Cooking with Beer - Cheese and Leek Strata

Ingredients:

1 loaf sourdough bread, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

2 leeks, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 1/2 cup Swiss cheese, grated

1 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated

8 eggs, beaten

2 cups milk

1/2 cup beer or ale

2 cloves garlic, minced

salt

pepper

Directions:

1. Place half of the bread cubes on the bottom of a greased 13x9 baking dish.

2. Sprinkle half the leeks and half the bell pepper over bread cubes.

3. Cover with 3/4 cup Swiss cheese and 3/4 cup cheddar cheese.

4. Add the remaining bread, then remaining leeks and bell pepper and top with remaining cheese. Set aside.

5. In a medium bowl, combine eggs, milk, beer, garlic, salt and pepper. Beat until well-blended.

(As you see, we used Rolling Rock as our beer. You should use whatever beer you have on hand, but I recommend making sure to drink a bottle/can/glass of your chosen beer with the meal, because it complements it well. Or maybe I just really enjoyed drinking that nice cold beer. Hard to say.)

6. Pour the egg mixture evenly over the strata.

7. Cover your baking dish with foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.

8. Uncover your baking dish and bake the strata at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 to 45 minutes.

9. Serve immediately.

My significant other bought me the most awesome birthday present ever last week: a Slap Chop! I've been really wanting one, and for the past several months any time I've cooked something that required a lot of vegetable chopping I whined that I needed a Slap Chop. I was especially whiny whenever I chopped onions, because it makes me cry. But, all that has changed! We tested out the Slap Chop last night when we made our strata, and it was everything I hoped for. Here I am, chopping garlic with my new toy. It chopped it so fast, it was awesome!