I had this egg cheese soufflé at a brunch in Palos Verdes a long, very long, time ago, got the recipe (“It’s not a real soufflé you know,” said the hostess) and have been serving it ever since. It’s been so long that my friend Nicki swears she gave it to me, but the fact is she got it from me. I serve it Christmas mornings sometimes and every Easter for our extended family brunch. You make it the day before, so it’s easy and it looks a lot fancier than it is. Add a fresh fruit salad and you’ve got brunch. And if there are hard core meat eaters in the crowd, you can go to Costco and get a pre-cooked ham to go with it.  Serves 8-10  (more if accompanied by ham.)

6 eggs

16 slices of bread (any kind of white bread you like)

1 ½ pounds of grated sharp cheddar  (Buy it already grated. Life is too short to grate cheese.)

1 large can of evaporated milk

½ cube butter

Mix milk and water to equal 3 ½ cups of liquid. Add beaten eggs.

Quarter bread slices and layer with cheese, (two or three layers) in a greased 9 x 13 baking dish or a smaller, deeper casserole with more layers.

Pour milk and egg mixture over the bread and cheese and refrigerate overnight. Melt a half cube of butter and pour over it.  Place covered with foil in a 350 degree oven for one hour. Remove foil and bake another fifteen minutes, or until golden and puffy. It will then collapse but still be delicious.

“The only thing that will make a soufflé fall is if it knows you’re afraid of it.”  – James Beard