The Weeknight Kitchen · Breakfast

French Toast

Name: French Toast
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 2 slices
Ingredients: 2 eggs; 120 ml whole milk; 5 ml vanilla extract; 3 g ground cinnamon; 1 g Diamond Crystal kosher salt; 4 slices bread, thick-cut and day-old preferred; 14 g unsalted butter; Maple syrup and powdered sugar, to serve

Custard-soaked bread, properly browned — the version worth making on a weekend morning.

20 min total

Spoon cost

Time ●○○○○ Anytime

Vegetarian

Slices2 slices per serving

Units

Ingredients

Day-old bread soaks better and holds up without going soggy — fresh bread can fall apart in the custard.

Method

Cook's notes

Bread type matters: brioche gives you a rich, almost custardy result. Challah is close behind. Regular sandwich bread works but can go soggy fast — don't soak it as long.

Cinnamon raisin bread shortcut: use it instead of plain bread and skip adding cinnamon separately — the flavor is already built in.

Don't soak too long. Fresh bread especially will start to disintegrate if left in the custard more than 30–45 seconds per side.

Medium heat, not high. High heat burns the outside before the custard in the center has set. If your pan smokes, it's too hot.

To keep batches warm: a 200°F oven on a wire rack over a baking sheet. Don't stack them — they'll steam and go soft.

Easier, if you like

Use cinnamon raisin bread — Pepperidge Farm or Sara Lee Cinnamon Swirl (bread aisle) — and skip the cinnamon in the custard: the flavor's already built in, and the sweetness means you need less maple syrup.

Vegetarian as written; dairy-free and gluten-free adaptable

For dairy-free: oat milk works well and is neutral in flavor. Avoid thin milks (rice milk) — the custard won't set as nicely.

For gluten-free: use GF bread. Canyon Bakehouse makes a thick-cut loaf that holds up well (bread aisle or frozen section). Day-old still preferred.