Caprese Avocado Breakfast Toast

Ingredients:

• 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup Galbani® Mozzarella Fresca™ Ciliegine, halved
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 1 avocado, pitted and mashed
• 4 slices crusty bread such as como
• 4 whole eggs

Instructions:

1. Combine tomatoes, Galbani® Mozzarella Fresca™ Ciliegine, basil and 1 teaspoon olive oil together in a bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover and let sit at room temperature for 25 minutes. 
2. Heat remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook eggs just until the whites are cooked, 1 - 2 minutes per side. 
3. Toast bread if desired.
4. To assemble the toast, spread avocado on top of bread, top with a fried egg and top with 1/4 of the caprese mixture. Repeat with remaining ingredients until 4 toasts are made. Serve immediately.
5. Enjoy! 

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The Best Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened (1 1/2 sticks)
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
one 3.5-ounce packet instant vanilla pudding mix (not sugar-free and not 'cook & serve')
1 teaspoon baking soda
pinch salt, optional and to taste
one-12 ounce bag (2 cups) semi-sweet chocolate chips (I use Trader Joe's)

DIRECTIONS:

1. To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and electric mixer) combine the butter, sugars, egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until creamed and well combined, about 4 minutes.
2. Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the flour, pudding mix, baking soda, optional salt, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
3. Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the chocolate chips, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds.
4. Using a large cookie scoop, 1/4-cup measure, or your hands, form approximately 14 equal-sized mounds of dough, roll into balls, and flatten slightly. Tip - Strategically place a few chocolate chips right on top of each mound of dough by taking chips from the underside and adding them on top.
5. Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plasticwrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 5 days. Do not bake with unchilled dough because cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading.
6. Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray. Place dough mounds on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I bake 8 cookies per sheet) and bake for about 11 minutes, or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked, pale, and glossy in the center; don't overbake. Cookies firm up as they cool. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before serving. I let them cool on the baking sheet and don't use a rack.
7. Cookies will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.

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Savory Parmesan French Toast with Hollandaise Sauce

Ingredients

For the French toast:
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for garnish
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
• 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce (I used Tabasco)
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 large garlic clove, crushed with the side of a knife
• dash salt
• medium-size loaf of good-quality bread, cut 1-inch thick
• butter, for frying
• flat-leaf parsley or chives, for garnish
For the hollandaise:
• 3 egg yolks
• 1/4 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 dash hot sauce
• 1/2 cup butter

Instructions

For the French Toast:
1. Turn your oven on to the warm setting (170 F). Set a cooling rack over a cookie sheet and place in the oven.
2. Add eggs, milk, cream, Parmesan, mustard powder, hot sauce, black pepper, garlic, and salt to a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour liquid into a pie plate or an 8x8 dish. Rinse out your blender immediately.
3. Slice the bread into 1-inch pieces.
4. Heat a griddle or a large skillet to medium-high heat.
5. Soak the bread in the egg mixture 1-2 minutes each side.
6. Grease the griddle or pan with butter.
7. Fry each piece of bread for about 2-3 minutes, until golden brown. Flip and cook the other side for 1-2 minutes or until browned. Continue with all the bread pieces, replenishing butter as necessary.
8. Place each finished piece of toast on the cooling rack in the oven.
For the hollandaise:
9. In the rinsed-out blender, add the egg yolks, dijon mustard, lemon juice, and hot sauce. Blend until smooth. (It's not very much liquid, so I tipped the blender on it's side to help it blend up. See photos.)
10. In a small bowl in the microwave, melt butter completely so that it's very hot.
11. Open the top spout of your blender. Turn the blender on low and pour in the hot butter. It should thicken immediately.
12. Immediately pour the sauce into a measuring cup or bowl. Place the bowl into another bowl of very hot water. (You want to keep the sauce hot, but if you microwave it, it will curdle.)
13. Pour the sauce over each serving. Whisk the sauce if it starts to separate.
14. Top each French toast with fresh herbs and extra Parmesan.

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