Ridiculously Decadent Stuffed French Toast

• 1 loaf Challah, Sliced, Pocketed And Dried Overnight
• _____
• FOR THE CUSTARD:
• 1-1/2 cup Half-and-Half, Cream Or A Mix Of Milk And Cream
• 5 whole Large Eggs
• 1 pinch Salt
• 3 Tablespoons Honey, Divided
• _____
• FOR THE FILLING:
• 1/2 cups Mascarpone
• _____
• FOR THE BANANAS:
• 4 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
• 1/3 cups Packed Light Brown Sugar
• 1/4 cups Heavy Cream
• 3 Tablespoons Dark Rum
• 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cardamom, Fresh If Possible
• 3 whole Large Ripe Bananas

1. For the French Toast:
2. The night before you plan to make this, slice the bread into 1 1/2 inch slices and cut pockets for stuffing - stick a paring knife into the bottom of each slice and work it back and forth until you have as large a pocket as you can make without destroying the bread. Leave the bread out overnight to dry out. You can make the custard the night before as well.
3. CUSTARD:
4. Whisk half-and-half, eggs, salt and 2 tablespoons of the honey together. Set aside.
5. FILLING:
6. Whisk the other 2 tablespoons of honey into the mascarpone. Scoop the mixture into a piping bag or Ziploc with the tip snipped off. Fill the cavities in the bread with the cheese mixture.
7. Put the bread into the fridge while you pre-heat the oven and get the custard ready to give the cheese a little time to chill.
8. When you're ready to cook, preheat the oven to 300 and melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
9. Pour the custard mix into a pie plate. Put a cooling rack over some paper towels. Put each slice of bread into the custard and hold down for 30 seconds; flip and hold down for another 30. Put the custard-soaked slices onto the cooling rack; this allowed the custard to really seep into the bread, and the paper towels catch any drippings.
10. Cook each piece of French toast for 2-3 minutes per side, until golden brown. Transfer all the toast to a baking sheet and bake for another 5-7 minutes, until cooked through.
11. It takes a little time, but trust me - it's worth it.
12. For the BANANAS:
13. Put all the ingredients except the bananas into a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, all the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is bubbling; it will just be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
14. Slice the bananas and toss them with the sauce. Cook for 5-6 minutes, until the bananas are heated through. The sauce will thicken a bit when off the heat. Pour over french toast, pancakes, waffles or ice cream and enjoy.

cream, eggs, salt, honey, filling, mascarpone, bananas, butter, brown sugar, ubc, vanilla, ground cardamom, bananas

Taken from tastykitchen.com/recipes/breakfastbrunch/ridiculously-decadent-stuffed-french-toast/ (may not work)