French Toast

Golden crisp buttery edges, custardy on the inside, the only question is: what will you top your French Toast with??

Ahhh, the weekend has arrived and with it comes guilt free sleep ins, breakfast in PJ’s with wild untamed hair and truly bottomless coffee.☕☕☕ And unless you’re one of those unique creatures who does grocery shopping towards the end of the week (yes, such creatures exist), chances are your cupboards are pretty bare.

Enter: French Toast. The best of the best of end-of-week foods, made for using up leftover bread!!

FRENCH TOAST – SUPER QUICK, SUPER EASY!

You know when you feel like making something grand-ish for a weekend breakfast and but you’re too bleary to tackle Eggs Benedict?

French toast is your answer. Always.

Why? Because it’s effortless, and there’s a plethora of topping options! Here’s how to make French Toast – just dunk bread in an egg and milk mixture, then pan fry in butter until blushing gold on the surface and crispy golden on the edges, then douse liberally with maple syrup.

See? Easy!

HANG ON A SEC – THAT’S NOT SANDWICH BREAD!

True that. It’s brioche. Because if I make French Toast intentionally, that’s my bread of choice. It’s a total shameless indulgence, a copycat of French Toast served at trendy local bistros that charge a small fortune.

So if you’re wondering what the best bread for French Toast is, my answer is this: brioche is hands down the most indulgent, and after this good ole’ sandwich bread, followed by crusty artisan breads (sourdough etc), then everything and anything else (bread rolls, french stick, baguettes etc).

UPDATE: Readers’ tell me it’s negligent not to mention challah as an excellent option too, I’m told it’s equal with brioche. Must try must try must try!

FRENCH TOAST TOPPING OPTIONS

From everybody’s favourite maple syrup, to fresh fruit, caramelised fruit, compotes or fruit syrups, ice cream (for breakfast!), chocolate and caramel sauces, nuts, BACON (yes, yes, YES!!!)…..

So many amazing possibilities, but I’ll tell you a secret:

My favourite is plain French Toast with just maple syrup and a little pat of butter.

The only reason I added strawberries is to make the photos look a teeny bit prettier. Because, as readers know, I’m very conscious that my blog is so dominated by so much yellow and brown foods, and this French Toast recipe falls firmly into that bucket.

So just to make myself feel a bit better, I added strawberries. Just for a bit of colour. 😂 – Nagi x

CUTE FRENCH TOAST RECIPE SPINS

Cinnamon French Toast Sticks | Strawberry Nutella French Toast Roll Ups | Cinnamon French Toast bites | Bacon French Toast Roll Ups | Monte Cristo (Ham Cheese French Toast Sandwich)

4.91 from 10 votes

Print

French Toast

Prep Time

2 mins

Cook Time

10 mins

Total Time

12 mins

 

A recipe everyone should know! Made for using up leftover bread, but if you want the ultimate French Toast experience, use brioche bread (pictured in post). There’s no need to use sugar if you’re dousing with maple syrup – plus it burns easily. Best made with stale bread, otherwise, see Note 1. Recipe video below.

Course: Breakfast

Servings: 2 - 3 people

Calories: 303 kcal

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Ingredients

• 6 slices brioche or white sandwich bread , slightly stale (Note 1)
• 30 – 40g / 2 – 3 tbsp butter

Egg Mixture:

• 2 large eggs (~60g / 2 oz each)
• ½ cup / 125 ml milk
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Macerated Strawberries, optional:

• 250g / 8 oz strawberries, halved
• 1 tbsp white sugar

Serving:

• Maple syrup, butter

Instructions

1. Whisk together Egg Mixture in a bowl. Vigorous whisk = avoid cinnamon floating on top.

2. Melt 15g / 1 tbsp butter in a non stick skillet over medium heat.
3. Dunk a piece of bread quickly into the egg mixture, coating both sides. Place in pan. Repeat with more slices to fill the pan, but don’t crowd it (do 2 or 3 at a time).
4. Cook for 2 ½ - 3 minutes on each side until the surface is golden, then transfer to serving plates.
5. Add more butter into the pan and cook remaining bread.
6. Serve with butter and plenty of maple syrup, and Macerated Strawberries if using!

Macerated Strawberries (optional):

1. Toss strawberries with sugar, set aside for 20 minutes+. The strawberries will soften and sweat, and create a bit of syrup.

Recipe Notes

1. Best bread for French Toast: brioche is hands down the most indulgent (typically used by trendy bistros, pictured in post), and after this good ole’ sandwich bread (preferably thick cut), followed by crusty artisan breads (sourdough etc), then everything and anything else (sliced bread rolls, french stick, baguettes, even things like Hot Cross Buns and other sweet rolls).

Slightly stale bread is better as fresh bread tends to soak up the mixture too quickly, causing the French Toast to be soggy inside. If your bread is super fresh, pop it in the oven at 180C/350F for 3 minutes on each side, just to dry it out slightly without colouring. Do not do this step if using crusty sourdough (doesn’t need it).

2. General notes:
- Cinnamon and vanilla is recommended, but still absolutely delish without.
- I personally don’t recommend using cream in place of milk. I know it might seem like it will make it richer, but I feel like it leaves a greasy feel in the mouth.
- The right egg to milk ratio is quite important – I think 2 eggs to ½ cup of milk is perfect.
- I don’t use sugar in the egg mixture because a) there’s plenty of sweet poured on top later; and b) it makes the bread prone to burning.

3. Nutrition is for plain white sandwich bread which I think is how most people make French Toast, assuming 3 servings. If going all out and making this using brioche bread, it increases to 664 calories (and worth it!)

WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT

LIFE OF DOZER

Twinnies! 👀👀

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