little more cream and a few more strawberry slices.

9. At this point, you could drizzle them with melted chocolate or dust with powdered sugar, if you want.

10. Cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.  They are best eaten fresh, but can be stored for a couple of days in the refrigerator.

French Toast Casserole

This is our favorite way to eat French Toast.  The buttery brown sugar at the bottom of each bite is the *chef’s kiss*. The outside is firm and lightly crunchy.  The inside of each bite is like a warm, fluffy pillow of awesome. No more soggy, floppy big triangles of the old fashioned kind.  THIS IS THE WAY.

Ingredients

• 1/2 loaf of bread, cut into bite-sized cubes (we use regular bread, but it could be French bread)
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 6 eggs
• 2 cups milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon, divided in 2 portions
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar for topping
• Pam or non-stick cooking spray
• Powdered sugar for topping
• Pancake syrup, or other toppings (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Butter or use Pam to grease a 13x9” baking pan.

2. Melt the butter and put in a bowl. Stir in the brown sugar until the mixture is smooth.  Pour the mixture into the bottom of the baking pan and spread it out evenly.

3. Carefully add the bread cubes to the pan, spreading them evenly over the butter/sugar mixture.

4. In a medium/large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon.  Carefully pour the egg mixture over the cubed bread, making sure to distribute it over all of the pieces and saturate them.

5. Sprinkle the other teaspoon of cinnamon and the tablespoon of brown sugar over the top of the bread cubes.

6. Bake the casserole for 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

7. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with powdered sugar and whatever toppings you like on your French Toast.