French Toast


Is there nothing better than French toast for Sunday breakfast? Thick slices of bread, soaked in a mixture of beaten eggs with milk and cinnamon, toasted in a frying pan, and served with butter and maple syrup, this has to be one of our favorite breakfast dishes. It works best with several day old French or Italian loaf bread, thickly sliced. Fresh bread, or bread that has been sliced too thin tends to get mushy and fall apart when soaked in the egg milk mixture. Many people serve with powdered sugar; I believe there is enough sugar in the maple syrup, so I don’t add more. One of my favorite variations, the idea for which I picked up fromThe Silver Palate Cookbook 20 some odd years ago, is to add some orange zest, and a bit of Triple Sec orange liqueur to the batter for extra zing.

French Toast Recipe

  • Prep time: 5 minutes
  • Cook time: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 eggs
  • 2/3 cup milk
  • 2 teaspoons of cinnamon
  • 8 thick slices of 2-day-old bread, better if slightly stale
  • Butter
  • Maple syrup
Optional
  • 2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
  • 1/4 cup Triple Sec
  • Fresh berries

METHOD

1 Beat eggs, milk, and cinnamon together. If using, add orange zest and/or Triple Sec. Whisk until well blended. Pour into a shallow bowl.
2 Dip each slice of bread into the egg mixture, allowing bread to soak up some of the mixture. Melt some butter (or use vegetable oil) over a large skillet on medium high heat. Add as many slices of bread onto the skillet as will fit at a time. Fry until brown on both sides, flipping the bread when necessary.
3 Serve hot with butter, maple syrup, and if available, fresh berries.