Oh, baby. I made this gluten-free strata the other day, and it was so decadent and delicious that I nearly passed out. It's a fragrant custard of blueberries and bread, nestled between two layers of crisp, cinnamon-scented streusel. Need a make-ahead casserole for Sunday brunch? This strata is for you.
Note: If you are not on a gluten-free diet (I eat wheat, but the Silver Fox does not), go ahead and tear up a crusty sourdough boule or a French baguette for the bread component. A 16-ounce loaf will do. For the streusel, use regular old-fashioned rolled oats instead of the gluten-free kind.
For gluten-free bread, I recommend the tapioca loaf pictured above. It has a neutral taste, and a texture that is dense enough to absorb all the lovely custard in the baking dish.
Enough banter. Let's make this blueberry bliss!
To make the streusel, toss 2 cups of oats into a medium bowl.
Then add 1 cup of dark, packed brown sugar...
1 teaspoon cinnamon...
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg...
A pinch of salt....
And 1 stick (4 ounces or 113 grams) cold, diced, unsalted butter.
Then fish-out your pastry-blending gadget, and use it to cut the butter into the dry ingredients. (To save time and effort, you can pulse these ingredients in a food processor.)
When you are finished, the streusel should resemble coarse crumbs.
Next, scatter half the streusel into a generously-buttered 9x13 baking dish.
And by the way, I hope you have an attractive 9x13 baking dish. Mine, made of clear glass, is rather utilitarian-looking.
But as Donald Rumsfeld never said, "You go to bake with the equipment you have, not the equipment you want."
Tough bunnies, Donald. I want the bayberry-blue baking dish you see pictured above. And after I finish writing this recipe, I intend to order it.
Now violently rip up a 16-ounce loaf of tapioca bread, and toss the pieces into the pan.
Top the bread with 1 whole pint of fresh blueberries.
Then crack 8 large eggs into a big blue bowl...
And beat them to smithereens with a wire whisk.
Then whisk in 2 1/2 cups heavy cream, half-and-half, or plain whole milk...
1 cup sugar...
And exactly 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract.
Tip the creamy-dreamy custard over the bread and berries, and then cover the dish with plastic wrap, and pop it in the fridge for several hours or over night.
Store the remaining streusel in the fridge. You won't need it until you are ready to bake.
And when you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F.
Sprinkle the remaining streusel over the strata, and bake until the custard puffs and the streusel turns golden. The dish is done when a knife inserted in the center of the casserole comes out fairly (not completely) clean -- 45 minutes to 1 hour. In my low-end gas oven, the dish baked to moist and marvelous perfection in 50 minutes.
Would you believe that I ate half of this strata all by myself? Well, I did. And then, to preserve what little dignity I had left, I wrapped up the other half and foisted it onto Brenda Johnson, my taste-tester. Hopefully, Brenda's willpower is stronger than mine.
Here's a copy-and-paste version of the above:
Blueberry Streusel Strata (GF)
Kevin Lee Jacobs (www.kevinleejacobs.com)
Ingredients for 8 servings
For the streusel:
2 cups gluten-free oats (or use regular, "old-fashioned" oats)
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
A pinch of salt
1 stick cold unsalted butter, diced
For the filling:
1 16-ounce loaf tapioca bread, roughly torn (or, use a crusty baguette or sourdough boule)
1 pint fresh blueberries
8 large eggs
2 1/2 cups half and half OR 2 cups half and half plus 1/2 cup whole milk
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
The streusel -- Put the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and diced butter in a medium bowl. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry-blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (To save time, you can pulse the ingredients in a food processor.) Scatter half the streusel in the bottom of a greased 9x13 baking dish. Put the remaining streusel in a plastic bag, and refrigerate until baking-time.
The filling -- Put the torn bread in the streusel-lined baking dish, and top with the blueberries. Crack the eggs into a large bowl, and beat them well with a wire whisk. Then whisk in the half-and-half, sugar, and vanilla. Pour this custard over the berries and bread.
Chilling the strata -- Cover the baking dish with plastic wrap. Chill in the fridge for several hours or over night.
Baking the strata -- Center the oven rack, and preheat the oven to 350°F. Sprinkle the remaining streusel over the strata. Bake in the preheated oven until puffed and golden, or when a knife inserted in the center comes out almost (not completely) clean -- 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Serve hot or warm. Delicious with mimosas for brunch.
Think you'll give this recipe a go? You can let me know by leaving a comment.
And while you're thinking of something to say, be sure to sign up for my email updates!
More breakfast fun:
Cottage Cheese Pancakes (low carb!)
Sunday Brunch: Creamy Gratin of Hard-Cooked Eggs
Organic Cinnamon-Maple Granola
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