How to master the art of French Toast: recipe and tips

(read in Italian)

I love when I can manage to share a slow breakfast with my better half and a warm French toast is one of those preparations that we both like and never disappoints. If you are always on the hunt for some new flavors to bring on your table or if you want to master the art of French toast, keep reading ’cause here you’ll find some of the best tips I’ve learned during the years and my recipe to help you make a delicious breakfast in a matter of minutes.

Below you’ll find my favorite recipe for French toast: there are many variations of this preparation, some add butter, cream, sugar, or flour into the batter. I try to keep the things as much simple as possible, playing with spices and choosing good quality bread.

Let’s start with some tips: I’ve decided to cover the most common cooking issues related to this recipe. If you have other questions about it, feel free to get in touch on my Instagram page and I’ll be happy to help you.

1. WHICH BREAD SHOULD I CHOOSE?

Stale bread works definitely better than the fresh one but, especially if you are using challah or brioche bread, you can decide to go for it even if it has been baked recently. Using bread made with wholegrain flour will increase the nutritional content of your breakfast (especially in terms of fibre) and the final result has a more distinctive nutty flavor. You can adapt the other ingredients necessary to make your French toast based on the kind of bread available (be AWARE of its taste, consistency, and flavor – KNOW YOUR INGREDIENTS). My favorite options are:

• sourdough bread (but I’m not a huge fan of rye sourdough bread for French toast)
• brioche bread*
• stale croissants
• challah*

*obviously your brioche bread, croissants, or challah can be made with a sourdough starter (even better!)

2. WHY MY FRENCH TOAST TURNS OUT SOGGY?

You want to find a good balance when you soak the bread into your liquid mix in order to get that unique soft center:

• if you just opt for a quick dip without pressing the bread into the liquid, the classic flavor of French toast will simply be the cover for a regular slice of warm bread. I also find the flavor of eggs to be way too strong if you do this mistake
• if you soak the bread in the liquid for too long, you may end up with a soggy result

3. CAN I MAKE A DAIRY OR EGG-FREE FRENCH TOAST?

Absolutely. You can swap the milk with your favorite plant-based drink (those made with almonds, cashews, or hazelnuts work really well). I prefer using a homemade nut drink more concentrated than usual, to get a more flavorful result.

4. SHOULD I USE ONLY YOLKS?

Technically, this choice is up to you. I use whole eggs because it’s way more practical and to me, it makes sense eating the entire eggs with all its nutrients, instead of separating whites and yolks. Be sure to beat the eggs really well, to avoid finding random big pieces of whites on your French toast.

5. WHY MY FRENCH TOAST BURNS EASILY? WHY MY TOAST STICKS TO THE PAN?

It may take a bit of practice, but you’ll get there! Preheat your pan (exactly how you would do for pancakes), use a bit of ghee or olive oil just to ensure your toast won’t stick to the pan and opt for a good quality non-stick pan. Cook your French toast on medium heat to get a crispy outside and a soft inside.

6. WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I HAVE SOME LEFTOVER EGG MIX?

Use it to make a small omelette, or roll some meatballs or veggie meatballs in it (followed by a generous amount of bread crumbs). Get creative and always do your best to reduce food waste!

EASY FRENCH TOAST RECIPE

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 4-5 slices of your bread of choice (not too thin otherwise they will tend to break and/or burn easily)
• 1-2 whole eggs
• approx. 150 ml of milk
• 1-2 tsp of ghee, melted (measured solid)
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• a pinch of all spice
• a pinch of salt

Prepare the ingredients for your liquid mix: whisk them all together in a bowl (choose the size of the bowl based on the bread, otherwise you’ll have to find a second bowl/plate to dip the slices into the liquid). Preheat your pan and, when it will be almost ready, start soaking the bread into your liquid mix. Cook the French toast for 2-3 minutes on each side, flipping each slice once. Serve it warm along with your favorite toppings (here I have used strawberries, cacao nibs, and honey).

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