French Toast

This French Toast is simple and so delicious. My secret to making it extra yummy is to cook it slowly which allows the custard time to puff up and make the bread light and airy.

There are certain foods that make a Sunday morning seem like a special occasion.  A stack of fluffy buttermilk pancakes, warm donuts, eggs Benedict with hollandaise sauce, and French toast come to mind. I’ve never been nor do I aspire to be a morning person, but any of these dishes can go a long way towards making me morning tolerant.   

French toast is the easiest of these dishes for me to make.  I have made it enough times that I no longer need a recipe. I know that I need two eggs, a teaspoon of sugar, and a quarter cup each of milk and heavy cream with a pinch of salt and a splash of vanilla for each serving. No matter how many people are waiting at the breakfast table, I can easily scale the proportions up or down without much effort.

This recipe is highly adaptable. If I feel like it, I might add a bit of cinnamon to the custard, if I want a more caramelized appearance and flavor, I’ll use brown sugar instead of granulated sugar or perhaps a combination of the two.  If I don’t have enough heavy cream, I’ll make up the difference with more whole milk or a bit of half and half. No matter how I adjust the custard, it’s always delicious.

This recipe is well suited for me in the morning because it requires no prep work and only results in one bowl and a single pan to clean up. Those factors all go a long way towards making this recipe perfect for a non-morning person like me.  

You don’t need to have artisan quality bread to make delicious French toast. If you do, fantastic, but if you don’t, I sure hope that you’ll make yourself French toast anyway. I’ve used all sorts of bread for this recipe from homemade brioche, chocolate chip brioche, store bought Texas toast, and even plain old white sandwich bread. If the custard is rich enough and the slices are browned gently to allow the bread to caramelize without burning, they are all scrumptious.

I like to brown my French toast slowly. I find that it creates a slice with a delightfully caramel brown exterior and soft, gently set interior.  The lower heat helps prevent over browning the bread and is a bit more forgiving if I leave a slice on the skillet an extra minute or two while I enjoy a sip of coffee.  It requires a bit of patience to cook French toast this way, but your patience will be rewarded with each bite of deliciously caramelized and evenly cooked French toast. I promise. 

This French toast is delicious no matter how you decide to dress it up on your plate. If we have fresh berries from the raspberry patch, I’ll top it with whipped cream and berries. If not, I’ll warm up New Hampshire maple syrup and make sure not to waste a drop of it when I have the last bite of toast to chase it around my plate.   

Sure, I could make a fancier version of French toast if I wanted to complicate matters, but I don’t want to. I purposely want this recipe to be simple so that I can make it easily and enjoy the making as much as sitting down at our kitchen table to enjoy it with a cup of coffee and the morning paper. 

I hope that you’ll make time in your day to make this French toast recipe for breakfast, brunch, or dinner. Whether you’re making it for yourself or your whole family, slow down and enjoy the process of making it as much as you enjoy that delicious first bite.  

The pan and spatula you use when making pancakes would be a good choice when making this recipe. I like to use my cast iron griddle or griddle pan for this recipe. My OXO thin metal spatula easily slides underneath the slices without tearing the bread.

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French Toast

Jennifer from 1840 Farm

This recipe is easy to scale based on how many servings you wish to make. I make two slices of bread for each serving. I have made a single serving for myself using a single egg and you could easily scale it up to a dozen eggs to serve a crowd gathered at your table. I am usually making this recipe for four people, so this recipe is written for four servings or eight slices of bread.

This recipe is easy to adapt to your preferences. Instead of granulated sugar, you can use brown sugar or honey if you prefer. I like to combine equal parts of whole milk and heavy cream, but you can adjust the ratio or use what you have on hand.

I cook one serving at a time in a skillet or more if I have set up my cast iron griddle. If you need to hold some of the servings to keep them warm while you finish your batch, the cooked slices can be placed on a wire cooling rack set on a sheet pan in an oven held at 200 – 225 degrees.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Servings: 4 people

Author: Jennifer from 1840 Farm

Equipment

• Cast Iron Griddle
• Cast Iron Griddle Pan
• Metal Spatula

Ingredients

• 4 large eggs
• 4 teaspoons sugar
• 4 ounces heavy cream
• 4 ounces whole milk
• Pinch of salt
• splash vanilla extract
• 8 slices bread
• Butter for cooking and serving
• Maple syrup for serving
• Powdered sugar for serving

Instructions

• Place a griddle pan or skillet over low heat while you prepare the custard.
• Combine the eggs, sugar, heavy cream, milk, salt, and vanilla in a wide bowl. I like to use my Pyrex casserole dish because it is wide enough for two slices of bread at a time. Whisk until smooth.
• Add a small pat of butter to the warm skillet or griddle. Allow the butter to melt and begin to bubble.
• Add two slices of bread to the bowl with the custard. Turn the bread gently to expose both sides to the custard. Do not soak the bread in the custard. You want the bread to absorb a bit of the custard without becoming soggy and falling apart. A few seconds on each side will be enough time.
• Carefully lift a slice of bread from the custard, allowing any excess to drip back into the bowl and transfer to the warm skillet. Repeat with the other slice of bread.

  Increase the heat to medium-low and cook for 3 to 5 minutes before gently lifting the edge of each slice to check for browning. You want the slices to develop a golden-brown hue without burning. The amount of time required will vary based on how large your cooking surface is and how many slices you are cooking at a time. Be patient. Cooking the slices slowly will create a caramelized exterior and soft interior. The few extra minutes will be worth it.
• When the slices are golden brown and beginning to firm up just a bit in the center, gently flip each slice. Add a little more butter if needed.
• Continue cooking the slices over low heat, adjusting as needed to brown gently. If you like the center fully cooked, you can test each slice by gently pressing the center of the bread with your finger. If the custard is fully cooked, the slice should spring back gently after pressing it.

  When both sides are golden brown and the center has set to your liking, the toast can be transferred to a warm oven for holding or to a plate for serving immediately.
• Serve topped with maple syrup, sifted powdered sugar, or whipped cream with fresh berries.

Tried this recipe?Mention @1840Farm or tag #1840FarmFood! We can’t wait to see what you make!