Curtis Stone’s easy yet impressive breakfast strata you can make ahead for Mother’s Day

Name: Curtis Stone’s easy yet impressive breakfast strata you can make ahead for Mother’s Day
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 8-10
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 60g unsalted butter, plus more to coat the pan; 120g (about 2 cups) sliced fresh mushrooms; 1 cup sliced leeks (white and pale green parts only); 125g (about 3 cups) rustic white bread, cubed; 1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon; 250ml (1 cup) reduced-salt vegetable stock; 500ml (2 cups) thickened cream; 6 large eggs; 1 cup grated Asiago cheese, divided; ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

Get a head start the day before, then finish off this savoury bread and butter pudding on Sunday morning.

Curtis Stone

May 9, 2023

easyTime:1-2 hoursServes:8-10

A strata is a savoury egg-and-bread casserole, which is a great way to spoil your Mum. This one is creamy and cheesy with lots of mushroomy goodness. It’s impressive yet so easy and you can cook it the day before. If you make enough, you’ll have breakfast on the go for the whole week.

Ingredients

60g unsalted butter, plus more to coat the pan
120g (about 2 cups) sliced fresh mushrooms
1 cup sliced leeks (white and pale green parts only)
125g (about 3 cups) rustic white bread, cubed
1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
250ml (1 cup) reduced-salt vegetable stock
500ml (2 cups) thickened cream
6 large eggs
1 cup grated Asiago cheese, divided
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

Method

Step 1
Preheat oven to 155C fan-forced (175C conventional). Butter a 20cm round cake tin or 22cm square baking tin.
Step 2
Melt the butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and leeks and cook for 8 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender. Stir in the bread, tarragon, 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. Stir in the stock, remove from heat and set aside.
Step 3
In a large bowl, whisk the cream and eggs to blend. Stir in ¾ cup Asiago cheese and the parmesan cheese. Fold in the mushroom mixture and transfer to the prepared tin.
Step 4
Sprinkle the remaining Asiago on top and bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes, or until the strata puffs and is golden brown on top. Allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before serving.

Tips and tricks

Get ahead

You can give yourself a head start by making the strata through to the end of step 2 the day before. Cover and refrigerate.

Buttering the tin well will stop the strata from sticking and crisp the edges.iStock

Butter is better

Don’t just grease the tin, butter it! Buttering the tin will not only help prevent the strata from sticking, it will create crispy brown, flavourful edges that will eat so well with the crunchy bread topping and custardy centre.

Get creative

You’ll always need milk or cream and eggs for a strata, but you can get creative with the remaining ingredients. Have leftover sourdough? Great! Don’t have Asiago? No problem. Swap in any other meltable cheese such as gruyere or cheddar. Strata is very forgiving and all-inclusive.

Cook “wet” ingredients such as mushrooms before adding to the egg mixture.iStock

Fully cook your mix-ins

Resist the urge to just throw in your mix-ins into the strata mixture. Unless it’s a tender, fresh ingredient such as asparagus or spring onions, it’s best to fully cook any addition that might release moisture into the eggs. Mushrooms, tomatoes and zucchini are common “wet” culprits than can water down your eggs. Saute them separately.

Use the toothpick method

To check your strata’s doneness during cooking, insert a toothpick into the centre. When the toothpick comes out clean, the strata is ready.

Strata leftovers

Once cooked, leftover strata sets up firm and sliceable. I like to cut leftover strata into bite-size pieces and serve as a tapas-style nibble, or brown wedges in a hot frying pan until crusty and brown.