French Toast Casserole

When I posted my Earth Day Lunch and mentioned that I make a French Toast Casserole with the bread left overs I have from making my sandwiches, some of you asked for the recipe.
So, here it is :)

French Toast Casserole

5 cups of cubed bread
(= about one gallon sized ziploc bag full)

4 beaten eggs

1 1/2 cups of milk

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup butter

1/3 cup of pancake mix

cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in your casserole dish.
(just put the casserole dish with the butter into the oven for a couple of minutes :)

In large bowl mix beaten eggs, milk, 2 tablespoons of sugar, salt and vanilla together.

Then add 1/3 cup of pancake mix and mix well.

Carefully add bread to mixture and coat well.
(You can also add bread to casserole dish and pour the milk-egg mixture over it. If you do, let the dish stand for a couple of minutes until all the liquid is absorbed. I like tossing the bread - even though it is messy - because it coats the bread faster :)

Add to buttered casserolle dish.

Cut remaining butter into small pieces and sprinkle of the French Toast Casserole, then

sprinkle with remaining sugar and cinnamon to taste (I add the rest of the sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon of cinnamon).

Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 - 20 minutes or until brown and crispy.

I serve mine with applesauce or fruit and we never have left overs :)

Enjoy!

EaRtH DaY LuNcH

Sunday is Earth Day!

To celebrate we are having an awesome Blog Hop again, so come and join the Earth day fun!

I don't always show everything I pack for the kids but today I wanted to show you that we only pack re-usable lunch containers and utensils. I always pack lunch in a re-usable lunch container like the EasyLunchboxes, the kids also bring a re-usable water bottle with ice water, a spork for yogurt and fruit and since last week a cloth napkin. There is always a yogurt in their lunch, too. I don't make yogurt myself, so that is our only throw away item. However, I do re-use yogurt containers for water coloring, bento pick storage and crafts, so they don't go in the trash either unless they are recycled at school :)

I made a no-waste lunch for today. There is the little boy holding and caring for the Earth sandwich decorated with melted chocolate from a left over chocolate Easter Bunny (re-use and recycle!), mini carrots with Earth bento picks, and yellow peppers with ranch dressing in a re-usable dip container decorated with a pepper heart. Because we heart the Earth. And of course everything is packed in my favorite re-usable EasyLunchboxes container!

If you wonder how I could have made a no-waste lunch with cookie cutter cut sandwiches, here is how:

I do have bread left overs when I cut sandwiches into shapes - obviously. But since I cut my bread before I put the filling in - I can save the rest.

Save the rest? Good question ;)

I save all my bread scraps in a freezer bag in my freezer and once it is full I cut all scraps into cubes and make French Toast Casserole :)

I makes the best French Toast Casserole and I feel good about not throwing away good food :)

Especially if you saw the Food Network Special "Hunger Hits Home" you know why I am especially careful about not wasting food. It is so hard to know that 1 out of 4 children under the age of 5 goes hungry every day here in the United States and I always urge my kids to remember that we should not waste food if others have none!

If you wonder what to do with veggie and other left over scraps, check out this post from BentOnBetterLunches!

Happy Earth Day 2012!

And now please check out Keeley's Earthy lunch here:

Helping with one no-waste lunch at a time!