Cooking Through Magnolia Table In A Year: Week 12 Review

For a breakfast dish, Joanna’s Savory Ham & Cheese Bread Pudding is a must try. Going into the recipe, I was a little hesitant, as I really do not prefer the texture of soggy bread, however this dish totally transformed my view of bread pudding. Full of flavor and a perfect mix of soft and crisp textures, the Savory Ham & Cheese Bread Pudding is quite hearty without feeling predominantly eggy. The bread soaks up the egg mixture wonderfully to create a soft base, without the feeling that you are eating a quiche. Similarly, the Tomato Hollandaise sauce has a wonderful flavor that really compliments the bread pudding. Although the Hollandaise keeps its flavor quite well, if you do have leftovers it does not reheat well, as the mixture tends to separate leading to a strange texture. Fortunately, the bread pudding still makes for a delicious breakfast without the sauce and its texture remains quite consistent.

Crowd Average Rating:

Rating significantly higher than the previous Baked Egg Bread Pudding from week 8, this Savory Ham & Cheese Bread Pudding came in with a strong average rating of 8.5. While not quite a perfect score of 10, there are not many ways that I could think to improve the dish as it already is tasty, easy, and perfect for making the night before to prevent early morning messes. If served with fresh fruit and a pot of coffee, your guests would likely not want to ever leave.

A favorite of many, Shepherd’s Pie is a wonderful “go to” recipe that can be an entire meal within itself. A comforting staple, Joanna’s Shepherd’s Pie found a great balance between unity and variety in each of its layers. Filled with meat, carrots, onions, green beans and mashed potatoes, this pie would be a great option to bring to a friend in need and even can be made completely gluten free by substituting 1 tbsp cornstarch for the 2.5 tbsp all purpose flour. As we were feeding a hungry crowd of college kids, I paired this dish with a salad and garlic bread, but you certainly could allow it to be a stand-alone dish as well.

Crowd Average Rating:

With a range of ratings from a 7 to a 10, this Shepherd’s Pie gained an average rating of an 8. A solidly delicious dish, even the pickiest eaters around our table gave exemplary ratings, with several people going back for seconds. Also, as meal that you can make the night before, this dish certainly is a great option to relieve the pressure of cooking as guests are arriving. I will note that while Joanna mentions that the total prep and cooking time should be less than an hour and 15 minutes, I found the total prep and cooking time closer to 2 hours. The final cooking time of 30 to 40 minutes is certainly accurate, but my prep time to make each of the layers took a good while longer than what the recipe implied. That being said, the recipe is worth the effort, but do be sure to leave yourself enough time.

• Pancetta
• Bell peppers
• Butter
• Eggs
• Heavy cream
• Fresh thyme
• Gruyere cheese

• Feta cheese
• Baby arugula
• Ground pepper
• Kosher salt
• Olive oil
• Spring greens
• Mandarin oranges

• Dried cherries
• Pecans
• Red wine vinegar
• Brown sugar
• Cayenne pepper
• Honey