Neven Maguire's Pear & Chocolate Panettone French Toast

Ingredients:

• 3 Simply Better Irish Free Range Corn Fed Eggs
• 150ml Simply Better Jersey Milk
• 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
• 2 tbsp Simply Better Single Source Irish Jersey Cream
• 3 tbsp Brandy or Cointreau
• 50g Butter
• 2 Simply Better Xenia Pears, peeled, cored & thinly sliced
• 4 slices Muzzi Panettone Gran Cioccolato, cut in half to make 8 pieces (about 650g)
• 1 carton Simply Better Italian Mascarpone Cheese
• 2 tbsp Simply Better Organic Grade A Canadian Maple Syrup
• Icing Sugar, to dust

Method:

1. Put the eggs into a shallow dish with the milk, cinnamon and cream. Add 1 tbsp of brandy or Cointreau and whisk to combine.
2. Put the rest of the brandy or Cointreau into a cold large non-stick frying pan along with 15g of the butter and the pear slices. Warm over a low heat for 3–4 minutes until the butter has melted and the liquid has glazed the pears. Tip onto a plate and set aside.
3. Lay the panettone slices into the egg mixture and flip over to soak. Do this quite quickly so they don’t fall apart. Set aside on a plate.
4. Wipe out the frying pan and return to a medium-low heat with a knob of butter. Add the soaked panettone pieces in batches and cook for 2–3 minutes on each side until cooked through and lightly golden.
5. Arrange the chocolate panettone French toast on plates, top with the glazed pear slices, add a quenelle of mascarpone cheese to each, and drizzle over the maple syrup. Finish with a dusting of icing sugar to serve.