Oh, breakfast, the meal of the day that you try to avoid like the plague. At least it is for me. One of the last things I want to do first thing in the morning is cook. Still, you want to give your brood the best start you can to start their day. Cereal? Easy, yes, but boring day after day. Oatmeal? Great, but we eat it almost every other day in our house. Pancakes? Delicious, but see the above — I certainly don’t have the energy for that unless someone is celebrating a birthday or it’s Saturday. Breakfast bread pudding? Sounds super complicated, right? Wrong! It’s delicious, surprisingly fast to whip up and it’s even easier to serve than cereal in the morning if prepared the night before. Bingo!

I’m always a big fan of dishes like this one because you can serve it to a crowd, it freezes beautifully (just make sure you do it before baking) and it smells like some kind of cinnamon heaven when it comes out of the oven. Kenya loved this breakfast so much, I gave it to him as a dessert after dinner that night, too!

Breakfast Bread Pudding (Makes 4-6 Servings)

3 Large Eggs
3/4 Cup Milk
3 Tbsp Honey, or to taste
1 Tsp Vanilla
1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon
Pinch Salt
2 Small Apples, peeled, cored and cut into small dice (I like Gala, Fuji or Golden Delicious)
1/3 Cup Raisins
5 Slices Whole wheat or Multigrain Bread (fresh or stale bread), cut in 1-inch cubes (about 4 cups)

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Butter a 1 1/2-quart, 8-inch square baking dish.
3. Beat the eggs, milk, honey, vanilla, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl.
4. Stir in the apples, raisins and bread cubes. Using your hands or a rubber spatula combine the ingredients to make sure everything is evenly coated.
5. Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish pressing down lightly. Cover with foil and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
* You can prepare the breakfast bread pudding ahead at this point. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
6. Bake for 30 minutes covered. Uncover and continue to cook for an additional 20 minutes. Bake until golden and cooked through.
7. Serve.

When Chloe was born, a friend sent us a gorgeous cheese plate with all types of incredible cheeses and fresh French baguettes. The two of us couldn’t possibly go through all of that cheese and bread on our own, so I refrigerated the cheese and cut the bread into cubes to dry out for another use (I’m way too frugal for my own good!). I hate waste. For example, I hate when I have to buy a loaf of bread and only wind up using half, so I have to come up with recipes that I can use before the bread goes bad. Recipes like blueberry cream cheese french toast are a perfect use for day old bread.

Blueberries are in season now and one of Kenya’s new obsessions is cream cheese, so I decided to put it all together for this delicious breakfast recipe. Even better, you can prepare the dish up to 24 hours in advance, refrigerate, then pop it in the oven when you’re ready to bake it for a elegant but easy morning treat.

When I pulled this out of the oven, my family’s eyes lit up! Also it made me happy to be using ingredients that otherwise would have gone to waste.

Blueberry Cream Cheese French Toast (Makes 6 Servings)

1 1/4 Cup Milk
3 Eggs
2 Tsp Vanilla
2 Tbsp Agave
1/2 Loaf (4 Cups) French Bread, fresh or day old, cut into cubes
4 Oz Cream Cheese, cut into cubes
1/2 Cup Blueberries
butter for greasing pan

1. In a large bowl, whisk milk, eggs, vanilla and agave.
2. Add the bread cubes and toss with the liquid mixture.
3. Add the cream cheese and blueberries and mix gently to combine.
4. Place in a buttered 8×8 inch baking dish or individual ramekins.
5. Refrigerate overnight or up to 24 hours.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7. Cover the dish with foil. If using the 8×8 inch dish, back for 25 minutes covered and 20-25 minutes uncovered. If using individual ramekins bake for 15 minutes covered and 10 minutes uncovered.
8. Serve.