If you have any leftover eggnog in the punch bowl, you can make this treat on Christmas morning.

Eggnog French Toast

2 cups homemade eggnog (see note)
2 eggs
2 tablespoons rum or 1 teaspoon rum extract
12 slices day-old cinnamon raisin bread
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter
Nutmeg, for garnish
Cinnamon, for garnish
Maple syrup, for serving (optional)

In a medium bowl, beat eggnog with the eggs and rum.  Put mixture in a  flat pan. Soak bread in eggnog mixture about 5 minutes, turning to be sure all of the bread is soaked.

In a skillet, melt some of the butter until it begins to sizzle. Then add 2 slices of bread, cooking on both sides until toasted. Sprinkle nutmeg and cinnamon on top before serving. Pass the maple syrup.

Note:  If using store-bought eggnog, use 2 cups eggnog. Whisk in 3 eggs and add rum and/or bourbon (or rum extract) to taste.

Makes 6-8 servings.

From John Griffin and Bonnie Walker

(Photo: Mathilda Tan)

Greet Christmas morning with these pancakes sweetened with applesauce. Serve with maple syrup and butter.

Union Pacific Apple Pancakes

1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1/2 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cups applesauce

Sift together flour, salt and baking powder in a medium bowl.

[amazon-product]143914706X[/amazon-product]Combine the butter, milk and egg. Stir into the flour mixture.

Add the vanilla and applesauce. Beat well.

Spoon the batter onto a hot, well-greased griddle, allowing enough batter to make 4-inch cakes. When the edges are slightly browned, turn the pancakes and cook on the other side.

Makes 2 servings.

(Photo: Nicholas Mistry)

From “America’s Most Wanted Recipes” by Ron Douglas

This recipe isn’t afraid to gild the lily by infusing the eggs with truffle aroma for a week. Then you add truffle oil and chopped truffle to the final scramble. It’s not inexpensive; and neither should be the Champagne you serve with it.

Truffled Eggs

1 dozen eggs
1 ounce black truffle, finely shaved
1 teaspoon truffle oil
Salt, to taste
White or black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons butter

Several days before serving, place the uncooked eggs whole in a jar with truffle shavings. Seal well so aroma of truffle is not released.

On the day of cooking, remove the eggs from the jar and crack each into a bowl. Whisk and add truffle oil, salt and pepper to taste.

In a large frying pan, melt butter. Reduce heat to low and cook eggs slowly until scrambled to desired doneness. While eggs are cooking, chop up some of the truffle and sprinkle over the eggs.

Use the rest of the truffle in other recipes.

Makes 4-6 servings.

From John Griffin

Beignets

1 envelope active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water (approx. 105 degrees)
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup evaporated milk
7 cups flour, divided use
1/4 cup shortening, softened
Oil for deep frying
Powdered sugar

In large bowl, sprinkle yeast over the warm water; stir to dissolve and let stand for 5 minutes. Add sugar, salt, beaten eggs, and evaporated milk. Whisk or use electric mixer to blend thoroughly. Add 4 cups of the flour; beat until smooth. Add shortening; gradually blend in remaining flour. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 4 hours or overnight. Roll out on floured board to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into 2 1/2 to 3-inch squares. Deep fry at 360 degrees for 2 to 3 minutes until lightly browned on both sides. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle generously with powdered sugar. Serve hot with coffee.
Dough can be cut and frozen, separated in container with waxed paper.

Makes 4 to 5 dozen.

From About.com.

“Eggs Sardou was created at Antoine’s, named after French playwright Victorien Sardou, and remains one of the grandest of the grand New Orleans egg dishes, of which there are many,” according to NOLACuisine.com. “I boiled fresh artichokes for this recipe, but it would certainly be all right to use good quality canned artichoke bottoms; in fact, I wish I had, it wasn’t worth the extra effort and cost.”

Eggs Sardou

4 poached eggs (see below)
1 recipe creamed spinach (see below)
1 recipe Hollandaise sauce (see below)
Slices of prosciutto, optional
4 artichoke bottoms
Paprika for sprinkling

Poached eggs:

Fill a dutch oven with 1 inch of water, heat until just below a simmer. Add a few dashes of white vinegar. Crack the eggs and gently drop them into the water, keeping the shell as close to the water as possible when dropping them in. With a slotted spoon, gently move the ghost like strands of white back to the yolk. The eggs are done when the whites are no longer transparent, and the yolks are still runny. Remove with a slotted spoon and gently dry off with a towel.

Creamed spinach:

1 cup cooked and chopped spinach, squeezed in a kitchen towel to remove excess water
1 pint heavy cream, reduced by 3/4 of its volume
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of cayenne
1 teaspoon Crystal Hot Sauce
Drops of Worcestershire sauce
Kosher salt, to taste

In a saucepan over low heat, add spinach. Stir in cream. Add nutmeg, cayenne, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Adjust seasonings to taste and cook until flavors are melded.

Hollandaise sauce:

2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup clarified butter, warm
Kosher salt, to taste
Cayenne pepper, to taste
Dash of Crystal Hot Sauce
Drops of Worcestershire sauce

Place the vinegar, lemon juice, and egg yolks in the top deck of a double boiler. The water in the lower deck should be hot but not boiling.

Whisk slowly until you see the yolks start to coagulate on the sides. If the pan gets too hot, remove it from the heat for a minute, whisking constantly.

Whisk while cooking, minding the bowl temperature, until the yolks are lighter in color and do not leave yellow streaks when the whisk goes through them. If you see any signs of scrambling, remove the bowl from the heat.

When the yolk/acid mixture is good and thick, remove from the heat and slowly drizzle in the clarified butter, whisking constantly, until incorporated.

Add the hot and Worcestershire sauces, and season to taste with the salt and cayenne.

If the sauce is a little too thick, you can thin it down with a few splashes of hot water.

Makes about 2/3 cup.

To assemble: Divide the creamed spinach in the center of two heated plates, nest two artichoke bottoms per plate on the spinach. Place prosciutto on each artichoke bottom, if using, followed by a poached egg. Top with a generous portion of Hollandaise sauce. Sprinkle with paprika. Serve.

Makes 2 servings.

Adapted from NOLACuisine.com.

For some, the Christmas dinner is the family meal of the year. For the past few years, the breakfast on that day has become the main event.

Chalk it up to people’s schedules, which extend late into Christmas Eve. By the time I get to my colleague Bonnie’s house, it’s late in the morning. No one has any church services left to play for (Bonnie and her husband are organists, I play in a bell choir), and no one has anything on their minds but a strong cup of coffee and a desire to relax as late as possible. The work of the holiday is done. Now comes the time to snuggle up with a cat (there are enough to go around) and let the ease of the day envelop you.

Recipe: Eggnog Gives French Toast a Welcome Kick

It’s the perfect setting to make a meal in as leisurely a manner as possible.

It’s also a great time to experiment. So, one year we made Eggnog French Toast, in which the cinnamon-raisin bread was drenched in an eggy sauce before being fried. A touch of rum, a sprinkle of nutmeg, a little more cinnamon, and we were all set. A few jalapeño-cheddar links from our favorite Texas sausage maker completed the meal in style.

Another Christmas morning was planned to within an inch of its life because of the time it took to prepare. That was the year of the Truffled Eggs. I had never cooked with an actual truffle before (my wallet had a little more elasticity then), but I had tasted a dish in which you flavored the eggs for a week with the black truffle. You just place eggs and truffle shavings in an air-tight jar and let them set for a week; the aroma of the truffle is so strong it will permeate the shell.

When it’s time to scramble the eggs, you chop up a bit of the truffle and add a touch of truffle oil to make sure your lily has been appropriately gilded. Serve with copious amounts of Champagne to cut through the richness of the dish.

Recipe: Beignets Bring the Flavor of New Orleans to Your Kitchen

I had also made a flourless chocolate cake with grappa-soaked dried cherries and toasted pine nuts as a dessert. It, too, was so rich that we waited awhile before giving it the full attention it deserved.

Last year, it was pancakes, but with a subtle lift from applesauce. Perfect, of course, with sausage or bacon or any other pork product you have on hand.

How should we expand the repertoire this year? Bonnie has suggested something with a New Orleans touch this year, specifically beignets and Eggs Sardou. Sounds perfect. You shouldn’t be rushed when making a hollandaise sauce. And those in the kitchen can munch on the beignets along with the rest of the gathering while preparing the eggs.

Just the right unhurried feel before settling into the thrill of exchanging presents, another part of the schedule that’s been shuffled about a bit, and no one seems to mind.

Being together is what matters. If you keep that mind, your holiday meal, no matter what you serve, will be special.

Recipe: Eggs Sardou Offer a Taste of New Orleans

Recipe: Sweeten Your Pancakes With Applesauce

Recipe: Truffled Eggs Make for an Extravagant Breakfast

(Top photo: Kasey Albano)