Best Husband Award goes to.....

I love being married to Shane all year round, but especially October thru December. He is so into the holidays. Last week I found him looking through my Barefoot Contessa recipe books, searching for a fall meal to make Lydia and I. He decided on Challah French Toast with pecan syrup. The vanilla, orange zest and nuts were the perfect fall melange.

It was so lovely, I pulled out the china. At least for Shane and I. Lydia had to make due with plastic.

Challah French Toast

• 6 extra-large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups half-and-half or milk
• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon good honey
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 large loaf challah or brioche bread
• Unsalted butter
• Vegetable oil

To serve:

• Pure maple syrup
• Good raspberry preserves (optional)
• Sifted confectioners' sugar (optional)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

In a large shallow bowl, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, orange zest, vanilla, honey, and salt. Slice the challah in 3/4-inch thick slices. Soak as many slices in the egg mixture as possible for 5 minutes, turning once.

Heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil in a very large saute pan over medium heat. Add the soaked bread and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until nicely browned. Place the cooked French toast on a sheet pan and keep it warm in the oven. Fry the remaining soaked bread slices, adding butter and oil as needed, until it's all cooked. Serve hot with maple syrup, raspberry preserves, and/or confectioners' sugar.

For the pecan syrup, Shane cooked pecans in butter until they were fragrant, then added maple syrup and cooked one minute longer.