Okay so my challah was practically fossilizing on the counter today. Damn thing was getting hard as a rock. Looked at that leftover loaf and thought, right, gotta use this thing or toss it, and tossing good bread is a sin in my kitchen. Decided to dig through the fridge and pantry to see what I could throw together quickly.
First Idea: Sweet Bread Pudding Breakfast Cups
Grabbed that challah and sawed off a few chunks. Didn’t even bother with neat slices, just tore it into rough pieces with my hands – felt kinda good honestly. Tossed them all into a mixing bowl. Then I cracked a couple of eggs into another bowl, splashed in some milk – maybe about half a cup? Didn’t measure, just poured. Added a spoonful of brown sugar, a good sprinkle of cinnamon, and a tiny bit of vanilla extract I found in the back of the cupboard. Whisked it all up like crazy until it looked kinda foamy.
Poured that eggy milk mess over the bread chunks. Squished it all down with a fork so every bit got soaked up. Left it sitting there on the counter for a few minutes while I preheated the oven to, eh, around 350°F (guessed).
Found a muffin tin. Sprayed it down with cooking spray – learned that lesson the hard way before. Scooped the soggy bread gloop into the muffin cups, filled ’em maybe three-quarters up. Threw the tin into the oven. Checked after like 20 minutes; tops were starting to turn golden brown and puffy. Poked one with a knife – came out clean! Pulled those suckers out. Let ’em cool a bit. Ate one warm with a drip of maple syrup. Absolute heaven! Sweet, eggy, custardy in the middle, crunchy on top. Perfect quick breakfast.
Second Idea: Crazy Savory Strata Thing
Still had like half the loaf left! Needed something savory now. Grabbed an old casserole dish. Tore more challah into even bigger chunks this time – lazy mode activated. Threw them loosely into the dish. Then I raided the fridge again: found some cooked sausage crumbles (maybe half a cup?), a handful of spinach starting to wilt, half an onion looking sad, and some shredded cheddar cheese. Chopped the onion quick, ripped the spinach.
Beat a couple more eggs with about another cup of milk – just eye-balled it. Seasoned it aggressively: salt, pepper, a pinch of garlic powder, some dried mustard powder (found it hiding!). Poured this over the bread, sausage, veggies, and cheese in the dish. Gave it a big stir to mix everything up. Poked it down so the liquid covered most stuff. Topped with a bit more cheese because why not?
Stuck that dish in the fridge while I cleaned up the earlier mess. Probably sat there for about an hour. Preheated the oven again to 375°F this time. Plopped the cold dish straight into the hot oven. Baked for like 40 minutes? Until the top was super golden brown and crispy, the cheese was bubbling, and a knife shoved in the middle came out clean.
The result? Total savory bomb. The bread soaked up all that flavor, the sausage and cheese made it feel rich, the spinach added a tiny bit of green to pretend it was healthy. Super filling lunch! Kids devoured it too, bonus points.
Leftover Win!
So yeah, from one stale challah loaf threatening to become a doorstop, I got:
- A quick breakfast treat (bread pudding cups)
- A hearty, no-fuss lunch/dinner thing (savory strata)
Zero waste, minimal extra fuss, mostly pantry stuff. Made a hell of a mess on the counter, but totally worth it. Stale bread doesn’t stand a chance in my kitchen anymore.
