Maui Musings

Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten about you. In fact I even had grand plans to post from Maui.  But let’s be honest, when you’re in Maui the idea of sitting in front of a computer for a couple of hours is not very appealing.  There were sunrises and sunsets to watch, sea turtles to swim with and lots and lots of mai tais to consume.  A girl can stay pretty busy on vacation.

This is not to say that we did not cook anything while away.  In fact after our friends’ (fabulous) wedding we prepared most of our meals in the rental home.  And aside from preparing far too much food for the eight people staying in the home, it was quite nice and relaxing to make, or help make dinner each night. 

But there was one recipe in particular that I had been thinking about before going off to Hawaii.  This actually happens to me quite a bit.  I think of a recipe and I play around with it in my head, and it won’t leave my thoughts until I make it.  This is what I day dream about on down time – food.  So I had this idea to make a Hawaiian style French toast.  I am going to share it with you here, although it is not quite perfected yet, so if you have any suggestions or modifications you think I should make, please let me know. 

The nice thing about this French toast is that it is very simple to make, and smells wonderful in the morning.  We had a little sugar ant problem and on the morning I made this French toast, they were running around the door of the oven furiously.  I think if they could have gone in after the pans they would have.  And if ants know anything, it is where to find the most sweet and delicious foods in a kitchen. 

Also, I would like to apologize for not having pictures of the French toast, but alas, the light wasn’t quite as good (and I was slightly embarrassed to be lining up beauty shots of breakfast). 

Maui Toast

A friend suggested adding shredded or desiccated coconut to this.  Personally I am not a huge fan of shredded coconut, but if you are, please try it.  I also thought that adding a small amount of cream of coconut to milk and eggs might enhance the coconut flavor.  Oh and you will need to prepare this the night before and let it sit in the fridge, so plan accordingly.

1 loaf King’s Hawaiian Bread (or other soft sweet bread)

1 can coconut milk
2 eggs
½ tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped macadamia nuts
Butter for greasing pan(s)
 

Slice the bread into long slices and allow to dry out for about 30 minutes. 

Meanwhile grease a 9x13” pan with butter, using more pans if necessary.  In a large bowl, whisk coconut, eggs, cinnamon and vanilla until combined. 

Place sliced bread into the pan(s) and pour the egg mixture evenly over all the slices.  Press the slices down to make sure every part has come into contact with the egg mixture.  Cover pan(s) and refrigerate overnight. 

In the morning, take the pan(s) out of the fridge and let warm up, while you preheat the oven to 350°.  Sprinkle the chopped macadamia nuts over the top of the slices and bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until the bread is golden and the smell is waking people up.  Serve with maple or coconut syrup.