Perfect French Toast; Breakfast Worth Waking Up Early For

I seem to be on a bit of a french toast kick lately.  No I am not pregnant.  I just seem to be craving it; I even made it for dinner one night! Sweet, but not too sweet, carby, a little crisp on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. That is the essence of perfect french toast.

French Toast and Bacon

You can use almost any kind of bread in this. Challah and Brioche are my favorite choices, rye and pumpernickel might not be a great choice, white bread, wheat bread, half stale bread, pretty much anything is fair game! Check the day old bread at the bakery even, once it is soaked in the sweet eggy goodness and pan-fried in butter it won’t matter!

Another great thing about French Toast, you can flavor it pretty much anyway you want!! One of my favorite things to do is to add some pumpkin puree to the mixture, about 2 Tablespoons, for a nice fall flavor.  Applesauce or Cider is another great fall addition. Or even drizzle caramel on top rather than syrup! In the Spring and Summer months, I love to add jam between the layers of french toast, and whipped cream.  The only thing that limits the flavors is your mind!

French Toast

• 4 pieces bread
• 4 Eggs
• Generous 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons Maple Syrup (Or Mrs. Butterworth if that’s what you’ve got!)
• 1/3 Cup Milk
• Sprinkling of Cinnamon
• BUTTER, BUTTER, BUTTER

Method:

1. Assemble your mise en place, also known as everything you will need for to make the recipe
2. Heart a large frying pan on medium high heat
3. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, maple syrup, milk and cinnamon
4. Reduce the heat under the pan to medium and toss a general 2 tablespoons of butter into your frying pan, or enough to generously coat the entire bottom of the pan
5. Immediately after tossing the butter in, put your first piece of bread into the egg mixture, let it sit in it for several seconds, and then flip it over
6. As soon as you flip the bread to its second side in the egg mixture, give your frying pan a few shimmys and a shake to evenly distribute the butter in the bottom of the pan.
7. Set that pan back down on the burner, and then, bringing the egg bowl to the pan, gently lift that bread out of the bowl and place it directly in the pan to begin cooking
8. As soon as you set that piece in the pan, repeat the bread/egg process again, this time without the shimmys and shake of the pan.
9. Allow the bread to cook for approximately 4-5 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of the bread and the heat of your burner. It should be a nice golden brown on both sides as shown when it’s done. (see the pictures below)
10. The last step is next, and this is VERY important, do NOT skip it.
11. Immediately after taking the bread out of the pan, butter each piece of that french toast, and then slather it with syrup! Don’t be shy, this will be GOOD, VERY good!  And enjoy!

This is how it should look in the pan

Look at the browning on those babies!

Possible Flavor Additions: 

• A tablespoons or two of pumpkin puree
• Apple sauce, or cider
• Dollop of raspberry, blueberry, strawberry or blackberry jam between the layers, or even try it in the batter
• Whipped cream topping
• Caramel drizzle
• Sauteed bananas and brown sugar
• A dollop of lemon curd
• Sliced fruit
• Candied bacon
• Virtually anything you can imagine! (I think another day I will delve into the world of savory french toast)