A couple of weeks ago, I made challah in hopes of making challah French toast. The yeast I had in my fridge expired, but I tried it anyway and the bread was a disaster. I finally went out and bought some more yeast and tried again. Success! The first loaf was a little brown, but the second loaf was perfect. Since Miles had a few friends over, I tried making French toast again.
I was actually very nervous about the entire process. I loved French toast as a kid, but after going to one too many restaurants that over soak their bread (to me), I could never tell if the bread was undercooked or just moist. I should tell you that I don’t eat eggs, so anything that’s too custard-like grosses me out!
I sliced the entire loaf, whipped up the batter and started my soak. I know most recipes tell you to soak the bread for about 10 minutes per side, or even overnight. Yuck! I’m not making bread pudding. I’m looking for a nice soft, yet light and fluffy bread with a hint of cinnamon. So I soaked my bread for maybe 10 seconds (I didn’t count if off, but I did make sure that the bread absorbed the custard) and cooked it slow and low on the griddle. The boys loved it! I loved it! The bread was everything that I hoped and it wasn’t too eggy. I was a bit nervous with the first few slices because I could see the egg frying on the edges of the bread and I thought it might taste like omelet bread. But it didn’t, it was great. It’s so nice to have French toast back in rotation again.
Challah French Toast
- 5 large eggs
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- ¾ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- pinch of kosher salt
- 1 loaf of challah cut into 1-inch thick slices
- butter
- Pure maple syrup (, jam, or powdered sugar (for serving))
- Preheat oven to 250°. Lightly beat eggs, cream, milk, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and salt in a large shallow baking dish (a lasagna pan is perfect). Add bread, turn to coat, then press down gently on bread until you feel it start to soak up custard mixture.
- Flip bread and soak on second side, pressing down gently from time to time, until bread is saturated but not soggy.
- Heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat. When foaming subsides, carefully lift 3 slices of bread from custard, letting excess drip back into dish, and cook in skillet until golden brown and center of toast springs back when pressed, about 2 – 3 minutes per side. Transfer toast to a wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet and keep warm in oven while you cook remaining slices of bread with more butter.
- Serve French toast with butter, maple syrup, jam, and/or powdered sugar.
Adapted from bon appetit
I had challah french toast at Tupelo Honey cafe and it was so so so so amazing!!! I am very happy to find this recipe 🙂