Best Ham And Cheese Croissant Strata Recipes

HAM 'N' CHEESE STRATA

Steps:

• Arrange six slices of bread in the bottom of a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Top with ham and cheese. Cover with remaining bread. , In a bowl, beat eggs, milk, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, salt, pepper and cayenne. Stir in onion and green pepper; pour over all. Cover and refrigerate overnight. , Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Pour butter over bread; sprinkle with cornflakes. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 50-60 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

HAM AND CHEESE CROISSANT STRATA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray.
• In baking dish, arrange croissant bottoms, cut sides up, in single layer. Top each with 1 slice Swiss cheese. Sprinkle with ham. Cover with croissant tops, cut sides down.
• In large bowl, beat eggs, milk, mustard, salt and pepper with whisk. Pour over croissants. Sprinkle with Gruyère cheese.
• Bake 35 minutes or until browned and set. Garnish with chives. Serve immediately.

HAM & BRIE STRATA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and onion; cook and stir until mushrooms are golden brown and onion is tender, 5-7 minutes. Add spinach and garlic; cook until spinach is wilted, 1-2 minutes longer., Transfer mushroom mixture to a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Add bread, ham and cheese., In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, mustard, salt and pepper. Pour over bread. Bake, uncovered, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, 35-40 minutes. Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving., Make-Ahead: Refrigerate unbaked strata, covered, several hours or overnight. To use, preheat oven to 375°. Remove strata from refrigerator while oven heats. Bake, as directed.

HAM AND CHEESE CROISSANTS

Steps:

• Arrange racks in the upper third and lower thirds of the oven. Bring a skillet of water to a simmer over medium-high heat. Transfer the skillet to the floor of the oven and close the door. (The steam released inside the oven will create an ideal proofing environment for the pastries.) Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Let the dough sit for 5 minutes at room temperature. Unwrap (save the plastic wrap for proofing) and place on a very lightly floured surface. If the dough has shrunk during chilling, roll it out again to a slab that's 16 inches long and 15 inches wide. Dust off any excess flour.
• Use a wheel cutter to trim 1/2 inch of dough from all four sides, straightening and squaring them off, creating a slab that's 15 inches long by 14 inches wide. Using a ruler, cut the slab lengthwise into 5 equal strips each measuring 3 inches wide. Cut each strip in half crosswise, creating 10 rectangles.
• Working with one rectangle of dough at a time, cover one half with a slice of ham, folding it as needed to leave a 1/2-inch border along the short side. Then, top with 1/2 ounce (2 tablespoons) of the cheese. Roll the dough into a snug spiral, starting at the end with the ham and cheese, then transfer the spiral to one of the prepared baking sheets, resting it on the seam. Repeat with the remaining dough, ham and cheese, dividing between the sheets and spacing evenly. Very loosely cover with plastic wrap so the pastries have some room to expand.
• Open the oven and stick your hand inside: It should be humid but not hot, as the water in the skillet will have cooled. You want the pastries to proof at 70 to 75 degrees (any hotter and the butter will melt, leading to a denser pastry). Gently place the baking sheets inside the oven on the two racks and let the pastries proof until they're doubled in size, extremely puffy and jiggle delicately on the baking sheet, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
• When the pastries are proofed, remove the baking sheets from the oven and carefully uncover them. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill for 20 minutes while you heat the oven. Remove the skillet from the oven and heat to 375 degrees.
• In a small bowl, stir the yolks and heavy cream until streak-free. Remove the baking sheets from the refrigerator and use a pastry brush to gently brush the surfaces of each pastry with the yolk mixture. Transfer the sheets to the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Rotate the baking sheets and switch racks and continue to bake until the pastries are deeply browned, another 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the baking sheets.