Marscapone Stuffed French Toast

Taken from Blakes Makes

For The French Toast:

• 8 slices (1/2 inch thick) of good bread (we used a small Country French round from Whole Foods)
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 tsp. salt

For The Mascarpone Filling:

• 1 8oz. tub Mascarpone cheese
• 3 to 4 tblsp. dark brown sugar
• 1 tsp. (good, Bourbon) vanilla
• dash of cinnamon

For The Berry Sauce:

• 1 1/2 cups fresh berries (we used blackberries and strawberries)
• 1 tblsp. lemon juice
• Sugar (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350.
Blend the Mascarpone with the brown sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. It will turn an amazing buff color, and will smell amazing, too. We would have had more to work with at meal time, but I made it last night (to make things easy this morning) and we couldn’t keep our little fingers out of it.

Slice the bread. Next, make little Mascarpone sandwiches by spreading a generous amount of the filling between slices. Beat the eggs, milk and salt together (I do this in a baking dish). Place the sandwiches in the egg mixture, and press down lightly so the spongy bread can drink in the yellow bliss.

Turn the sandwiches over, and repeat.

Heat some butter (enough to cover the bottom) in a skillet over medium-high heat. When the butter starts talking to you (bubbling, sputtering), place the sopping sandwiches in the skillet.

Cook for about 2 minutes on either side until golden brown. Add the French toast to a fresh, buttered baking dish. Pop them in the oven for about 5 minutes (until they cook through).

While the toast is in the oven, toss some berries with a little lemon juice in a blender. I used about a cup of fresh strawberries, and about half a cup of fresh blackberries. After the blitz, I pass the sauce through a sieve to remove the pesky little seeds, and to make the sauce silky-smooth.

The oven timer dings. I take the toast out. One French toast sandwich on a plate (I heat the plates in the microwave for 2 minutes). Drizzle over a little berry sauce, and garnish with some whole, fresh berries. Devour.