Treat Mom to tasty breakfast in bed.

Byline: THE $10 GOURMET By Jim Boyd The Register-Guard

COBURG - Kim Moore, the chef at the Coburg Inn, prepared Berry Good French Toast and strawberries dipped in chocolate for today's edition of The $10 Gourmet.

The recipes are ones that Moore says a father might help a daughter or son prepare for Mother's Day, which is Sunday.

"It's very easy for them to make," Moore said. "They can treat Mom to breakfast in bed."

Moore's recipe for French toast with mixed berry sauce and lemon butter is almost identical to the dish she prepares for breakfast and lunch, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, at the Coburg Inn in downtown Coburg.

The main difference is that she used a 12-ounce package of Flavorite Berry Medley that cost $1.76 at WinCo Foods for this recipe instead of the restaurant-size 3-pound package of Flav-R-Pac Triple Berry Blend that costs $6.75 at Costco.

The family-size medley contains frozen strawberries in addition to the frozen blueberries, blackberries and raspberries found in both mixtures.

The $10 Gourmet is a feature that allows professional chefs to give menu ideas to home cooks by preparing a meal for two on a $10 budget. Small amounts of kitchen staples don't have to be included in the cost.

Moore spent $9.87 on ingredients at WinCo Foods and she also used sugar, powdered sugar, corn starch, vanilla, cinnamon, two eggs and a garnish (a slice of orange, bunch of four table grapes and a strawberry) from the Coburg Inn's supplies.

The French toast is a meal in itself; however, Moore decided she had enough money in the budget to make chocolate-dipped strawberries as another Mother's Day treat.

Had she been given a larger budget, she would have added mimosa cocktails to the menu. (Fill a glass two-thirds full with Champagne or other sparkling white wine, top with orange juice and, in Moore's version, a strawberry.)

Moore's culinary career includes eight years as head chef and manager at the Wallowa Lake Lodge, which was built in the early '20s at the south end of Wallowa Lake six miles from Joseph. She got her start in food service as a cake decorator at a Southern California supermarket and then worked as a baker and cook for the Wallowa Lake Lodge and two other restaurants after she moved to Joseph. She's also been a bank teller and the nail technician for her own beauty shop.

Proprietors Bill and Janet Judd hired Moore as the Coburg Inn's catering manager in December 2002 and she added duties as breakfast and lunch chef when the restaurant reopened in December 2003.

The restaurant is open only during the day because the inn gets booked on evenings and weekends for weddings and other events. The inn is decorated in the style of a Victorian tea room and serves high tea ($14.95 per person) by reservation for groups of two or more.

Berry Good French Toast

For the berry topping:

2 cups frozen berry medley (blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries); fresh berries may be used

3/4 cup water

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 1/4 cup cold water until smooth

For the lemon butter:

1 cup (2 cubes) softened sweet cream butter 

1 tablespoon lemon zest (zest of 1 lemon)

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (juice of 1/2 to 1 lemon)

2 1/2 tablespoons sugar

For the French toast batter:

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla

For the toast:

1 loaf French bread, cut into 1-inch slices

Powdered sugar

Optional garnish (orange slice, bunch of four table grapes, strawberry cut into fan shape)

Place the berries, water and sugar for the berry topping in a saucepan. Cook on high heat until boiling. Turn heat down and simmer until the berries start to blend, about 20 minutes. Add cornstarch mixture to the hot berries to thicken the sauce. (Depending on the amount of juice in the berries, more corn starch may be needed. Add slowly to get a medium thickness.) Take off burner and allow sauce to cool slightly before use.

To prepare the lemon butter, place the softened butter in the bowl of a mixer and whip until creamy. Then gradually mix in lemon zest, lemon juice and sugar. (The lemon butter can be stored, refrigerated, for a couple weeks.)

For the French toast batter, mix together the eggs, heavy cream, cinnamon and vanilla in a pie plate or other shallow pan large enough to dip the flat sides of the bread.

Heat a seasoned griddle or lightly oiled frying pan.

Place a slice of French bread into the egg batter to coat one side, then turn the slice over to coat the other side. Place the slice on the griddle. Repeat the process with other slices until the griddle is full. Brown slices on both sides.

Place four slices on each plate and top each portion with 3/4 cup of the warm berry mixture and a sprinkling of powdered sugar.

Serve the lemon butter on the side so each person can decide how much to use. If desired, garnish as the Coburg Inn does with an orange slice, bunch of four table grapes and a large strawberry sliced into a fan shape.

Serves 2 generously. (The berry sauce will easily serve 3, and perhaps as many as 4. The lemon butter is much too generous for only 2, but it is difficult to whip if made in a quantity less than a cup.)

Note: The mixed berry sauce can be kept in a covered container in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks. Moore uses it as a jam and as a topping for cheesecake and other desserts.

Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

1 pound strawberries

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips 

Rinse strawberries and dry by placing between towels to blot up the moisture. (Do not remove the green caps from the berries.)

Prepare a chocolate ganache: In the top of a double boiler, heat the cream until steaming. Add vanilla when you take the cream off the heat. Pour heated cream over chocolate chips in a bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes to melt the chips, then stir to blend.

Dip each strawberry in the chocolate ganache to coat the berry with chocolate. Place each on a mini-size candy or party cup (available at Michaels Arts and Crafts and other stores) or place on a sheet of wax paper until the chocolate hardens.

Note: Ganache can be used to ice cakes or as a topping for cheesecake or ice cream.

SETTLING THE BILL

French bread: 88 cents

Flavorite Berry Medley: $1.76

1 pound butter: $2.58

Lemon: 28 cents

1 pound strawberries: $1.78

.4 pound chocolate chips: 64 cents

Dairygold heavy cream: $1.95

Total: $9.87

CAPTION(S):

Berry Good French Toast and Chocolate Dipped Strawberries. Kim Moore, chef at the Coburg Inn, adds a sweet touch of powdered sugar to her Berry Good French Toast, a breakfast treat made with mixed berry sauce and lemon butter.