This is Food Day on the blog, you you know Strata is going to turn out to be edible. Appropriately enough, today’s Google Doodle celebrates Nicolas Steno, the father of stratigraphy (the geological kind).
Strata means layers, and the kind of strata I’m writing about today is another term for “layered casserole”. They’re very good and they’re very easy, which is why I say they rock, although you can make them as complex and difficult as you choose. I’m sure Nero Wolfe and Fritz Brenner would take three days to plan one, a month to gather the ingredients and a week to construct it. And Archie would call it a relapse and get disgusted and quit and …. If you haven’t read any Nero Wolfe mysteries, do so.
ANYWAY, the strata I make has a bread base, an egg-and-milk body and something else. Very versatile. Here’s the one I made the other night:
CHEESE STRATA
- two pieces of leftover, stale bread, broken into small pieces
- two eggs, lightly beaten, in a measuring cup
- milk added to bring liquid level up to 1 cup
- spicy brown mustard to taste
- salt and pepper to taste
- grated cheese
Butter a small casserole. Put in the bread. Thin the mustard with a little of the egg mixture, then re-combine with the rest of the egg and milk. Add salt and pepper. Pour the egg mixture over the bread. Sprinkle on the cheese. Let sit until the liquid is absorbed by the bread. Bake at 350F for 30-40 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. [NOTE: The knife should be clean when it goes in, of course.]
Now, you could put a layer of mushrooms, spinach and/or other vegetables over the bread and egg/milk. You could use spices or herbs to vary the flavor. You could do a layer of sausage or ham or bacon or chicken.
You could make a sweet strata by starting out with sweet bread and adding fruit and/or nuts and cinnamon or nutmeg or any favorite spice.
Here’s a link to a collection of strata recipes at AllRecipes.com. Enjoy!
WRITING PROMPT: A character finds something unexpected while digging.
MA
Jim Hilton
January 11, 2012 at 11:46amLucky I wasn’t drinking milk when I read about the knife being clean when it went in! 🙂
Marian Allen
January 11, 2012 at 8:54pmJust makin’ sure. 😉
Nicholle Olores
January 11, 2012 at 7:58pmOh-oh I never taste like that so called “Cheese Strata”, I already eaten cheese but not with Strata (laughing here). My GrandMom use to cook food with her own experiment but in fairness it is very delicious. I will introduce your recipe to her and thanks for posting this recipe. God Bless.
Marian Allen
January 11, 2012 at 8:53pmHope you like it, Nicholle! Thanks for visiting. 🙂
Emilia
January 12, 2012 at 8:48am“NOTE: The knife should be clean when it goes in, of course.” – Haha, you made me smile here. 🙂 Making strata seems so easy and fast, I’ll give it a try. Maybe I should make it sweet and combine it with chocolate for my kids! 🙂 I have no idea if it is a good idea though.
Marian Allen
January 12, 2012 at 8:54amEmilia, it sounds delicious! I think using sweet bread (or regular bread with a sprinkle of sugar) and chocolate, maybe nuts, would be delicious!