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I'm Helen Jane. I think you should celebrate something, anything every day. Join me in that pursuit, won't you?comments lately
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Hypothetical Academy Awards Party
March 8th, 2010
Because we’re moving and everything fun is in a box, we didn’t have an Academy Awards Party.
But if we weren’t moving and
everything fun was out of the box and
we’d had friends coming over for the Academy Awards,
I’d have done something fun.
We’d take your photo on a fake red carpet.
We’d have cleverly themed foods.
We’d fast-forward through all the commercials.
In the meantime, this is what we’re doing.
We go go go until we stop stop stop.
We stop stop stop when it’s time for a nap.
Hey, are you following me on Twitter?
I post at least two entertaining tips every day.
Entertaining!
Helen Jane’s Sticky Baked French Toast Recipe
February 26th, 2010
I went looking for this recipe in my archives and lost it. No tags, no titles, it’s gone. So thanks to Ann over at RecipeZaar who archived it for me to re-post and meta meta blogity blog blog blog.
From her description:
This is a delicious pan of french toast that is perfect for brunch. It is refrigerated overnight. I found this recipe at helenjane.com in 2005 and baked it for my family. Thanks Helen Jane, the family enjoyed it and I want to have it archived on the computer since I cannot find it on your site any longer.
Duly noted Ann!
Since the first time I posted this recipe the recipe has changed and become more custardy — because that’s what our family prefers. Note the extra butter, milk and eggs for maximum sticky awesome.
Helen Jane’s Sticky Baked French Toast Recipe
This recipe works best if you prepare the casserole dish the night before. The next morning, you just pop this tasty breakfast casserole into the oven. You could even do it — gasp – before your coffee.
Ingredients
1 loaf French bread, day old
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup (or corn syrup)
1 cup milk
8 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Whipped cream and strawberries
Directions
Cut the french bread into 1″ wide slices. I love to use leftover Cheesewhizzes or party bread for this.
In a medium sized saucepan, put maple syrup, butter and brown sugar. Heat over medium.
Stir until it all comes together and starts to bubble.
Carefully pour the hot, sticky mixture into a 13″ x 9″ baking dish.
Arrange the french bread over the mixture.
In a big bowl, beat together eggs, milk and vanilla until light colored and a little bubbly.
Pour the eggy, milky mixture over the bread (which is on the top of the hot, sticky mixture).
Cover the baking dish and refrigerate overnight. (note: You can do it just a few hours before you bake it, but it is much better if you do it the night before.).
The next morning
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Put the french toast dish in the oven and bake for one delicious hour.
Loosen the sticky baked french bread from its hot, sticky bed and invert onto a platter.
Perfection.
Serve with whipped cream & strawberries!
Hypothetical Valentine Making Party
February 12th, 2010
Those people with their sayings about, “Two kids aren’t just twice as much work…” were right.
My days zip by in a flurry of wiping, tucking and snuggling. My computer time is limited to client-work and some of the parties I want to have are thwarted. So if I had thrown this party, it would have been rad. You would have been invited. You would have brought your favorite scissors.
My sister and I have thrown Valentine’s making parties for years. We just throw all the fun craft stuff we have on a table with tools and let the ladies go. I say ladies because men haven’t historically been interested in this event. (That gets me thinking about the awesomeness of an All-Boys Valentine-Making Party. Anyway.)
So this year, were I to host a Valentine’s making party, I would have sent invitations in the mail the last week of January. They would have some vintage lady style thing on them that would be fun for the recipient to magnet to their fridge. Like this one I made in 2002 for a lady crafting party:
About three days before the party, I would make sugar cookies
Sugar Cookies
- 1 pound of butter, room temperature
- 2 cups of sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 tsp. Vanilla
- 6 cup flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. salt
Cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Add the eggs and vanilla and incorporate. Add the flour baking soda and salt and stir just until mixed.
Divide dough into four chunks, cover with plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Pace while you wait.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Roll and cut out your heart cookies, put on a cookie sheet.
Bake for 10 minutes.
When they’re cooled, decorate!
The morning of the party, I would make crustless cucumber dill sandwiches, chicken salad sandwiches and the Barefoot Contessa’s Cheddar Chutney sandwiches. I’d make a homemade pink lemonade and put it in the fridge to chill.
We’d pull out all the crafting stuffs on the table — really messy like, so no one feels bad about using the good stuff. (What is that about, anyway?)
Of course we’d serve Rosé.
We’d glue and cut and laugh and laugh.
We’d get rubber cement on our face.
We’d try something new because it is safe here. (It’s just Valentine making after all.)
When we were done, we’d have some special cards to share with the people we love.
Happy Hypothetical Valentine Making Party!