Easy French Toast Recipe

Classic Recipe for French Toast

French toast is one of my family’s favorites to make on the weekend. Sometimes we’ll even make breakfast for dinner and add some bacon, hash browns and scrambled eggs to serve along side it. Everyone eats it right up!

I’ve perfected the recipe over the years and love the ratio of ingredients used. If you follow my tips below, you can say goodbye to soggy French toast for good! It turns out perfectly crispy and delicious every time. Trust me, this is the best French toast recipe I have every made.

Why the Recipe Works

• Fast. I can have breakfast on the table within 15 minutes and it looks like it took a great deal more time.
• Easy. It only requires blending, dipping, and frying to make a batch of this family favorite.
• Crowd pleaser. Everyone loves this French toast recipe. It is so easy to tailor to whatever you like and you can serve it with a variety of toppings so it never gets boring.

Recipe Ingredients

Simple pantry staples come together to create a breakfast the whole family will love.

Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements below.

• Thick bread: I have found when using thinner breads that they don’t hold together as well once soaked in custard. See my notes below on the different types of bread to use. I prefer brioche.
• Milk: This is necessary to give the custard its smooth and creamy texture.
• Flour: Just a little bit to help bind everything together.
• Eggs: You need the eggs to make a proper custard, which will give the French toast its golden brown exterior.
• Brown sugar: I love to use light brown sugar to add just a little bit of sweetness.
• Vanilla extract: Use a high-quality one to add the traditional flavor.
• Cinnamon: Is it French toast without cinnamon? I think not.

How to Make the Best French Toast

It’s as easy as following 1, 2, 3 steps to make a hearty and delightful breakfast.

• Blend the custard. Blend the milk, flour, eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt until smooth. Transfer to a shallow bowl.
• Cook. Preheat a griddle to 350°F or a skillet over medium-high heat. Grease with butter. Dip the bread into the custard and flip to evenly coat. Place on the griddle and cook until lightly golden brown.
• Serve immediately. This recipe tastes best served hot off the griddle so that it keeps it crispy texture. If you’re serving a crowd, you can keep it warm in the oven by following the instructions below.

Favorite Toppings

Whether you keep it simple with powdered sugar and maple syrup or go gourmet with a homemade strawberry sauce and whipped cream, this easy French toast recipe tastes delicious no matter how you dress it up.

• Syrup (such as maple syrup, cinnamon pancake syrup or buttermilk syrup)
• Fresh berries or fruit (I love strawberries or raspberries)
• Powdered sugar
• Strawberry sauce or strawberry jam
• Jelly
• Blueberry sauce
• Caramel
• Cinnamon sugar
• Chocolate chips
• Caramelized bananas
• Chopped nuts
• Cinnamon butter
• Peanut Butter
• Nutella
• Whipped cream

Best Bread for French Toast

The perfect French toast really starts with the bread. If you use a sandwich bread, you definitely wont get the same flavor. Below are my favorite breads to use.

• Brioche – I love using brioche because it is thick and soft. It also holds the shape very well and doesn’t get soggy.
• Challah – This is another great option and gives more of a buttery flavor. It will hold it’s shape while staying soft inside.
• French bread – Make French bread French toast by using day old French bread.
• Sourdough bread – The tartness in this bread gives a nice flavor.
• Texas toast – These thick slices of bread make a nice base.

Soaking Bread Overnight

If you’re planning on making this recipe the day before and soaking the bread overnight, I’d recommend using bread that’s thicker and hard so that it doesn’t get too soggy when sitting in the fridge. Bread that’s a few days old works great for this.

1. Place the bread pieces in a large dish, then pour egg mixture over top (make sure to evenly coat).
2. Cover the dish with lid or plastic wrap and stick in the fridge overnight.
3. Then warm on buttered skillet the next day.

Variations

This french toast recipe is a favorite, but if you want to add some variety for special occasions like a birthday, Mother’s Day or a holiday brunch these really amp up the flavor!

• Decadent: Replace 1/2 the milk with heavy cream to make this recipe for French toast even more rich and luxurious.
• Peach: Top with my baked peaches with cinnamon sugar for a seasonal treat.
• Cinnamon apple: Replace cinnamon with apple pie spice and top with my favorite apple filling from my apple crepes.
• Pumpkin pie spice: Use my pumpkin pie spice to replace the cinnamon for a fall inspired treat.
• Gingerbread: Instead of cinnamon, use 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground cloves and 1/8 teaspoon of ground ginger. You may also love this eggnog French toast.

Freeze French Toast

How to freeze: Place cooked French toast in single layer on a baking sheet. Freeze 30 minutes, or until firm. Transfer slices to a freezer-safe bag and freeze up to 3 months.

Reheat French toast from frozen: Place frozen slices in a single layer on a baking sheet and cover with foil. Bake in 350ºF oven for 10 minutes, or until warmed through. You can also pop slices in the toaster.