By ShowMeStepByStepPublished Updated
Based on a video by Preppy Kitchen.
French toast is one of those breakfasts that's easy to mess up. Soggy in the middle, pale on the outside, or worse, bone dry. Most of those problems come from skipping two things: the right bread and a hot pan with butter. Get those right and the rest is just dipping and flipping.
Serve hot off the pan with maple syrup, fresh berries, or a dollop of homemade whipped cream for a brunch finish.
Crack four eggs into a large mixing bowl. Room-temperature eggs whip up a little smoother, but cold eggs straight from the fridge work fine too. The bowl needs to be wide enough to dip a slice of bread, so go bigger than you think.
Pour in 3/4 cup whole milk, 2 tablespoons sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 tablespoon vanilla, and a pinch of salt. You're building a custard - sweet but not cloying, with the cinnamon and vanilla doing the heavy lifting on flavor.
Tip
Want a richer version? Sub the milk for half-and-half or heavy cream. Or add a tablespoon of orange zest or brandy to the custard.
Whisk the mixture for about 30 seconds. You want every streak of egg white broken up and the cinnamon dispersed. The finished custard should look uniformly pale yellow with no clumps.
Tip
Make this the night before, cover, and stick it in the fridge. In the morning you just dip and cook.
Turn the oven on to 200°F and put a sheet pan with a wire rack inside. As you finish each batch of French toast, you'll move it here so it stays warm and crisp while you cook the rest. Don't leave anything in there longer than 30 minutes or it'll dry out.
Set a large nonstick or cast iron pan over medium heat. Once it's hot, drop in 1 to 2 tablespoons of butter and let it melt and foam. Butter is what gives French toast that deep golden crust - don't substitute oil unless you absolutely need to.
Tip
If your stove runs hot and butter scorches, mix in a teaspoon of neutral oil with the butter. The oil raises the smoke point.
Take a thick-cut slice of brioche, challah, milk bread, or sourdough and lay it in the custard. A few seconds per side is plenty if you want a clean texture; soak it longer (5 seconds per side) for a more custardy middle. Don't let the bread sit and fall apart.
Lay the soaked bread into the foaming butter. Cook about 2 minutes on the first side. When the bottom is deep golden brown, flip and cook the other side. The first batch always cooks the darkest because the pan is just settling into temp - don't sweat it.
Move each finished slice to the wire rack in the warm oven. Add another tablespoon of butter to the pan and keep cooking the rest of the bread the same way. The rack lets air circulate underneath so the bottom stays crisp instead of going soggy.
Serve with maple syrup, powdered sugar, fresh berries, or all three.
Tip
Leftovers freeze well. Stack between sheets of parchment in a zip bag, freeze, then thaw and reheat in the air fryer or oven for 5 minutes when you want them again.
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Quick reference
5 questions, answers, and one-line explanations. Tap to expand.
1.What flavoring does the heavy lifting in this French toast custard?
Answer: Cinnamon and vanilla
The custard is mostly egg and milk; cinnamon and vanilla are what give it that classic French toast flavor.
2.Why set the oven to 200 degrees and put a wire rack inside?
Answer: To hold finished slices warm and crisp while you cook more
A low oven with a wire rack keeps cooked slices crisp without going soggy from trapped steam.
3.Why use butter rather than oil in the pan?
Answer: Butter is what gives French toast its deep golden crust
Butter is responsible for the golden brown crust and toasty flavor. Oil works in a pinch but the result is paler.
4.What happens if you soak the bread in the custard for too long?
Answer: The bread falls apart
A few seconds per side is enough. Long soaks break the bread structure and you end up with mush in the pan.
5.Why does this recipe call for thick-cut brioche, challah, milk bread, or sourdough?
Answer: They are rich and sturdy enough to survive a custard soak
Rich, sturdy bread soaks up custard without disintegrating, which is exactly what French toast needs.
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