Food & Recipes

Make-Ahead Holiday Breakfast

Christmas Strata

After talking with a few friends and neighbors, I discovered, to my surprise, that many people celebrate Christmas morning with an egg strata type dish. It actually makes sense -- it's a complete breakfast all rolled into one breakfast entrée (except the fruit). This recipe contains bread, a serving or two from the meat and egg group, some vegetables and some dairy. That pretty much covers it.

7 slices of whole wheat bread, cubed (not the small sized slices)
canola cooking spray
2 cooked boneless and skinless chicken breasts, cubed
2/3 cup chopped green pepper
2/3 cup chopped onion
2/3 cup chopped celery
3 tablespoons light mayonnaise
1/3 cup fat free sour cream (light can be substituted)
1 large egg
1/4 cup egg substitute
1 cup fat free half and half (lowfat milk can be substituted)
1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
1 can Campbell's Healthy Request cream of mushroom soup
1 cup shredded reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese

• Place half of the bread cubes in a 9 x 9-inch baking dish that has been coated with canola cooking spray.
• In medium bowl blend chicken pieces, green pepper, onion, celery, light mayonnaise, and sour cream together. Spread the mixture over the breadcrumbs.
• Spread the remaining bread cubes over the chicken mixture.
• In mixing bowl, beat egg, egg substitute, half-and-half, and salt together until smooth. Pour egg mixture evenly over the bread cubes. Cover dish and refrigerate overnight.
• In the morning, preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spread condensed soup over the top of the casserole. Bake for 45 minutes. Sprinkle cheese over the top and bake 5 minutes longer.

Makes 6 servings.

Per serving: 326 calories, 25 g protein, 34 g carbohydrate, 10 g fat (4 g saturated fat, 2.3 g monounsaturated fat, 1 g polyunsaturated fat), 75 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 690 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 29 percent.

Overnight Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake

As its name implies, it really does go great with a cup of Christmas coffee. You could substitute cranberries in this recipe if you prefer (it will just be a bit more tart than the blueberry version).

Canola cooking spray
1 cup cake flour (regular white flour can be substituted)
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (you can delete this and use 2 cups of cake flour if desired)
3/4 cup granulated sugar (Splenda can be substituted)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons canola oil
3 tablespoons fat free sour cream (light can be substituted)
3/4 cup lowfat milk
1 large egg
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Crumb topping:
1/2 cup granulated sugar (Splenda can be substituted)
6 tablespoons cake flour or white flour
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons no or low trans margarine (butter can be substituted)
2 tablespoons fat free sour cream