This is the best French toast recipe we have ever made!
French toast (or Pain Perdu as the French actually call it OR eggy bread as us Brits call it) has to be up there as one of the all time breakfast/brunch greats sitting alongside stacked pancakes and a hearty Full English. It’s traditionally made with stale bread which is soaked in a milk and egg mixture, then fried in butter to create a soft golden crust.
This particular recipe for French toast takes elements from the traditional recipe and takes it to a new level. The milk is replaced with double cream, whole eggs are replaced by egg yolks and cook once and flip technique is replaced with a two stage caramelisation process. It’s the ultimate version of an ultimate brunch dish.
How do you Make the Best Ever French Toast?
Well it’s really quite simple. It’s a three stage process to get these just right, and when you nail the recipe you’ll never go back to making French Toast any other way.
Stage 1
The first stage is to combine the wet ingredients with the spices using a whisk:
- Egg Yolks
- Cream
- Cinnamon
- Vanilla
- Granulated sugar
Combine these well and make sure the cinnamon is broken up with no remaining lumps.
Stage 2
Next is the dipping process. Firstly the bread needs to be sliced thick, and it’s best if you’re able to buy a loaf of Brioche bread. Brioche adds to the flavour but it’s also quite a light texture and very buttery, making this so decedent! Buying a loaf ensures you are able to cut inch thick slices, which prevents the bread from going too soggy. To get the coating just right follow these rules:
- Add the mixture from the bowl into a dish with a large flat surface area to ensure the bread can be laid flat.
- Soak on each side for at least 5 seconds to absorb the creamy mixture. Press down lightly to ensure a full even coverage of the bread.
- Use a wire rack to store them whilst you make the rest. Pop a piece of kitchen roll underneath the wire rack to catch excess cream and help with the clear up.
Stage 3
Last up is the cooking process. It’s imperative the heat in the pan is not too high, otherwise the creamy mixture will start to burn and the brioche too. Be a little patient and have the heat on a medium to low setting, this way it cooks slower with less chance of burning and ruining your masterpiece. This recipe really stands out with the two stage cooking process – thanks for the tip The Food Charlton.
The first stage is to cook evenly on each side nice and slow until a light golden crust forms – we are not looking for dark brown bits yet. Once a side is cooked, flip and sprinkle with granulated sugar – the more you sprinkle the more it caramelises and the sweeter it will taste. Then flip onto the sugary side to caramelise slowly until dark brown crust appear on the edges, then flip onto the other side and repeat.
Step by Step Instructions
Check out our video below soon for step by step instructions on how to get the perfect French Toast.
Topping Ideas
Sometimes you need just a little inspiration for topping ideas. You can really top these with anything you want, but here are a few ideas to get you rolling:
- Salted butter and maple syrup – simple and effective, the salty sweet has a great balance.
- Crispy streaky bacon and maple syrup – takin the salty sweet to a new level.
- Ice cream – Dessert for breakfast? Well, go on then! Why not!
- Thick Greek yoghurt, frozen berries and maple syrup – A little healthier souding, but the creamy yoghurt, tangy fruit and sweet syrup provide excellent balance to the rich toast.
- Peanut butter, Banana and Honey – Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
- Clotted Cream and Strawberry Jam – Typically found on English Scones, this rich and creamy topping is great with the rich french toast. Like, really great.
We hope these topping ideas have given you some inspiration to make your very own version of the Best Ever French Toast! Please tag us in you pictures @forkandtwist as we love to see what you guys are making.
If you’re looking for more breakfast ideas do check out one of our favourites: Creamy Scrambled Eggs
Best Ever French Toast
Equipment
- Frying Pan
- Mixing Bowl
- Whisk
- Spatula
Ingredients
- 1 Loaf Brioche Bread Unsliced if possible
- 3 Egg yolks
- 125 ml Double cream
- 1 tsp Cinnamon powder
- 3 tsp Granulated sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla bean paste or Vanilla pod
- 1 pinch Maldon salt
- Butter and oil for frying 70/30 mix of butter to oil
Instructions
Preparation
- Slice the briocje bread into 1 inch thick slices
- In a mixing bowl combine the egg yolks, cream, 2tsp sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and salt. whisk well until fully combined
- Pour the creamy mixute onto a plate or a deep sided flat bottomed dish
- Place one slice of bread face down into the mixture and let sit for 5 seconds, ensure all the area is covered in mixture then flip to the dry side. Let sit for 5 seconds and ensure it is fully covered. Place on a wire rack or clean dish and repeat for the rest of your slices.
Cooking
- Get a frying pan on a medium heat and let ti come to temperature for a minute.
- Add a 70/30 mix of butter to oil.
- Place 2-3 pieces of bread into the hot buttery oil and cook on a light medium heat until one side is becoming golden but not burnt.
- Flip each slice and sprinkle the freshly cooked side with some granulated sugar. Let them cook until golden but not burnt.
- Flip these onto the sugared side and cook for a futher minute or two until the side is carmelised and dark but not burnt. Flip and repeat for the next side.
Serving
- Serve onto a plate piled two or three slices high topped with your favourite toppings. Yoghurt, frozen berries and good maple syrup is our ultimate fave!
Notes
- Don't cook the toasts on too much of a high heat. Brioche is a sugary bread and burns easy. Cook on a medium/low and wait a bit longer to prevent burning.
- Cook each side twice. The first cook should generate a light golden crust. The second cook with sugar should deepen the colour to a dark brown and have crispy edges. The sugar should be caramelised.
- Thicker bread is best. Prevents the middle from getting soggy. Try and buy a full loaf of Brioche instead of sliced bread. Sainsburys (UK) certainly sell it as of January 2021.
- Top with whatever you like. We find the cooling yoghurt, tangy frozen berries and sweet maple syrup to balance out the rich bread perfectly.
