Spinach and cheese strata

The first time I heard of strata was in the 2005 film The Family Stone. Sarah Jessica Parker's character ends up covered in it, and then I had to make it to find out what it tasted like. I found a recipe for the one in the movie, but actually, it wasn't that good. This one, however, is really tasty. I love that I can make it the day before I have guests, meaning that I'm a bit less rushed and stressed day of.

Ingredients

  • 750g pack of frozen spinach, thawed, squeeze of all excess liquid, and chopped
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 45g butter
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
  • 8 thick slices of French or Italian white bread, cut into cubes
  • 170g Gruyère, grated
  • 60g parmesan, grated
  • 650ml milk
  • 9 large eggs
  • 2 tblsp Dijon mustard

Method

  1. In a fry pan over a medium heat, cook the onion in the butter for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper and nutmeg and continue cooking for one minute. Stir in spinach, remove from heat and set aside.

  1. Spread one third of the bread cubes in a well-buttered lasagna dish. Top with one-third of spinach mixture and one-third of each cheese. Repeat layering twice with remaining bread, spinach and cheese.

  2. Whisk eggs, milk, mustard and remaining 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper together in a large bowl and pour evenly over strata. Cover with plastic wrap and chill strata for eat least 8 hours or up to a day.

  3. The next day, let it stand at room temperature for 30 minutes while preheating the oven to 180°C. Bake strata, uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 45 to 55 minutes. If it starts to look too brown and the egg isn't set, cover with foil for the remainder of the cooking time. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

References

Perlman, Deb (22 Dec 2009). Spinach and cheese strata. Smitten Kitchen. https://smittenkitchen.com/2009/12/spinach-and-cheese-strata/

Tags

  • Recipe
  • Brunch
  • Easy