Four servings

Sometimes when I make breakfast, it is a pretty big portion for a reason. When my brother Mat got married, I was about 15, and we went to Pittsboro, N.C., for the wedding. Martha, Mat’s wife, wanted our family to stay at her family’s homes instead of staying in hotels. I was excited because all I could think of was a Southern breakfast. You know the one that you always dream about the warm biscuits wrapped in a linen, enough sausage gravy for three households, Smithfield ham (the salty one!), eggs, potatoes, fresh fruit, homemade jams and jellies, honey, sorghum, thick bacon, etc. ... Well, you get the picture. I woke in the morning to a wonderful smell. I could not wait to get to the table. I sat down at the table, and here it came. The lady of the house handed me a bowl of scrambled eggs. They looked great. I started to eat out of the bowl that she gave me. While I was eating, she kindly whispered to me that the eggs were for everyone. I woke up real fast that morning.

Ingredients
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup whole milk
1 cored, grated Red Delicious apple
3 6-inch-round, 3/4-inch-thick circles of bread (I use day-old sourdough)
6 tablespoons lightly salted butter
3/4 cup orange marmalade
3/4 cup chopped pecans (toasted, if you like)
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Procedure
In a stainless-steel bowl, combine the first five ingredients until well-mixed.
Pour mixture into a 10-inch cake pan.
Dip the bread into the mixture, coating each piece of bread completely.
Place 2 tablespoons of butter in an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat.
When the butter melts, place one piece of the dipped bread in the skillet and cook until brown; flip, and brown the other side. (Reserve this piece of French toast in a warm oven.)
Repeat the process for the other two pieces of bread.
When the three pieces of French toast are cooked, lay one of the pieces on a plate and rub it evenly with 2 tablespoons of orange marmalade. Lay the next piece of French toast on top of the first, and brush it with 2 tablespoons of orange marmalade. Lay the last piece on top of the other two.
Brush the remaining orange marmalade evenly on the sides of the French toast.
Using a flat spatula or your hands, stick the chopped pecans to the orange marmalade on the sides of the French toast.
Sift the powdered sugar onto the top of the stack of French toast.
Using a red-hot metal skewer, burn a design into the powdered sugar. I used my Jegs branding iron.

For the sauce
1/2 stick lightly salted butter
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Procedure
Combine all ingredients in a thick-bottom pan.
Bring the mixture to a boil. Boil for three minutes.

Garnish
I use bacon curls and fresh fruit.

Enjoy!