Strawberry Hedgehog (fancy French Toast)

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 7
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup skim milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 lb braided challah, unsliced
• 2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 3 large fresh strawberries, with stems (optional)

Recipe

• 1 the night before, grease a 7x11" baking pan.
• 2 beat eggs, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon together.
• 3 using a serrated knife, trim off the crust from the bread sides, leaving top and bottom intact.
• 4 place the whole loaf of bread with the long sides facing you.
• 5 using knife, starting from one short end and making your way from right to left, make 7 evenly spaced cuts halfway through the bread, making it look like a fan.
• 6 place bread in pan and pour egg mixture on top, making sure it gets inside the cuts too.
• 7 cover and chill overnight (or at least several hours).
• 8 preheat oven to 350°f.
• 9 unwrap and bake 15 minutes.
• 10 cover with foil and bake another 30-35 minutes, or until cooked through.
• 11 meanwhile, slice berries, stir in syrup and set aside.
• 12 place bread onto a serving platter and top with berries, garnishing with a few perfect large berries.