Crunchy Snickerdoodle French Toast

1-1/4 cups of half and half
3 large eggs, beaten by hand
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
5 cups cinnamon-sugar crispy cereal, such as Cinnamon Toast Crunch
12 slices French bread, 3/4-inch thick
Maple syrup, warmed in microwave
Crisco shortening to grease pan

Grease a 9x13-inch pan.

In a shallow bowl, combine half and half, eggs, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. With fork, mix to blend well. Set aside.

Crush the 5 cups of cereal into crumbs (not fine, but small pieces). Put the cereal into a gallon reclosable bag and roll it with a rolling pin. Place crushed cereal into another shallow bowl. Using a fork, dip bread slices one at a time, into the egg mixture (both sides) then into the cereal crumbs (both sides). Place each slice in the prepared pan, forming two rows down and across. Cover pan and freeze until firm, 2 hours or overnight. Heat oven to 425 degrees.

Remove pan from freezer and place in oven uncovered. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown, turning each slice over once. Serve warm with warmed maple syrup. Yield 6 servings.

Cinnamon Bites

8 oz pkg. cream cheese
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 loaf sliced bread, crusts removed
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
1 cup butter, melted and cooled
In a medium mixing bowl, blend together cream cheese, egg yolk, 2 tablespoons sugar and vanilla extract. Roll bread slices flat; spread filling on bread. Roll up jelly roll-style. Combine remaining sugar and cinnamon in a small mixing bowl. Dip bread in butter, then in sugar-cinnamon mixture. Place on baking sheets and freeze. When frozen, cut each roll into 3 pieces. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Makes 45 bite-size pieces