Oh this sounds Heavenly and French Toast is one Of DH's favorite Breakfasts... I printed out a copy of this and will Surprise him one morning with it. Enjoy your Waffles with DD..great gift. I got a Belguim Waffle Maker a few yrs ago from Costco, and love it...Made some this morning for the Gkids before they left. Happy New Year. jane

There's pannetone and then there's pannetone LOL. We went to Boston at the end of November and stayed in the North End (swoon...Little Italy). One of the outings we took was a culinary walking tour (Michelle Topor) which included stopping at a salumeria, bakery, coffee purveyor, liquor store and produce market. At one of the stops we were introduced to an imported pannetone that cost a small fortune, but mama mia! Heaven! Although I admit my pannetone is excellent, it wasn't as good as this one. I think the difference is in the raisins. I use golden raisins because that's what is readily available. "Authentic" pannetone uses sultanas, which are raisins that are the product of the Sultana grape, which grows in Turkey. The package was small and cost around $23.00. (She who is on the hunt for sultanas...I will make a pannetone to rival the one in Boston)

This is our current favorite recipe - undoubtedly it would be better if made with homemade stock, but that's one of those things I just never seem to get around to. We don't bother with the large bread croutons - we just sprinkle regular croutons over the top of the soup (Musso's Cheese and Garlic are great!), then lay a couple of slices of Jack cheese and some Parmesan on top before broiling. Becky * Exported from MasterCook * French Onion Soup Gratinee Recipe By : Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00 Categories : Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ -------------------------------- 4 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon salt 2 large red onions -- thinly sliced 2 large sweet onions -- thinly sliced 1 can chicken broth -- (48 fluid ounce) 1 can beef broth -- (14 ounce) 1/2 cup red wine 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 2 sprigs fresh parsley 1 sprig fresh thyme 1 bay leaf 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar salt and freshly ground black pepper -- to taste 4 thick slices French or Italian bread 8 slices Gruyere or Swiss cheese -- at room temperature 1/2 cup shredded Asiago or mozzarella cheese -- at room temperature 4 pinches paprika 1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in salt, red onions and sweet onions. Cook 35 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are caramelized and almost syrupy. 2. Mix chicken broth, beef broth, red wine and Worcestershire sauce into pot. Bundle the parsley, thyme, and bay leaf with twine and place in pot. Simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard the herbs. Reduce the heat to low, mix in vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Cover and keep over low heat to stay hot while you prepare the bread. 3. Preheat oven broiler. Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet and broil 3 minutes, turning once, until well toasted on both sides. Remove from heat; do not turn off broiler. 4. Arrange 4 large oven safe bowls or crocks on a rimmed baking sheet. Fill each bowl 2/3 full with hot soup. Top each bowl with 1 slice toasted bread, 2 slice Gruyere cheese and 1/4 of the Asiago or mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle a little bit of paprika over the top of each one. 5. Broil 5 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. As it softens, the cheese will cascade over the sides of the crock and form a beautifully melted crusty seal. Serve immediately! Source: "www.allrecipes.com" - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTES : 11-26-07 Made using croutons instead of bread, with Jack and Parmesan cheese. Used 1 teaspoon dried thyme.

Hi chisue, We had one of the ones with the two wings and the little wooden handle on the side to turn the wing down to put the bread in ...then had to watch 'em, so that they didn't smoke. Had to flip 'em, too, to toast the other side. Need to watch again, to be sure that the second side didn't smoke, either/too. Sort of like needing to turn the other side, when sunbathing. ole joyful