“Good design is obvious. Great design is transparent.” – Joe Sparano
NOTE: I spend my Wednesdays Unplugged from appointments. It’s my day to stay home, enjoy cooking and welcome our kids and grandkids for dinner in the evening. We end our meal with quotes from the Norwegian ‘Quote Cup’ passed on to me from my grandmother. I share a quote and a recipe here each week, along with an update and photos of what has been going on in our lives. I love trying new recipes…and love getting recipes you would like to share!

Last weekend we celebrated John’s nephews… Mason, the youngest Hensrud, born January 5, 2023 to nephew Thomas and Kasey (Thomas is John’s brother David’s youngest son)… and the return of nephew Josh after several years overseas with air force intelligence (John’s older brother Neil’s youngest son)… and of course Neil’s youngest granddaughter, Alice. It is great to celebrate the circle of life.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
I decided that this week we would have breakfast for dinner, and made this atypical egg strata with no meat from Southern Living. I could easily see adding sausage, but also good with sausage links and bacon on the side.

CREAMY EGG STRATA
- Half of 16 ounce French bread loaf, cubed (about 5 cups)
- 6 tablespoons butter, divided
- 2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup chopped onion
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 3/4 cup dry white wine
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 8 large eggs, lightly beatn
- Garnish: chopped fresh chives
Place bread cubes in a well-buttered 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Melt 3 tablespoons butter and drizzle over bread cubes. Sprinkle with cheeses.
Melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute 2-3 minutes or until tender.
Whisk in flour until smooth; cook, whisking constantly, 2-3 minutes or until lightly browned.
Whisk in broth and next 4 ingredients until blended. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes or until thickened.
Remove from heat, stir in sour cream and add salt and pepper to taste.
Gradually whisk about 1/4 of hot sour cream mixture into eggs; add egg mixture to remaining sour cream mixture, whisking constantly. Pour mixture over cheese in baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap, and chill 8-24 hours.
Before baking, let strata stand at room temperature 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove plastic wrap and bake 30 minutes or until set. Garnish with chives and serve immediately.
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results – shensrud@homesmsp.com