ALLCAPS COOKBOOK PRESENTS: The Strata In the Middle of the Night (Savory Bread Pudding) (Patreon)

What happens when four Golden-Girls-But-Young(ish)-And-Vibrant friends who haven't seen each other all together since the pandemic started use Worldcon as an excuse to take an extra week off to live in a house where people are ALWAYS POLITE and also ALWAYS REAL because IT WAS NEVER A CONTRADICTION?

WE COOK, MY CHILDREN. 

Oh, how we cook.

Usually it's just me and my obsession with making a Spirited Away amount of food for my loved ones. But all four of us are Pretty Into That, so my dear friend Kris's kitchen was a conveyor belt of deliciousness. 

Some of these were family recipes that I've gotten permission to share with you wonderful folk--and this is one of those, from Sarah the Spectacular.

It's deceptively simple, except for the part where you have to have the plan-ahead capability to prep this the night before, and let's be honest, I rarely have that. BUT FOR FRIENDS, I CAN DO.

But oh my, in the morning? It's so light and fluffy and full of protein-umami goodness. This thing didn't even last a day, we SCARFED IT all up. It's almost like a frittata but without the density or grease? You could make it with any sort of meat or meat-substitute, I suppose--we had a lot of chorizo to get through, which was perfect. This is a great delivery mechanism for leftovers, and I will DEFINITELY be making it the morning after Thanksgiving. I might throw some green onions or sichuan peppercorns in there next time for a little bite of acid/florals. But nothing too wet or heavy it'll interfere with the rise--for example I might throw some crispier bits of Thanksgiving stuffing in and use turkey, but not cranberry sauce, I'd spoon that on after the strata came out of the oven. 

It's a savory bread pudding, essentially--follow bread pudding rules!

Honestly, the taste and texture is so good you can't go TOO wrong with any variation. A teaspoon of chili powder will spice it up if you're into that sort of thing WHICH YOU KNOW I AM.

From the Collins' kitchen to you--here's the goods!

Ingredients

1 pound ground sausage, fried/cooked (chorizo is fantastic, the more plain sausages might need a little spice help

6 pieces of bread, cubed (any kind is fine - I usually use sourdough but this was just plain white sandwich bread) 

6 eggs 

1 cup shredded sharp/extra sharp cheddar cheese   

2 cups milk 

1 tablespoon dry mustard  

Salt and pepper to taste--and any other spices you prefer. This is a "anything goes" kind of recipe

Stray Cat Strata

1) Grease 9” x 13” inch pan. 

2) Put bread, sausage, and cheese into the pan - no finesse is needed, just get it all in there. 

3) Whisk together eggs, milk, and mustard - pour over bread mixture into pan. 

4) Season with salt and pepper. 

5) Wrap with foil or cling wrap and leave in the fridge overnight, ideally with something on top to squish it a little.  

6) Bake in the morning at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes.